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No. 18 Wrestling Travels to 2019 Big Ten Championships

Ten Scarlet Knights eye podium during weekend action in Minneapolis

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 18 Rutgers wrestling shifts its focus to the postseason, as it competes at the Big Ten Championships from March 9-10 in Minneapolis. Ten Scarlet Knights will look to punch their tickets to the NCAA Championships, held March 21-23 in Pittsburgh.
 
All sessions of the tournament, along with individual mat feeds, will be available on BTN2Go/FloWrestling, with the championship finals airing live on Big Ten Network on Sunday at 4 p.m. EST. WRSU will also have full radio broadcast coverage of the tournament. Session I and II on Saturday will feature preliminaries, quarterfinals, semifinals and wrestlebacks. Session III on Sunday will have the consolation semifinals and seventh-place matches, while first-, third- and fifth-place matches will take place in Session IV.

2019 Big Ten Championships Schedule (All Times EST)
Sat., March 9 | Session I (11 a.m., BTN2Go)
Sat., March 9 | Session II (7 p.m., BTN2Go)
Sun., March 10 | Session III (1 p.m., BTN2Go)
Sun., March 10 | Session IV (4 p.m., BTN)

2019 Projected Starters
Weight: (Seed) Name 2018-19 Record (Dual)
125: (13) Shane Metzler 8-15 (5-12)
133: (3) Nick Suriano 20-3 (15-3)
141: (9) Peter Lipari 10-10 (5-6)
149: (1) Anthony Ashnault 23-0 (18-0)
157: (10) John Van Brill 17-11 (10-7)
165: (12) Stephan Glasgow 6-7 (6-7)
174: (9) Joseph Grello 14-7 (11-5)
184: (9) Nicholas Gravina 4-2 (4-2)
197: Matthew Correnti 12-13 (5-9)
Hwt: Christian Colucci 14-11 (8-9)

Scouting Rutgers
• Eight Scarlet Knights earned pre-seeds for the tournament, highlighted by No. 1 Anthony Ashnault at 149 pounds with a 23-0 record and a 10-0 mark against the field. Ashnault owns six wins over top-20 opponents, according to Intermat, including No. 1 Matthew Kolodzik (Princeton), No. 3 Micah Jordan (Ohio State), No. 6 Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State), No. 7 Mitch Finesilver (Duke), No. 12 Pat Lugo (Iowa) and No. 20 Tommy Thorn (Minnesota).
• Ashnault's seed marks the third consecutive year RU will have a No. 1 seed at Big Tens, as Nick Suriano earned the No. 1 seed at 125 pounds in 2018, while Ashnault was the No. 1 seed at 141 pounds in 2017.
• Suriano (20-3) also enters the championships with a top-four seed at the Big Ten Championships, as the junior is seeded third at 133 pounds. Suriano is 4-2 against the projected field and owns four wins over ranked individuals this season, as the Bergen Catholic High School product finished as the team leader in bonus-point victories (18) and was second in dual points (73).
• No. 9-seed Nicholas Gravina (4-2) owns a winning record against the field this season with a 3-1 mark in Big Ten Conference action. That includes wins over Brandon Krone (Minnesota), Max Lyon (Purdue) and Kyle Jasenski (Maryland). This is Gravina's fourth Big Ten Championships appearance.
• Suriano and No. 10-seed John Van Brill (17-11) will make their third-career appearances at Big Tens, while No. 9-seed Joseph Grello (14-7) and Matthew Correnti (12-13) will compete for the second time. No. 9-seed Peter Lipari (10-10), No. 12-seed Stephan Glasgow (6-7), No. 13-seed Shane Metzler (8-15) and Christian Colucci (14-11) will make their Big Ten Championships' debut.
 
Scouting the Field
• Penn State boasts four top-seeded wrestlers, with 157-pounder Jason Nolf, 165-pounder Vincenzo Joseph, 174-pounder Mark Hall and 197-pounder Bo Nickal. The Fighting Illini's Michael Carr (141), the Wolverines' Stevan Micic (133), the Gophers' Gable Steveson (285), the Wildcats' Sebastian Rivera (125), the Buckeyes' Myles Martin (184) and Ashnault round out the group of top-ranked grapplers.
• This year's field contains a combined 10 Big Ten individual championships (eight wrestlers) and eight NCAA individual championships (five wrestlers).
• Five of this year's top seeds look to defend their 2018 Big Ten Championship titles: Michigan's Stevan Micic (133), Ohio State's Joey McKenna (141), Michigan's Alec Pantaleo (157), Penn State's Mark Hall (174) and Ohio State's Kollin Moore (197).
• Ohio State enters the weekend looking for its third consecutive Big Ten Championship. Last season, the Buckeyes earned 164.5 points and claimed four individual titles from Nathan Tomasello (125), Joey McKenna (141), Kollin Moore (197) and Kyle Snyder (285). Penn State finished in second place with 148 points, followed by third-place Michigan with 118. Iowa finished in fourth place with 90.5 points and Nebraska rounded out the top five with 72.5 team points.
 
