Nov. 27, 2000

LARAMIE, Wyo. -

COWBOY WRESTLING (0-1)

A Look Ahead: The Cowboy wrestling team will return to action this weekend at the Las Vegas Invitational. The tournament will offer some of the best competition in the country, as the top teams throughout the nation will be competing. Action will take place Friday and Saturday.

Pokes Fall to Nebraska 31-7: The Cowboys fell to Nebraska 31-7 on Friday night in Lincoln, Neb. The Cowboys won two individual matches in the first dual of the season for UW. In the third match of the night, coming at 184 pounds, Cowboy freshman Kevin Kessner of Rock Springs defeated Matt Fletcher 4-3. The winning point for Kessner came on riding time at the end of the match. With the Kessner victory, Wyoming cut the Nebraska lead to 6-3. After #1 ranked Brad Vering of NU defeated Wyoming's Craig Rumsey 13-6 in the 197 pound match the Huskers gained a lead of 9-3. But the Pokes would bounce back in the heavyweight match. Sophomore Brad Steele of UW earned a major decision over Pat Miron, 13-5. After Steele's win the lead was cut to 9-7, but Wyoming could never get any closer as the Huskers won the remaining five matches.

 Complete individual results:

165 Pounds-Tony Denke (NU)
defeated Justin Christenson (UW) 5-2
174 Pounds-#14 Ati Conner (NU)
defeated Steven Schenk (UW) 4-2
184 Pounds-Kevin Kessner (UW)
defeated Matt Fletcher (NU) 4-3
197 Pounds-#1 Brad Vering (NU)
defeated Craig Rumsey (UW) 13-6
Heavyweight-Brad Steele (UW)
defeated Pat Miron (NU) 13-5
125 Pounds-Jason Powell (NU)
defeated John Faczak (UW) by fall 1:42
133 Pounds-#2 Todd Beckerman (NU)
defeated Kelly McConville (UW) by fall 4:07
141 Pounds-Dusty Spaulding (NU)
defeated Thad Trujillo (UW) 4-2
149 Pounds-Justin Flores (NU)
defeated Mark Hamrick (UW) 12-9
157 Pounds-#2 Bryan Snyder (NU)
defeated Levi Prevost (UW) 23-10

Cowboys Compete at UNO Open: Wyoming had six individuals place in the top six in their weight class Saturday at the University of Nebraska-Omaha Open. Senior Craig Rumsey led the way with a second-place finish in the 197 pound weight class. Rumsey went 2-1 on the day, losing in the championship match to Jason Payne of Northern Iowa 3-1 in overtime. Junior Mark Hamrick went 5-1 in the 149 pound class, winning the consolation bracket with an 8-7 victory over Keith Weber of Northern Iowa. After losing his second match Hamrick rebounded with four straight wins. In the 125 pound weight class transfer Steve Cordova went 3-1 for a third-place finish. In the third-place match Cordova defeated Charlie Swanson of Augustana by fall at :57. The Cowboys had a pair of fifth-place finishes in Levi Prevost and Kevin Kessner. Prevost went 3-2 at 157 and Kessner was 4-2 at 184. Both are redshirt freshmen for Wyoming. Sophomore heavyweight Brad Steele finished sixth at heavyweight with a 2-3 record. Steele lost his fifth-place match to Andy Bowley of Oregon State 10-6. Remaining Cowboy individual results:

 John Faczak (125)        0-2
 Kelly McConville (133)   3-2
 Richie Cordova (141)     2-2
 Paul Turco (141)         2-1
 Chad Plummer (141)       4-2
 Justin Christenson (165) 1-2
 Steven Schenk (174)      2-2

Wyoming to Qualify at West Regional: When UW joined the Mountain West Conference, that changed the way the Cowboys will qualify for the NCAA Championships. With only two MWC teams with wresting programs, the conference doesn't sponsor the sport. Wyoming will qualify wrestlers for the national tournament by competing in the West Regional, which will be held March 3 in Laramie, Wyo. Also competing in the West Regional along with Wyoming will be Air Force, Fresno State, Eastern Illinois, Marquette and Northern Iowa. There will be a total of 20 qualifiers in the tournament.

Cowboys to Host West Regional: The University of Wyoming and Laramie will serve as host to the West Regional on March 3, 2001. Wyoming will be hosting five other schools as they all compete for 20 spots to the NCAA Wrestling Championships. The tournament will take place at the Arena-Auditorium.

Home Slate Set: The next home competition for Wyoming is on Dec. 9, when the Boise State Broncos come to Laramie for a dual scheduled for 2:00 p.m. The Cowboys will also host duals with Cal State-Fullerton, Portland State and Frenso State throughout the year. Both Boise State and Fresno State are ranked in the preseason Top 20, giving Wyoming an attractive home schedule.