Match 1: #17 Cornell (0-1) vs #8 Ohio State (2-1)
Sunday, December 1, 2019 • 2:00 p.m. ET
BTN+
Columbus, Ohio • Covelli Center
QUICK HITS
• Live video of the dual can be viewed on BTN+, live updates will be tweeted from @CUBigRedGameDay. A pair subscription is required to view on BTN+.
• Cornell is ranked 17th nationally in the latest NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll, moving down two spots from #15 following a loss to now #7 NC State, 25-9.
• Cornell was defeated by Ohio State in the last meeting between the two teams, 25-9, in Ithaca in 2019.
• The two sides have met 15 times all-time and have split the series, 7-7-1.
• The Big Red enters the season looking to extend its record streak of Ivy titles to 18.
• After taking second at the EIWA Championships last spring, the Big Red took seven qualifiers to the national championships - crowning four All-Americans and
Yianni Diakomihalis as the NCAA champion at 141 pounds on the way to a seventh-place team finish.
• Four members of the Cornell squad are taking Olympic Redshirt years and will miss the 2019-20 season Vito Arujau (125),
Yianni Diakomihalis (141),
Andrew Berreyesa (165) and
Max Dean (184).
• Three NCAA qualifiers return —
Chas Tucker (133),
Brandon Womack (174) and
Ben Darmstadt (184).
• Womack (2017) and Darmstadt (2018) represent the two returning All-Americans to the line-up.
• Cornell head coach
Rob Koll became the eighth Big Red coach in any sport to hit the 300-win plateau last season.
PROBABLE STARTERS FOR CORNELL
PROBABLE STARTERS FOR OHIO STATE
| Wt. |
Wrestler |
| 125 |
Malik Heinselman (5-4) |
| 133 |
#18 Quinn Kinner (5-4) |
| 141 |
#1 Luke Pletcher (8-0) |
| 149 |
#10 Sammy Sasso (7-1) |
| 157 |
Elijah Clearly (6-4) |
| 165 |
#14 Ethan Smith (6-3) |
| 174 |
#13 Kaleb Romero (7-0) |
| 184 |
Gavin Hoffman (8-3) |
| 197 |
#1 Kollin Moore (8-0) |
| HWT |
#8 Chase Singletary (2-0) -OR- Gary Traub (10-1) |
HEAD COACH ROB KOLL
• Cornell head coach
Rob Koll is in his 27th season at Cornell (306-95-5, .761; 121-8-1 Ivy, .934)
• He is the David R. Dunlop '59 Head Coach of Wrestling at Cornell
• The all-time winningest wrestling coach in program history, Koll has guided the Big Red to 17 straight Ivy League titles (20 overall), 11 EIWA crowns and eight top five NCAA team finishes, including second twice (2010, 2011)
• He was the 2005 NWCA Division I Coach of the Year and the Dan Gable Coach of the Year
• His wrestlers have won 16 national titles with 71 All-Americans and 64 individual EIWA champions.
A LOOK AT OHIO STATE
• Ohio State owns a 2-1 dual record entering Sunday, with decisive wins over Stanford (29-6) and Pittsburgh (23-12).
• The Buckeyes were defeated by Virginia Tech, 21-15, on Sunday, Nov. 17.
• Ohio State projects to wrestle seven ranked wrestlers against Cornell on Sunday.
• Ohio State boasts four wrestlers in the FloWrestling Top 10, with two wrestlers (Luke Pletcher/Kollin Moore) pacing their respective weights with the No. 1 ranking.
• Luke Pletcher is a two-time All-American, a two-time Big Ten finalist and a three-time NCAA Qualifier. Pletcher took 4th at NCAA's last season.
• Kollin Moore is a three-time All-American and was an NCAA Finalist at 197 pounds in 2019. Moore was the Big Ten champion in 2017 and 2018.
• Chase Singletary qualified for NCAA's in 2019, defeating a pair of top 20 opponents following an at-large bid into the championships.
• In his first season of action for Ohio State, Sammy Sasso is 7-1. Sasso was a standout in his redshirt season, beating a pair of All-Americans at the Midlands Championships.
• Ohio State wrestlers are 19-11 through three dual matches.
• Pletcher (141) and Moore (197) lead the team with three dual victories each.
• Cornell is Ohio State's final dual prior to the Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas, a tournament that Cornell will also attend.
A WIN OVER OHIO STATE WOULD
• give Cornell an 8-7-1 advantage in the all-time series against Ohio State.
• give Cornell a 3-1 advantage over the Buckeyes in the last four meetings.
• make the Big Red 40-8 in dual meets over the last four years (.847).
• be the 307th career victory for head coach
Rob Koll (306-95-5, .761).
• give the Big Red an 824-404-20 (.668) all-time dual meet record.
THE CORNELL-OHIO STATE SERIES
• The all-time series is tied, 7-7-1, in a series that dates back to 1929.
