PISCATAWAY, N.J. (Nov. 17, 2009) – Six members of the Rutgers wrestling team appeared in multiple national rankings released this week after a shutout victory against Sacred Heart. 43-0, in its season opener on Nov. 8 and a third-place finish at the Oklahoma Gold Tournament last Saturday.
Dominick Russo (Netcong, N.J.), Lamar Brown (Red Bank, N.J.), Bill Ashnault (South Plainfield, N.J.) , Trevor Melde (Hewitt, N.J.), David Greenwald (Union, N.J.) amd Joesph Langell, (Howell, N.J.), were listed in national rankings of their respective weight class.
Additionally, Rutgers was listed at No. 24 in the D1CollegeWrestling.net.
The Scarlet Knights went 39-29 overall at the Oklahoma Gold Tournament.Rutgers totaled 13 pin fall victories, including four from Russo. Russo knocked off two wrestlers ranked in the top-20 in his final pair of matches to claim the heavyweight title.
Russo highlights RU’s presence in the national rankings with three top-10 appearances in the heavyweight division, listed as high as No. 7 by WrestlingReport.com. Intermat (No. 10) and D1CollegeWrestling.net (No. 9) also recognized Russo in their rankings.
Russo is 5-0 on the season with all of his victories coming by pin fall. Russo is averaging a 4:03 time span per pin this season.
Brown also earned three national listings and is positioned as high as No. 16 by both Intermat and D1CollegeWrestling.net. The Red Bank, N.J. native is listed as the 17th best 197-pound wrestler by WrestlingReport.com.
Last weekend, Brown reached the finals of his bracket at the Oklahoma Gold Tournament and defeated then ranked No.18 Richard Starks of Army in the semifinals.
Along with Brown and Russo, Ashnault and Langel also reached the finals of their respective brackets.
Ashnault jumped from No. 24 to No. 20 in D1CollegeWrestling.net’s 133-pound rankings.
The RU newcomer jumped four spots in WrestlingReport.com’s listing to No. 23. Ashnault boasts a 4-1 on the season with two pin falls.
Langel appeared in the national rankings for the first time this season as he was selected as the 24th-best 125-pound wrestler by both WrestlingReport.com and D1CollegeWrestling.net. The Howell, N.J. native went 3-1 at the Oklahoma Gold Tournament, including a 7-1 victory over then-No. 14 Nikko Triggas of Ohio State.
Rutgers will be back in action this Sunday when it travels to Binghamton, N.Y. for the Sprawl & Brawl College Wrestling Duals. RU will battle No. 17 Penn State, Northern Iowa and Sacred Heart.
Rutgers Wrestling 2009-10 National Rankings
(As of Nov. 17)
Team
Rank Publication
24 D1CollegeWrestling.net
Joseph Langel – 125 Pounds
Rank Publication
24 D1CollegeWrestling.net
24 WrestlingReport.com
Billy Ashnault – 133 Pounds
Rank Publication
20 D1CollegeWrestling.net
23 WrestlingReport.com
Trevor Melde – 141 Pounds
Rank Publication
22 D1 College Wrestling.net
20 WrestlingReport.com
David Greenwald – 149 Pounds
Rank Publication
22 D1 College Wrestling.net
21 WrestlingReport.com
Lamar Brown – 197 Pounds
Rank Publication
16 InterMat NCAA Division I Rankings
16 D1 College Wrestling.net
17 WrestlingReport.com
Dominick Russo – Heavyweight
Rank Publication
10 InterMat NCAA Division I Rankings
9 D1CollegeWrestling.net
7 WrestlingReport.com
