Dec. 13, 2012

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The 18th-ranked Maryland wrestling team (5-2) is set to compete in the inaugural Grapple at the Garden on Sunday, Dec. 16 at Madison Square Garden. It marks the first-ever collegiate wrestling event to be held at the famous arena.

The Terps take on fourth-ranked Ohio State at 11 a.m., and 14th-ranked Nebraska at 1 p.m.

"Wrestling in this event is awesome," said head coach Kerry McCoy. "It's the first time college wrestling has been in Madison Square Garden. Being able to wrestle in that venue is incredible and having college wrestling is even better.

"It give us a chance to see some great individual matchups. Geoffrey Alexander will wrestle the defending national champ (Logan Stieber, Ohio State). Josh Asper will potentially be wrestling the No. 2 guy in the country (Nick Heflin, Ohio State). Those types of matchups are big for individuals, but also for our program. If we wrestle to our capability, we have the opportunity to do well against them. It's exciting to wrestle teams of this caliber at this event."

Event Multimedia

Updates will be posted on the Maryland Wrestling Twitter feed and on the Maryland Wrestling Facebook page, so "Follow" and "Like" to get updates sent straight to you.

For the meet against the Buckeyes, #MDvsOSU will be the hashtag. Against the Cornhuskers, #MDvsNEB will be the hashtag.

Live stats will be available through trackwrestling.com.

Last Time Out

Behind pins from Christian Boley and TJ Guidice and major decisions from Geoffrey Alexander and Jimmy Sheptock, the Terps defeated American, 23-21, to win the Battle of the Beltway for the seventh straight season.

Shane Gentry provided Maryland's fifth win of the dual with an 8-4 decision over the Eagles' David Terao.

Next Up

Following a week off for finals and the holidays, Maryland returns to the mat at the Midlands Championships hosted by Northwestern University. The two-day event will be held at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Dec. 29-30.

Follow Maryland Wrestling on Twitter

The Terps and Buckeyes will be hashtag #MDvsOSU. Against Nebraska, use hashtag #MDvsNEB.

Follow Maryland Wrestling on Facebook

Scouting The Terps

The Terps rebounded from a loss at No. 15 Pittsburgh on Friday to win its seventh consecutive Battle of the Beltway at American on Sunday.

Maryland has seen consistent results at 125, 133 and 184 this season. Shane Gentry (125), Geoffrey Alexander (133) and Jimmy Sheptock (184) have appeared in all seven duals and are a combined 19-2 with the trio scoring bonus points in eight of the wins.

The 197-pound weight class has been the place to look for pins with Christian Boley recording his first of the season against American's Devon Bradley on Sunday. The Terps have picked up three victories via fall at 197.

2012-13 Preseason Preview
· Lower Weights: Plenty of Experience For Terps
· Middle Weights: Spots Up For Grabs
· Upper Weights: Title Contenders

Scouting The Buckeyes

The Buckeyes are undefeated in their three dual meets this season most recently defeating No. 15 Pittsburgh on Nov. 18. Ohio State is coming off a first-place finish at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and is scheduled to wrestle Kent State on Friday prior to arriving in New York City.

Ohio State's strength lays in the lower weight classes where four of its seven nationally-ranked wrestlers reside led by defending national champion Logan Stieber at 133 pounds. Logan and his brother, Hunter, each captured titles at 133 and 141, respectively, in Las Vegas on Dec. 1.

At 125, Nikko Triggas is fifth on the school's all-time pin list with 42. In 10 wins this season, Triggas has five falls.

The Buckeyes have another national title contender at 174 in All-American Nick Heflin. Heflin did not compete in Las Vegas. In duals against Pittsburgh's Nick Bonaccorsi and Virginia Tech's Austin Gabel, Heflin squeezed out a 4-3 decision and 2-1 tiebreaker decision, respectively.

