Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eagles Close Out Season Against Spartans
2/18/2008 10:18:01 AM | Wrestling
Mancuso and Pienaar look to power Eagles past Spartans in East Lansing
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YPSILANTI, Mich. - The Eastern Michigan University wrestling team closes out its regular-season with a trip up north to East Lansing, taking on Big Ten foe Michigan State University. EMU will look get back into the winner's circle after suffering a 28-6 defeat by Kent State University Feb. 14. Match time is slated to start at 7 p.m. inside Jenison Field House.
ABOUT THE SPARTANS: The Spartans enter Friday night’s dual with a 3-11, 0-7 Big Ten record on the year. Most recently, they suffered a 26-13 defeat at the hands of No. 10 ranked Penn State University.
MAC FINALE: The Eagles closed out Mid-American Conference action last week on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, dropping a 28-6 decision to the No. 20 ranked Kent State University Golden Flashes. Posting winning decisions on the night were senior Cory Mancuso and freshman Derek Foore.
NUMBER 20 FOR NUMBER 1: Senior Cory Mancuso reached the 20 win plateau with his 12-3 major decision over Sli Bostelman of Kent State, Thursday, Feb. 14. Mancuso, the top-ranked wrestler in the 157-pound weight class in the MAC, closed out the year with a 4-1 conference record.
MAC CHAMPIONSHIP AROUND THE CORNER: After Friday’s match with the Spartans the Eagles will turn their focus to the MAC Championship, hosted by Kent State University, March 7-8. Last year EMU finished in fifth place, and had one MAC Champion, Jermain Thompson in the 149-pound weight class.
HALL OF FAME HONORS: The Eastern Michigan University E-Club opened its doors to former standout wrestler Doug Willer, as he was a member of the class of 2007. Ranked ninth on the all-time win record with 66, Willer was a MAC Champion in the 142-pound weight class during the 1972-73 season.
SWEETER THEN A BOTTLE OF YOOHOO: Redshirt sophomore David Wade posted a 3-0 record in quad action with matches against Gardner-Webb, Northern Illinois and Clarion University. It was the second consecutive weekend he has gone undefeated in quad action, going 3-0 at the Ithaca College Quad Feb. 2.
IN THE BOOKS: With their win against Mercyhurst (Feb. 2), the Eagles set the single-season win record, with 13 dual victories on the year. The record of 12 was set more than 30 years ago, by the 1974-75 squad.
SENIORS LEAD THE WAY: Seniors Cory Mancuso and Charlie Pienaar accounted for 29 total team points at the Ithaca College Quad, Feb. 2. Both wrestlers tallied multiple bonus point wins, including a pin, going 3-0 for the day.
PINS EQUAL WINS: The Eagles registered at least one pin in each of their three matches at the Ithaca College Quad, Feb. 2. In all, five different wrestlers ,Cory Mancuso (157), David Wade (285), Andrew Novak (125), Derek Foore (174) and Charlie Pienaar (184), tallied falls.
ROAD TRIP: The Eagles traveled to Ithaca, N.Y., Feb. 2, competing in the Ithaca College Quad. There, EMU wrestled duals against Ithaca, Binghamton and Mercyhurst, posting a 3-0 record.
THREE-PEAT: Redshirt sophomore Sean Clair won his third Mid-American Conference Wrestler of the Week Award of the year, Jan. 29. The No. 16 ranked wrestler in the latest USA Today/Intermat/NWCA wrestling rankings stands at 27-4 for the year. His three MAC honors are the most by any wrestler in the conference.
CLAIR CLIMBS THE MAC: Redshirt sophomore Sean Clair entered Jan. 26’s match against the Chippewas’ Conor Beebe as the No. 4 ranked wrestler in the 133-pound class in the MAC. Beebe, who was ranked No. 3, did not score a point, losing by a 1-0 count.
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST: The Eastern Michigan University wrestling team hosted in-state rival Central Michigan University, Saturday, Jan. 26. The match against the No. 5 ranked Chippewas coincided with an EMU-CMU gymnastics match. CMU was able to pick up its 10th win of the season, knocking off the Eagles 22-12.
SETTING COURSE FOR CLEVELAND: The Eagles traveled to Cleveland, Ohio, Jan. 12, for a dual against the Vikings of Cleveland State. EMU avenged an 18-15 loss a year ago, defeating CSU 22-12.
DOING IT BIG IN TEXAS: Redshirt senior Charlie Pienaar and redshirt sophomore Sean Clair both wrestled their way to 4-0 records at the 11th Annual Lone Star Duals held Jan. 5 at South Grand Prairie High School in Arlington, Texas.
CLOSING IN ON THE RECORD BOOKS: Sean Clair, who stands at 27-4 overall on the year, is just three wins shy of cracking the Top 10 list in the EMU record books for wins in a season.
TWO OUT OF THREE: The Eagles posted a 2-1 record at the Wolverine Quad, Dec. 30, at Cliff Keen Arena in Ann Arbor, Mich. EMU defeated Lehigh, 20-16, and Buffalo, 21-12, while falling to No. 7 ranked Michigan, 33-6.
EARLY JUMP: Andrew Novak (125) and Sean Clair (133) combined for 22 of EMU’s 47 total team points at the Wolverine Quad. Both wrestlers were able to give the Green and White the early lead in all three matches contested.
GIVING THE BUSINESS: EMU recorded a 42-0 shutout win over Olivet College, Dec. 20. Four out of the 10 matches were bonus point wins for the Eagles.
ROUGH WEEKEND: The Eagles lost their first and second matches of the season Dec, 14-16, after starting the year 4-0. No. 14 Edinboro picked up a 31-6 win at the Third Annual "War at the Shore", Dec. 14, and No. 9 Northwestern posted a 29-6 win Dec. 16, at Bowen Field House.
CONFERENCE BESTS: Two Eagle wrestlers picked up Mid-American Conference awards for the period ending Dec. 11. True freshman Andrew Novak was named the MAC Wrestler of the Week after posting a 4-0 record during the first week of dual competition. Senior Charlie Pienaar picked up the MAC Male Scholar Athlete of the Week after posting a 2-2 mark. Pienaar, a physical education major, carries a 3.84 GPA.
