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South Dakota State University Athletics
Jackrabbits take winning streak west
2/3/2016 4:12:00 PM | Wrestling
The South Dakota State University wrestling team could match its longest dual winning streak in program history, taking a nine-match streak west into a pair of weekend duals.
The Jackrabbits, 10-5 overall and 3-1 against Big 12 Conference opponents, open the weekend slate against fellow Big 12 affiliate member Utah Valley. Start time against the Wolverines, who are 3-6 overall and have yet to wrestle a league opponent, is 5 p.m. Mountain Time (6 p.m. Central) in Orem, Utah. UVU will wrestle North Dakota State later that evening.
Click here to view Friday's dual online.
From there, the Jackrabbits will head to Boise, Idaho, for a non-conference matchup Sunday afternoon against Boise State. The Broncos enter the weekend with a 3-4 dual record. The starting time for Sunday's dual has been moved ahead two hours to noon Mountain Time (1 p.m. Central).
Click here to view Sunday's dual online.
SDSU's current nine-match winning streak is the longest in the program's Division I era, which dates back to the start of the 2004-05 season. The Jackrabbits recorded seven consecutive dual wins during the 2006-07 season, while the top overall winning streak of 11 was first set during the 1972-73 campaign and matched in the 1985-86 season. Both of the previous record streaks of 11 were established in opening a season.
THE SERIES: The Jackrabbits hold a combined 4-8 all-time record against its two weekend opponents.
Utah Valley holds an 8-2 advantage in the series that dates back to when both schools became charter members of the Western Wrestling Conference during the 2005-06 season. The Jackrabbits ended a seven-match losing streak to the Wolverines last season by recording a 27-10 victory at Frost Arena on Feb. 6, 2015.
SDSU leads the series against Boise State by a 2-0 count. The two squads met for the first time in more than 35 years last season, with the Jackrabbits earning a 19-12 home victory on Jan. 16, 2015. The only other previous meeting between SDSU and Boise State was a 30-10 Jackrabbit victory during the 1976-77 season.
RANKINGS UPDATE: Four South Dakota State University wrestlers appeared in the first NCAA coaches' panel rankings of the season, which were released on Jan. 21
Representing the Jackrabbits in the rankings were: 133-pounder Brance Simms, three-time NCAA qualifier Cody Pack at 157 pounds, 174-pounder David Kocer and returning national qualifier Nate Rotert in the 197-pound weight class. A total of 33 wrestlers were ranked in each of the 10 weight classes.
A senior from Gilmore City, Iowa, Simms appeared at No. 33 in the 133-pound rankings. He has posted a 12-9 overall record entering action this weekend.
Pack, a senior from Quincy, California, holds the sixth spot in the 157-pound weight class. He recently recorded his 100th career victory and carries a 21-2 overall record this season into weekend action.
Wagner native David Kocer cracked the 174-pound rankings at No. 30. He holds the team lead with 22 wins this season against nine losses during his sophomore campaign.
Rotert, a sophomore from Spearfish, checked in at No. 13 in the 197-pound rankings. He has recorded a 20-7 overall record during the 2015-16 season.
The final rankings will be one of the tools used as part of the selection process to determine the qualifiers for the 2016 NCAA Division Wrestling Championships, which will be held March 17-19 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Wrestlers are measured by winning percentage, rating percentage index (RPI) and coaches' rankings to earn spots in their qualifying tournaments for the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.
The next coaches' panel rankings will be announced in mid-February.
Pack and Rotert also are ranked in the latest polls conducted by a variety of wrestling-related media organizations.
Following is a look at rankings released by WIN Magazine, FloWrestling.org, Intermat and Amateur Wrestling News:
|
Wrestler |
WIN |
Flo |
Intermat |
AWN |
NCAA |
|
Brance Simms (133) |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
33rd |
|
Cody Pack (157) |
6th |
8th |
7th |
6th |
6th |
|
David Kocer (174) |
NR |
NR |
NR |
NR |
30th |
|
Nate Rotert (197) |
15th |
11th |
12th |
13th |
13th |
As a team, the Jackrabbits are currently ranked 28th in the Tournament Power Index rankings compiled by WIN Magazine. SDSU was ranked 31st in the preseason TPI and rose to as high as No. 25 after its Dec. 13 dual win against North Dakota State.
NATIONAL MENTION: The South Dakota State University wrestling team reached a milestone in its Division I pursuits as the Jackrabbits received mention in the USA Today/ NWCA Division I Coaches Poll for the first time on Nov. 17.
The Jackrabbits were among six teams to receive votes in the poll but not crack the top 25. SDSU again received a vote in the Dec. 14 poll.
PACK REACHES 100-WIN MARK: Three-time NCAA qualifier Cody Pack became the first Jackrabbit wrestler to reach the 100-win mark for his career in the Division I era, hitting the milestone in dramatic fashion at the Ken Kraft Midlands Championships on Dec. 29.
After notching two decisive victories in the early runs to run his career win total to 99, Pack trailed ninth-seeded Markus Scheider of Columbia (N.Y.), 5-2, entering the third period of their quarterfinal match. Pack managed an escape seven seconds into the period and followed moments later with a takedown and pin to secure his 100th career win and a place in the tourament semifinals.
A senior from Quincy, California, Pack has compiled a 106-33 overall record, including a 21-2 mark so far during the 2015-16 campaign. Pack was granted an eligibility extension by the NCAA last spring after his first two seasons were cut short due to injury. His 37 wins last season tied for eighth-most in a single-season in program history.
