Huskers Start 2003-04 Season

Lincoln -- The eighth-ranked Nebraska wrestling team will open the 2003-04 season this Saturday, Nov. 15, against Portland State and Oregon State at the NU Coliseum. NU will face off against Portland State at Noon before taking on Oregon State at 6:30 p.m. Doors for the matches will open one hour prior to the start of each dual.

Team Preview
With an experienced lineup and a roster full of talent and depth, the University of Nebraska wrestling team has its sights set on climbing back into the nation's elite after finishing last season out of the top 10 at the NCAA Championships for the first time since 1998-99.

Leading the charge this season will be senior captain 125-pounder Jason Powell. A Midwest City, Okla., native, Powell is focused on becoming NU’s eighth national champion and first since Brad Vering captured the crown in 2000. Last season Powell finished the year with a 35-6 record and a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Powell will enter the 2003-04 season 17 wins short of becoming the 15th wrestler in school history to reach 100 victories.

At 133 pounds, senior Joey Malia hopes to contend for All-America honors after going 2-2 at the NCAA Championships last season. Malia finished last season with a 21-14 record. Providing depth behind Malia will be one of Nebraska's co-redshirts of the year Matt Keller. Last season Keller compiled a 28-3 record while winning three open tournaments.

NU’s third returning NCAA qualifier from last season is two-time NCAA participant Travis Shufelt. Although slowed by nagging injuries toward the end of the season, the junior took second at the Big 12 Championships and could to be a favorite in 2003-04. Shufelt also plans to improve on his 1-2 finish at the NCAA Championships last season.

Behind Shufelt will be redshirt freshman Marc Harwood. As a true freshman, Harwood finished the season with a 21-2 record, earning four top-three finishes in open tournaments.

Junior Travis Pascoe is a two-time NCAA qualifier who returns to the starting lineup for the third straight season. Pascoe is projected to start the season at 184 pounds. Last season, at 174 pounds, Pascoe finished the year with a 22-15 record. He hopes to contend for All-America honors after just missing out the past two seasons.

The final returning NCAA qualifier is sophomore Jacob Klein. In his first season as a starter he finished with a 22-13 record. Klein will try to advance farther in the NCAA Championships after going 1-2 last season.

Also returning from last season’s starting lineup are senior Dusty Spaulding, juniors Matt Murray and Mitch Manstedt and sophomore B.J. Padden.

Spaulding, a native of Council Grove, Kan. shared starting duties last season with Murray at 141 pounds. Spaulding missed the first part of the season while recovering from a knee injury but later took over for Murray, who suffered a season-ending injury in January. Spaulding finished the 2002-03 campaign with a 7-10 record.

Murray wrestled the first half of the season at the starting position before suffering a broken jaw that forced him to miss the remainder of the season. Before the injury, Murray compiled a 14-7 record. Murray hopes to step up his performance in 2004, but must first hold off a challenge by talented incoming junior college national champion Chris Nedens.

Manstedt returns after just missing out on qualifying for the NCAA Championships. In his first season as a starter, Manstedt compiled a 22-11 record with eight pins. Manstedt is a strong contender for all-conference and All-America honors.

Pushing Manstedt for mat time will be incoming freshman Jon May. May was a three-time all-state selection for Hutchinson High School in Minnesota.

The final returning starter is Padden. With the loss of two-time All-American Justin Ruiz, Padden will wrestle at 197 pounds. Last season, Padden went 17-16 at 184 pounds and recorded a first-place finish at the 2002 Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas.

At the 157-pound weight class, a three-man battle is brewing for the starting position between sophomores David Ingalls, James Pummel and junior B.J. Wright. Ingalls, wrestled at 149 pounds during the regular season in 2002-03, but made the jump to 157 pounds at the Big 12 Championships, where he finished fourth. Pummel started the first three duals of the season before suffering a season-ending injury and finished the year with a 6-7 record. Wright will figure into the mix after finishing with a 34-5 record last season winning five open tournaments.

The biggest challenge facing the Huskers is replacing two-time All-American Justin Ruiz at 197 pounds. Ruiz is scheduled to redshirt the 2003-04 season in hopes of qualifying for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece.

In addition to Padden, senior Nathan McClain and true freshman Chad Espinoza will try to fill the void left by Ruiz. McClain provided depth behind Manstedt at heavyweight going 15-6 and adding one open championship at the Worthington Open in 2002-03. Espinoza comes to Nebraska after an impressive high school career at Wooster High School in Reno, Nev., where he was a three-time Nevada state champion.

With Padden taking over for Ruiz at 197 pounds, sophomore Kyle Gubbels will get a strong look to replace Pascoe at 174 pounds, as Pascoe moves up to replace Padden at 184. Last season as a true freshman, Gubbels wrestled at 197 pounds, two classes above his normal weight and compiled a 2-14 record wrestling in place of an injured Ruiz.

Scouting the Vikings and Beavers
Portland State is coached by Marlin Grahn who begins his 21st year at the helm of the Vikings. Portland State returns 10 lettewinners and five starters from last seasons 4-16 squad. Portland State is led by Shawn Keinonen who went 13-18 last season.

