UNI Wrestling Faces Buffalo, Eastern Michigan on the Road

1/3/2014 1:00:00 AM | Wrestling

By: UNI Athletics Communications

UNI wrestling at Buffalo
Site: Buffalo, N.Y.
Venue: Alumni Arena
Date: Saturday, Jan. 4, 2014
Time: noon (CT)
Web stream: http://www.mac-sports.com/Schools/Buffalo/LiveStreaming.aspx

UNI wrestling at Eastern Michigan
Site: Ypsilanti, Mich.
Venue: Convocation Center
Date: Sunday, Jan. 6, 2014
Time: 2 p.m. (CT)
Web stream: http://www.emueagles.com/showcase

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Three wrestlers will make their season debut in UNI's dual lineup for two conference matchups this weekend.

No. 10 UNI, the conference favorite, will face Buffalo Saturday at noon (Central) and Eastern Michigan at 2 p.m. on the road. Eastern Michigan and Buffalo are ranked seventh and ninth, respectively, in the conference.

Levi Wolfensperger will move up a weight class to take represent the Panthers in the 141-pound spot. Kyle Lux will take over at 184 pounds and Zach Witte will wrestle his first career dual as a Panther at 157 pounds.

The Panthers are undefeated in duals this year, with one win coming from a MAC school.

125 – NO. 7 DYLAN PETERS (18-4)

Dylan Peters leads the Panthers in falls this season, with 12 total. The redshirt freshman is ranked first in the conference. He has medaled at two prestigious meets this season, with a fourth-place finish at the Midlands Championships and taking fifth at the Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas, Nev. He will be looking to avenge an 8-6 decision loss to Eastern Michigan's Jared Germaine. Germaine knocked Peters out of Midlands last year.

MIKE SORIA (BUFFALO / 10-3)
Junior Mike Soria finished last year with a 13-11 record. He won the only dual match he wrestled. He is fifth on the team for most career wins, with 27.
JARED GERMAINE (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 6-2)
Germaine was seeded ninth for the Midlands tournament and was eliminated early with two losses. He is undefeated in dual matches this season, earning one major decision. He is ranked third in the conference.

133 – NO. 2 JOE COLON (17-1)

Joe Colon stunned the nation with his first-period fall over then-ranked No. 2 Tony Ramos of Iowa. Colon has mowed down three wrestlers ranked in the top two in the nation so far this season. He is a returning NCAA qualifier and remains undefeated in career duals as a Panther. Colon is the conference favorite.

JUSTIN FARMER (BUFFALO / 8-11)
Farmer is coming off a winless dual meet season from last year and has one win in duals this year.
VINCENT PIZZUTO (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 9-5)
Pizzuto was knocked out of the Midlands Championships early with two losses. He has earned bonus points in three matches so far this season. The sophomore missed much of last year due to injury but was able to return for the MAC Championships, where he tied for fifth place with a 1-3 win over Farmer.

141 – LEVI WOLFENSPERGER (16-6)

His most recent accomplishments have been in the 133-pound weight class, but Levi Wolfensperger has earned success at 141 pounds as well. As a redshirt freshman, he qualified for the NCAA national tournament in the 141-pound weight class. He was one round away from being an all-American last year as a sophomore in the 133-pound division. So far this season, Wolfensperger has won the Jim Fox Open and was second to teammate Colon at the Finn Grinaker Cobber Open.

NICK FLANNERY (BUFFALO / 10-8)
Flannery transferred from Cleveland State, where he tied the school record with six dual meet pins. The senior is the only Bull to earn a fall this season.
NICHOLAS BARBER (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 6-4)
The redshirt freshman was 20-6 last season wrestling unattached. He had the best winning percentage on the team. He has a win over No. 31 Tyler Bedeyon of Clarion. He was pinned by No. 12 Chris Mecate of Old Dominion.

149 – GUNNAR WOLFENSPERGER (6-6)

Gunnar Wolfensperger is looking for his first MAC dual win this weekend. He is 6-6 overall this season and 2-1 in duals. He was second at the Finn Grinaker Cobber Open this year.

RYAN TODORA (BUFFALO / 4-10)
Todora is a true freshman for the Bulls and is looking for his first dual win of the season. He is 0-6 so far.
MIKE SHAW (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 3-7)
Shaw has not given up bonus points in any of this season's matches and has one pin for the year. He wrestled at 149 pounds in the MAC Championships last year.

157 – ZACH WITTE (12-5)

Redshirt freshman Zach Witte will be representing the Panthers in a dual for the first time. He has placed in the first three tournaments he competed in this season.

