Weekly Release #10

Upcoming Schedule
Sat-Sun., March 3-4 -- at Big Ten Championships (Evanston, Ill.)
    (Noon/7 p.m. CST on Saturday, Noon on Sunday)
Thu-Sat., March 15-17 -- at NCAA Championships (Iowa City, Iowa)

Michigan Heads to Big Ten Championships
The third-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team will head to Evanston, Ill., for the Big Ten Conference Championships hosted by Northwestern University on Saturday and Sunday (March 3-4) at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Final individual seedings for the tournament will be announced Friday (March 2). Michigan finished the regular season with a 17-3-1 overall record and was 7-1 in the Big Ten.

The first session of the championships will begin Saturday at noon CST for the first round and quarterfinal matches, with the semifinal and consolation matches resuming at 7 p.m. The consolation finals will highlight the third session starting at noon Sunday, with the championship finals slated for 3 p.m.

Big Ten Championships History
The Maize and Blue has won 11 Big Ten Championships (1929, '38, '44, '53, '55, '56, '60, '63, '64, '65, '73) and has produced the second-most individual champions (108) in the conference (Iowa is first with 172). The highest team finish in the past 10 seasons was a second-place showing (92.50) in 1991. The last individual U-M champions came in 1998 with triumphs by 150-pounder Bill Lacure and heavyweight Airron Richardson.

Last season, the Wolverines traveled to Purdue University and finished fifth for the second consecutive season (73 points), behind Iowa (140.5), Minnesota (132.5), Illinois (97.5) and Michigan State (87.5).

Individually at last season's tournament, 184-pounder Andy Hrovat (Gates Mills, Ohio/St. Edwards HS), 149-pounder Mike Kulczycki (North Royalton, Ohio/St. Edwards HS), 133-pounder Joe Warren (1995-2000) and 141-pounder Damion Logan (1996-2000) all finished in third place. Also placing and qualifying for the NCAA Championships were Matt Brink (Muskegon, Mich./Fruitport HS), fifth at heavyweight; A.J. Grant (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston HS), fifth at 125; and Charles Martelli (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North HS), sixth at 174.

U-M in the Last 10 Big Ten Championships

Year	Place	Points	Site
2000	Fifth	73.00	West Lafayette, Ind.
1999	Fifth	76.50	Ann Arbor, Mich.
1998	Fourth	77.50	State College, Pa.
1997	Fifth	59.50	Minneapolis, Minn.
1996	Seventh	57.00	East Lansing, Mich.
1995	Fifth	73.00	Bloomington, Ind.
1994	Fourth	65.50	Iowa City, Iowa
1993	Fifth	75.50	Columbus, Ohio
1992	Sixth	66.25	Madison, Wis.
1991	Second	92.50	Champaign, Ill.
1990	Sixth	53.00	Evanston, Ill.

Individual Records at Big Ten Championships

Wrestler	Wgt.	Record (years, place)
A.J. Grant	125	3-2 (2000-5th)
Charles Martelli	157, 174, 165	2-4 (1999, 2000-6th)
Otto Olson	158, 174	5-3 (1997-8th, 1999-3rd)
Andy Hrovat	184	5-3 (1999-7th, 2000-3rd)
Joe DeGain	177, 197	1-7 (1997, 1998, 2000)
Matt Brink	Hwt	4-5 (1999-6th, 2000-5th)

2000 Big Ten Championships Final Standings

 1. Iowa 140.5 2. Minnesota 132.5 3. Illinois 97.5 Michigan State 87.5 5. MICHIGAN 73.0 6. Northwestern 52.0 7. Ohio State 49.5 8. Penn State 48.5 9. Wisconsin 48.0 10. Indiana 47.0 11. Purdue 24.0

2001 Big Ten Final Dual Standings

 School Big Ten Overall 1. Minnesota 8-0 18-1 2. MICHIGAN 7-1 17-3-1 3. Illinois 6-2 12-2 Iowa 6-2 18-4 5. Ohio State 5-3 15-6 6. Indiana 3-5 15-6 Purdue 3-5 10-6 Michigan State 3-5 8-7-1 9. Wisconsin 2-6 10-10-1 10. Penn State 1-7 7-13 11. Northwestern 0-8 4-13-1

2001 Big Ten Pre-Tournament Seedings
Otto Olson is the No. 1 174-pounder in the pre-tournament seedings for the Big Ten Championships, leading a group of eight Wolverines who are listed in the top five in their respective weight classes. The final seedings will be announced following the coaches meeting on Friday (March 2) before the meet.

