RU Freshman Class Ranked 18th by Wrestling USA Magazine
Sep 07 | Wrestling
PISCATAWAY, NJ - Head coach John Sacchi and his staff will welcome a top-notch recruiting class to Rutgers for the upcoming 2006-07 wrestling season as the freshman class was ranked 18th by Wrestling USA Magazine.
The Scarlet Knights ranked third among Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) schools in the poll, with Lehigh picked second and Cornell ranked 14th. Twelve new faces will join the Rutgers squad, including nine New Jersey natives. Four nationally-ranked recruits will highlight the highly-touted group.
D.J. Russo (Netcong, N.J.), expected to wrestle heavyweight, is ranked third in the country by Dan Fickel in the final rankings of the Best 2005 High School Seniors. Russo was a high school national champion and was a runner up at the 2006 state tournament. Rutgers welcomes another national top-10 recruit in Keith Dobish (Lodi, N.J.), ranked fourth by Fickel, and is expected to compete at the 184-pound weight class. Dobish also received Third Team All-America honors from ASICS after finishing his high school career with 128 wins, including a 2006 state title.
Two more top-25 recruits, both looking to wrestle at the 125-pound weight class, will join the Scarlet Knights in Ryan Fullam (Emerson, N.J.) and Ryan Fikslin (Roxbury, N.J.). Fullam is ranked 22nd nationally, while Fikslin is ranked 25th.
Wrestling USA Magazine also recognized Dan Pedone (Charlotte, NC), Spencer Kent (Paramus, N.J.) and Chris Norrell (Philipsburg, N.J.) as top Rutgers recruits that will look to impact the line-up upon their arrival.
The Scarlet Knights, in their 16th season under head coach John Sacchi, were 7-9 during the 2005-06 campaign. Rutgers finished 10th at the EIWA Championships and had a 3-5 mark against conference opponents during the regular season. Junior Steve Adamcsik (Chester, N.J.) led Rutgers, earning a trip to the 2005 NCAA Championships at 141 pounds, finishing the season with a record of 28-8. As a team, the Scarlet Knights posted a third-place finish at the 2005 Navy Classic and were sixth at the 2005 Oklahoma-Brockport Gold Tournament.
Rutgers will open the 2006-07 season Saturday, Nov. 11, at the Oklahoma-Brockport Gold Tournament in Brockport, N.Y. Competition is scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m.
