Cornell climbs to ninth before national duals

MOUNT VERNON - Cornell College's wrestling season has included its share of success and frustration.

The Rams are 7-3 with only one loss coming to an NCAA Division III program, but they have done it without their top lineup on the mat.

'We have had a pretty good first half of the year,” Coach Mike Duroe said. 'We haven't been 100-percent healthy so we've used kind of a mixed bag in terms of a lineup from week to week.”

Cornell has climbed to ninth in the latest National Wrestling Coaches Association D-III rankings and earned the No. 8 seed for the NWCA Multi-Divisional National Duals on Friday and Saturday in Fort Wayne, Ind. Action for D-III teams begins at 9 a.m. Friday. Cornell has an opening-round bye and will face the winner of SUNY-Cortland and Wheaton (Ill.) at 11 a.m.

Injuries and graduation could keep the Rams short-handed for the upcoming weekend, including fifth-ranked 149-pounder Trevor Engle, who returned to the lineup for the first time since early November, but medical forfeited the championship bout at the Citrus Wrestling Invitational on Dec. 30.

'We haven't had everybody in the lineup one time this year in terms of our starters,” Duroe said. 'I'm hoping by the time we get to the Matman (Invitational next weekend) everybody will be back and ready to go. There is a good chance we will have to hold out a couple starters from our lineup, which will hurt us.”

Cornell will compete in its eighth national duals tournament since 2006, when Duroe took over the program. The Rams placed four times, including sixth in 2007 and 2009.

Duroe is 'cautiously optimistic” about their chances this weekend. He said he likes how hard his wrestlers compete. They give themselves an opportunity for success with their effort.

'We pride ourselves on being tough and hard-nosed,” Duroe said. 'Conditioning is a very important element and part of our training. Some of our guys may not be the most skilled technically but they wrestle hard and put themselves in position to win matches.”

Coaches have begun developing other wrestlers to step in as starters. More wrestlers have gained much needed experience. On a positive note, the gap between starters and reserves has shrunk.

'We are starting to build our depth,” Duroe said. 'We've never really had that luxury. In the past, there has been a pretty good drop off between our starters and backup guys. Now, we're really starting to see depth in some of our weight classes.”

Josh Martin has joined Engle in the national rankings. The sophomore 141-pounder is also fifth. Freshman Jarod Cadena, a former Cedar Rapids Prairie state finalist has contributed at 184. Scott Smith (125) also won a title in Florida, matching Martin's feat. Martin is 14-4 this season.

'Josh Martin has had a good start to the year,” Duroe said. 'He has had some really good outings. He's still young.

'He's been the most consistent and has stayed healthy.”

Top-ranked Wartburg (7-0) is the No. 1 seed and faces the winner of Augustana (Ill.) and Mount Union (Ohio).

No. 12 Coe (5-1) opens with Coast Guard, while 17th-ranked Luther (4-2) has a first-round dual against Wilkes (Penn.).

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