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Optimism reigns supreme for wrestling team
SCSU wrestling team has high expectations going into the season.
By Ryan Dale
Excitement has been running rampant in the SCSU wrestling practice facility as another season has begun.
The expectations are high this year for the optimistic Huskies, and rightfully so. The Huskies are tied for 10th in the recently released NCAA Division II preseason national poll with Central Washington. They are also returning two All-Americans and there is a legitimate chance the Huskies could have four All-Americans by the end of the 2002-03 campaign.
Head Coach Steve Grimit is in his 10th season as Husky head coach and says, “Expectations are very high, and that the Huskies won’t be satisfied with just being in the top 10.” Grimit and the rest of the Huskies plan on being in the top five in the nation when everything is said and done.
To reach the top five and contend for a NCC Conference title and a national championship, the Huskies will have to believe in themselves and follow the leadership of senior co-captains Dustin Darveaux (heavyweight) and Matt Neumueller (165 pounds). Neumuller was a national qualifier last year and just missed receiving All-American honors.
Darveaux finished fourth in the nation last year and is one of the two returning All-Americans for SCSU. He is about to become the school’s all-time leader in victories (127) with just 14 more wins to go. Darveaux is ranked second in the nation in the preseason polls and looks forward to working hard and having another successful season.
“I try and lead by example. I try and pick others up when they’re down,” Darveaux said. “I work hard and gear up for practice everyday. I just let the victories take care of themselves. It seemed so far away (the record) my first couple of years, but slowly I have been getting closer and closer.”
Darveaux has come close to winning a national championship and hopes the experiences he’s gained in the past, plus his focus and dedication, will help him win a national championship.
The other returning All-American is sophomore Jon Duncombe (St. Michael). Duncombe finished fourth in the nation last year at 174 pounds and is ranked third in the nation in preseason polls this year. He hopes to improve on his 23-16 record last year with the experience gained from his successful first season.
“One of my goals this year is to win a national championship. Last year I saw what it was all about and what I needed to do and hopefully this year I can win a championship,” Duncombe said.
Right now Duncombe is laboring with a minor back injury and hopes to return to action by Dec. 7 at the Northern Iowa Open.
Sophomore Gerard Evans spent most of last year wrestling behind Duncombe at 174-pounds. This year Evans has moved up a weight class (to 184 pounds) and hopes to show that he has what it takes to contend for All-American honors.
Grimit pointed out Evans as one of the potential All-Americans this year along with Darveaux, Duncombe and Neumuller. Evans goals for this year are to be competitive and said that there’s a lot of enthusiasm for this year’s team.
“Realistically we could be a top five team in the nation and NCC champions. In order to reach my goals I have to stay competitive and rise to the level of my competition,” Evans said.
The rest of the Huskies lineup for the season should look something like this: Stephen Clary (125 pounds), Dustin Spletz (133 pounds), John Dirksen or Justin Werk (141 pounds), Matt Wilson or Brad Hunter (157 pounds), Neumueller, Duncombe, James Tabatt or Lucas Pohlmeier (197 pounds), and Darveaux.
Facing arguably the toughest competition in Division II, the Huskies will have to work hard and stay focused if they want to compete for the NCC Conference title.
“Just about every team in our conference is ranked in the top 20. No other conference in Division II can rival the NCC when it comes to wrestling,” Grimit said.
The conference is definitely stacked this year with Nebraska-Omaha, North Dakota State and South Dakota State ranked second through fourth, respectively, in the preseason polls. Ranked just behind the Huskies are, Northern Colorado (No. 13), Minnesota-State, Mankato (No. 15) and Augustana (No. 17).
The Huskies first team competition is scheduled for this weekend when they travel to Omaha for the Ryan Kaufman Open.
“This will be our toughest competition all year,” according to Grimit.
The team hopes to succeed this weekend and be ready to protect their home turf on Dec. 14 when they will host the annual SCSU Invitational. The top teams from across the country in both Division II and III will be competing at SCSU.
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