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Six Nebraska wrestlers are set to take the mat against some of the nation's best competitors this Friday and Saturday at the 55th-annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships.
The two-day event will be held at Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Ill. The group of Huskers attending the tournament includes wrestlers who have not been among NU's regular starters through the first four duals this season, as well as potential redshirt candidates who will be looking to gain experience that comes from going toe-to-toe with some of the best wrestlers in the country.
A pair of Huskers, Collin Purinton and Jordan Shearer, are set to enter at 149 pounds. Purinton is 8-3 on the season, while Shearer is 7-2 as the two shared the title at the UNK Holiday Inn Open in November.
Luke Weber (157), Johnny Blankenship (165) and Patrick Grayson (HWT) each own at least 12 wins on the season and are set to compete for Nebraska this weekend. Blankenship is 16-5 on the year with a tournament title at the Doane Open, while Weber is 13-4 and Grayson is 12-5.
Mikey Labriola is set to compete unattached at the Midlands Championships. Labriola has rolled to three open tournament titles with three wins over ranked opponents this season, on the way to a 13-0 record with 10 bonus-point wins.
The tournament begins Friday morning at 9:30 a.m. (CT) with the first session, while the second session begins at 7 p.m. The semifinals will begin at noon on Saturday, with the finals, third-place and fifth-place matches set for 7 p.m. A live stream of the entire tournament will be available on BTN Plus and FloWrestling (subscription required), and live brackets can be found at TrackWrestling. More information, including a complete tournament schedule, can be found at the Midlands Championship Central page.
55th-Annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships
Dec. 29-30
Hoffman Estates, Ill. (Sears Centre Arena)
Huskers Projected to Compete
149: Collin Purinton
149: Jordan Shearer
157: Luke Weber
165: Johnny Blankenship
174: Mikey Labriola (Unattached)
HWT: Patrick Grayson