After a win out in the desert to begin the dual meet season, Ohio State’s fifth-ranked wrestlers will head north for an in-state tri match with Cleveland State and host Kent State on Tuesday night. The Buckeyes will wrestle both the Vikings and Golden Flashes at the same time, with matches scheduled to take place simultaneously on two mats.
The match will begin at 7:00 on Tuesday night, and will be streamed live
The unusual schedule of events can be found HERE, including which mat to watch.
Let’s take a look at what to expect when the Buckeyes travel to Kent State to take on a pair of Ohio schools for the Thanksgiving Throwdown 2016.
Kent State Golden Flashes
Head Coach: Jim Andrassy
Andrassy is beginning his 14th year at the helm of his alma mater. He has been in the corner for seven All-American finishes from five wrestlers, including NCAA champion Dustin Kilgore. Andrassy is joined by Matt Hill (Edinboro), Danny Mitcheff (Kent State), and recent Ohio State graduate Johnni DiJulius.
Ohioans on the Kent State Roster:
Most of them. 26 of the 31 wrestlers on the current Kent State roster hail from the Buckeye state.
Notable Golden Flash Wrestlers
No. 17 Anthony Tutulo (RS So, 133)
Tutulo is a two-time state champion for Lake Catholic High School (Mentor) and has made his mark for the Golden Flashes in his time in the lineup. Tutulo went 24-18 last season, wrestling up at 141 before dropping down to 133 this season. Tutulo is 8-0 on the young season, including a win against Ohio’s Cam Kelly, who is frequently on the fringe of the rankings.
Seth Beard (Fr, 125)
Beard is likely to redshirt, but he made news as a high school senior for being the first wrestler in Ohio to defeat a senior at the state tournament when that wrestler is seeking a fourth state title. Beard knocked off Tyler Warner of Uhrichsville Claymont in the state semifinals 6-4 when Warner was just two wins away from his fourth state title. Beard is also the first state champion for Napoleon High School, which happens to be my alma mater.
Cleveland State Vikings
Head Coach: Ben Stehura
Stehura, in his ninth season as head coach at Cleveland State, successfully navigated a rocky period in which Cleveland State briefly ended the program before reinstating the wrestling team. Last season, Stehura coached two wrestlers who each won a pair of matches at the NCAA tournament, but both wrestlers have since graduated. Josh Moore (Penn State) and Freddy Garcia (Lock Haven) are Cleveland State’s assistant coaches.
Ohioans on the Cleveland State Roster:
Like Kent State, most of Cleveland State’s starters hail from Ohio.
Notable Viking Wrestlers:
In this section, I typically note wrestlers that are ranked or are previous NCAA All-Americans, but the Cleveland State wrestling team is in a transitional year, and they feature neither any ranked wrestlers (in the InterMat rankings) nor returning All-Americans.
| Wt | No. 5 Ohio state buckeyes | kent state golden flashes | cleveland state vikings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 125 | Jose Rodriguez | Cory Simpson/Drew Dickson | Spencer Dusi |
| 133 | Brendan Fitzgerald | No. 17 Anthony Tutulo | Terrell Grant |
| 141 | No. 12 Ke-Shawn Hayes | Chance Driscoll/ Ethan McCoy | Evan Cheek |
| 149 | No. 6 Micah Jordan | Tim Rooney | Nick Montgomery |
| 157 | No. 13 Jake Ryan | Casey Sparkman | Grant Turnmire |
| 165 | Cody Burcher | Isaac Bast/ Jared Walker | John Vaughn |
| 174 | No. 1 Bo Jordan/ Seth Williams | Jairod James | Devon Pingel |
| 184 | No. 2 Myles Martin | Jerald Spohn/ Caleb Stockmaster | Nick Corba |
| 197 | No. 12 Kollin Moore | Stephen Suglio | Collin Kelly |
| HWT | No. 1 Kyle Snyder | Devin Nye | Michael Furbee |
Key Matches:
Ohio State vs Cleveland State
141: No. 12 Ke-Shawn Hayes vs Evan Cheek
Cheek is a highly-decorated wrestler from Milan Edison High School and gave Nathan Tomasello quite an unexpected challenge early in their match last season at 125. Now that he’s up to 141, it’ll be interesting to see if he continues to impress. Speaking of impress, I’ve yet to see Hayes wrestle in person, so tonight is something that I’m really looking forward to. Hayes dropped a tough match to Kevin Jack of NC State, so it’ll be interesting to see how he responds in the next few matches.
125: Jose Rodriguez vs Spencer Dusi
Rodriguez is still trying to get his bearings as a collegiate wrestler, but has been impressive to date. He should cruise in this match, but still get an opportunity to sharpen his skills.
Ohio State vs Kent State
133: Brendan Fitzgerald vs No. 17 Anthony Tutulo
Fitzgerald impressed at the Eastern Michigan Open with some risky pins, defeating a pair of ranked opponents. Will he be able to pull off a third pin over a ranked wrestler in relief of Nathan Tomasello?
174: No. 1 Bo Jordan vs Jairod James
James has an impressive 8-1 record coming into the tri meet, but hasn’t faced anyone like Bo. The elder Jordan brother has yet to compete this season, but could start his campaign tonight.
Match Outlook
If Ohio State were to roll out their full starting lineup including Tomasello, Bo Jordan, and Kyle Snyder, they could conceivably win 20 out of 20 matches tonight. With the odd format of scheduling, we may see a variety of backups wrestle at least once against their fellow Ohioans. The Buckeyes should cruise to a pair of dual meet victories before setting their sights on the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite on the first weekend of December.
