Wrestlers Play Host to Northwestern
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
January 29, 1999
EAST LANSING, Mich. -
#15 MSU vs #20 Northwestern, Fri., Jan. 29 Jenison Field House, 7:30 p.m.
Weekend Recap - The Spartans return to East Lansing having split a pair of Big Ten matches on the road this past weekend. On Friday night, Michigan State defeated Wisconsin, 25-11, to notch their first victory in the conference. The Spartans jumped out to an early 12-0 lead with three straight match victories, including a Pat McNamara pinfall. On Sunday, the Spartans took on second-ranked Minnesota. The Golden Gophers took six of the first seven matches en route to a 24-3 lead. Pat McNamara and Issac Miller would respond with victories, but it was not enough to change the final outcome.
Perfect Weekend- Three Spartans recorded perfect 2-0 marks during the road trip. Pat McNamara (133) scored a pinfall and a major decision to improve his record to 22-3. Issac Miller (141) held his two opponents to only 2 points, while improving to 23-9. Will Hill (174) recorded a 5-4 victory over 17th-ranked Kole Clauson of Wisconsin and a 6-1 decision over Matt Kraft of Minnesota to improve to 25-7.
Scouting the Wildcats- Michigan State will host Northwestern in its first Big Ten home dual and only the second dual in Jenison Field House this year. This past weekend, the Wildcats dropped two conference duals to Indiana and Illinois. They currently stand at 2-5, 0-2 in the conference. Three Wildcats are ranked in the top 20 according to the Amateur Wrestling News: Scott Schatzman (8th, 141), Mark Bybee (4th, 174) and Sam Neider (5th, 197).
Spartans in the Rankings- Five members of the MSU squad are ranked among the top wrestlers in their individual weight classes according to the Amateur Wrestling News and/or InterMat Wrestling. Chris Williams is 18th/20th at 125, Pat McNamara is third/fifth at 133, Will Hill is 12th/ninth at 174, Nick Muzashvili is sixth/seventh at 197 and Matt Lamb is 15th/18th at 285.
Keeping Up with the Spartans- There are now more ways than ever to stay current with Michigan State wrestling. Fans can visit the MSU website at www.msuspartans.com. The wrestling program has also recently launced a new website. For complete results, Spartan wrestling merchandise or any other information on MSU wrestling visit www.msuwrestling.com. Finally, be sure to call the Spartan wrestling hotline for results updated within minutes of every match. Call (517) 355-0289.
PROJECTED SPARTAN STARTING LINEUP
125- CHRIS WILLIAMS - Redshirt Freshman - Perry, Mich./Fowlerville - 20-10 #18-Amateur Wrestling News/#20-InterMat Wrestling Placed third at the Eagle Open at Ashland University and sixth at the Northern Iowa Open ... Williams also placed seventh in the MSU Open ... defeated ninth-ranked Matt Azevedo, 5-2, in a dual meet with Arizona State on Jan. 8.
133- PAT McNAMARA - Sophomore - Jordan, Minn./Jordan - 22-3 #3-Amateur Wrestling News/#5-InterMat Wrestling The 1998 All-American has four tournament titles to his credit this season, winning the MSU Open, Eagle Open, Northern Iowa Open and Midlands Championships ... pinned Northwestern's John Giacche at the Midlands Championships ... has defeated Iowa's second-ranked Eric Juergens two times this season ... selected to participate in NWCA All-Star Duals on Feb. 1 ... leads the team with four falls ... has outscored opponents 210-53 ... placed fifth at the 1998 NCAA Championships at 126 pounds ... he posted a 33-9 record in 1997-98, including 12-9 in Big Ten action.
141- ISSAC MILLER - Senior - Flint, Mich./Beecher - 23-9 Miller is the lone senior competing this season for the Spartans ... has won three of his last four matches ... this fall, he has placed second at the MSU Open and the Ashland Eagle Open and sixth at the Northern Iowa Open ... as a junior, he qualified for the NCAA Championships after placing sixth at the Big Ten Championships ... had a 1997-98 record of 21-19, 7-15 in the Big Ten.
