PISCATAWAY, N.J. (October 24, 2009) – Redshirt senior Lamar Brown (Red Bank, N.J.) and redshirt junior Dominick Russo (Netcong, N.J.) were listed in the InterMat (www.intermatwrestle.com) 2009-10 NCAA Division I preseason individuals rankings, the web site announced Saturday.

 

InterMat ranks the top-20 individual wrestlers in each weight class and the top-25 teams.

 

Brown was listed at No. 19 in the 197-pound division. Russo appeared at No. 14 in the 285-pound weight class.

 

Six of Rutgers’ 2009-10 opponents are listed in the team rankings, including two-time defending NCAA champion Iowa, which begins the season ranked No. 1. Along with Iowa, Penn State (No. 14), American (No. 16), Lehigh (No. 19), Virginia (No. 20) and Michigan State (No. 21) are listed in the preseason rankings.

 

Russo was the recipient of the Ted Petty Award as Rutgers’ Most Valuable Wrestler for the 2008-09 season. The heavyweight was one of three Scarlet Knights to earn a bid to the NCAA Championships after placing fourth in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Championships. He finished the year 33-16 with 11 pins. Russo was 2-2 at the NCAA Championships with a pin of Virginia Tech’s David Marone. He led the Scarlet Knights to victory with pins in the final bout against American and Navy during the dual season.

 

Brown redshirt last season but made the 2007-08 NCAA Tournament as a junior. In his opening bout at the championships, Brown fell 2-1 to the No. 11 seed Timothy Morrison of Rider. After receiving a bye in his first contest in the consolation bracket, Brown defeated Jacob Bryce of North Dakota State 11-5 to stay alive in the tournament. The junior then faced Oregon State's Kyle Bressler, falling 4-2.

 

Rutgers will kickoff the 2009-10 season with the squad’s annual Wrestle-Offs at College Ave. Gym on Nov. 2.