Feb. 9, 2009
Hey Tiger Fans,
This weekend was a very exciting one that will go down in history for the Missouri wrestling program. We started off the weekend at the University of Oklahoma and started at 125 lbs. Troy Dolan took on a top 10 ranked wrestler in Joey Fio and the match was one of the best of the dual. Troy came up a point short, but his constant improvement in matches is what has really got the team fired up. Being able to keep a top 10 wrestler on the ropes the whole match is a big step for Troy. Keep an eye on him the rest of the season!
Marcus Hoehn showed his experience in his match, completely controlling every second and being a point or two away from a major decision. He has really turned it on since his, and he will agree, "off-performance" at the MO Valley and UTC dual weekend. He has made a few minor adjustments to his game plan and is confident as ever.
I got a win over Will Rowe at 157, who is not necessarily their starter at this point in time.
Marable does what he does best at 165, slams dudes!! Nick has really picked up his work load in his matches from the beginning of the season. He keeps a lot higher pace and is in on the legs more, which is proving to be a good gameplan for him.
All but one of our last four wrestlers recorded wins. (Raymond) Jordan had a tough opponent in James, ranked #7. Max (Askren) earned a 7 point win, and Mark Ellis got the win over #16 ranked Fernandez, his first match back in the lineup.
The Oklahoma State dual was one of the most memorable duals of my career to date. For those of you who have not been to Gallagher-Iba Arena for a match, you will not understand how intense one wrestling building can be. Every time we go to "Cowboy Country" we are prepared to earn every single point that we can get. You will never hear me or any of the other Missouri guys complain about losing a match because of the ref, because if you have ever been to our wrestling room, you'll see in very large print on the walls NO EXCUSES!
The night started out great for the Cowboys as Troy Dolan got touch falled in the first period. This was a questionable call, but it sure did light a fire in us. Todd Schavrien lost a heart breaker to #14 Chris Notte by a point and then the fun times started!!!
Marcus Hoehn sparked an eight match win streak for us with his overtime victory over #15 Jamaal Parks. Marcus showed a ton of heart in his match to get the takedown early in the sudden victory period.
Andrew Sherry also showed much tenacity and composure in yet another overtime win against Luke Silver.
This is the part in the Blog where I'd like to stop and make a side note. One of the most memorable moments of my career happened after Sherry's match. Right after Sherry got the takedown and victory, coach Smith jumped in the air and quickly looked back at me first (because I was next to wrestle) and then the rest of the team and said, "THEY WILL NOT WIN ANOTHER MATCH" with the most intense fire in his eyes. I usually only see this when he is in his most extreme states. I'm talking veins popping out of his forehead and a deep bass in his voice. This was fuel for my fire going into my match and I'm sure it fueled the rest of the guys as well.
My match did not go as planned with #10 Neil Erisman, but I found a way to win and that is what matters most. I gave up a takedown in the first, and another questionable one in the second but quickly got a reversal and nearfall to take the lead. I rode him out the third period to score my contribution of 3 points to our 27-9 victory.
Nick Marable got the win at 165 against #10 Brandon Mason in an exciting match. Nick stuck to his gameplan and got a third period takedown to secure his victory.
Raymond Jordan got the job done at 174 with a win over Newly McSpadden to contribute his points to the impressive one-sided scoreboard.
At 184, Dorian Henderson kept a high pace match that was virtually scoreless after two periods. With his "in and out" style, Dorian does a great job of always making guys think he is coming with a shot at any time. In the third period, Dorian got in deep on a high crotch and slammed the Cowboy to his back and stuck him for 6 team points. This was one of the best slam takedowns I have seen in a while. It was a very convincing display of athleticism.
Max got a great workout in in his win over his opponent. The Cowboy ran away form Max for 7 straight minutes and maybe took one shot the whole match. This was very frustrating for Max, but the important thing is that he got the win.
The biggest match of the night was at heavyweight as our #1 ranked Mark Ellis took on #3 (formerly #1) Jared Rosholt. Ellis' only loss on the season came to Rosholt back in December at the CMSU Open. Since then, Ellis has been on a tear, but didn't feel that he deserved the #1 ranking until he beat either Rosholt (OSU) or #2 Zabriskie (Iowa State). Well his match at the end of the historic night sealed the deal. HE came away with the 5-3 win in overtime, and can now call himself #1 in the country and be happy saying it.
Be sure to come out and watch us as we take on Central Michigan this Friday at our annual Beauty and the Beast night. We will be smashing some Chippewas while the gymnastics team does their flips and dances simultaneously. It should be a good one.
We also take on the Iowa State Cyclones on Sunday. They are ranked #2 and we will be gunning for them as we have already knocked off Cornell when they were #2. It should be another great weekend for the Tigers. Thanks for all of your support. Have a great day!!