Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Open Home Schedule Tomorrow, Everything You Need To Know:
11/16/2019 5:22:00 PM | Wrestling
By Christopher Miller
NUSports.com contributor
EVANSTON, Ill. – With the first home dual of the 2019-20 Northwestern wrestling season slated to get underway on Sunday, November 17, here is everything you need to know to get yourself ready for the upcoming season.
Matt Storniolo enters his fourth seasons as the Wildcats head coach. In total, this marks Storniolo's 11th season on the Northwestern coaching staff. Prior to being elevated to head coach in March of 2016, Storniolo served one season as the squad's interim head coach and six seasons as an assistant coach. Storniolo will be assisted by Associate Head Coach Andrew Howe and Assistant Coach Jimmy Kennedy, who was promoted to assistant coach in April after spending the 2018-19 season as the Wildcats' volunteer assistant coach.
"This year you will see the best team Northwestern Wrestling has put on the mat under this regime," Storniolo says ahead of the Wildcats' home opener. "We now have a great mix of seasoned veterans and talented new faces in the lineup. This is a team that can compete with anyone and I am excited to see what kind of damage we can do this season."
This season at Welsh-Ryan Arena, the Wildcats will host a slate that includes Big Ten Conference opponents Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue and Indiana, as well as non-conference visits from No. 14 Northern Iowa and North Dakota State in November.
PURCHASE YOUR 2019-20 SEASON TICKETS HERE
With another rigorous and challenging season of Big Ten action ahead Storniolo will look to his returning stars to lead the team. Those Wildcat stars include: 2019 All-Americans Sebastian Rivera (125lbs) and Ryan Deakin (157lbs), as well as 2019 Junior World Championships silver medalist Lucas Davison (197lbs).
Northwestern opened its 2019-20 campaign last weekend at Virginia Tech. Five Wildcats were victorious in their bouts agains the Hokies, with Rivera (133), Yahya Thomas (149) and No. 3 Deakin (157) all earning major decisions, while Tyler Morland (174) and Davison (197) each won decisions of their own. Check out last weekend's recap for additional details on the match.
Also noteworthy, the 57th Annual Ken Kraft Midlands championships, held at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, will take place December 29-30. The event is expected feature some of the highest-ranked wrestlers and teams in the nation, including Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Purdue and Wisconsin from the ultra-competitive Big Ten. For the first time ever, this year's event will be sponsored by the United States Marine Corps. Fans can purchase tickets to this year's Midlands' tournament here.
Additionally, the 'Cats will have marquee conference road matches against the four-time reigning national champion, Penn State, Ohio State and Rutgers, all of whom were Intermat top-10 placers last season.
TICKETS FOR SUNDAY'S MATCH VS. NORTHERN IOWA ARE STILL AVAILABLE
Rivera looks to improve upon a 2019 campaign that saw the New Jersey native win 30 contests on the year. The rising redshirt junior was crowned a Big Ten Champion at 125, defeating Spencer Lee of Iowa in the finals with a takedown in overtime. Rivera's victory over Lee was the second of the season, with the first coming in the finals of the Midlands Championships were Rivera bested Lee by a score of 7-3. At the NCAA Championships Rivera won five of six bouts to secure a career-best third-place finish. In the process Rivera eared two victories over Vito Arujau of Cornell who finished fourth. On the season, Rivera also earned victories over fellow All-Americans RayVon Foley (Michigan State), Ronnie Bresser (Oregon State) and Patrick Glory (Princeton).
Deakin hopes to follow up a redshirt sophomore season which saw career-best finishes at both the NCAA and Big Ten Championships. The Wildcat grappler finished sixth at the NCAA Championships and fifth at the Big Ten Championships, one spot higher than his finish in 2018. On the 2018-19 season, Deakin amassed 31 victories and emerged victorious in contests against Alec Pantaleo (Michigan), Kaleb Young (Iowa) and Larry Early (Old Dominion), all of whom finished 2019 as All-Americans at 157.
For Davison, expectations are high for the redshirt first-year. While wrestling unattached, the young Wildcat saw 12 wins to just four losses on the year. In doing so, Davison took first at the Lake Chance Open at 197 and third at the Midlands Championships. Internationally, Davison earned a silver medal at the UWW Junior World Wrestling Championships after winning three of his four matches at the international event in Estonia.
In addition to the 18 student-athletes who return to the Wildcat program in 2019, Northwestern will also welcome seven newcomers to Evanston for the 2019-20 season as Justin Benjamin (St. Charles, IL.), Chris Cannon (Oceanport, NJ), Trevor Chumbley (St. Charles, IL.), Ankhaa Enkhmandakh (Concord, CA) Troy Fisher (Garden Plains, KS), Jon Halvorsen (Park Ridge, Ill.), DJ Huff (Cleveland, OH), have all joined the Wildcats' wrestling program. The seven first-year grapplers is highlighted by Fisher's ranking as a top-50 talent in his class, according to FloWrestling.
The new 'Cats will bring an assortment of conference, state and national titles to Evanston as they join a squad currently ranked in the top-25 in the nation and coming off its best conference campaign since 2010-11.
••••••
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook, check us out on Instagram, visit our Social Media page and download our mobile app from the Apple Store and Google Play! To get involved with the #B1GCats, become a season-ticket holder or join the Wildcat Fund!
