North Dakota State's opening action of 2005 will be its first-ever visit to the NC State Duals on Saturday, Jan. 8, in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Wolfpack will host the dual tournament that will feature Appalachian State, Gardner-Webb, Anderson College, Campbell, Duke and NDSU.
The Bison are scheduled to wrestle Appalachian State at 11:30 (CST), NC State at 1 p.m. and Duke at 2:30 p.m.
All matches will take place at the Reynolds Coliseum.
The Bison will extend its stay out east with a dual against Duke on Jan. 11, in Durham, N.C. NDSU is then scheduled to compete in the Virginia Duals on Jan. 14-15, in Hampton, Virginia.
TOURNAMENT COVERAGE: Results of the tournament will be posted on the North Carolina State website at www.gopack.com.
BISON WINNING STREAKS: The Bison will carry a 20-match overall winning streak into the NC State Duals. NDSU's last loss came at Northern Iowa on Feb. 2, 2003, when the Panthers handed the Bison a 31-6 setback. North Dakota State is 1-0 this season with a 29-6 home-opening win over Princeton on Dec. 9. The win extended the NDSU's dominance at the Bison Sports Arena to 18 straight dual victories which dates back to the 2000-01 season when Division III power Augsburg defeated NDSU 19-12.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS: This will be the first meeting between North Dakota State and any of its potential opponents at the NC State Duals. Host North Carolina State of the Atlantic Coast Conference is guided by first-year head coach Carter Jordan, who took over the program in May after the retirement of longtime head coach Bob Guzzo. Jordan was Guzzo's top assistant coach the last six years. The Wolfpack are 1-1 on the dual season with a 41-4 triumph over Campbell in its opener followed by a 39-3 loss to Lehigh.
Appalachian State (Boone, N.C.) of the Southern Conference is 1-3 in duals this season and finished 17th at the Southern Scuffle held in Greensboro, N.C., on Dec. 29 and 30th. Head coach Paul Mance is now in his 29th year at the helm of the Mountaineers and recorded his 300th win last season. Senior Jason Jones is ranked 20th nationally by WrestlingReport.com at 141-pounds and is off to a 10-2 start.
Gardner-Webb University (Boiling Spring, N.C.) competes in the five-team East Region along with Millersville, Duquesne, Slippery Rock and Delaware State. The Bulldogs are 1-3 this season and are fresh off a 21st place finish at the Southern Scuffle. Fifteen-year head man Richard Wince has the services of standout 133-pounder Josh Pniewski back again this season. The junior captured the East Regional Championship last season and qualified for the NCAA's.
Anderson College (Anderson, S.C.), a talented Division II program, has compiled a 3-4 dual mark this season with all four losses coming to Division I opponents. Head Coach Dock Kelly has seen a great turnaround in now his fifth year in charge of the Trojans. Careef Robertson is a two-time national qualifier at 174 pounds and is ranked fourth in the country in Division II. The junior is 6-3 this season after falling twice at the prestigious Midlands Championships on Dec. 29.
Campbell University (Buies Creek, N.C.) of the Colonial Athletic Association is 0-2 this season with losses to NC State and UNC Greensboro. Billy Greene is in his first season as head coach after serving two years as an assistant at CU. The Camels return redshirt senior Lantz Nixon at 184-pounds. Nixon led the team in wins last season with 18.
Duke University (Durham, N.C.) of the ACC will open its dual season this weekend after competing in five open tournaments already this season. The Blue Devils finished 20th at last week's Southern Scuffle. Char Anderson, last year's ACC Coach of the Year, is in his sixth season as head coach. Duke returns three ACC champions from last year's team including Christian Smith at 125-pounds, Levi Craig at 174 and Frank Cornely at 184.
TUCHSCHERER TRANSFERS: North Dakota State heavyweight Chris Tuchscherer has made the decision to transfer to Minnesota State-Moorhead. The senior from Bowman, N.D., competed in four open tournaments this season placing second at the Warren/Williamson Daktronics Open and fourth at the Bison Open. Tuchscherer went 10-6 with three pins for NDSU this season and amassed 32 career wins as a Bison.
TAMING THE TIGERS: Behind the strength of Mike Meger's pin in the opening bout at 125 and two major decisions by Nick Magee and Collin Kelly, North Dakota State opened its dual season with a 29-6 victory over Princeton on Thursday, Dec. 9, before a crowd of 740 at the Bison Sports Arena. NDSU extended its overall winning streak to 20 and improved its home winning streak to 18 consecutive at the Bison Sports Arena.
BISON CAPTAINS: NDSU is captained by seniors Nick Magee, Lucas Christianson and Collin Kelly in its first season of Division I wrestling. The trio has combined for 164 career wins on the mat for the Bison.
60 WIN-PLATEAU: Senior Lucas Christianson eclipsed the 60 career win mark with a 13-4 decision over Tyler Safratowich of Minnesota at this year's Bison Open. Christianson is 65-44 as a Bison. Junior Zach Stevens has gone over 50 career wins and has amassed 53 victories as a Bison. Senior Collin Kelly notched his 50th career win in the Bison's home opener against Princeton. Senior Nick Magee is one victory shy of 50 career wins, while sophomore Matt Hermann is closing in as well with 45 career wins.
PINNING WAYS: In five open tournaments and one dual this season, NDSU wrestlers have compiled 51 pins. Freshman Skip Johnson is leading the way with 10 of his 11 wins coming by way of pinfall. Heavyweight Tim Kraemer has flattened seven of his opponents, while freshman Andy Pickar has secured four. Dustin Benz, Chris Tuchscherer and Mike Quamme each have three pins.
MAKING THE TRANSITION: NDSU is in its first year of a two-year waiting period for the NCAA tournament. Wrestling received notification of acceptance from the NCAA for multidivisional classification that will provide NCAA Division I postseason opportunities in 2006-07. Originally, NDSU was not eligible for the NCAA national tournament until the 2008-09 season.
DIVISION II TITLE YEARS: North Dakota State captured four NCAA titles in its storied history in Division II. The Bison won in 1988, 1998, 2000 and 2001. NDSU's four titles is second most among teams still in Division II. Central Oklahoma has six championships. Cal Poly and Cal State-Bakersfield each won eight crowns before moving to Division I wrestling.
HEAD COACH BUCKY MAUGHAN: North Dakota State is coached by a National Wrestling Hall of Famer. Bucky Maughan is in his 41st year at the helm of the Bison. Maughan is only the second full-time wrestling coach in the school's history. He has a 408-112-11 record to date in dual meets and has guided the Herd to 17 North Central Conference titles, four NCAA Division II championships, and 26 top-five national finishes. The Bison won nine straight NCC titles from 1982 to 1990 under his direction. He is a member of five halls of fame after his 2003 induction to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.
BISON ASSISTANTS: Beginning his fourth year at NDSU, assistant coach Bret Maughan brings a wealth of experience to the Bison program. The two-time All-American on the mat at NDSU had head coaching stints at Moorhead (Minn.) High School and Bismarck State College before returning to his alma mater. Former three-time All-American and national champion Kris Nelson begins his fifth season as an assistant. Fellow NDSU All-Americans Thad Pike, Joe Bryce and Paul Carlson will serve as student assistants this season.