Ashnault Attempts History
• Already the most decorated individual wrestler in program history, there is still plenty for Ashnault to accomplish during his final collegiate month, beginning with this weekend's Big Ten Championships.
• Ashnault will look to become the only three-time Big Ten Champion in program history and just the second three-time conference champion at Rutgers. Emil Perona secured three EIWA individual titles from 1950-1952.
• Along with Ohio State's Kollin Moore, Ashnault is looking to become the 58th or 59th wrestler in Big Ten Conference history to win three individual titles.
• With three wins at the Big Ten Championships, Ashnault will tie Mike McHugh (1986-89) for the most wins in program history at 117. A fourth will make him the all-time winningest individual at Rutgers.
• A top-six finish at Big Tens will lock up Ashnault's fourth NCAA Championships appearance. He'll become just the fifth four-time national qualifier in program history, joining Billy Smith (2013-16), Scott Winston (2009, 2011-13), Dan Rinaldi (2010-13) and Andy Roy (2002-05). Gravina can also become a four-time national qualifier this weekend.
 
Punch Those Tickets
• Rutgers will look to qualify five or more wrestlers through to the NCAA Championships for the fifth consecutive season. Head coach Scott Goodale has taken seven of the RU program's all-time top-eight squads (based on number of participants) to NCAAs in his 12 seasons at the helm.
• Sixty-four individuals have qualified for nationals during Goodale's tenure, while five Scarlet Knights have earned a total of eight All-America designations since he arrived at Rutgers in 2007.
• Van Brill can secure his third consecutive trip to nationals with a top-nine finish at Big Tens, while Correnti can lock up a second career appearance at NCAAs with a top-five finish.
 
Another Successful Dual Season
• Rutgers closed the dual season ranked No. 18 in the final NWCA Coaches Poll, marking the eighth top-25 finish for the Scarlet Knights under Goodale's leadership.
• RU also secured its 13th consecutive winning season and 12th under Goodale with its 12-6 final dual record in 2018-19.
• Rutgers' 5-4 mark in the Big Ten Conference was its third winning record in league action since the Scarlet Knights joined the conference during the 2014-15 season. Goodale has earned 21 wins within the Big Ten Conference and has 65 conference victories overall during his tenure.
• The Scarlet Knights claimed three wins over ranked foes (No. 10 Wisconsin, No. 20 Princeton and No. 20 Purdue) and captured 100 individual dual matches in 2018-19.
 
Follow Rutgers Athletics on Facebook (/RutgersAthletics) and Twitter (@RUAthletics) for all of the latest news and updates. For specific updates regarding Rutgers wrestling, follow the program on Twitter (@RUWrestling) and Instagram (@RUWrestling). Fans can receive timely information, including special offers and giveaways throughout the year on our social media outlets along with www.ScarletKnights.com. For additional updates, please download the Gameday App.
 
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Players Mentioned

Anthony Ashnault

Anthony Ashnault

Graduate Student
Matthew Correnti

Matthew Correnti

Redshirt Sophomore
Nicholas Gravina

Nicholas Gravina

Graduate Student
Joseph Grello

Joseph Grello

Redshirt Sophomore
Peter  Lipari

Peter Lipari

Redshirt Junior
Shane Metzler

Shane Metzler

Sophomore
Nick  Suriano

Nick Suriano

Junior
John Van Brill

John Van Brill

Graduate Student
Christian Colucci

Christian Colucci

Redshirt Junior
Stephan Glasgow

Stephan Glasgow

Freshman

Players Mentioned

Anthony Ashnault

Anthony Ashnault

Graduate Student
Matthew Correnti

Matthew Correnti

Redshirt Sophomore
Nicholas Gravina

Nicholas Gravina

Graduate Student
Joseph Grello

Joseph Grello

Redshirt Sophomore
Peter  Lipari

Peter Lipari

Redshirt Junior
Shane Metzler

Shane Metzler

Sophomore
Nick  Suriano

Nick Suriano

Junior
John Van Brill

John Van Brill

Graduate Student
Christian Colucci

Christian Colucci

Redshirt Junior
Stephan Glasgow

Stephan Glasgow

Freshman
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