Cal Baptist
Cal Poly Wrestling Set to Host Duals Against CBU, Northwestern on Thursday
12/18/2024 5:30:00 PM | Wrestling
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Less than two weeks after tearing it up on the mat in Las Vegas, Cal Poly wrestling returns to Mott Athletics Center this Thursday to host a pair of duals against Cal Baptist and Northwestern.
The Mustangs battle CBU first at 5:30 p.m., followed by a showdown with the Wildcats at 7 p.m. One ticket gets you into both duals and tickets can be purchased HERE.
Both duals will be streamed live on the Cal Poly wrestling X/Twitter account (@CalPolyWrestle) and on FloWrestling as part of FloWrestling: Night in America with Shane Sparks on the call. In its inaugural year of existence, FloWrestling: Night in America brings some of the best weekly primetime wrestling matchups in the country to a national audience.
BACK IN MOTT: Thursday’s doubleheader will mark the Mustangs’ first action at home since hosting an outdoor dual against Stanford on Nov. 16 and their first time hitting the mat inside Mott since facing Indiana on Nov. 3. Cal Poly will be seeking its first dual victory of the season Thursday, falling to No. 30 Indiana 31-11 and No. 14 Stanford 33-12.
LAST TIMEOUT: In its last appearance on the mat, Cal Poly shined at one of the season’s biggest tournaments, placing 13th out of 30 teams at the prestigious Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. The Mustangs secured their best finish at the tournament since earning 10th in 2021 while battling 14 of the top 25 teams in the country and seven of the top 10.
Cal Poly, who has been receiving votes in the NWCA Coaches Poll all season long, was the only team not affiliated with one of the three major power conferences (Big 12, B1G) and ACC to have a wrestler in the finals at this year’s Cliff Keen Invitational, with redshirt sophomore Zeth Romney wrestling in the 133-pound championship match.
RANKINGS, RANKINGS AND MORE RANKINGS: After their showing in Vegas, the Mustangs moved to No. 22 in the InterMat Tournament rankings, allowing the program to achieve a top 25 national ranking for the fifth consecutive year. Cal Poly climbed into a three-way for 20th in the latest edition of the InterMat Tournament rankings released this week.
Individually, seven Cal Poly wrestlers are currently receiving national rankings from several different media outlets, matching the program’s most since having seven garner preseason national rankings prior to the 2022-23 season.
Romney leads the way, climbing to No. 3 nationally at 133 pounds in the latest InterMat rankings. The Simi Valley, Calif. native went 5-0 and defeated four nationally ranked opponents en route to capturing the 133-pound title at the Cliff Keen Invitational. Romney became the first Cal Poly wrestler in three years to win a weight class at the tournament and his performance him Pac-12 Wrestler of the Week honors for the fourth time in his career and the second time this season.
Redshirt junior Chance Lamer is also ranked in the top 10 nationally in his weight class, checking in at No. 7 at 149 pounds with a perfect 5-0 record on the year. Graduate student and 2024 174-pound Pac-12 champion Adam Kemp is ranked No. 24 at 174 pounds, redshirt junior Luka Wick is 26th at 165 pounds, redshirt junior Trevor Tinker is 30th at 285 pounds and redshirt freshman Daschle Lamer is 33rd at 184 pounds. Redshirt sophomore Koda Holeman garnered the first national ranking of his career this week, checking in at No. 30 at 125 pounds in this week’s rankings from the College Wrestling Report.
7?? Stangs are now nationally ranked ?? We can’t wait to get after it tomorrow night in Mott!!#RideHigh ?? | #HorsePower pic.twitter.com/P6iqnM7Ayn
— Cal Poly Wrestling (@CalPolyWrestle) December 19, 2024
SCOUTING THE LANCERS: Cal Baptist is 4-2 in duals this season and is fresh off a thrilling 18-15 road victory at No. 18 West Virginia this past Sunday. The win was one of the biggest for the Lancers since the program moved to Division I, marking the second time they’ve defeated a ranked opponent since joining the Big 12 as an affiliate member in 2022. CBU is currently 2-0 in the Big 12, defeating Air Force 28-3 in their home opener on Nov. 22. The Lancers have one ranked wrestler, No. 27 Elijah Griffin at 141 pounds. Last season, Cal Poly rolled to a 32-3 victory over Cal Baptist in Riverside.
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS: Thursday’s dual will mark the fifth meeting all-time between Northwestern and Cal Poly and the first since the Mustangs fell to the Wildcats 32-16 on Dec. 17, 2018, inside the Mott Athletics Center. Northwestern is 1-1 in duals this season, taking down Northern Illinois 29-8 and falling to No. 20 Little Rock 29-10. The Wildcats boast six nationally ranked wrestlers according to FloWrestling — No. 11 Trevor Chumbley (157), No. 11 Maxx Mayfield (165), No. 16 Chris Cannon (141), No. 19 Evan Bates (197), No. 29 Sam Cartella (149) and No. 32 Dedrick Navarro (125).
CAPPING THE WEEK IN RENO: In addition to Thursday’s duals, Cal Poly will send over 15 wrestlers to the Reno Tournament of Champions on Sunday.
UP NEXT: The Mustangs will finish off the 2024 calendar year with a trip to Illinois to compete in the 60th annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships hosted by Northwestern on Dec. 29-30.
Projected Lineups
RV Cal Poly (0-2)
125: Koda Holeman
133: No. 3/5 Zeth Romney OR Caleb Park
141: Korbin Shepherd OR Alek VanBebber
149: No. 7/8 Chance Lamer OR Jagger French
157: Legend Lamer
165: No. 33/26 Luka Wick OR Cash Stewart
174: No. 28/24 Adam Kemp OR Kendall La Rosa
184: No. 33/NR Daschle Lamer
197: Jarad Priest OR Tyler Hodges
285: No. 30/33 Trevor Tinker OR Cole Jackson
Cal Baptist (4-2)
125: Mitchell Neiner
133: Hunter Leake OR Damian Alverez
141: No. 27/30 Elijah Griffin OR Emilio Trujillo
149: Paul Kelly OR Koa Ruiz
157: Daniel Manibog OR Darren Green
165: Drayden Morton OR Mason Espinoza
174: Carter Schmidt
184: Nathan Haas OR Sonny Acuna
197: Eli Sheeren
285: Tristan Kemp
Northwestern (1-1)
125: NR/No. 32 Dedrick Navarro
133: Massey Odiotti
141: No. 11/16 Chris Cannon OR Giosue Hickman
149: NR/No. 29 Sam Cartella
157: No. 11/11 Trevor Chumbley OR Jacob Bostelman
165: No. 20/11 Maxx Mayfield
174: Joseph Martin OR Aiden Vandenbush
184: Jon Halvorsen
197: No. 13/19 Evan Bates
285: Dirk Morley
InterMat/FloWrestling rankings
