Lehigh returns home to face Michigan, Princeton
11/19/2008 3:15:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – No. 22 Lehigh returns home for a busy weekend of action, beginning with the annual Sheridan Dual as No. 9 Michigan visits Stabler Arena for a top 25 showdown on Friday night. The Mountain Hawks improved to 2-0 on the season with a 27-9 victory at Pittsburgh on Saturday and must now contend with a Michigan team that opens its dual season this weekend, but is coming off a seventh-place finish at last year’s NCAA Championships. The busy weekend concludes on Sunday, when former Lehigh All-American and assistant coach Chris Ayres returns to Bethlehem with his Princeton Tigers.
After missing the second half of last season due to academics, junior David Craig has been impressive in his return to the mats, with wins by fall in each of his first two bouts this season. Craig reached the Round of 12 at the NCAA Championships as a true freshman, but was just 6-4 in early season action as a sophomore. Of his 39 career victories, 13 have come by fall, and 21 have earned bonus points.
Michigan opens its dual season with Friday night’s dual against the Mountain Hawks. The Wolverines sent contingents to both the Eastern Michigan and Michigan State Opens earlier this month, but Michigan will officially begin its season with matches against Lehigh on Friday and against Penn on Saturday in Philadelphia. The Wolverines were 16-8 a year ago and finished in a tie for seventh at the NCAA Championships. All-Americans Josh Churella and Eric Tannenbaum have graduated, but Michigan still boasts three top-five talents, led by senior Steve Luke, who is ranked No. 1 at 174. Senior Tyrel Todd has bumped to 197, where he is ranked third and sophomore Kellen Russell is ranked fifth at 141 after an impressive freshman campaign.
Like Michigan, Princeton will open its dual season with two matches this weekend. The Tigers will join the Wolverines in Philadelphia, where both teams will face Penn on Saturday and then on Sunday, Princeton will head up to Lehigh as head coach Chris Ayres faces off against his alma mater for the first time. Ayres is still working towards building a strong program at Princeton. The Tigers were 0-18 in duals last year, and are 0-35 in Ayres’ first two years. There have been improvements, however, as Princeton did score 10.5 points at last year’s EIWA tournament, with current senior Marty Everin (157) and sophomore Tony Comunale (125) leading the way.
Lehigh and Michigan are wrestling in a dual meet for the 32nd straight season. The Wolverines lead the series versus Lehigh 23-11 and have won the last three duals in the series. The Mountain Hawks have not faced Princeton since 2003, but hold a commanding edge in the series. Lehigh has won seven straight versus the Tigers, covering a span of 40 years. Princeton is 0-26 all-time in dual meets at Lehigh.
This weekend’s matches have some extra meaning for the Lehigh wrestling program. The Michigan match has been designated the 2008-09 Sheridan Dual, in honor of Billy Sheridan, Lehigh’s legendary wrestling coach, who coached at Lehigh for 41 seasons and helped bring the program into national prominence. In addition, as part of the 100th season celebration, Lehigh is welcoming back all former wrestlers and coaches for a pre-match social and alumni parade.
Prior to Sunday’s dual with Princeton, Lehigh will host a memorial service inside Grace Hall for coach Gerry Leeman, who passed away last month. Leeman succeeded Sheridan with 18 winning seasons as he continued to guide the Lehigh program to unparalleled success.
Action gets underway with the Lehigh-Michigan match Friday night at 7 p.m. inside Stabler Arena. Sunday’s Lehigh-Princeton match will get underway at 1 p.m. from Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Tickets for both matches can be purchased by logging into Lehighsports.com or by visiting the respective arena box offices on match day.
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Date: |
November 21, 2008 |
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Opponent: |
No. 9 Michigan Wolverines |
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First match: |
7:05 p.m. |
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Arena: |
Stabler Arena (5,600) |
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Location: |
Bethlehem, Pa. |
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Lehigh’s record: |
2-0 overall, 0-0 EIWA |
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Michigan’s record: |
0-0 overall, 0-0 Big Ten |
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Series: |
Michigan leads 23-11 |
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Streak: |
Michigan has won the last three duals |
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Television: |
None |
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Radio: |
ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 with Steve Lomangino and Gary Brownell, beginning at 6:45 |
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Internet broadcast: |
Live video at Lehighsports.com |
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Behind enemy lines: |
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Date: |
November 23, 2008 |
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Opponent: |
Princeton Tigers |
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First match: |
1:05 p.m. |
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Arena: |
Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall (2,130) |
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Location: |
Bethlehem, Pa. |
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Princeton’s record: |
0-0 overall, 0-0 EIWA |
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Series: |
Lehigh leads 48-5-1 |
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Streak: |
Lehigh has won the last seven duals |
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Television: |
Service Electric 2 Sports live with Doug Heater and Kyle Berger |
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Radio: |
WLVR-FM (91.3) with Steve Lomangino and Gary Brownell beginning at 12:45 p.m. |
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Internet broadcast: |
Live video at Lehighsports.com |
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Behind enemy lines: |