Sunday's Probables:

125 - #14 Nikko Triggas (10-5)
133 - #1 Logan Stieber (12-0)
141 - #2 Hunter Stieber (15-0)
149 - #10 Cam Tessari (7-5)/Ian Paddock (3-1)
157 - Josh Demas (10-2)
165 - Mark Martin (11-6)
174 - #2 Nick Heflin (6-0)
184 - Kenny Courts (14-5)
197 - #10 Andrew Campolattano (10-4)
285 - #13 Peter Capone (10-3)

Scouting The Cornhuskers

Nebraska split a pair of duals last weekend against Arizona State and No. 23 Wisconsin. The Cornhuskers defeated the Sun Devils, 18-12, but lost to the Badgers the following day, 19-17.

The middle of the Cornhusker lineup is packed with nationally-ranked wrestlers and two 2012 All-Americans in James Green and Josh Ihnen. Green, Ihnen, Jake Sueflohn and Robert Kokesh are a combined 21-3 in duals this season.

Ihnen and Kokesh suffered their only defeats of the season in Nebraska's dual against Minnesota. Ihnen lost a 3-1 decision to fourth-ranked Kevin Steinhaus, while Kokesh lost 3-1 in sudden victory against fourth-ranked Logan Storley.

Sunday's Probables:

125 - Skylar Wood (6-3)/Eric Coufal (1-6)
133 - Shawn Nagel (9-6)
141 - #19 Ridge Kiley (6-4)/Skylar Galloway (6-2)
149 - #9 Jake Sueflohn (13-2)
157 - #8 James Green (12-2)/Brandon Wilbourn (9-0)
165 - Austin Wilson (11-4)/Tyler Koehn (3-0)
174 - #8 Robert Kokesh (14-1)
184 - #6 Josh Ihnen (14-1)
197 - Spencer Johnson (0-0)/Caleb Kolb (6-7)
285 - Donny Longendyke (6-9)

Poll Central

Follow the Terps and their opponents during the 2012-13 season via these national polls:
USA Today/NWCA/AWN Coaches Poll
InterMat
WIN Magazine

Series History

This weekend marks the first matchup all-time between Maryland and Ohio State.

The Terps have faced Nebraska four times in program history with the Cornhuskers winning three of the matchups and one ending in a tie. The last meeting between the schools came on Jan. 18, 2009 in Lincoln. Nebraska won the dual, 26-13.

So Far So Good

Jimmy Sheptock has squared off in 20 career duals and each time has left the mat with a victory. After appearing in one dual in the 2010-11 season, the Northampton, Pa., native went 12-0 as a redshirt sophomore last season. This season, Sheptock is 7-0 with two major decisions, a technical fall and a pin.

Alexander Wins Second ACC Honor

Geoffrey Alexander was selected Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestler of the Week after winning two matches last weekend in a pair of dual meets.

In his hometown of Pittsburgh on Friday, Alexander, ranked 11th nationally at 133 pounds, continued his strong start to the season with a 3-2 decision over then-No. 6 Shelton Mack. It is Alexander's third win in four tries against a nationally-ranked opponent.

Sunday night at American, the sophomore earned valuable bonus points with a 13-2 major decision over the Eagles' Esteban Gomez-Rivera in the Terps' 23-21 win.

Alexander is 10-3 and is second on the team in dual points scored (23), tied for second in dual wins (6), and is tied for the team lead in pins (4).

It is the second time this season Alexander has been honored as ACC Wrestler of the Week and it marks the third time a Terrapin wrestler has received the award.

Shooting For 100

With five wins this season, head coach Kerry McCoy now stands six dual wins shy of 100 career victories (94). In five season in College Park, McCoy is 65-17-2. His .786 winning percentage is currently the highest of any Terrapin head coach in program history.

McCoy spent three seasons at Stanford prior to coming to Maryland and finished with a record of 29-19.

Heavy Lifting

Terrapin starters Geoffrey Alexander (133) and Jimmy Sheptock (184) have combined to face 10 nationally-ranked opponents and together are 8-2.

Alexander is 3-1, while Sheptock is 5-1. Both wrestlers knocked off ranked foes at Pittsburgh on Friday. Alexander earned a 3-2 decision over 12th-ranked Shelton Mack, and Sheptock defeated 15th-ranked Max Thomusseit by the same margin.

