Bruno, Huntley Added to All-Star Classic Lineup
10/15/2015 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Oct. 15, 2015
MANHEIM, Pa. -- Senior Rossi Bruno and graduate student Max Huntley of the University of Michigan Wrestling team have been added to the National Wrestling Coaches Association's 50th annual All-Star Classic lineup, the organization announced Thursday (Oct. 15). The event will be held on Sunday, Nov. 1, at Georgia Tech's McCamish Pavilion in Atlanta, Georgia.
The NWCA All-Star Classic pits the nation's top collegiate wrestlers against each other in challenge matches that are often seen as a preview of the NCAA Championships.
Bruno, a 2015 NCAA All-American, will wrestle Lehigh's Mason Beckman in the 133-pound matchup. Backman, a redshirt junior, is a two-time All-American at 133 pounds, twice earning sixth-place finishes at the NCAA Championships. In the only collegiate meeting between the pair, Bruno defeated Beckman, 7-5 TB, at least year's Southern Scuffle.
Bruno boasted a breakthrough year in 2014-15, posting a 23-11 record and earning runner-up finishes at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and Southern Scuffle before injury hampered much of his second semester, sidelining him for nearly all of the Big Ten dual season. He returned just prior to the Big Ten Championships, where he took seventh place, and capped the season with an eighth-place NCAA finish to earn his first All-America citation.
Huntley, a 2015 NCAA All-American who returns in 2015-16 for a sixth year of eligibility, will face Duke's Conner Hartmann in the 197-pound contest. Hartmann, a fifth-year senior, is a two-time NCAA All-American, claiming sixth place last season and fifth in 2014. The two have yet to face each other in collegiate competition -- Hartmann missed last year's dual meet -- but Huntley did earn a 4-1 decision over Hartmann in freestyle competition at 2012 University Nationals.
Coming off an injury-shortened 2013-14 seaosn, Huntley moved back up to 197 pounds last year and posted his best season to date, recording a 24-11 record while remaining ranked among the nation's top 10 for the bulk of the season. He took fifth place at the Big Ten Championships and claimed eighth at the NCAA tournament for his first All-America citation.
The Wolverine duo join junior Adam Coon, who was previously announced as one half of the heavyweight contest. Coon will face Virginia Tech's Ty Walz.
Michigan is one of three schools with three all-star selections, joining Oklahoma State and Virginia Tech. It marks the most Wolverine representatives since the inaugural 1967 event when Bob Fehrs, Jim Kamman and Dave Porter wrestled on the east squad -- coached by Cliff Keen.
• Coon Selected to Compete in NWCA All-Star Classic
Communications Contact: Leah Howard
