NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion wrestling team was tabbed No. 15 in the nation in FloWrestling’s preseason team rankings released on Tuesday. Individually, ODU has four wrestlers selected within the top 20 in their respective weight classes, including three that are listed in the top 10.
During the regular season, ODU is set to square off with two top-10 schools and at least four squads falling within the top 20 in dual meet action. The Monarchs will battle Mid-American Conference standout and seventh-ranked Missouri on Jan. 31 in Columbia, Mo. and NC State, the No. 9 team, on Dec. 17 in Raleigh, N.C. ODU will take on No. 11 UNC in its home-opener at the Ted Constant Center on Dec. 13 and will also host No. 17 Northern Iowa on Jan. 17. Potential matchups with No. 5 Virginia Tech and No. 20 Iowa State are also looming, as both schools will be participating alongside Old Dominion in the Virginia Duals on Jan. 8-9 in Hampton, Va.
At No. 15, ODU is ranked one slot ahead of Edinboro, the 2015 NCAA Championship third place team. The Monarchs are also ahead of Big Ten standout Northwestern and powerhouse Big 12 programs Oklahoma and Iowa State.
At 125, junior Brandon Jeske is ranked No. 19 by FloWrestling. The Virginia Beach native has qualified for the NCAA Championships in his freshman and sophomore campaigns and has accumulated 34 wins in his career.
Returning All-American Chris Mecate, who reached the NCAA semifinals en route to a sixth place finish at the National Championships in 2015, is slated No. 5 on Flo’s preseason rankings. The redshirt senior from Highland, Calif. won 24 matches for the Monarchs in his junior campaign, placed fifth at the Midlands tournament and was runner-up at the MAC Championships.
At 149, returning All-American Alexander Richardson is ranked No. 6 according to FloWrestling. The senior from Jersey City, N.J. placed seventh at the 2015 NCAA Championships after racking up 29 wins for ODU. He was runner-up at the MAC Championships, falling only to eventual NCAA Champion Drake Houdashelt of Missouri. Earlier this week, Richardson was selected to kick-off the 2015 season by competing in the 50th Annual NWCA All-Star Classic on Nov. 1 in Atlanta, Ga.
Lastly, redshirt junior and 2014 All-American Jack Dechow comes in at No. 6 at 184 on Flo’s preseason rankings. The Richmond, Ill. product stormed into the NCAA semifinals as a freshman in 2014 on his way to a fourth place finish as the No. 13 seed. Last year, he was the Monarchs’ lone Midlands champion and MAC champion.
The wrestling Monarchs will commence their season on Sunday, Nov. 1, as some team members will compete in the Clarion Open in Clarion, Pa., and Alexander Richardson will wrestle live on ESPNU at the unofficial but highly prestigious NWCA All-Star Classic.
FLOWRESTLING’S PRESEASON TOP 20
1. Penn State
2. Oklahoma State
3. Iowa
4. Michigan
5. Virginia Tech
6. Ohio State
7. Missouri
8. Cornell
9. NC State
10. Nebraska
11. UNC
12. Lehigh
13. Illinois
14. Wisconsin
15. Old Dominion
16. Edinboro
17. Northern Iowa
18. Oklahoma
19. Northwestern
20. Iowa State
VOUCHER BOOKS
Take advantage of the great offer to attend ODU wrestling matches through the ODU Wrestling Season Ticket Voucher Book available online here. Each voucher book contains 12 vouchers. These vouchers are good for any regular season ODU home wrestling match during the 2015-2016 season.
Be sure to follow Old Dominion Wrestling on Twitter at @ODUWrestling, find them on Facebook at OldDominionWrestling and subscribe to ODU Wrestling on YouTube!