Weekly Release #7
2/8/2000 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Friday, Feb. 11 -- vs. Minnesota (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 12 -- vs. Indiana (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 18 -- at Penn State (State College, Pa.), 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 20 -- at Ohio State (Columbus, Ohio), 2 p.m.
Wolverines Close Out Home Schedule This Weekend
The 10-ranked Michigan wrestling team will have its last two home contests of the season at Cliff Keen Arena on Friday and Saturday (Feb. 11-12), against the second-ranked and defending Big Ten champion Minnesota Golden Gophers and the 23rd-ranked Indiana Hoosiers, respectively. Both meets will start at 7 p.m.
Series History Against Minnesota and Indiana
The Wolverines lead the overall series against Minnesota 24-18-2 but have lost the past three meetings to the Golden Gophers, including a close 23-17 defeat last year at Minnesota. This season Minnesota produces a greater challenge to the Maize and Blue, having all 10 of its starters ranked in the top 20 of the Amateur Wrestling News individual rankings.
The last home match of the season will pit Michigan against Indiana, against whom the Wolverines hold a 49-21-2 against in the all-time series. The two teams met earlier this season in the quarterfinals of the Virginia Duals (Jan. 7), with Michigan getting the 18-16 victory. The Maize and Blue have won the last four contests with Indiana and haven't lost to the Hoosiers since the 1994-95 season.
Marquee Matchups
The Wolverines will be in a dogfight in every weight class against Minnesota. The featured bout will be between No. 9 Andy Hrovat (Gates Mills, Ohio/St. Edwards HS) and No. 3 Brandon Eggum, the defending 184-pound Big Ten champion. The two faced each other last season, with Eggum pulling out the 8-3 decision.
The heavyweight match will pit No. 15 Matt Brink (Muskegon, Mich./Fruitport HS) and No. 1 Brock Lesnar. Brink is 0-3 against the defending Big Ten champion, including a loss in last season's Big Ten semifinal.
In matches featuring first-time opponents, Joe Warren (Grand Rapids, Mich./E. Kentwood HS), ranked fourth at 133, should return to action after a month layoff to face No. 11 Brett Lawrence; No. 6 Damion Logan (Garfield, N.J./St. Joseph Regional HS) will face his 11th ranked opponent of the season at 141, squaring off with No. 17 Chad Erikson; No. 20 Mike Kulczycki (N. Royalton, Ohio/St. Edwards HS) will battle No. 6 Jared Lawrence at 149; and No. 18 Joe Degain (White Lake, Mich./Clarkston HS) will compete against his fourth top 10 opponent of the season at 197, facing No. 9 Owen Elzen.
The top match of the home finale at the Cliff Keen Arena against Indiana will pit No. 18 Joe Degain and No. 5 Victor Sveda, at 197. They faced each other this season at the Virginia Duals, with Sveda blanking Degain 10-0. A closer bout should occur because Degain has gained confidence since his last matchup with Sveda, scoring two upsets over Illinois' Pat Quirk, ranked fourth, and Central Michigan's Chris Pike, a 1999 All-American.
At 184, No. 9 Andy Hrovat will square off against No. 20 Ty Matthews. Hrovat scored a 9-5 decision over Matthews at this season's Virginia Duals.
In return matches from their Virginia Duals encounters, 157-pounder Tony Holifield (Mt. Morris, Mich/E.A. Johnson HS) will try to avenge a 14-7 loss to No. 12 Kevin Staley, and Matt Brink will go for his second win this season against Michael Dixon, at heavyweight.
Michigan Tentative Lineup vs. Minnesota, Indiana
| Wgt. | Wrestler | Yr./Elig. |
| 125 | A.J. Grant | Fr./Fr. |
| 133 | Mike Michalski or #4 Joe Warren | Sr./Jr. Sr./Sr. |
| 141 | #6 Damion Logan | Sr./Jr. |
| 149 | #20 Mike Kulczycki | So./Fr. |
| 157 | Tony Holifield | So./Fr. |
| 165 | Jason Rawls | Sr./Jr. |
| 174 | Charles Martelli | So./So. |
| 184 | #9 Andy Hrovat | So./So. |
| 197 | #18 Joe Degain | Sr./Jr. |
| Hwt | #15 Matt Brink | So./So. |
Wolverine Split Two in the Big Ten
The Michigan grapplers took their Big Ten record to 2-1-1, losing 26-9 to sixth-ranked Illinois (Jan. 28) in Champaign, Ill., and defeating 23rd-ranked Purdue 21-15 (Jan. 30) in Fort Wayne, Ind.
