Jan. 27, 2005
FAIRFAX, Va. -- The George Mason wrestling team hosts two dual matches this weekend at the John Linn Gymnasium. On Friday evening, the Patriots entertain Duquesne at 7:30 p.m., and on Saturday afternoon, Mason hosts Colonial Athletic Association opponent Drexel at 4 p.m.
The Patriots are 5-4 overall and 3-2 in the CAA after going 2-2 at the CAA Duals held at George Mason last weekend. Senior Nick Webster (Towanda, Pa.) posted an undefeated 3-0 mark at 174 pounds at the Duals to improve to 12-11 on the season and 6-2 in dual matches.
Also finishing undefeated was freshman Joe Coughlin (Horsham, Pa.) at 125 pounds. He recorded a 4-0 match record and has won eight consecutive bouts, moving his overall slate to 14-7 and his dual match mark to 9-0 (5-0 CAA). Coughlin was named CAA co-Rookie of the Week for the second consecutive week Tuesday.
Sophomores David Emison (Stafford, Va.) and Harry Zander (National Park, N.J.) are also expected to continue their solid seasons this weekend. Emison is 20-8 on the year at 133 pounds (7-2 dual, 4-1 CAA), while Zander is 10-5 at 174 (6-3 dual, 3-2 CAA). All four wrestlers are ranked in their respective CAA weight classes along with four other Patriots for a total of eight ranked wrestlers.
Duquesne enters Friday's matchup with a 6-3 dual mark. The Dukes dropped matches to Eastern Michigan and Pittsburgh last week. Senior heavyweight Marc Allemang leads Duquesne with a perfect 10-0 dual record and a 28-6 overall mark. Allemang recently set the school record for career wins, notching his 110th in the Pitt victory. Freshman Jonathan Bittinger has also performed well at 125 pounds. He is 8-2 in dual matches and 20-11 overall.
Drexel heads into Friday's competition with a 10-7 overall dual mark and a 6-1 CAA record (DU hosts Boston University Friday evening). The Dragons are ranked fourth in the conference and have nine wrestlers ranked out of the 10 weight classes. Drexel won all four of its bouts at the CAA Duals. Mark Cartella is undefeated at 4-0 (149 pounds) in CAA dual meets. Ryan Hlushak (157), Nick Kozar (174), Jon Oplinger (197) and Chris Cowen (HWT) each have one conference loss in seven matches.
