March 2, 2007

ATHENS, Ohio - The Ohio wrestling team will travel to Buffalo, N.Y. this Saturday and Sunday for the Mid-American Conference Wrestling Championship. The two-day event will begin at 11:00 a.m. on each day at Alumni Arena.

The Bobcats finished the 2006-07 regular season with a 16-8 record in dual meets, the most wins in the 10-year coaching career of Ohio Head Coach Joel Greenlee. Greenlee had previously led the Bobcats to a 15-win season in the 1999-2000 campaign.

Ohio took fourth place in the MAC standings this season with a 2-3 mark in conference dual meets. The Bobcats defeated Eastern Michigan and Buffalo but fell to Central Michigan, Northern Illinois and Kent State. Central Michigan, ranked fifth in the nation, won the MAC with a 5-0 record followed by Kent State, Northern Illinois, Ohio, Eastern Michigan, and Buffalo.

Ohio finished in fifth place out of six teams at the 2006 MAC Championship with a total of 23.5 team points. The Chippewas claimed their fifth-straight championship last season with 102.5 team points. Kent State took second place followed by Buffalo, Northern Illinois, the Bobcats, and Eastern Michigan.

The winner of each weight class bracket will automatically advance to the NCAA Championship to be held in Auburn Hills, Mich. March 15-17. Nine at-large bids will also be handed out to wrestlers who did not win their respective weight class.

Previewing Ohio's Weight Classes
125: Ohio freshman Seth Morton (Canal Winchester, Ohio) will get the start for the Bobcats this weekend after a nice rookie season. Morton is currently ranked fourth in the MAC at 125 with a 10-14 overall record. He went 8-10 in dual meets this season and was 2-1 in matches determined by a pin.

133: Sophomore Terry Jackson (Uhrichsville, Ohio), ranked third in the MAC at 133, will look to make some noise this weekend at 133 pounds. Jackson went 13-7 on the season and 2-2 in conference action, including a win over Central Michigan's Conor Beebe in Ohio's season finale on Feb. 15. Jackson's biggest win of the season was a 9-5 victory over 16th-ranked Eric Albright of Virginia on Feb. 3. He posted four wins via major decision this season and one more by technical fall.

141: Sophomore Albert Madsen (Strongsville, Ohio) carries the top ranking in the MAC at 133 pounds into the championship weekend. Madsen recorded a perfect 5-0 record in conference dual meets this season, highlighted by a 10-6 win over 17th-ranked Eric Kruger of Central Michigan. Madsen is 10-7 on the season with a pair of pins.

149: Redshirt freshman Clay Tucker (Martins Ferry, Ohio) earned an impressive 6-4 win over CMU's Tyler Grayson in the season finale and looks to carry the momentum into action this weekend. Tucker went 9-18 in his first official season of competition with one pin and two major decisions. He went 2-3 in conference action on the season.

157: Sophomore Jake Frerichs (Uniontown, Ohio) missed Ohio's last dual meet with a minor injury but should be ready to go this weekend. Frerichs, at 15-7 on the season, is ranked 30th in the country at 157 pounds by WrestlingReport.com. He is ranked second in the MAC and slipped from the top spot in the rankings after not wrestling against the Chippewas. He went 13-5 in dual meets on the season and was 4-0 in matches decided by a pin.

165: Redshirt freshman Jacob Ison (Batavia, Ohio) posted a 29-win season in the regular season and is currently ranked 28th in the country by WrestlingReport.com. Ison went 29-10 on the season and 3-2 in MAC action and is ranked second in the latest MAC rankings. He led the Bobcats with 10 pins and was not defeated by fall this season. He also went 4-1 in matches decided by a major decision and was 17-5 in dual meets on the season.

174: The Bobcats will likely look to junior Antione Love (Gahanna, Ohio) at 174 pounds this weekend. Love went 21-7 in his first season with the Bobcats after transferring to Ohio. Love was 16-3 in dual meets and second on the team with eight pins on the season. He was not pinned at all during the year. Love reeled off a nine-match win streak early in the season and also posted two separate, four-match win streaks.

184: Senior Nick Terbay (Dayton, Ohio) is the probable for the Bobcats at 184. He went 8-15 on the season and did not wrestle in the season-finale against Central Michigan. Terbay was 6-11 in dual meets this season.

197: Sophomore Larry Reichard (New Albany, Ohio) will get the nod for the Bobcats at 197 after posting a 19-14 record during the regular season. He is not ranked in the MAC rankings but went 2-3 in conference dual meet action this season. Reichard was third on the team with six pins and lost by fall just once all season.

HWT: Senior heavyweight Marcus Adelman (Alliance, Ohio) will start for Ohio and is ranked 26th in the nation at 285 according by WrestlingReport.com. Adelman missed Ohio's regular-season finale against Central Michigan with an injury, but could have wrestled had the team scores been closer. He has been one of the best wrestlers in the nation over the last two months and has gone 10-1 in his last 11 matches dating back to Dec. 29. Adelman is ranked third in the MAC after posting an 18-8 overall record. He went 16-4 in dual meets and a perfect 3-0 in matches decided by a pin.

The Bobcats will look to turn some heads at the MAC Championship this weekend, beginning Saturday and Sunday at 11:00 a.m.