WALLY MAZIARZ (BUFFALO / 8-7)
Maziarz earned the most escapes last season for the Bulls.
BRANDON ZEERIP (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 11-7)
Zeerip transferred from Michigan. He received a medical redshirt last season. Two of his losses have come from No. 20 Ryan Watts of Michigan State and No. 17 Tristan Warner of Old Dominion.

165 – NO. 11 COOPER MOORE (14-5)

Cooper Moore's only losses this season have come to ranked opponents. He was the first Panther of the season to earn Wrestler of the Week honors from the MAC. A win over then-ranked No. 3 Steven Monk earned him a spot in the national rankings. He has been climbing the polls after wins over then-ranked No. 10 Joseph Booth of Hofstra, No. 18 Austin Wilson of Nebraska and No. 10 Jackson Morse of Illinois. His fifth-place finish at Midlands helped lead his team to a fifth-place finish.

TYLER RILL (BUFFALO / 10-8)
The redshirt freshman posted a 12-10 record wrestling unattached at Bloomsburg. With a 1-1 dual record, he is still looking for his first MAC win this season.
JACOB DAVIS (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 8-8)
Davis returns as the Eagles' starter at 165 pounds. He posted an 18-13 record last year and competed at the MAC Championships. The sophomore's career record is 26-21.

174 – NO. 17 CODY CALDWELL (10-5)

Cody Caldwell had a strong start to the season, winning the Finn Grinaker Cobber Open. He has been ranked most of the season. He placed seventh at the Cliff Keen Invite last season and is undefeated in the MAC this year.

RROK NDOJAK (BUFFALO / 9-8)
Ndojak won 12 matches as a redshirt, with four pins, a tech fall and a major decision. His dual record is 1-1.
MIKE CURBY (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 5-7)
Curby wrestled just one dual match for the Eagles last year. The junior is looking for his first MAC win this season. His career record is 34-45.

184 – KYLE LUX (3-6)

Kyle Lux will be wrestling his first duals at the 184-pound weight class this weekend. Last year, he wrestled two duals at 174 pounds. He had his first shot at the weight class last weekend at the Midlands Championships.

TONY LOCK (BUFFALO / 11-7)
Lock finished his freshman season with an 8-12 overall record and a 2-3 record in dual matches. He was fifth at the Oklahoma Gold Classic (11/10) after defeating Nathan Dow of Army, 10-2 and Greg Wilson of Oklahoma 8-6. He leads the teams in escapes, with 15. He is tied for most wins on the team this season.
PHILLIP JOSEPH (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 11-4)
The senior is a two-time NCAA qualifier at 174 pounds. In the 2010-11 season, he placed fourth at the MAC Championships at 184 pounds. He took third at the MSU Open and boasts a 72-46 career record. Joseph has earned three falls this season, including on in 59 seconds. He is ranked fourth in the conference.

197 – BASIL MINTO (14-5)

Basil Minto is a two-time medalist at the NJCAA National Wrestling Championship. He remains undefeated in duals for the Panthers. Minto recently transferred from NIACC and jumped into the lineup right away for UNI. He won his first tournament as a Panther and took second at the UNI Open.

ANGELO MALVESTUTO (10-9) OR JARRED LUX (6-11) (BUFFALO)
Malvestuto finished his first season at UB with a 14-12 record. He went 2-3 in duals, winning both of his MAC matchups. He is 4-2 for duals this season.
Lux is a sophomore. He finished his first season at UB with a record of 3-7 and a dual match record of 1-4. He is looking for his first MAC dual win this season. His current dual record is 1-3.
ANTHONY ABRO (EASTERN MICHIGAN / 10-3)
Abro most recently wrestled at the 184-pound weight class at the Midlands Championships. He won his first match, but had to forfeit his second match of the tournament. The sophomore has won two duals, but none in the MAC this season.

285 – BLAIZE CABELL (13-8)

After wrestling at 197 pounds last season, Blaize Cabell has moved up a weight class and has been UNI's starter at heavyweight all season. He won the Finn Grinaker Cobber Open and took second at the UNI open to No. 9 Mike McClure of Michigan State. The Panther is still looking for his first dual win this season.

JAMES BENJAMIN (BUFFALO / 5-12)
The true freshman is tied for second with most escapes on the team. He is 0-5 in duals this season.
KHODOR HOBALLAH (8-5) OR COLE DILLMAN (3-6) (EASTERN MICHIGAN)
The senior is 5-3 in duals this season and has earned bonus points in two matches. Hoballah made a jump from the 184-pound weight class last season to heavyweight this year. He competed in the MAC Championships at the lighter weight last season.
Dillman, a sophomore, may wrestle his first dual of the season for the Eagles this weekend. He has one pin so far this year.