Wgt.	Wrestler	Seed
125	A.J. Grant	No. 5
133	Foley Dowd	No. 5
141	Clark Forward	No. 8
149	Mike Kulczycki	No. 5
157	Pat Owen	No. 7
165	Charles Martelli	No. 5
174	Otto Olson	No. 1
184	Andy Hrovat	No. 4
197	Joe DeGain	No. 4
Hwt	Matt Brink	No. 3

Michigan's Weight Class Preview
125 Pounds -- A.J. Grant comes into the postseason having won three of his last five matches against Big Ten opponents. He had a strong showing at the National Duals (Jan. 20-21), winning three of six matches, and was selected to participate in the NWCA All-Star Classic (Jan. 30). Grant's overall record is 25-11, and 18 of his wins have come by falls (6), technical falls (2) and major decisions (10). Grant is 12-7 in dual matches. He will be in for a battle in 125-pound weight class, the deepest class in the Big Ten, with nine ranked wrestlers and three in the top 10 by Intermat C No. 2 Jody Strittmatter of Iowa, No. 3 LeRoy Vega of Minnesota, No. 8 Greg Schaefer of Indiana. Grant has squared off with Strittmatter, losing all three matches, and Vega, losing a close 8-7 decision.

133 Pounds -- Foley Dowd (Howell, N.J./The Peddie School) is ranked ninth and has won three of his last five matches against Big Ten opponents. Dowd is 26-10 overall with a 13-7 dual record and is tied for second with Mike Kulczycki with nine major decisions. Dowd went 3-3 at the National Duals (Jan. 20-21) and has already faced three wrestlers -- No. 1 Eric Jeurgens of Iowa, No. 4 Pat McNamara of Michigan State and No. 5 Brett Lawrence of Minnesota -- who are in the top five by Intermat. Dowd has lost to McNamara three times, Jeurgens twice and Lawrence once.

141 Pounds -- Clark Forward (Archbold, Ohio/Archbold HS) comes into the postseason with a 22-13 overall record and an 11-10 dual record. Clark was successful in early matches this season, starting off 7-0 in open meets, but struggled during the middle stretch of the season. Forward's performance has improved going into the Big Ten Championships as he has had major-decision victories in his last two matches. His losses against ranked opponents have been close ones as he has dropped a 5-4 overtime decision to Michigan State's No. 14 Mike Castillo, a 9-8 decision to Iowa's No. 1 Doug Schwab and a 5-2 decision to Ohio State's No. 13 Robert Sessley.

149 Pounds -- Mike Kulczycki (North Royalton, Ohio/St. Edwards HS) has been one of the most consistent starters for the Maize and Blue this season, winning 31 matches to nine defeats with a 13-6 record in duals. Kulczycki, ranked 15th, had an impressive 4-2 record at the National Duals (Jan. 20-21). Kulczycki defeated No. 17 Karl Nadolsky 7-5 (Jan. 28) while 20 of his 31 wins have come by falls (4), technical falls (8) and major decisions (8). He is 4-3 in Big Ten competition and is tied with Foley Dowd for second on the team with nine major decisions.

157 Pounds -- Pat Owen (Polson, Mont./Polson HS) is heading into his first postseason with a 14-12 overall record and 8-9 mark in dual meets. He leads the nation's 157-pounders in falls with 10 and has three wins this season against Big Ten opponents. Owen had a third-place finish at the Eastern Michigan Open (Nov. 4) and had three wins at the Wendy's Classic (Jan. 14). Earlier this season Owen preserved U-M's victory over Iowa with a 7-3 loss to No. 1 Williams (Feb. 2).

165 Pounds -- Charles Martelli was a surprise sixth-place finisher last season at 174 pounds and has shown a lot of poise the last half of the season (16-4), going 5-1 at the National Duals (Jan. 20-21) and 4-3 against Big Ten opponents. Martelli took first place at the Eastern Michigan Open (Nov. 4) and fourth place at the West Virginia Open (Nov. 11). From Nov. 4-11, Martelli had an eight-match win streak with three falls, a technical fall and one major decision. He heads to the Big Ten Championships having won his last three matches.

174 Pounds -- Otto Olson (Everett, Wash./Everett HS) heads to the postseason as the favorite to win at 174 pounds. Olson has already defeated a ranked Big Ten opponent this season in Minnesota's No. 12 Jacob Volkman (Jan. 26) but has yet to face Iowa's No. 5 Gabe McMahan, Illinois' No. 14 Ben King and Purdue's No. 15 Ryan Lange. Olson has been ranked either No. 1 or No. 2 all season and has compiled an impressive 29-2 overall record, 20-1 in dual matches. Olson's only dual loss of the season came at the National Duals (Jan. 20-21) in a match against Oklahoma's Mike Barber. Olson also dropped the NWCA All-Star match, 6-1 to Edinboro's No. 1 Josh Koscheck.

184 Pounds -- Andy Hrovat, a two-time Big Ten place-winner (7th in 1999, 3rd in 2000) has an impressive 30-5 overall record this season with a 6-2 record in Big Ten Conference dual meets. Eighteen of his wins have come by falls (4), technical falls (4) and major decisions (10). Hrovat, ranked sixth, finished first at the Michigan State Open (Dec. 4) and took third place at both the West Virginia Open (Nov. 11) and Penn State (Dec. 12). Hrovat went 4-2 at the National Duals (Jan. 20-21). Including Hrovat, the conference has four of the top six wrestlers ranked by Intermat -- No. 2 Nate Patrick of Illinois, No. 4 Victor Sveda of Indiana and No. 5 Damion Hahn of Minnesota. Hrovat lost his only meeting with Hahn (5-3, Jan. 26) and with Sveda (6-5, Feb. 9).