Oregon State returns 10 letterwinners and six starters from last season squad that finished third in the Pac-10 Conference. Oregon State is led by 174 pounder Jed Pennell, who finished last season at 18-13 and qualified for the NCAA Championships. Pennell is preseason No. 18 according to InterMat. Oregon State is coached by Joe Wells, who beginning his 12th season.

A win for NU would mean....

With a victory over Oregon State and Portland State Saturday, the Huskers would

• Its eighth straight season opening win
• Head Coach Mark Manning's 36th and 37th wins at Nebraska
• Give NU its seventh and eighth straight wins over an Pac-10 conference opponent
• Give NU its sixth straight win over Oregon State
• Give NU its fourth straight dual win dating back to last season
• Give NU its eighth win in its last nine matches at home

The Last Time We Met
Nebraska is 2-0 against Portland State, and most recently defeated the Vikings, 46-3 in Portland, Ore. on Dec. 13, 2002. The 46 dual points were the most dual points that the Huskers scored in a match since a 49-6 defeat of Bloomsburg in the 2001-02 season. Against the Vikings, NU recorded three pins and two forfeits. Sophomore Matt Murray and redshirt freshman Jacob Klein each picked up their first career dual victories. Murray notched a 6-3 victory over Eddie Dahlen and Klein won by major decision over Eric Arbogast, 18-6.

Nebraska is 5-1 against Oregon State, and last defeated the Beavers, 30-15 on December 14, 2002 in Corvallis, Ore. Nebraska has won five straight matches in the series. Against the Beavers, Jason Powell and Travis Pascoe keyed the victory. Powell recorded his quickest pin of the season in 52 seconds over Brett Phillips. Pascoe pinned Jake Huffman at the 4:55 mark.

Huskers in the Rankings
In the preseason Intermat rankings, the Huskers enter the poll at No. 8. They are the third-highest ranked Big 12 school, following preseason No. 1 Oklahoma State and sixth ranked Iowa State. Missouri follows NU at No. 9 with Oklahoma rounding out the Big 12 schools at No. 17.

In individual rankings, senior 125-pounder Jason Powell is preseason No.1 according to Intermat. Senior 133-pounder Joey Malia enters at No. 14, followed by junior Travis Shufelt at 149 pounds who is eighth, junior B.J. Wright enters at 10th. Sophomore Jacob Klein is preseason 13th at 165 pounds, junior Travis Pascoe is fourth at 184 pounds, while sophomore, 197-pounder B.J. Padden and junior, heavyweight Mitch Manstedt are 19th and 16th respectively.

Huskers face Weight Changes
With the loss of two-time All-American Justin Ruiz to an Olympic redshirt, Head Coach Mark Manning has been forced to make some changes in the starting lineup. Two-time NCAA qualifier Travis Pascoe will return back to the 184-pound weight class after competing last season at 174 pounds. Sophomore B.J. Padden will move up one weight class to 197 pounds after wrestling at 184. Sophomore Kyle Gubbels will challenge for that starting position at 174 pounds after wrestling last season at 197 pounds.

Manning Named Finalist for Olympic Wrestling Coaching Position
University of Nebraska wrestling head coach Mark Manning as been named a finalist for an Olympic wrestling coaching position for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.

Manning along with Tom Brands of Iowa City, Iowa, Bruce Burnett of Annapolis, Md., Bobby Douglas of Ames, Iowa and Zeke Jones of Morgantown, W. Va. were also named to the list.

Manning was the Head Coach for the 2001 U.S. Freestyle World Team. He also served on the coaching staff of the 1996 and 2000 U.S. Olympic teams. He served as the assistant coach of the 1997 U.S. Freestyle World Team, which placed sixth in the team standings. He served on the coaching staff of the U.S. World team five times.

Huskers Again Face Difficult Schedule
Nebraska is scheduled to face some of the college wrestling's top programs this season. The Huskers are to face nine of InterMat's Preseason top 25-poll, including defending national champion Oklahoma State in Stillwater on Feb. 7.

In addition to facing the Cowboys, the Huskers will face three other to the preseason top 10 teams. The Huskers will square off against No. 6 Iowa State, No. 7 Minnesota, No. 9 Missouri, along with No. 17 Oklahoma, No. 20 Arizona State, No. 21 North Carolina and No. 22 Boise State.

Non-Varsity Schedule
The Husker non-varsity and freshmen will also be in action during the 2003-04 season beginning with the South Dakota State Open on November 8. They will compete in the Dakota Wesleyan and Harold Nichols Open (Nov. 15), Central Missouri Open (Nov. 16) and Northern Colorado Open (Nov. 22). The Huskers will also take part in the UNO Open (Nov. 22), and Northern Iowa Open (Dec. 6), before finishing up with the UNK Open (Dec. 13), Dana College (Jan. 3), Glen Brand Open and Denker Open (Jan. 10) and Missouri Valley Open (Jan. 31)

Last season the NU redshirts were led by 149-pounder Marc Harwood, 133-pounder Matt Keller and 157-pounder B.J. Wright. Harwood went 21-2 with the open titles, while Keller added three individual titles and a 28-3 record. Wright led all NU redshirts with a 34-5 and four open titles.

Up Next
The Huskers will next be in action on Nov. 21, 2003, when they play host to 22nd-ranked Boise State at 7 p.m. in the Bob Devaney Sports Center Track.