Cornell wrestling will host No. 20 Hofstra tonight at 7 p.m. in Newman Arena. This is the first time that the Red will be at home this year for a dual meet after traveling all over the country the past few months. Head coach Rob Koll’s troops have touched down in Chicago, Dallas, and Las Vegas for large collegiate invitational tournaments thus far this 2001-02 campaign. The Red is coming into tonight’s dual match off a big victory in the New York State Championships in Oswego, NY.
After finishing second to the Red in the overall team standings last weekend, Hofstra will be anxious to exact revenge. But it will have to overcome Cornell’s six New York State Champions. 125-pound freshman and No. 18 Travis Lee, 133-pound sophomore Alejandro Alvarez, 157-pound senior Gabe Webster, 165-pound sophomore Scott Roth, 174-pound senior and No. 10 Jim Stanec, and 184-pound classmate and No. 9 Clint Wattenberg all found the victory podium.
Even with a victory over the Pride last weekend, the Red remains unranked and looks to crack the national polls with another victory.
In order for that to happen, Koll said, “We need to be consistent.”
Consistency is something that the Red will look to obtain with another victory over the Pride. Meanwhile, Hofstra, the 2001 East Coast Wrestling Association Champions, will try to break up this effort with 2 of their own crowned champions from last weekend: 149-pound senior and No. 14 Jason DeBruin and 197-pound freshman and No. 9 Chris Skretkowicz.
“I would much rather be on our end,” said Koll when asked about the mental advantage in having just defeated Hofstra.
There will be two matches to keep an eye upon. The first will feature Lee and No. 16 sophomore Tom Noto at the 125-pound weight class. At the 197-pound weight class, No. 14 junior Matt Greenberg will grapple with Skretkowicz. These are the two matches that will pit two nationally ranked wrestlers.
“You have to beat him [Skretkowicz] on your feet. He is real long and goes after your legs,” said Greenberg.
Skretkowicz, a solid performer on the mat, has had the better of the 2 earlier meetings between the two, but Greenberg vowed to make his own dent in the season
series tonight.
141-pound junior Casey Becker, 149-pound senior Chris Pirch, and heavyweight senior Sean Wing all figure to tangle with the Pride tonight in addition to the rest of the squad.
“This will be a battle for No. 1 in New York State,” concluded Koll.
Archived article by Donald Lee