NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion Wrestling Monarchs return home this weekend for the first time in a month to take on Mid-American Conference rivals Buffalo on Friday and No. 18 Kent State on Sunday. The Buffalo match on Friday will represent Spirit Night and Military Appreciation night, while the Kent State match on Sunday will be High School Appreciation day.
Live stats for both events will be available through trackwrestling. Fans can also watch the live stream through Monarch Media, with a subscription, and follow along on Twitter (@ODUWrestling) or the ODU Wrestling Cover It Live blog.
The Big Blue room in the Ted Constant Center will be open 90 minutes before the match for all fans of ODU Wrestling and there will be a cash bar and various concession items available.
The Monarchs enter the weekend coming off a 26-15 win over American. ODU saw six wrestlers win their weight class, led by Austin Coburn (174) and Kevin Beazley (197) who won by fall. Jake Henderson (285) and Tristan Warner (165) both claimed major decision, while Jack Dechow (184) and Lenny Richardson (149) recorded wins by decision.
After the win over American, Old Dominion improved to 7-3 in dual action this season and continue to climb the rankings, as the Monarchs jumped to No. 19 in the most recent NWCA Coaches Poll. ODU is 4-3 on the season against top-25 competition. Not only are the Monarchs ranked in all of the top-25 ranking sources, they have seven wrestlers ranked in their individual weight class.
ODU has taken down then No. 10 Edinboro, No. 22 Purdue, No. 23 Bucknell and No. 25 Chattanooga. The win over Edinboro at the Virginia Duals, which claimed third-place overall, marked the first win over a top-10 team in program history. ODU’s three losses have come to schools that are ranked in the NWCA top-20, as the Monarchs dropped matches to No. 3 Missouri, No. 9 Virginia Tech and No. 18 Wyoming.
The Monarchs are led by returning All-American Jack Dechow, who is currently 18-1 overall and 9-1 in dual action. He was crowned the 184 pounds Midlands Champion, the first ever for Old Dominion earlier in the season, and is just 27 wins away from hitting the 100 mark as a redshirt sophomore. Redshirt Senior, Tristan Warner, also provides a spark for ODU at 165 pounds, as he is 19-2 and a perfect 9-0 in dual meets. He leads the team with 39 total points scored in dual action this season and has notched a career record of 87-54.
Last year, the Monarchs took down Buffalo in New York by a 21-10 margin, but fell to Kent State by a 25-7 score in Ohio.
Old Dominion Probables:
125 - No. 17 (WIN Magazine) Brandon Jeske / Josh Markham
133 - Michael Hayes
141 - No. 9 (Intermat) Chris Mecate / Jacob Kingett
149 - No. 12 (Intermat / Wrestling Report) Lenny Richardson
157 - TC Warner / Devin Geoghegan / Austin Eads
165 - No. 15 (Intermat / Amateur Wrestling News) Tristan Warner
174 - Austin Coburn
184 - No. 2 (Amateur Wrestling News / Wrestling Report) Jack Dechow
197 - No. 22 (Wrestling Report) Kevin Beazley
285 - No. 29 (Wrestling Report) Jake Henderson / Matt Tourdot
Buffalo Probables:
125 - No. 33 Max Soria (17-6)
133 - Sean Peacock (15-11)
141 - Colt Cotton (1-0) / Jason Estevez (10-7)
149 - Justin Cooksey (9-12)
157 - Danny Graham (6-6)
165 - Rrok Ndokaj (8-11)
174 - Wally Maziarz (6-11)
184 - Brett Perry (8-14) /Austin Weigel (8-10)
197 - Ian James 5-9) / Joe Ariola (11-10)
285 - Mike Silvis (6-12)
Kent State Probables:
125 - Del Vinas (10-18)
133 - No. 15 Mack McGuire (22-8)
141 - No. 31 Tyler Small (27-7)
149 - Mike DePalma (16-12)
157 - No. 2 Ian Miller (7-2)
165 - Tyler Buckwalter (20-11)
174 - Jerald Spohn (20-16) / Mike Vollant (7-17)
184 - Jerald Spohn (20-16) / Mike Vollant (7-17)
197 - No. 24 Cole Baxter (14-8)
285 - No. 33 Mimmo Lytle (21-13)
ODU vs. Buffalo (Friday, 7:30 p.m.)
Record: 3-1
First Meeting: 1971
Streak: ODU +3
Last Buffalo Win: 1971
Last ODU Win: 2013
1971, Buffalo 32 Old Dominion 8
2001, Old Dominion 20 Buffalo 15
2011, Old Dominion 24 Buffalo 15
2013, Old Dominion 21 Buffalo 10
ODU vs. Kent State (Sunday, 1:00 p.m.)
Record: 2-9
First Meeting: 1989
Streak: Kent State +3
Last Kent State Win: 2013
Last ODU Win: 2008
1989, Kent State 22 Old Dominion 16
1998, Kent State 33 Old Dominion 6
2001, Kent State 40 Old Dominion 11
2003, Kent State 32 Old Dominion 11
2006, Kent State 24 Old Dominion 9
2006, Kent State 21 Old Dominion 14
2007, Old Dominion 25 Kent State 12
2008, Old Dominion 18 Kent State 15
2011, Kent State 21 Old Dominion 16
2012, Kent State 27 Old Dominion 6
2013, Kent State 25 Old Dominion 7