The bright spots of the Illinois dual were upset victories by No. 9 Andy Hrovat over No. 4 Nate Patrick at 184, No. 19 Joe Degain over No. 8 Pat Quirk and then-No. 7 Damion Logan over then-No. 6 Carl Perry.
Logan and No.16 Matt Brink were the heros against the Boilermakers, with Logan winning the last match of the evening by fall to give the Wolverines the victory, and Brink upsetting No. 9 Jake Vercelli, 3-1.
Logan to Wrestle at the All-Star Classic
Sixth-ranked Damion Logan will face Oklahoma's Michael Lightner, ranked second, in the NWCA All-Star Classic at Michigan State on Monday (Feb. 7). Logan was selected as a late replacement at 141 for Clarion's Mark Angle, ranked third. Logan has a 22-4 overall record and is 11-1 in dual meets this season. He is unquestionably in the deepest weight class in the NCAA, with seven of last season's top eight-ranked wrestlers competing this year. He has faced seven ranked opponents in his dual meets this season, winning six of the matches.
Mr. Perfect
All-American Andy Hrovat, ranked ninth, has gone 12-0 in dual matches at 184 pounds this season after starting off 5-5 in early preseason tournaments.
Stepping Up
Eighteenth-ranked Joe Degain scored his second upset victory of the season defeating Illinois' Pat Quirk 2-1 in double overtime on Jan. 28. His 5-6 dual-meet record features bouts with six ranked opponents, with two of his losses coming to No. 1-ranked Nick Muzashvili of Michigan State. He also owns a 10-6 upset decision over Central Michigan All-American Chris Vike.
Streak Ends
Redshirt freshman Mike Kulczycki's streak of unbeaten dual victories stopped at four, with a respectable 8-3 loss to No. 2 Adam Tirapelle of Illinois. Kulczycki wasted no time getting back on the winning track by defeating Purdue's Jimmy Hawthorne two days later. Kulczycki, ranked 20th, will face another test this Friday (Feb. 11) against Minnesota's Jared Lawrence, ranked sixth at 149.
Tough Road for Grant
True freshman A.J. Grant (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston HS) is getting a bad taste of the rugged Big Ten Conference. He will face No. 3 Leroy Vega of Minnesota and No. 5 Pat Cassidy of Indiana in consecutive matches this weekend at 125.
Martelli Wins
Charles Martelli (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North HS) recorded his first dual-meet victory of the year at 174, over Purdue's Jon Fitch, 5-4. After No. 1 Otto Olson (Everett, Wash./Everett HS) went out for the season with a knee injury, Martelli was thrown into the fire, moving up to 174 from 165, The victory was a nice consolation since his first three opponents were ranked in the AWN top 10.
AWN Top 10 (as of Feb. 2)
| | Team | Record | LW |
| 1. | Iowa | 13-0 | 1 |
| 2. | Minnesota | 13-1 | 3 |
| 3. | Iowa State | 15-2 | 2 |
| 4. | Oklahoma State | 9-2-1 | 4 |
| 5. | Oklahoma | 12-3-1 | 5 |
| 6. | Illinois | 9-0 | 6 |
| 7. | Nebraska | 7-3 | 7 |
| 8. | Edinboro | 10-0 | 9 |
| 9. | Northern Iowa | 6-3-1 | 10 |
| 10. | Michigan | 8-1-1 | 8 |
Individual Rankings by AWN (as of Jan. 31)
| Wgt. | Wrestler | Rank | LW |
| 133 | Joe Warren | 4th | 4th |
| 141 | Damion Logan | 6th | 7th |
| 149 | Mike Kulczycki | 20th | NR |
| 184 | Andy Hrovat | 9th | 9th |
| 197 | Joe Degain | 18th | 20th |
| Hwt | Matt Brink | 16th | 15th |
Contact: Jason Binge (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