Pack enters Friday's dual at Utah Valley tied for ninth place on the Jackrabbit career wins with Travis King (106-26-4 career record from 1995-98). King won a 150-pound NCAA Division II national title in 1998.
Following are Pack's year-by-year records:
2011-12: 5-1 (missed most of season due to injury)
2012-13: 15-16 (NCAA qualifier)
2013-14: 28-8 (NCAA qualifier)
2014-15: 37-6 (NCAA qualifier)
2015-16: 21-2
Career Totals: 106-33 (includes 51-12 dual record)
RACE TO 20: Three Jackrabbit wrestlers have reached the 20-win mark for the season in recent weeks, and three more are in line to join the group this weekend.
Sophomore 174-pounder David Kocer became the first SDSU wrestler to hit 20 wins this season, reaching the milestone in the Jan. 23 dual against CSU Bakersfield. Kocer has compiled a 21-9 record so far this season, including a 10-4 mark in duals.
Senior Cody Pack also reached the mark two weeks ago, posting his 20th win of the season Jan. 24 against Air Force. Pack, ranked sixth at 157 pounds, carries a 21-2 record into Friday's action, including an 12-1 slate in duals.
Sophomore and returning national qualifier Nate Rotert joined the 20-win group Jan. 29 against Wyoming. The 197-pounder from Spearfish has a 20-7 overall record during the 2015-16 campaign, including an 8-4 dual record.
A trio of other Jackrabbit wrestlers – Ben Gillette, Alex Kocer and Luke Zilverberg – all have won 18 matches thus far during the 2015-16 campaign.
Gillette has been on a roll recently since being inserted into the starting lineup at 125 pounds. The senior from Redfield has posted a 6-1 record in duals and has won five matches in a row to up his record to 18-7.
Alex Kocer, a national qualifier at 149 pounds two years ago, also holds an 18-7 record that includes a 10-4 mark.
Zilverberg has missed the Jackrabbits' last two duals due to injury, but could return to the lineup this weekend. He holds an 18-8 overall record while wrestling at 165 pounds.
BIG 12 TICKETS: Tickets for the 2016 Big 12 Wrestling Championship are now on sale. This season's championship, which will take place March 5-6 at Sprint Center in Kansas City, marks the first neutral-site conference championship for the sport.
Tickets can be purchased at Big12Sports.com/buytickets, SprintCenter.com; charged by phone at 888-929-7849 and Price Chopper Box Office at Sprint Center.
Tickets start at $40, with premium seating priced at $60 and VIP seats available for $100. The two-day event will feature four sessions of action, two on Saturday and two on Sunday. Each ticket purchased gains access to all four sessions. Special group rates are available for groups of 10 or more. For information on group tickets, call 816-949-7175, or email grouptickets@sprintcenter.com.
One hundred student-athletes will compete across 10 weight classes for a chance to be a Big 12 Champion and for automatic berths into the NCAA National Championship tournament. Big 12 programs have a rich history of wrestling success garnering 49 NCAA team titles and crowning 277 individual national champions.
South Dakota State will be competing at the Big 12 Wrestling Championship for the first time. SDSU was accepted as an affiliate member in July.
COACH BONO: Chris Bono has engineered a successful rebuilding process during his tenure as head coach of the South Dakota State University wrestling program.
Now in his fourth season, Bono has helped mentor Jackrabbit wrestlers to qualify for the NCAA Championships seven times and has posted a 32-33 dual record.
During the 2014-15 season, the Jackrabbits posted their first winning dual record in nine seasons with an 11-8 mark, and three SDSU wrestlers — Cody Pack, Nate Rotert and J.J. Everard — qualified for the NCAA Championships. Pack reached the national tournament for the third consecutive year at 157 pounds and was one win away from All-America status.
SDSU also had three national qualifiers during the 2013-14 season as Pack, Joe Brewster and Alex Kocer all qualified out of the NCAA West Regional/Western Wrestling Conference Championships.
While leading the Jackrabbits, Bono was also tabbed as coach for the U.S. Men's Freestyle team at the 2013 Pan American Championships. In the world event, Coach Bono led Team USA to a 13-point victory.
Overall, Bono has a 70-50 dual record in six-plus seasons as a collegiate head coach. He previously served three seasons at Chattanooga (Tenn.), where he led the Mocs to three Southern Conference titles and coached two All-Americans and 19 NCAA qualifiers from 2006-09.
Bono also served nine seasons as an assistant coach at Iowa State after a standout career for the Cyclones. He lettered from 1994-97, finishing his career with 130 victories. A four-time NCAA qualifier, Bono won a national championship at 150 pounds as a junior, adding a runner-up finish as a senior and fifth-place showing as a sophomore.
THE ROSTER: The 2015-16 SDSU wrestling roster features 29 student-athletes from eight different states. Of the 29 wrestlers, 10 are from South Dakota, five are from Minnesota and five are from Iowa. California and Illinois are each represented by three wrestlers, while Kansas, Nebraska and Washington each have one wrestler.
By class, four are seniors, four are juniors, seven are sophomores, four are redshirt freshmen and 10 are true freshmen.
A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits close out home dual action Feb. 12, hosting West Virginia in a 7 p.m. dual at Frost Arena. SDSU seniors Joe Brewster, Ben Gillette, Cody Pack and Brance Simms will be honored prior to the match.
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