• A 15-13 Ohio State victory on March 2, 1929 kicked off the series in Columbus, Ohio.
• Cornell picked up its first victory over Ohio State on March 5, 1932, 17-13. Ohio State held a 2-0-1 advantage until that point.
• The teams wouldn't meet again until Jan. 10, 1998, when Cornell defeated the Buckeyes, 15-14.
• Eight of the 15 meetings have been decided by one bout, with six meeting being decided by one team point (including the 14-14 tie on March 6, 1931).
LAST TIME VS. OHIO STATE
• Then No. 6-ranked Ohio State defeated #9 Cornell from Newman Arena on Feb. 22, 2019 by a final score of 25-9.
• Ohio State opened the dual with seven straight victories (149-285).
• Cornell picked up three victories from its lightweights (
Vitali Arujau,
Chas Tucker,
Yianni Diakomihalis).
• Arujau, Tucker and Diakomihalis all defeated ranked opponents, with Tucker defeating Luke Pletcher in ride outs (2-1).
• Diakomihalis maintained his undefeated season and his No. 1-ranking with a 7-5 victory over #3 Joey McKenna, a bout that would preview the NCAA final at 141 pounds.
LAST TIME OUT
• Cornell crowed 11 champions at the 2019 Cornell Open on Sunday, Nov. 24.
•
Chas Tucker (133),
JJ Wilson (133 B),
Noah Baughman (141),
Mike Venosa (141 B),
Hunter Richard (149),
Colton Yapoujian (157),
Milik Dawkins (165),
Brandon Womack (174),
Ben Darmstadt (184),
Jonathon Fagen (184 B),
Jonathan Loew (197) and
Brendan Furman (285) each placed first in their respective pools.
• Cornell was defeated in its dual against NC State on Saturday, Nov. 23.
• Tucker and Loew were the lone Cornell wrestlers to pick up wins against the Wolfpack.
• Loew turned in a strong performance in his dual debut, pinning Tyrie Houghton to give Cornell a 6-3 lead.
DIAKOMIHALIS HONORED AT WHITE HOUSE
•
Yianni Diakomihalis was honored at The White House in Washington, D.C. on Friday, Nov. 22 as part of the annual NCAA National Champions Day. Individual champions from the 2019 NCAA Wrestling Championships were in attendance, along with student-athletes from other sports.
• Student-athletes and coaches visited The White House on the morning of Nov. 22 and met with President Donald Trump as part of the tour.
• A two-time NCAA Champion, Diakomihalis was be joined in Washington, D.C. by The David Dunlop '59 Head Coach of Wrestling,
Rob Koll, who is in his 27th season leading the program at Cornell.
• This was the first time that all NCAA Division I individual champions have been invited to The White House.
• Other wrestlers in attendance were Jason Nolf, Bo Nickal, Mason Manville and Nick Nevills of Penn State, Nick Suriano and Anthony Ashnault of Rutgers, Mekhi Lewis of Virginia Tech and Drew Foster from Northern Iowa.
BEN DARMSTADT RETURNS TO THE MAT
• After missing the 2018-29 season due to injury, sophomore
Ben Darmstadt made his much anticipated return to the mat for Cornell at the Binghamton Open on Sunday, Nov. 10.
• It was Darmstadt's debut at 184 pounds after wrestling the entirety of his freshman season at 197.
• Darmstadt opened the season ranked No. 2 at 184 pounds by FloWrestling.
• Darmstadt took second place at the Binghamton Open as he shook off some rust following a long lay-off from competition.
• Defeated Army's Jed Smith in round one, 10-8, before pinning Reid Robilotto (0:55) and
Jonah Barley (0:44).
• Met then No. 10-ranked Lou DePrez of Binghamton in the finals, a tough match-up, and lost by a 7-2 decision.
FOUR WRESTLERS TAKING OLYMPIC REDSHIRTS
• Cornell will be without the services of
Vitali Arujau,
Yianni Diakomihalis,
Andrew Berreyesa and
Max Dean for the 2019-20 as each pursues making the 2020 Olympic team.
• Arujau and Dean were All-Americans in 2018-19 and Diakomihalis is the two-time defending champion at 141 pounds. Dean also earned All-American status in 2017-18 when he placed eighth at NCAA's.
• Berreyesa competes in Greco Roman wrestling, where he recently represented the United States on the U23 World Team.
NEXT UP
• Following the dual against Ohio State, Cornell travels to one of the toughest tournaments of the season, the Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas on Dec. 6-8.
• Tickets for the Cliff Keen are cash only and can only be purchased on the day of the event, with the All Session Pass costing $40.
• Wrestling for Session I starts at 11:00 a.m. ET on Dec. 6.
• In 2018, Cornell placed 21st as a team at the Cliff Keen, with
Chas Tucker and
Max Dean reaching the podium.
