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Contact: Kevin Zeise

March 2, 2004

CLEVELAND - The Cleveland State wrestling team will head to Bloomsburg, Pa., this week to compete in the Eastern Wrestling League Championships. The top three finishers in each weight class and seven wild-cards will earn a berth in the NCAA Championships, which will be held on March 18-20 in St. Louis, Mo. An audio broadcast of the EWL Championship finals will be available on the Internet at http://media.yahoo.com/ncaa/sp/blo/#wre.

About the Vikings: Cleveland State (9-9, 3-4 EWL) enters the championships after winning two of its last three dual matches, defeating league rivals Virginia Tech and Clarion before falling to West Virginia in the season finale. Senior Russ Davie (Perrysburg, Ohio) leads the Vikings with a 22-5 mark on the season, while fellow senior Matt DePolo (Bellevue, Ohio) has a team-high 27 wins on the year.

CSU Against The Field: The Vikings are 3-4 this season against EWL teams in dual match competition, holding wins over Lock Haven, Virginia Tech and Clarion. The four league losses have come to Bloomsburg, Pittsburgh, Edinboro and West Virginia. Not included in that mark is a 21-16 loss to West Virginia at the NWCA National Duals on Jan. 17 in the CSU Convocation Center.

Vikings Against The Field, Part II: If the regular season records are any indication, the Vikings could have a very successful weekend at the EWL Championships on Saturday and Sunday. Three Vikings, seniors Anthony Coleman (Bellevue, Ohio) and Jason Effner (Garfield Heights, Ohio) and junior Joe Phillips (Maple Heights, Ohio) have a 5-2 mark against EWL competition, while Russ Davie is unbeaten in league matches at 7-0. Out of the 10 weight classes, only two wrestlers have a losing mark against league foes this season, with one, senior Matt DePolo, still leading the team with 27 wins on the year.

Vikings In Tournament History: In what is traditionally one of the most competitive league championship tournaments in the nation, the Vikings have steadily moved up in the league standings since the arrival of Jack Effner at Cleveland State. Last year, the Vikings placed third, their highest finish since the 1986-87 team finished second. In between those finishes were 10 straight seventh-place showings before finishing fifth in 2001-02. The Vikings last won the EWL tournament title in 1978-79, their second season in the league, and have had a total of 22 individual league champions, including two last year in Rocco Mansueto (125) and Gerald Harris (184) In all, Cleveland State has sent 100 wrestlers to the NCAA Championships over the last 39 years.

Head Coach Jack Effner: In his sixth season as head coach at Cleveland State, Jack Effner is well on his way to bringing the Viking wrestling program back to the being among the nation's elite. He has a record of 47-52-3 while at Cleveland State, and an overall mark of 134-94-8 including the nine seasons he spent at Army before coming to Cleveland State. Effner guided the Vikings to a 13-6 mark in 2002-03, the most wins since the 1978-79 season, and took a school-record-tying six wrestlers to the NCAA Championships. Effner is assisted by Brian Keck, Gerald Harris and Phil Mansueto.

Hitting His Stride: Senior Russ Davie appears to be peaking at the right time of the season. While he has been one of the most consistent performers for Jack Effner's crew, the Perrysburg native has picked up 11 wins in his last 13 matches, including four pins. He has also tied the CSU record for dual meet pins in a season with six, joining Tony DiGiovanni as the only two Viking wrestlers to accomplish that feat. Davie also has 28 pins in his career, three shy of the career mark set by John Velimesis from 1982-85.

Cleveland State's Probable Starters

Senior Farewell: The five Viking wrestlers on the roster had their final appearance at Woodling Gymnasium on Feb. 22 in the 27-12 loss to West Virginia, with seniors Russ Davie and Derek Pace (South Euclid, Ohio/Brush) picking up wins. Combined, the five seniors have a total of 304 wins and three NCAA Championships appearances contributed to the Viking program.

Coleman's Roller Coaster: Prior to the season, senior Anthony Coleman (Bellevue, Ohio), a returning NCAA qualifier at 149, was asked to move to down to 141. The senior did so, and opened the season with a 12-1 mark, before beginning to struggle, going through a stretch of eight losses in 10 matches. Coleman kept fighting, and has won four of his last five matches, with the only blemish being a controversial sudden victory loss in the final dual match of the season against West Virginia.

Up Next: The Vikings who qualify for the NCAA Championships will compete against the nation's best on March 18-20 in St. Louis, Mo.