University of Northern Iowa Athletics
Four Top-25 Wrestling Teams Slated to Visit West Gym
9/8/2015 10:00:00 AM | Wrestling
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – UNI wrestling packed its 2015-16 schedule with eight teams that cracked the top 25 in WIN's preseason rankings. Four of those duals will be held in UNI's West Gym.
Head coach Doug Schwab pulled in teams outside the conference to increase the competition of the schedule.
"We don't want to get to the national tournament and not be ready in some way or not be challenged in some ways," said Schwab.
Fans will have six opportunities to catch UNI on the Cedar Falls campus, but the Panthers open the season on the road in Albany, New York. They will wrestle three duals in a single day at the Journeymen/ASICS Northeast Duals.
"I thought it was good to start out with three duals," said Schwab. "We will have the team together and really be able to watch everyone wrestle. Sometimes you can miss a guy when you have a lot of matches going on at an open tournament.
We want guys to be consistent. So you need guys to get up every single time. It is a little change from how we usually started, but I want to see where these guys are at."
UNI hosts reigning conference champions Missouri for the home opener Nov. 28. Mizzou finished fourth at the national championships last year. The Panthers also will host in-state foe Iowa State Feb. 6. The Cyclones finished 14th in 2015.
Schwab said he likes the big tournaments for the atmosphere and the double weigh-in days. The Panthers will return to the prestigious Midlands and the Las Vegas Invite.
"You get multiple tough matches in during a day. It is similar to nationals and allows guys to get their names out there."
A small graduating 2015 class of just two wrestlers, means several veterans return for the UNI squad. The Panthers return All-American Dylan Peters and three other NCAA national qualifiers with Blaize Cabell, Cody Caldwell and Cooper Moore. UNI finished 34th last year after having placed 15th two years in a row.
Three Panthers cracked WIN Magazine's top 10 in preseason rankings. Moore is ranked sixth at 165 pounds. Heavyweight Cabell is ranked seventh, and Peters is ninth at 125 pounds. The team is ranked. 23rd.
In 2014, seniors Joe Colon and Joey Lazor and then-redshirt freshman Peters brought Doug Schwab's all-American total up to five since he was hired as UNI's head coach for the 2010-11 season. Schwab is entering his sixth season with the Panthers.
Since Schwab has taken the helm at UNI, the Panthers have jumped from 46th to 15th place at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships and continue to recruit the top wrestlers in the nation. The incoming freshmen class has been ranked as fourth in the nation by Intermat.
TICKETS
Fans can buy season tickets at UNIPanthers.com or call (319) 273-4849. The pass includes the UNI Open and costs $39. The cost of single dual tickets are $7 with the exception of the Iowa State dual, which will go on sale later this year for $15. Fans and media are invited to this year's wrestle-offs Nov. 7. Admission will be free for that event. Details will be announced at a later date.
2015-16 SCHEDULE (2015 finish at NCAAs / WIN preseason rank)
Home events BOLDED.
Head coach Doug Schwab pulled in teams outside the conference to increase the competition of the schedule.
"We don't want to get to the national tournament and not be ready in some way or not be challenged in some ways," said Schwab.
Fans will have six opportunities to catch UNI on the Cedar Falls campus, but the Panthers open the season on the road in Albany, New York. They will wrestle three duals in a single day at the Journeymen/ASICS Northeast Duals.
"I thought it was good to start out with three duals," said Schwab. "We will have the team together and really be able to watch everyone wrestle. Sometimes you can miss a guy when you have a lot of matches going on at an open tournament.
We want guys to be consistent. So you need guys to get up every single time. It is a little change from how we usually started, but I want to see where these guys are at."
UNI hosts reigning conference champions Missouri for the home opener Nov. 28. Mizzou finished fourth at the national championships last year. The Panthers also will host in-state foe Iowa State Feb. 6. The Cyclones finished 14th in 2015.
Schwab said he likes the big tournaments for the atmosphere and the double weigh-in days. The Panthers will return to the prestigious Midlands and the Las Vegas Invite.
"You get multiple tough matches in during a day. It is similar to nationals and allows guys to get their names out there."
A small graduating 2015 class of just two wrestlers, means several veterans return for the UNI squad. The Panthers return All-American Dylan Peters and three other NCAA national qualifiers with Blaize Cabell, Cody Caldwell and Cooper Moore. UNI finished 34th last year after having placed 15th two years in a row.
Three Panthers cracked WIN Magazine's top 10 in preseason rankings. Moore is ranked sixth at 165 pounds. Heavyweight Cabell is ranked seventh, and Peters is ninth at 125 pounds. The team is ranked. 23rd.
In 2014, seniors Joe Colon and Joey Lazor and then-redshirt freshman Peters brought Doug Schwab's all-American total up to five since he was hired as UNI's head coach for the 2010-11 season. Schwab is entering his sixth season with the Panthers.
Since Schwab has taken the helm at UNI, the Panthers have jumped from 46th to 15th place at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships and continue to recruit the top wrestlers in the nation. The incoming freshmen class has been ranked as fourth in the nation by Intermat.
TICKETS
Fans can buy season tickets at UNIPanthers.com or call (319) 273-4849. The pass includes the UNI Open and costs $39. The cost of single dual tickets are $7 with the exception of the Iowa State dual, which will go on sale later this year for $15. Fans and media are invited to this year's wrestle-offs Nov. 7. Admission will be free for that event. Details will be announced at a later date.
2015-16 SCHEDULE (2015 finish at NCAAs / WIN preseason rank)
- Nov. 15: at Journeymen/ASICS Northeast Duals (Hofstra (T35/T45), Rutgers (T31/T21), Oregon State (30/35); Albany, New York
- Nov 21: at Joe Parisi Open; St. Charles, Missouri
- Nov 28: Missouri (4/7); Cedar Falls, Iowa *
- Dec 4-5: at Las Vegas Invite; Las Vegas, Nevada
- Dec 12: UNI Open; UNI-Dome, Cedar Falls, Iowa
- Dec 29-30: at Midlands; Evanston, Illinois
- Jan. 6: at Eastern Michigan (T53/T47); Ypsilanti, Michigan *
- Jan. 8: at Northern Illinois (T67/T60); DeKalb, Illinois *
- Jan. 15: at Virginia Tech (10/5); Blacksburg, Virginia
- Jan. 17: at Old Dominion (22/T16); Norfolk, Virginia *
- Jan. 29: Central Michigan (T50/T39); West Gym, Cedar Falls, Iowa *
- Jan. 31: Ohio (T31/15); West Gym, Cedar Falls, Iowa *
- Feb. 5: Iowa State (14/25); Cedar Falls, Iowa
- Feb. 6: Kent State (26/20); Cedar Falls, Iowa *
- Feb. 13: at North Dakota State (23/18); Fargo, North Dakota
- Feb. 19: at Buffalo; Buffalo, New York *
- March 5-6: MAC Championships; Ypsilanti, Michigan
- March 17-19: NCAA Championships; Madison Square Garden in New York, New York
Home events BOLDED.
Players Mentioned
PLAYER
/ Wrestling
PLAYER
/ Wrestling
PLAYER
/ Wrestling
PLAYER
/ WrestlingUNI Panther Football: The Best Pod of your Day (Offseason Episode 2)
Tuesday, April 21
Hoops and Family Podcast - Welcome Kyle Green
Friday, April 17
PST: Mike Allen (2025 UNI Athletics Hall of Fame)
Friday, April 10
UNI Football Media Day
Friday, April 03