149- MIKE CASTILLO - Soph. - Ada, Mich./Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central - 17-12 Earns the starting nod this season after serving primarily as Isaac Miller's backup in 1997-98 ... this fall, he captured his first tournament title at the Eagle Open ... he also placed third at the MSU Open ... last season he compiled a record of 17-12, including 3-8 in the Big Ten ... placed eighth in the Big Ten Championships at 142 pounds.
157- CORY POSEY - Sophomore - Westfield, N.J./Westfield - 16-9 Started the season in strong fashion with a victory at the MSU Open ... placed fifth in the Eagle Open ... posted a record of 12-10 last season while splitting time at 142 and 150.
165- KEVIN SPIESS - Freshman - Ovid, Mich./Ovid - 5-15 A true freshman, who earned his first collegiate tournament title with a victory at the Ben McMullen Open at Muskegon Community College ... a 1998 Michigan state champion, he posted a four-year high school record of 156-20.
174- WILL HILL - Junior - Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence Central - 25-7 #11-Amateur Wrestling News/#9-InterMat Wrestling A 1998 NCAA, placed second at the Eagle Open, third at the MSU Open and Northern Iowa Open and fourth at the Midlands Championships ... has a team-best 7-2 dual record ... defeated Central Michigan's Ryan Cunningham and Northwestern's Mark Bybee at the Midlands, who were ranked fifth and second respectively ... finished 1997-98 with a 27-18 record, including 10-10 in the Big Ten ... qualified for the NCAA Championships by placing fifth at the 1998 Big Ten Championships.
184- NIK FEKETE - Freshman - Cranford, N.J./Cranford - 11-14 A true freshman, placed sixth at the MSU Open in his first collegiate tournament ... won his first tournament at the Ben McMullen Open ... posted a three-year record of 95-5, including 74 pins, at Cranford H.S. ... in 1998, finished first at the Junior Nationals in the freestyle competition.
197- NICK MUZASHVILI - Junior - Unadilla, N.Y./Unatego - 20-9 #6-Amateur Wrestling News/#7-InterMat Wrestling A 1998 NCAA qualifier, placed first at the Eagle Open, second at the MSU Open, fourth at the Northern Iowa Open and fifth at the Midlands Championships ... defeated third-ranked Sam Neider of Northwestern and 12th-ranked Chris Vike of Central Michigan at the Midlands ... finished sixth at the 1998 Big Ten Championships ... came to the United States before his senior year of high school after growing up in the Republic of Georgia in the former Soviet Union ... given name is "Shota".
285- MATT LAMB - Sophomore - Pensacola, Fla./Beaufort - 22-9 #15-Amateur Wrestling News/#18-InterMat Wrestling Joined the MSU program last January after serving a six-year stint in the United States Navy ... is 6-2 in his last eight matches ... finished second at the MSU Open, third in the Eagle Open and seventh at the Midlands Championships ... defeated 13th-ranked Abe Boomer of Wyoming at the Midlands ... finished fifth at the 1998 U.S. National Championships in the Greco-Roman division ... posted a 4-16 record in 1997-98.
NWCA Top 25 (Jan. 27) Team Points 1. Oklahoma State (16-0) 275 2. Minnesota (9-2) 264 3. Iowa (9-1) 253 4. Iowa State (14-4-1) 241 5. Oklahoma (10-3-1) 230 6. Illinois (8-0) 218 7. Nebraska (12-3) 209 8. Arizona St. (5-5) 196 9. Michigan (6-2) 184 10. Central Michigan (6-5) 177 11. Penn St. (7-3) 167 12. Purdue (13-1) 138 13. Cal St. Bakersfield (9-5) 136 14. West Virginia (3-2) 135 15. Michigan St. (4-5) 111 16. Pennsylvania (4-0-1) 105 17. Oregon State (10-5) 96 18. Rider (7-2) 88 19. Cornell (7-2) 85 20. Northwestern (3-5) 57 21. North Carolina (8-3) 54 22. Indiana (6-1-1) 42 23. Pittsburgh (4-1-1) 33 24. Harvard (3-2) 25 25. Northern Iowa (5-6) 21
