The Edinboro Lineup
2012-13 Record – 9-4, 3-1 EWL  
 
Wt.        Name (Yr., Record, Hometown)
125         Kory Mines (So., 13-15, Maple Heights, OH)
133         #3/#3 A.J. Schopp (So., 25-2, Tyrone, PA)
141         #5/#4 Mitchell Port (So., 25-3, Bellefonte, PA)
149         #16/#17 Dave Habat (So., 22-7, Cleveland, OH)
157         Casey Fuller (So , 7-9, Hamlin, PA)
165         Johnny Greisheimer (Jr., 15-10, Wantagh, NY)
174         Patrick Jennings                (Fr.-r, 12-19, Ridge, NY)                
184         Vince Pickett (Fr., 19-12, Galloway, OH)
197         Warren Bosch (Fr.-r, 12-14, Kings Park, NY)         
Hwt.      #20/#20 Ernest James (Jr., 20-8, Medford, NY)
 
HEAD?COACH:  Tim Flynn (Penn State '87, 172-63-5, 16th year)
Rankings:  InterMat/Amateur Wrestling News
 
The Match Stories
 
} Edinboro travels to Iowa to wrestle the second-ranked Hawkeyes, who come in with an impressive 18-1 record.   The Fighting Scots are in the midst of their toughest stretch of the campaign with the regular season winding down.  Beginning with last weekend's match against 21st-ranked Kent State, the youthful Fighting Scots squad faces a stretch of three straight duals against nationally-ranked opponents.  On Friday, February 22 Edinboro will host 14th-ranked Pittsburgh in its final home dual of the season.  Iowa is ranked second in both InterMat's Tournament Strength rankings and the USA Today/NWCA/AWN Coaches Poll.   Edinboro is ranked 15th in both polls.
} Edinboro faces a formidable task against an Iowa team that has finished third at Nationals the last two years after winning three straight national championships under head coach Tom Brands.  The Hawkeyes' lineup features five All-Americans, and nine of the ten wrestlers are ranked.
} The highlights of the dual figure to come at 133 and 141 lbs.  A.J. Schopp, ranked third with a 25-2 record, will meet undefeated and second-ranked Tony Ramos (19-0) at 133 lbs., and Mitchell Port
(25-3), who is ranked fifth, opposes eighth-ranked Mark Ballweg (18-1) at 141 lbs.
} The Fighting Scots come off a narrow 20-19 triumph over Kent State, who was ranked 21st according to InterMat.  The match came down to a tiebreaker decision by Ernest James at heavyweight.  The junior prevailed 4-2.
} Edinboro finished fourth at the Virginia Duals, defeating Army (25-10) and 25th-ranked Old Dominion (21-12) before losing to tenth-ranked Virginia Tech (23-10) and ninth-ranked Central Michigan (25-10).  The loss to Virginia Tech snapped a six-match winning streak. 
} Iowa owns a 5-0 lead in the all-time series between the two schools.  They last met in 2001-02 in the NWCA?National Duals, with Iowa claiming a 35-14 victory.
} Edinboro ended 2012 with an 11th place showing at the Midlands Championships, which featured 14 teams that finished in the top 25 at last year's NCAA?Division I National Championships.  A pair of Fighting Scots placed fifth, with A.J. Schopp picking up a fifth place finish for the second straight year at 133 lbs. and Mitchell Port also picking up a fifth place.  Three other wrestlers fell a win shy of earning medals -- Dave Habat and Michael DePalma at 149 lbs. and Ernest James at heavyweight. 
} Edinboro made it back-to-back Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championships in December, plus six in the last seven years.  All ten Fighting Scots placed as Edinboro won its 15th overall PSAC?title.  The Fighting Scots finished with 160.5 points to outdistance Clarion, who came in second with 140 points.   Three wrestlers won their second straight individual titles -- A.J. Schopp (133 lbs.), Mitchell Port (141 lbs.), and Dave Habat (149 lbs.).     
}The Fighting Scots showcase an extremely young lineup, with one true freshmen and three redshirt freshmen starting, plus four sophomores.  Edinboro's lineup features four ranked wrestlers.  Leading the way is A.J. Schopp (133 lbs.), who is ranked third by InterMat and Amateur Wrestling News and has a 25-2 record with 16 falls.  Mitchell Port is not far behind, ranked fourth by Amateur Wrestling News and fifth by InterMat with a 25-3 record.  Both reached the round of 12 at last year's NCAA?Division I?National Championships.  Dave Habat (22-7) is ranked 17th in both polls at 149 lbs., and Ernest James (20-8) is ranked 20th at heavyweight in both.
}Following this weekend's action, Edinboro concludes the dual meet season next weekend, hosting 14th-ranked Pittsburgh on Friday, February 22, then wrestling at West Virginia the next day.
 
Scouting Iowa
 
} The Hawkeyes are 18-1 and 8-0 in the Big 10 after defeating eighth-ranked Illinois and 13th-ranked Nebraska last weekend.  The lone loss was an 18-12 setback to then second-ranked Oklahoma State.  Iowa handed Penn State, ranked number one in the country, a 22-16 defeat on February 1.  Coach Tom Brands has guided his team to three national championships since taking over at his alma mater in 2006.  This year's squad comes in ranked second nationally, with nine of the ten wrestlers in the lineup ranked.  That includes a pair of wrestlers ranked number one at their respective weight classes -- Matt McDonough, who is number one at 125 lbs., and Derek St. John, who is top-ranked at 157 lbs.  McDonough, a senior, has a 15-1 record and is a two-time national champion, winning in 2010 and 2012.  St. John, a junior, is one of two undefeated wrestlers in the Hawkeyes' lineup.  He is 19-0 and a two-time All-American, including a second place finish a year ago.  The other undefeated Hawkeye is Tony Ramos at 133 lbs., setting up an outstanding matchup with third-ranked A.J. Schopp.  The junior is also19-0 and placed third at Nationals last year.  In addition, the matchup at 141 lbs. will feature fifth-ranked Mitchell Port against Iowa's Mark Ballweg, a senior who is ranked eighth by InterMat.  Ballweg has an 18-1 record.   Sophomore Mike Evans (14-2) is ranked fourth at 174 lbs. and heavyweight Bobby Telford (14-3) is the fifth All-American in the Hawkeyes' lineup, ranked sixth after a fifth place finish at Nationals.   Throw in 13th-ranked Nick Moore (12-5) at 165 lbs., 14th-ranked Ethen Lofthouse (13-4) at 184 lbs., and 19th-ranked Nathan Burak (13-10) at 197 lbs., and it is an imposing lineup.
 
Flynn Comments
 
} “We can't wait to head to Iowa ! This is a chance to wrestle a top ranked #2 team, which is just awesome.  This is why kids come to Edinboro...for these type of duals.  It should provide an NCAA-type atmosphere.”