Dec. 20, 2011
Contact: Tim Ertle
Follow CSU on TWITTER
Follow CSU Wrestling on TWITTER
CSU Athletics on YouTube
CLEVELAND STATE PROBABLES:
125 - Ben Willeford (So. - Baton Rouge, La.)
133 - Nick Flannery (So. - Framingham, Mass.)
141 - Josh Palivoda (Sr. - Raymond, Ohio)
149 - Mike Mencini (Jr. - Twinsburg, Ohio)
157 - Tanner Lemon (Fr. - Canton, Ohio)
165 - Corey Carlo (Jr. - Fairview Park, Ohio)
174 - Aric Thurn (Jr. - Clyde, Ohio)
184 - Corbin Boone (So. - Holt, Mich.)
197 - Nick Anthony (Jr. - Fairborn, Ohio)
HWT - Chris Weber (Jr. - New Berlin, Wis.)
SETTING THE SCENE: The Cleveland State wrestling team will compete as a team for the first time since the Dec. 11 loss to No. 9 Pitt and finish the calendar year with the Northern Illinois Quad Meet in DeKalb, Ill on Wednesday (Dec. 21). CSU will battle NAIA Cumberland (Tenn.) at 12:00 p.m., No. 21 Kent State at 2:00 p.m. and the host Huskies at 4:00 p.m. Live video (for a fee) and results for the matches against NIU will be available through NIUHuskies.com.
THE OPPONENTS: Cumberland is 0-4 on the year with three losses coming against teams ranked in the top-20 in the NAIA. NIU is 3-3 with losses to then-No. 21 Stanford, Indiana and Purdue. Kent State is 2-4, but don't let the record deceive you. The Golden Flashes have fallen to No. 6 Ohio State, No. 7 Illinois, No. 12 Missouri and No. 16 Nebraska. KSU has defeated Navy and No. 24 Edinboro.
LAST TIME ON THE MAT: The Vikings hosted the Cleveland State Open on Sunday (Dec. 18) - an event that brought over 250 student-athletes from 27 schools to Woodling Gymnasium. Ben Willeford won the 125 pound weight class with an unblemished 4-0 mark. Nick Flannery lost his first bout at 133 pounds but fought his way through the consolation bracket to place fourth. Josh Palivoda, 4-2 at 141 pounds, and Koort Leyrer, 3-2 at 165 pounds, both made it to the fifth/sixth place round in their respective weight classes.
TOUGH TESTS: All four Cleveland State losses have come against teams ranked in the NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll or the NWMA Mid-Major Poll. Boston and Old Dominion, who the Vikings lost to at the Wrestle for a Cure Duals on Nov. 12, are ranked 16th and 18th, respectively, in the NWMA Mid-Major Poll. Eastern Michigan is No. 19 in the mid-major poll and Pittsburgh is ranked No. 9 in the most recent NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll. The four teams that have defeated CSU have a combined record of 18-11 in duals, and seven of those 11 losses were against ranked teams.
REGIONAL RESPECT: Three Vikings received recognition in the Dec. 13 Atlantic Region rankings conducted by Allen Brown, editor of WrestlingReport.com. Junior Corey Carlo was slotted 19th at 165 pounds, while Nick Flannery (133) and Josh Palivoda (141) both earned honorable mention status.
WILLEFORD WINS WEEKLY AWARD: Sophomore Ben Willeford (125) was named the Eastern Wrestling League's 'Wrestler of the Week' after his title at the CSU Open. His 4-0 run - which included his second pin of the season - improved his record this season to 8-6.
PIN TOTAL ON PACE TO FALL: During the 2010-11 season, the Vikings totaled 21 pins. With six pins at the CSU Open, the Vikings have equaled that total with 21 pins as a team. Last year, Lawrence Cavello and Rob Michaels finished with a team-best four wins via fall while Nick Flannery (133) already has five pins this season. No Viking has had more than five pins in a season since Alek Hughes recorded eight falls in 2007-08.
The head coach: Ben Stehura (Lock Haven '00)
At Cleveland State: 11-47 (four years) ... Overall: 37-97-1 (eight years)
THE STEHURA FILE: Ben Stehura is in his fourth season as the head coach of the Viking wrestling program, and has recruited a talented group of young wrestlers that expect to make noise in the Eastern Wrestling League this year. Stehura has a history of developing young talent, as he has coached seven NCAA qualifiers, three NCAA All-Americans and two Olympic alternates over the past seven years. Stehura joined CSU in 2008 after building a successful program at Limestone in Gaffney, S.C. The first head coach in Limestone's history, Stehura took the team from three wins his first year to 13 in 2007-2008. Stehura will use his experience with coaching a young program to lead the Vikings during the 2011-12 season, working to improve in EWL competition and continuing the history and tradition of CSU wrestling.
UP NEXT: The Vikings will compete in the 2012 Southern Scuffle, hosted at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga's McKenzie Arena. The two-day event begins on Sunday, Jan. 1. Wrestling begins at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday and 9:00 a.m. on Monday (Jan. 2) with finals tentatively slated to begin at 6:00 p.m. General admission tickets are $15 and are available online at TheSouthernScuffle.com.
