Lehigh University Athletics
Mountain Hawks look to knock off top-ranked Cornell Thursday
1/19/2011 4:41:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – No. 17 Lehigh will face one of its toughest tests this season Thursday as the Mountain Hawks host the top-ranked Cornell Big Red at Stabler Arena in the 2011 Sheridan Dual. The Mountain Hawks will be looking to bounce back from a shocking 19-15 loss at Navy Saturday night, Lehigh's third straight dual setback and first loss to an unranked opponent since 2008. Cornell has won the last four EIWA Championships and finished second at last year's NCAA tournament. The Big Red boast seven ranked wrestlers and are coming off a National Duals title 11 days ago.
Lehigh and Navy split ten bouts on Saturday, but the Mids earned the only four bonus points of the dual, while also earning three consecutive one-point upset wins from 165-184. Nationally ranked juniors Zach Rey and Joe Kennedy were victorious, as was sophomore Joey Napoli and freshmen Frank Cagnina and Stephen Dutton. Since the start of the 2003-04 season, Lehigh has wrestled 12 duals inside Stabler Arena. The Mountain Hawks are 8-4 in those duals and have won four in a row at Stabler, including a 25-6 win over Michigan earlier this year.
Thursday's dual marks the seventh consecutive season that Lehigh's legendary former coach, Billy Sheridan, is honored with a single dual meet against a high profile opponent. This year marks the first time that the single Sheridan Dual pits Lehigh against an EIWA rival. From 2000-2003 Lehigh hosted the Sheridan Duals, a series of duals in which the Mountain Hawks faced three opponents on the first or second Saturday in December at Stabler Arena. Before that, Lehigh hosted the Sheridan Tournament, which began in 1979.
Cornell began the season as the nation's No. 1 ranked team and has maintained that position throughout the season. The Big Red are 5-0 in dual meets and have also won the Body Bar Invitational and the Las Vegas Invitational and tied for first at the Southern Scuffle. Two weeks ago Cornell became the first Eastern program to win the NWCA National Duals, beating Ohio State, Missouri, Minnesota and Virginia Tech in the process. The Big Red also owns a dual win over Central Michigan. Individually, seven Big Red wrestlers are ranked by Amateur Wrestling News, with five of the seven ranked in the top five. Kyle Dake won a national championship at 141 last year and is ranked second at 149 joining top five Cornell wrestlers Justin Kerber (No. 3 at 165), Mack Lewnes (No. 2 at 174), Steve Bosak (No. 3 at 184) and Cam Simaz (No. 1 at 197). Simaz and former All-American Mike Grey have both missed time recently due to injury, but both are expected back in the Cornell lineup soon.
Lehigh and Cornell will meet for the 88th time. The Big Red serve as Lehigh's third most often wrestled opponent, behind just Penn State and Navy. Last year's dual in Ithaca ended in a 15-15 tie and was the first between the two teams since 2007. The Mountain Hawks have won six of the last eight duals in the series.
Thursday's dual gets underway at 7 p.m. from Stabler Arena. Tickets are still available and can be purchased online or by visiting the Stabler Arena box office Thursday night.
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Date:
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January 20, 2011
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Opponent:
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No. 1 Cornell Big Red
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First match:
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7:05 p.m.
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Arena:
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Stabler Arena (5,600)
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Location:
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Bethlehem, Pa.
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Lehigh's record:
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9-5 overall, 1-1 EIWA
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Cornell's record:
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5-0 overall, 0-0 EIWA
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Series:
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Lehigh leads 57-26-4
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Television:
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Service Electric 2 Sports live with Doug Heater and Kyle Berger
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Radio:
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ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 with Steve Lomangino and Gary Brownell beginning at 6:45 p.m.
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Internet broadcast:
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Live video at Lehighsports.com
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