THE MATCH:
Feb. 13, 2011 – #3 SCSU at #11 Upper Iowa, 2 p.m.
HUSKIES HEADLINERS:
- #3 St. Cloud State University (17-2, 4-1 NSIC) will continue its 2010-11 season on Feb. 13 with a 2 p.m. match at #11 Upper Iowa (4-3-0, 3-1-0 NSIC).
- WATCH ON THE WEB! The upcoming matches vs. SCSU and Upper Iowa can be viewed on the web by going to this website: http://pennatlantic.com
- The Huskies added two more wins to their totals this year with a 39-0 shutout win at Halenbeck Hall against Northern State on Feb. 4 and a 40-3 victory over Mary on Feb. 5 at Halenbeck Hall. SCSU only lost one match over the weekend and the Huskies’ also gained four pins over the weekend. A highlight of the weekend was Jake Kahnke, who notched a 5-4 decision against #2 ranked Matt Meuleners of Northern State and a pinfall against Austin Woo of Mary. Kahnke earned NSIC Wrestler of the Week notice for his work in the two matches. He is still ranked #1 in the nation at 285-pounds with a 21-1 record.
- Apologies to SCSU’s 1970-71 squad. Last week, the release listed the 1964-65 team owning the team dual match win record with 15 wins. Former coach John Oxton’s squad in 1970-71 actually owned the season record with a 16-3-1 mark. SCSU’s 2010-11 has now moved into the top spot in the team records with its 17-2 record this winter.
- The Huskies were ranked #3 in the latest DII Coaches’ Poll behind Nebraska Omaha. Here is a rundown of SCSU’s nationally ranked wrestlers in 2010-11: Gabe Suarez (#8 at 141-pounds), Jacob D. Horn (#7 at 149-pounds), John Sundgren (#2 at 157-pounds), Tad Merritt (#2 at 165-pounds), Shamus O’Grady (#8 at 174-pounds), Luke Munkelwitz (#6 at 197-pounds) and Jake Kahnke (#1 at 285-pounds). The poll was released on Feb. 2.
- Junior Tad Merritt continues to lead the Huskies this season with 29 victories (29-3) and 12 pins. Merritt is ranked #2 in the nation.
- The Huskies have already shattered the team’s dual match point record for a season. SCSU has 553 points in dual matches this season, which breaks the old team record of 515 points set in 2009-10. In contrast, SCSU has allowed only 147 dual match points this winter. SCSU is allowing just 7.7 points per dual match this season. The team record of 8.06 points allowed per dual match was set in 1963-64.
- SCSU has only allowed 126SCSU placed 3rd at the 2011 NWCA Division II National Duals on Jan. 8-9. The third place finish is the best in team history for the Huskies at the DII National Duals.
- The St. Cloud State University wrestling team (14-7, 5-2 NSIC/3rd) captured 7th place at the 2010 NCAA Division II wrestling championships on March 12-13, in Omaha, Neb. This marks the Huskies best NCAA finish since capturing 7th place in 1983. This also marked the best finish for the Huskies at the NCAA tournament since Steve Costanzo took over as head coach in 2006-07. This marked the 8th time since 1975 that SCSU has charted a top-10 place at the NCAA championships. The 7th place finish is the best ever for the Huskies at the NCAA DII level. SCSU placed eighth at the nationals in 2009, 1986 and 1976. SCSU also placed third at nationals during the 1963 and 1965 seasons as an NAIA affiliate.
- The Huskies qualified 8 wrestlers for the NCAA championships in 2010. SCSU wrestlers earning All-America status at the meet were Jacob Kahnke (4th place at 285), Tad Merritt (5th place at 165), Shamus O’Grady (6th place at 174) and Gabe Suarez (8th place at 141). This marked the first All-America finish for Kahnke, O’Grady and Suarez, while Merritt is now a two-time All-America award winner for the Huskies. The four All-Americans ties a team record for the Huskies, as SCSU also brought home four NCAA All-America honors in 1983 and 1975.
- The Huskies will have two major targets on the wrestling room wall this season. First up is the 2011 NCAA Regional championships on Feb. 27 in Sioux Falls, S.D. This tournament serves as a qualifier for the other big date – March 11-12, which is the 2011 NCAA DII championships.
- SCSU COACH STEVE COSTANZO: Steve Costanzo is in his 5th season as the Husky head wrestling coach. Overall, this marks Costanzo’s 12th season as a head college wrestling coach. He has a career record of 118-53-2 while coaching 98 National Qualifiers, 41 All-Americans, 2 National Champions and 36 NWCA All-Academic recipients. His record at St. Cloud State now stands at 56-23. An All-American wrestler at Nebraska-Omaha (1996 graduate), Costanza previously coached at Dana College from 1999 to 2006. Costanza led Dana to a national title in 2006.