FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations

SOMERS, Wis.. (Jan. 16, 2014)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside wrestling team is back on its home turf in the first time in over a month, welcoming five elite teams to DeSimone Gymnasium on Saturday for the Ranger Duals. A total of nine duals will be contested with action slated to get underway at 9 a.m.

Joining UW-Parkside on the mat will be Augustana College, University of Findlay, University of Indianapolis, McKendree University and Saint Cloud State University.

Setting the Stage: Of the six teams competing, three head into the competition nationally ranked while two more appear just outside the Division II Wrestling Coaches Association Top 20. St. Cloud State leads the way, ranked third nationally while UIndy and McKendree rank 10th and 15th, respectively. Augustana and UW-Parkside sit just outside of the Top 20, and are among the six teams in the "others receiving votes" section of the poll.

Schedule of Events: Three mats will be running simultaneously for the first two rounds. Round three will feature two mats with one match in round four. Round One is slated to begin at 9 a.m. with the host Rangers taking on UIndy while St. Cloud State faces Findlay and Augustana wrestles McKendree. Round Two gets underway around 10:30 a.m. with the Rangers facing St. Cloud State, McKendree taking on Findlay and Augustana sparring with UIndy. Action is whittled down to two mats with Round Three at 12 p.m. with St. Cloud State battling McKendree and Augustana facing Findlay. Action concludes in Round Four at 1:30 p.m. with the Rangers wrestling McKendree.

Individuals to Watch: 14 wrestlers enter the weekend ranked in the top eight nationally in their respective weight class. UIndy's Alex Johns is the top-ranked wrestler at 125-pounds while Findlay's Adam Walters (174-pounds) and SCSU's Andy Pokorny (133-pounds) and Gabe Fogarty (165-pounds) sit second nationally in their respective weight classes.
125: No. 1 Alex Johns (UIndy), No. 5 T.J. North (Augie)
133: No. 2 Andy Pokorny (SCSU)
141: No. 4 Matt Nelson (SCSU)
149: No. 4 Cameryn Brady (UIndy), No. 8 Kyle Williams (McKendree)
157: No. 4 Clint Poster (SCSU), No. 7 Josh Ballard (McKendree)
165: No. 2 Gabe Fogarty (SCSU)
174: No. 2 Adam Walters (Findlay)
184: No. 8 Sean Derry (Augie)
197: No. 4 Jayd Docken (Augie); No. 5 Julian Smith (McKendree)
285: No. 4 Austin Goergen (SCSU)

About the Rangers: UW-Parkside (3-3) returns home after finishing 1-2 at the Cliff Keen/NWCA Duals last weekend in Des Moines, Iowa. The Rangers fell 33-3 to No. 1 ranked Notre Dame College to open the competition with Josh Anthony claiming the lone UW-Parkside win, downing Charles Mason 12-6 at 184-pounds. The Rangers suffered a 38-3 setback to then 15th-ranked Maryville University before crushing Truman State University 35-7 to finish the afternoon.

174-pounder Montrail Johnson leads the Rangers in wins, owning a 21-5 record on the season with five pins and two wins by tech fall. Nick Fishback has a 21-8 record at 165-pounds while Ronzel Darling is 20-7 at 125-pounds.

Rest of the Field: Augustana (6-3) heads to Somers after falling 15-14 to Southwest Minnesota State University on Tuesday night, the Vikings first loss to a Division II squad this season. Augie's previous losses came at the hands of the Air Force Academy (30-13) and South Dakota State University (17-15).

Findlay (1-5) enters DeSimone Gymnasium after finishing 1-2 at NWCA Duals. The Oilers dual record is deceptive with two losses coming against nationally-ranked Division II squads, two losses to NAIA powerhouses and one loss against Division I Northern Illinois University.

Indianapolis (4-5) finished with a 1-2 mark at last weekend's NWCA Duals, falling 24-17 to Fort Hays State University and 24-18 to then seventh-ranked Kutztown University while downing Minnesota State University 30-12. UIndy will face Saint Cloud State for the second time this season, the two squads last met on Jan. 5 at the Mid-Atlantic Duals with the Huskies prevailing 27-15.

McKendree (5-1) suffered its first defeat of the season on Wednesday night, dropping a 23-16 decision to Lindenwood University. The Bearcats had won five straight duals before the loss to the Lions, including a 57-0 shutout of the University of Alberta on Dec. 6 at the Battle of the Rockies in Great Falls, Mont.

Saint Cloud State (8-1) had its dual match win streak snapped at 54 matches last weekend at the NWCA Duals, falling 23-16 to No. 1-ranked Notre Dame College (Ohio) in the semifinals. SCSU rebounded with a 22-14 victory over then No. 3 University of Central Oklahoma in the third place match.

Lewis File: Third year head coach Gregg Lewis owns a 13-13 dual match record at UW-Parkside. The Rangers compiled a 4-6 record in his debut season in 2011-2012 en route to a sixth place showing at the NCAA Division II Championships while posting a 6-4 record in 2012-2013, earning upset victories over the eventual national champion University of Nebraska-Kearney and a win over then No. 8 University of Findlay.

Ranger Duals Rewind: Last season UW-Parkside finished 1-2 at the Ranger Duals. The Rangers opened the day with a 19-13 win over McKendree before falling to then No. 18 UIndy 24-18 and then No. 8 Findlay 27-10.