#1 St. Cloud State Wrestling to Host #3 Augustana on Jan. 27

Huskies to Complete Weekend with Jan. 28 Dual at Canby H.S. vs. SMSU

The #1 ranked St. Cloud State (16-0, 3-0- NSIC) will face #3 ranked Augustana College at 7 p.m. on Jan. 27 in Halenbeck Hall. Tickets for this big DII showdown can be purchased at the gate on match night. To finish the weekend, the Huskies will be travelling to Canby, Minn. for a 7 p.m. dual against Southwest Minnesota State on Jan. 28. The match will be held at the Canby H.S. gymnasium. This will be a homecoming of sorts for senior Tad Merritt, who prepped at Canby H.S. and won two MSHSL state crowns during his high school wrestling career.

THE MATCHES:

  • Jan. 27: #3 Augustana at #1 St. Cloud State, 7 p.m.
  • Jan. 28: #1 St. Cloud State vs. Southwest Minnesota State, 7 p.m. – at Canby H.S. (Canby, Minn.)

WATCH ON THE WEB:

HUSKIES HEADLINES:

  • The #1 Huskies picked up two more wins this past weekend. On Jan. 20, SCSU gained a 33-6 win over DIII opponent Concordia-Moorhead. In the second road match of the weekend, SCSU charted a 37-9 victory over NSIC rival Minnesota State, Moorhead. The Huskies have won 21 consecutive dual matches dating back to an 18-13 loss at Augustana on Jan. 27, 2011. SCSU has not lost a home dual match since a 21-15 setback to Upper Iowa on Feb. 14, 2010. The victory over UW-Eau Claire set a new team record for consecutive dual match wins for the Huskies. The previous record of 18 consecutive dual victories was set during the 1970-72 seasons.
  • The Huskies earned the #1 spot in the 2011-12 NSIC preseason poll. The Huskies also received the top spot in the 2011-12 preseason national poll. SCSU remained in the #1 spot in the latest DII coaches’ poll released on Jan. 25, ahead of #2 Newberry and #3 Upper Iowa. Merritt (165) and Kahnke (285) are both ranked #1 in this week’s national poll, while O’Grady (174), Skala (184) and Munkelwitz (197) are all ranked #3. Jacob D. Horn is ranked #5 at 157 in the poll this week. SCSU is also ranked #1 in this week’s DII Super Region 3 poll.
  • Tad Merritt leads the Huskies with 25 wins this season (25-2) and he also has 12 pins. Jake Kahnke is 24-1 this season, while Luke Munkelwitz owns a 21-4 record this winter. Others of note include Derek Skala at 18-2 and Zach Stewart at 18-8. Josh Howk is 20-11 this year with a team-high 15 pins.
  • St. Cloud State University (19-2, 6-1 NSIC) set a new team standard by capturing 2nd place at the 2011 NCAA Division II championships on March 11-12 in Kearney, Neb. This is the best finish at a national championship for the Huskies since the program started in 1949-50. The previous best efforts for the Huskies were 3rd place finishes at the NAIA tournament in 1963 and 1965. In NCAA Division II action, the best finish prior to 2011 was a 7th place finish in 2010 and 1983. SCSU scored 90.5 team points at the NCAA championships, while Nebraska-Omaha won its third consecutive team title with 102.5 points. This was the most points scored at a national meet by the Huskies in team history. The previous high was 50 points scored at the NCAA tournament in 2010.
  • SCSU’s John Sundgren captured 1st place at the NCAA championships in the 157-pound bracket. He was the first Husky to win a national title since Gene Hanemann won his title in 1995. This was the 12th individual national title for a Husky wrestling since 1958, and it was just the 2nd NCAA Division II individual national title for a Husky wrestler.
  • The Huskies bring back the following All-Americans from the 2011 championships: Jacob Kahnke (2nd at 285), Tad Merritt (3rd at 165), Shamus O’Grady (4th at 174) and Jacob D. Horn (5th at 149). Senior Derek Skala was a redshirt last year but he has earned All-America honors at previous NCAA meets.
  • The top finish at the 2012 NWCA DII National Duals was the best finish for the Huskies at that prestigious tournament. Last year, SCSU finished in third place at the NWCA DII National Duals.