NUSports.com contributor
EVANSTON, Ill. – With the first home dual of the 2019-20 Northwestern wrestling season slated to get underway on Sunday, November 17, here is everything you need to know to get yourself ready for the upcoming season.
Matt Storniolo enters his fourth seasons as the Wildcats head coach. In total, this marks Storniolo's 11th season on the Northwestern coaching staff. Prior to being elevated to head coach in March of 2016, Storniolo served one season as the squad's interim head coach and six seasons as an assistant coach. Storniolo will be assisted by Associate Head Coach Andrew Howe and Assistant Coach Jimmy Kennedy, who was promoted to assistant coach in April after spending the 2018-19 season as the Wildcats' volunteer assistant coach.
"This year you will see the best team Northwestern Wrestling has put on the mat under this regime," Storniolo says ahead of the Wildcats' home opener. "We now have a great mix of seasoned veterans and talented new faces in the lineup. This is a team that can compete with anyone and I am excited to see what kind of damage we can do this season."
This season at Welsh-Ryan Arena, the Wildcats will host a slate that includes Big Ten Conference opponents Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue and Indiana, as well as non-conference visits from No. 14 Northern Iowa and North Dakota State in November.
PURCHASE YOUR 2019-20 SEASON TICKETS HERE
With another rigorous and challenging season of Big Ten action ahead Storniolo will look to his returning stars to lead the team. Those Wildcat stars include: 2019 All-Americans Sebastian Rivera (125lbs) and Ryan Deakin (157lbs), as well as 2019 Junior World Championships silver medalist Lucas Davison (197lbs).
Northwestern opened its 2019-20 campaign last weekend at Virginia Tech. Five Wildcats were victorious in their bouts agains the Hokies, with Rivera (133), Yahya Thomas (149) and No. 3 Deakin (157) all earning major decisions, while Tyler Morland (174) and Davison (197) each won decisions of their own. Check out last weekend's recap for additional details on the match.
Also noteworthy, the 57th Annual Ken Kraft Midlands championships, held at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, will take place December 29-30. The event is expected feature some of the highest-ranked wrestlers and teams in the nation, including Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Purdue and Wisconsin from the ultra-competitive Big Ten. For the first time ever, this year's event will be sponsored by the United States Marine Corps. Fans can purchase tickets to this year's Midlands' tournament here.
Additionally, the 'Cats will have marquee conference road matches against the four-time reigning national champion, Penn State, Ohio State and Rutgers, all of whom were Intermat top-10 placers last season.
TICKETS FOR SUNDAY'S MATCH VS. NORTHERN IOWA ARE STILL AVAILABLE
Rivera looks to improve upon a 2019 campaign that saw the New Jersey native win 30 contests on the year. The rising redshirt junior was crowned a Big Ten Champion at 125, defeating Spencer Lee of Iowa in the finals with a takedown in overtime. Rivera's victory over Lee was the second of the season, with the first coming in the finals of the Midlands Championships were Rivera bested Lee by a score of 7-3. At the NCAA Championships Rivera won five of six bouts to secure a career-best third-place finish. In the process Rivera eared two victories over Vito Arujau of Cornell who finished fourth. On the season, Rivera also earned victories over fellow All-Americans RayVon Foley (Michigan State), Ronnie Bresser (Oregon State) and Patrick Glory (Princeton).
Deakin hopes to follow up a redshirt sophomore season which saw career-best finishes at both the NCAA and Big Ten Championships. The Wildcat grappler finished sixth at the NCAA Championships and fifth at the Big Ten Championships, one spot higher than his finish in 2018. On the 2018-19 season, Deakin amassed 31 victories and emerged victorious in contests against Alec Pantaleo (Michigan), Kaleb Young (Iowa) and Larry Early (Old Dominion), all of whom finished 2019 as All-Americans at 157.
For Davison, expectations are high for the redshirt first-year. While wrestling unattached, the young Wildcat saw 12 wins to just four losses on the year. In doing so, Davison took first at the Lake Chance Open at 197 and third at the Midlands Championships. Internationally, Davison earned a silver medal at the UWW Junior World Wrestling Championships after winning three of his four matches at the international event in Estonia.
In addition to the 18 student-athletes who return to the Wildcat program in 2019, Northwestern will also welcome seven newcomers to Evanston for the 2019-20 season as Justin Benjamin (St. Charles, IL.), Chris Cannon (Oceanport, NJ), Trevor Chumbley (St. Charles, IL.), Ankhaa Enkhmandakh (Concord, CA) Troy Fisher (Garden Plains, KS), Jon Halvorsen (Park Ridge, Ill.), DJ Huff (Cleveland, OH), have all joined the Wildcats' wrestling program. The seven first-year grapplers is highlighted by Fisher's ranking as a top-50 talent in his class, according to FloWrestling.
The new 'Cats will bring an assortment of conference, state and national titles to Evanston as they join a squad currently ranked in the top-25 in the nation and coming off its best conference campaign since 2010-11.
••••••
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook, check us out on Instagram, visit our Social Media page and download our mobile app from the Apple Store and Google Play! To get involved with the #B1GCats, become a season-ticket holder or join the Wildcat Fund!
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