CLEVELAND, Ohio – After competing in two open events on the first two weekends of the season, the Cleveland State University wrestling team will contest its first duals of the 2017-18 campaign this Tuesday, Nov. 21, as the Vikings compete in the second annual Thanksgiving Throwdown.
CSU will face No. 2 Ohio State along with Kent State in a continuous tri-dual format. After the Golden Flashes hosted the first iteration of the event last year, the Buckeyes are hosting this year's Throwdown.
There will be three rounds of matches Tuesday evening, as action takes place on two mats simultaneously. A full schedule of bouts, which get underway at 7:00 p.m., can be viewed by clicking here. Live video of the event will be available through the Big Ten's BTN Plus platform ($) and can be viewed by clicking here.
Cleveland State has competed in a pair of opens to begin the season, but each of its next four dates of competition, beginning Tuesday, will be of the dual variety. CSU began its season at the Clarion Open Nov. 5 with redshirt senior Nick Corba's third-place finish at 184 pounds highlighting the Viking contingent. Junior John Vaughn also won four matches at the Clarion Open at 165 pounds.
Last time out at the EMU Open, eight Vikings placed among the top six in their weight class. Freshman John Kelbly won the 197-pound Freshman/Sophomore title and collected three bonus-point wins at the event. Redshirt sophomore Caleb Stockmaster (174) and redshirt freshman Ryan Ford (Freshman/Sophomore 149) both posted runner-up finishes at the event for CSU.
Corba owns a 9-2 record on the season and remains among the top 20 by the majority of ranking outlets. He owns six bonus-point wins on the season, including three pins.
Redshirt senior Gabe Stark owns a 7-3 record for CSU at 174 pounds while true freshman Georgio Poullas is 6-3 at 157 pounds.
Cleveland State is 13-23-2 all-time against Ohio State. This will be third straight season the programs have met after they did not meet over the previous five seasons. However, this is the first time that CSU has had a dual at Ohio State since early in the 2009-10 season. Cleveland State's last win in the series came in 2006.
CSU is 8-19-1 all-time against the Golden Flashes. The teams have met in 18 of the past 21 years, but the three seasons they did not face off against one other in that stretch all fell within the past four seasons.
Ohio State, ranked among the top two teams nationally in nearly every major poll, has competed on two dates thus far. Seven Buckeyes won titles at the Princeton Open to begin the season. OSU then opened dual action by claiming a 31-12 victory over then No. 11 Arizona State. Five Buckeyes that earned All-America honors last year are listed among the OSU probable lineup.
Kent State is off to a 5-0 start in dual action, including a win over Atlantic Coast Conference foe Virginia in its most recent dual action. The Golden Flashes competed at the Navy Classic this past weekend where four KSU athletes finished among the top five. Junior Casey Sparkman, who is 13-4 on the season, finished fourth at 157 pounds.
CSU Projected Lineup
125 - Cameron Lathem
133 - Evan Cheek
141 - Sam Matzek OR Drew Fairbanks
149 - Ryan Ford
157 - Georgio Poullas
165 - John Vaughn
174 - Gabe Stark
184 - Nick Corba OR Chris Morrow
197 - John Kelbly
285 - Collin Kelly
KSU Projected Lineup
125 - Will Bardezbain
133 - Anthony Tutolo
141 - Tim Rooney OR Chance Driscoll
149 - Nick Monico
157 - Casey Sparkman
165 - Isaac Bast
174 - Dylan Barreiro
184 - Colin McCracken OR Shane Mast
197 - Stephen Suglio OR Kyle Conel
285 - Devin Nye
OSU Projected Lineup
125 - Brakan Mead
133 - Luke Pletcher
141 - Clay Ragon OR Brendan Fitzgerald
149 - Ke-Shawn Hayes
157 - Micah Jordan
165 - Te'Shan Campbell
174 - Bo Jordan
184 - Myles Martin
197 - Kollin Moore
285 - Kyle Snyder OR Gary Traub OR Kevin Snyder
