Lehigh University Athletics
Mountain Hawks earn top seed at Virginia Duals
1/6/2009 10:15:00 AM | Men's Wrestling
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – On the heels of its 12th straight dual meet victory of the season Sunday at Penn State, No. 9 Lehigh claimed the top seed in the 16-team field for the 29th Virginia Duals, which begin Friday in Hampton, Va. Seeds and brackets were unveiled Tuesday morning and as the No. 1 seed, the Mountain Hawks will wrestle Ohio University in the opening round Friday at 9 a.m.
At 12-0, the Mountain Hawks have matched the 1961-62 Lehigh squad for the best start in school history. A win over the Bobcats would establish a new school record for most consecutive dual wins to start the season. Lehigh’s second dual on Friday will be at 1 p.m. against either No. 8 seed Kent State or EIWA rival Bucknell.
Lehigh is making its eighth Virginia Duals appearance in school history and its second in as many years. Last year the Mountain Hawks went 2-2, earning wins over Bucknell and Rider, while dropping duals to Illinois and Virginia. Lehigh captured its lone Virginia Duals title in 2003 and finished second the following year. Ohio University is 4-2-1 in duals this season, with the Bobcats not having lost in their last five duals. The Bobcats top grappler is junior Jacob Ison, who is ranked 19th at 174. Lehigh and Ohio have met twice before with the Mountain Hawks winning duals in December of 2000 and 2001.
Oklahoma State, a team Lehigh defeated at the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Duals in November, earned the No. 2 seed, with seeds three through eight going to Central Michigan, Edinboro, Penn, Old Dominion, Virginia and Kent State respectively.
Action at the Virginia Duals gets underway at 9 a.m. Friday from the Hampton Coliseum, with Lehigh’s opening round match against Ohio University and three other first round duals. The Mountain Hawks’ second dual of the day, versus either Kent State or Bucknell will get underway at 1 p.m. All of Lehigh’s Virginia Duals action will be broadcast live online at Lehighsports.com, with streaming audio powered by Yahoo! Sports College Broadcast.
Virginia Duals Pairings
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1. LEHIGH |
vs. |
Ohio |
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8. Kent State |
vs. |
Bucknell |
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5. Penn |
vs. |
North Dakota St. |
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4. Edinboro |
vs. |
Rider |
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6. Old Dominion |
vs. |
Northern Colorado |
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3. Central Michigan |
vs. |
Liberty |
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7. Virginia |
vs. |
Navy |
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2. Oklahoma State |
vs. |
Clarion |
