LITTLE ROCK - Little Rock will wrestle at the Jack Stephens Center this Sunday for the first time this season, hosting #5 Oklahoma State and SIUE in the Trojans' season opener.
Tickets are still available for fans that want to watch the action live, with Jason Bryant on the mic. For those that are unable to make it to the Jack, fans can watch all three duals online on Little Rock All-Access, where former Oklahoma coaching legend Jack Spates will be calling the action.
"There is not a better feeling than being back in The Jack!" said head coach
Neil Erisman. "We are expecting an action-packed couple of duals and I know our guys have been itching to get back to competing after last week's outing. We have only improved in every competition so I'm excited for what our guys are going to do."
The first dual will feature #5 Oklahoma State and SIUE, with the first bout beginning at 12:55 p.m. The Trojans will wrestle SIUE at 2:30 p.m. followed by their dual with the Cowboys at 4:00 p.m. Extra matches will be held simultaneously on a second mat, which will not be streamed.
An all-day access pass to watch all three duals from home is only $9.99. Be sure to also follow
@LittleRockWRES on Twitter for live updates.
Featuring the Freshmen
Out of 14 members of #LittleRocksTeam that have appeared in a dual so far this season, eight are either true freshmen or redshirt freshmen. The Trojans are led by redshirt freshmen
Gabe Beyer and
Triston Wills, who each are 3-1 on the year and have only dropped a singular bout by decision.
Oklahoma State, Part Two of Three
Although Little Rock attended Oklahoma State's four-team event last weekend, making this weekend the second of three times the teams see each other, the Trojans did not wrestle the Cowboys at Gallagher-Iba Arena. That means that this will be the first time that Little Rock head coach
Neil Erisman goes head-to-head with his former coach, John Smith, and his alma mater. The Trojans will go back to Stillwater for a dual next month, on February 7.
A Rematch with the Cougars
While this will be the first time the Trojans face the Cowboys, it will be the second time that Little Rock wrestles SIUE. Last season, the Trojans traveled north to Edwardsville, dropping the dual 26-12 in the closest match of the inaugural season. Last weekend against Chattanooga, Little Rock had its closest competition yet, coming up short 23-16. With the support of the home crowd at the Jack Stephens Center, the Trojans will be looking for their first D1 dual victory on Sunday.
A Glance at the Rankings
Oklahoma State is the only team of the three listed on this week's
NWCA Coaches Poll, sitting at #5. Individually, via FloWrestling, the Cowboys have six wrestlers in the top 25 while SIUE has two ranked, as shown below in each team's likely starters. However, on TrackWrestling, Little Rock's very own
Paul Bianchi sits at number 32 at 133 pounds.
Little Rock Probables
125:
Khyler Brewer, Fr. (0-2)
133:
Paul Bianchi, R-Sr. (1-2)
141:
Conner Ward, R-So. (1-3)
149:
Kyle Prewitt, R-Fr. (1-3) or
Joseph Bianchi, R-Fr. (2-2)
157:
Noah Aziere, R-Sr. (0-2) or
Thomas Lisher, R-Sr. (0-1)
165:
Alex Hernandez, Fr. (0-3)
174:
Triston Wills, R-Fr. (3-1)
184:
Zane Davis, Fr. (0-1) or
Tanner Mendoza, Fr. (0-2)
197:
Dylan Johnson, Sr. (1-3)
HWT:
Gabe Beyer, R-Fr. (3-1)
SIUE Probables
125: Austin Macias, Jr. (1-1) or Matt Malavsky, R-Jr. (0-0 at 125)
133: Aaron Schulist, R-So. (2-0)
141: Saul Ervin, R-So. (2-0)
149: Cardeionte Wilson, Jr. (2-0)
157: Coleman Brainard, Jr. (0-1) or #11 Justin Ruffin, Jr. (2-0)
165: Chase Diehl, So. (0-2)
174: Kevin Gschwendtner, Sr. (0-2)
184: Sergio Villalobos, Jr. (1-0) or Ryan Yarnell, Jr. (1-1)
197: Austin Andres, R-So. (1-1) or Austin Cooley, Fr. (0-0 at 197)
HWT: #24 Colton McKiernan, Jr. (2-0) or Aric Bohn, R-So. (1-0)
#5 Oklahoma State Probables
125: #16 Trevor Mastrogiovanni, Fr. (2-0)
133: Andrew Nieman, R-Sr. (0-1)
141: #7 Kaid Brock, R-Sr. (1-0)
149: #4 Boo Lewallen, R-Sr. (2-0)
157: #8 Wyatt Sheets, R-Jr. (0-0) or Jalin Harper, R-So. (0-0)
165: #5 Travis Wittlake, R-So. (2-0)
174: Dustin Plott, Fr. (2-0)
184: #7 Dakota Geer, R-Sr. (2-0)
197: AJ Ferrari, Fr. (2-0)
HWT: Austin Harris, R-Jr. (2-0)
For the latest information on Little Rock Wrestling, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockWRES on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
#LittleRocksTeam