197 Pounds -- Joe DeGain (White Lake, Mich./Clarkston HS), ranked 10th, has enjoyed the most successful season of his career at U-M with a 22-11 overall record and 13-8 mark in duals. Having only one victory in his previous three Big Ten meets, DeGain looks to get a winner this weekend. DeGain will compete with closely ranked opponents as Minnesota's Owen Elzen (No. 7) and Ohio State's Nick Preston (No. 9) are ranked ahead of him, while Michigan State's Nik Fekete (No. 12), Illinois' Pat Quirk (No. 13) and Indiana's Ty Matthews (No. 19) close out the poll. DeGain went 5-2 this season in Big Ten Conference dual action and is 22-11 overall. He placed first at the Eastern Michigan Open (Nov. 4) and second at the Michigan State Open (Dec. 2). DeGain went 4-2 at the National Duals (Jan. 20-21) and defeated No. 12 Fekete, 7-3 (Jan. 28). DeGain dropped both decsions against No. 7 Elzen (6-1) and No. 9 Preston (5-3).

Heavyweight -- Matt Brink, a two-time Big Ten place-winner and ranked third, will find the heavyweight competition intense as the top three ranked wrestlers -- Ohio State's Tommy Rowlands (No. 1), Minnesota's Garrett Lowney (No. 2) and Brink -- will face off. Brink is 29-4 overall, with three of those losses coming against Rowlands (Dec. 1 and Feb. 11) and Lowney (Jan. 26). Brink placed first at the Eastern Michigan Open (Nov. 4) and first at the Michigan State Open (Nov. 18). He heads into the postseason with having won five of his last six matches.

Wolverines Close Out Regular Season with Two W's
Michigan finished the regular season with a 27-12 triumph over No. 23 Penn State on Feb. 16 and a 36-7 victory at Northwestern on Feb. 18. The wins took the Wolverines' final record to 7-1 in the Big Ten and 17-3-1 overall.

Against the Nittany Lions, the Wolverines took the first five matches and were up 19-0. Matt Brink and Clark Forward had major decisions, while Charles Martelli and Andy Hrovat had technical falls to lead U-M past PSU.

At Northwestern, Martelli got the ball rolling for the Wolverines, pinning Ryan Kane at 4:34. U-M won the next eight matches with three major decisions and two technical falls and dominated the Wildcats, 36-7.

Olson Moves into Seventh Place on U-M Win List
Otto Olson recorded his 126th and 127th victories with two wins against Penn State and Northwestern. Olson is tied for seventh on U-M's all-time win, with Mark Churella (127, 1975-79). Olson is two wins away from tying Joe Pantaleo (134, 1985-89) and Airron Richardson (134, 1995-98) for the fifth spot.

Super Sophomore
Sophomore Mike Kulczycki is tied with head coach Joe McFarland (1980-85) and Lanny Green (1989-93) for the 10th spot on the U-M single-season wins list for a sophomore with 31.

NWCA/TheMat.com Division I Poll (2/28/01)

Team (1st-Place votes) Rec. Pts. Last 1. Minnesota (13) 20-1 325 1 2. Oklahoma State 17-1 312 2 3. MICHIGAN 17-3-1 295 3 4. Iowa 19-4 289 4 5. Iowa State 20-4 274 5 6. Oklahoma 18-5-1 258 6 7. Illinois 12-2 249 7 8. Ohio State 15-6 227 8 9. Nebraska 11-6 215 T9 10. Lehigh 18-5 212 T9 11. Arizona State 10-5 195 11 12. Edinboro 11-3-1 184 12 13. Michigan State 8-8 161 13 14. Lock Haven 21-2 155 14 15. Fresno State 13-5 139 15 16. Boise State 6-4 133 16 17. Oregon State 13-6 123 17 18. Northern Iowa 12-8 105 18 19. Hofstra 8-7 84 19 20. Indiana 15-6 70 21 21. Oregon 6-8 69 20 22. Central Michigan 15-4 48 22 23. Wisconsin 9-11-1 40 23 24. Purdue 10-6 32 25 25. Penn State 8-12 28 24

Individual Rankings by Intermat (2/27/01)

Wgt.	Wrestler	Ranking	LW
125	A.J. Grant	9th	10th
133	Foley Dowd	9th	8th
141	Clark Forward	16th	14th
149	Mike Kulczycki	15th	16th
165	Charles Martelli	10th	6th
174	Otto Olson	2nd	2nd
184	Andy Hrovat	6th	6th
197	Joe DeGain	10th	11th
Hwt	Matt Brink	3rd	3rd