Old Dominion (6-9, 4-2 MAC) vs. Drexel (6-8, 2-4 EIWA)
Match Info – Monday, February 10 at 7 p.m. | Blackout Match
Location – Chartway Arena (Norfolk, Va.)
Giveaway – First 100 fans in attendance receives a free t-shirt
Follow – Live Stats | Live Stream | Twitter
NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion wrestling team will be taking on Drexel on Monday, February 10 at 7 p.m. at Chartway Arena in a non-conference battle.
In their last showing, the Monarchs lost to No. 7 Virginia Tech, 23-9 on February 2. Despite the loss, three Monarchs walked away with victories over ranked opponents, as Killian Cardinale took down No. 13 Joey Prata at 125 pounds, Kenan Carter downed No. 23 Bryce Andonian at 149 pounds and Larry Early defeated No. 13 B.C. LaPrade in the 157-pound bout.
Cardinale and Early are both featured in four of the latest national polls and both of them are inside the top-15 in all four. Cardinale tops out at No. 14 this week and he leads the Monarchs with 19 wins this season. Currently, Cardinale is on a stretch of winning six of his last seven bouts.
Early is listed as the 10th-best wrestler in the country according to both Intermat and WIN Magazine. The Oak Park, Illinois native has found his rhythm, earning wins in 11 of his last 12 bouts and earning 39 dual points this season, the most on the team. Both Cardinale and Early pace the Monarchs with five wins against ranked opponents this season.
Redshirt senior Sa'Derian Perry was also ranked this week, checking in at No. 18 in TrackWrestling's poll.
Prior to losing against three-time All-American David McFadden of Virginia Tech in the last match, 165-pounder Shane Jones was riding a four-bout winning streak with two of those wins coming by major decision. Jones will look to get back to his winning ways against Drexel.
Cardinale, Perry, Early and Jones were all among the top-six named in their weight classes in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) February rankings that was released this week. The fifth Monarch featured in the conference rankings was Antonio Agee at 184 pounds. Agee returned to claim the six-spot in the conference after being omitted from the poll in the last rankings period.
About Drexel
The Dragons are currently in the midst of a three-match losing streak, with their last win coming on January 19 against Binghamton. In their last match on Friday night against Columbia, Drexel lost by a slim three-point margin, 19-16. Drexel is currently 6-8 on the campaign, 2-4 against opponents who also compete in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA).
Drexel currently has two ranked wrestlers on its roster, No. 18 Ebed Jarrell at 165 pounds and No. 32 Bryan McLaughlin at 197 pounds. Jarrell comes into Monday's match with a 14-5 record on the season, 7-3 in duals. The senior Dragon has pinned six opponents so far this year. McLaughlin is 13-11 this year and is 7-7 in dual meets.
Series History
Monday's dual will be the 20th meeting between these two programs, with ODU holding the 11-8 edge over Drexel. The first time these two teams faced off against each other was in 1991, with the Monarchs cruising to a 33-6 victory.
ODU has won nine straight against the Dragons, with the last win coming last season in the regular-season finale. ODU came away with a 23-12 victory, which was highlighted by a Timothy Young win over then-No. 11 Stephen Loiseau at 197 pounds.
Tickets
Monday's match against Drexel is the second-to-last home match of the season for Old Dominion. You can get your tickets by visiting ynottix.com. Gates open one hour before every match.
Admission is free for students with a valid ID. Standard admission is $6 while seniors, youth and military can purchase tickets for $5 each.
Pre-Match Social
At every home match this season, ODU wrestling will host a pre-match social located in the Big Blue Room one hour prior to the start of the match. The Big Blue Room will open at 6 p.m. on Monday night, close at the start of the action, and then reopen during intermission. All fans are welcome to the social. Soda, water and adult beverages will be available.
Blackout Match
Monday's match is ODU's Blackout Match. Fans are encouraged to wear black or dark ODU clothing to participate in the "blackout." Also, the first 100 fans in attendance will receive a free ODU wrestling t-shirt.
Probable Starters Against Drexel
125 lbs. : #14 Killian Cardinale vs.Antonio Mininno
133 lbs. : Shannon Hanna II vs. Chandler Olson OR Chase Shields
141 lbs. : #18 Sa'Derian Perry vs. Tyler Williams OR Julian Flores
149 lbs. : Kenan Carter vs. Nick Widmann OR Vincent Foggia
157 lbs. : #11 Larry Early vs. Parker Kropman
165 lbs. : Shane Jones vs. #18 Ebed Jarrell
174 lbs. : Alex Cramer OR Luke Drugac vs. Michael O'Malley
184 lbs. : Antonio Agee OR Dean Drugac vs. Owen Brooks
197 lbs : Timothy Young vs. #32 Bryan McLaughlin
285 lbs. : Will Hilliard OR Jacob Bullock vs. Sean O'Malley
Monarchs Host Drexel in Blackout Match on Monday Night