Top Of The Table

Following the Northeast Duals, 184-pound Jimmy Sheptock leads the team or is tied for the team lead in eight dual-meet categories.

Sheptock leads the Terps in: dual points scored (28), technical falls (1), takedowns (24), two-point near falls (4), three-point near falls (3) and bonus points scored (19).

He is tied for the team lead in major decisions (2) and reversals (2).

Title Town

Four Terrapins won individual titles at the Brockport/Oklahoma Classic: Josh Asper (174), Christian Boley (197), Shane Gentry (125) and Jimmy Sheptock (184).

For Asper, it was his third consecutive title at Brockport with his first two coming at 165 pounds. Boley has won the 197-pound title the past two years.

Hudson Taylor Award

After each home dual meet this season, the Maryland coaching staff will select one wrestler as the recipient of the Hudson Taylor Award. The award is given to the most outstanding Terrapin wrestler in the meet.

Geoffrey Alexander received the award following Terrapin victories over Johns Hopkins and West Virginia to open the season.

Welcome To 174

Josh Asper made his debut at 174 pounds Saturday, Nov. 3 at the NWCA All-Star Classic. The Parkton, Md., native was pitted against two-time All-American Jordan Blanton of Illinois, who began the season ranked No. 2.

Asper made a statement. After three periods could not separate the two wrestlers, Asper scored a takedown in overtime to win 3-1.

With the win, Asper remained undefeated in the annual showcase. He is 3-0 and has appeared in this event more than any other Maryland wrestler in program history.

Schedule The Best

Maryland's 2012-13 schedule features several of the nation's elite. The Terps face 12 teams that were among the top 30 at the NCAA Championships including two top-10 programs in Ohio State and Illinois.

The Terps faced No. 6 Illinois at the Northeast Duals and No. 15 Pittsburgh last weekend. The Terps are scheduled against No. 4 Ohio State on Dec. 16 at Madison Square Garden.

In addition, Maryland defeated No. 21 Purdue and will take on No. 12 Virginia Tech, No. 14 Nebraska, No. 19 Virginia, and potentially faces No. 7 Missouri and/or No. 17 Wyoming at the NWCA National Duals.

Movin' On Up

During the offseason, several wrestlers made the move to a higher weight class.

Lou Mascola defeated Danny Orem at the Red & Black Wrestle-Offs to earn the starting nod at 149. Mascola wrestled at 141 last season and finished with a record of 10-12.

Ben Dorsay, who started for the Terps last season at 149, makes the jump to 157 this season. Dorsay is expected to redshirt this year.

After placing sixth at the NCAA Championships for the second consecutive season in 2012, Josh Asper climbs to 174. Asper has compiled a record of 63-9 over the past two seasons.

At 184, Jimmy Sheptock slides up from 174 where he went 27-6 last season en route to his first ACC Championship.

Ty Snook moves up from 184 to 197 following a 14-15 campaign in 2012 where he will compete with Christian Boley.

In The Hunt

The Terps placed seven wrestlers in the finals of last season's ACC Championships. Six of the seven wrestlers return for Maryland including three conference champions.

Christian Boley and Jimmy Sheptock will be looking for their second ACC title in as many seasons. Josh Asper will be looking to regain the crown after losing in the 165-pound final.

Geoffrey Alexander and Shane Gentry will both be looking for their first titles after falling in last season's championship round.

Head Coach Kerry McCoy

Beginning his fifth season at Maryland, head coach Kerry McCoy has compiled a record of 60-17-2, which is the highest winning percentage in program history (.772). McCoy, a three-time ACC Coach of the Year honoree, led the Terps to their second consecutive ACC crown in 2012. McCoy's accomplishments are numerous and include:

-22 All-Atlantic Coast Conference honorees
-15 ACC Champions
-Six All-Americans
-Three ACC Championships
-Three top-20 finishes at the NCAA Championships
-Two ACC Wrestler of the Year honorees
-Two ACC Tournament MVP honorees

Media Information

Terps on the Web: For up-to-date game stories, statistics, schedules and results, and other Maryland athletic department information, please log-on to REPLACE_ME on the Internet.