Iowa State Opens Dual Slate With Drexel On Sunday

AMES, Iowa – The Iowa State wrestling team (0-0, 0-0 Big 12) starts their dual slate on Sunday with a contest against the Drexel Dragons (2-0, 0-0 EIWA). The dual also marks the first under Kevin Dresser as the Iowa State head coach.

Where: Ames, Iowa – Hilton Coliseum
When: Sunday, Nov. 12 – 12 p.m.
Live Stream: Cyclones.TV will carry a live broadcast on Sunday afternoon.
Live Stats: Live stats will be provided by trackwrestling.com
Live Updates: Follow @CycloneWR on Twitter for live scoring and match-by-match results.

Iowa State vs. Drexel History
-Iowa State leads the all-time series against the Dragons, 3-0
-The two last met in November of 2013, where the Cyclones defeated Drexel, 24-16.
-The series inception was 22 years ago. On Jan. 13, 1995, ISU and Drexel met for the first time. The Cyclones won the dual in a neutral site contest held in Boston, Ma., 30-8.

Cyclone Notebook
-The 2017-18 Iowa State wrestling dual season kicks off with a contest against the Drexel Dragons.
-The Cyclones return to the mat after competition at the Harold Nichols Cyclone Open last weekend. Ian Parker, Gavin DeWitt and Chase Straw all won individual titles, while Marcus Harrington finished runner-up.
-Currently, the series record between the Dragons in the Cyclones is 3-0, advantage Iowa State. The two last met on 11-7-13 in Ames, where the Cardinal and Gold won 24-16.
-Athletics Director Jamie Pollard made a splash hire in landing Dresser last spring. Dresser then hired what he's calling his "Dream Team" in associate head coach Mike Zadick, assistant coach Derek St. John and volunteer assistant coach Brent Metcalf.
-The Iowa State roster is as youthful as any in the country. The Cyclones currently have 30 wrestlers who are freshmen or sophomores and only seven who are juniors or seniors.
-To go along with the youth, the roster also features many new faces. Of the 37 athletes, only 21 are returners from 2016-17. Dresser and company have added 16 new wrestlers for 2017-18.
-The Iowa State redshirt freshman class is ready to take the mat. With the addition of Virginia Tech transfer Jarrett Degen, the class now features five wrestlers who were ranked in the top 100 coming out of high school.
-Leading the redshirt freshmen will be 141-pound hammer Kanen Storr. Last year, Storr wrestled to a 25-5 record with 14 bonus-point victories.
-Storr competed at the Midlands Championships as an unattached wrestler. The youngster wrestled extremely well, taking fifth place at 141 pounds.
-Storr became just the third Cyclone since 1982 to finish on the Midlands podium as a true freshman. In 2011, Tanner Weatherman finished fifth and in 2011 Jon Reader took seventh place.
-In freestyle, Storr competed in his first Senior Level competition at the Dave Schultz Memorial International alongside teammate Ian Parker. Storr and Parker were the top two finishing Americans taking second and third, respectively.
-Joining Storr and Parker in their first year of eligibility are former top-100 recruits Jarrett Degen (149), Sam Colbray (197) and Gannon Gremmel (285). All five will battle for the starting spot at their weight.
-Iowa State's lone returning 2017 NCAA qualifier, Marcus Harrington, is bumping up to heavyweight. Last year, Harrington qualified for the NCAA Championships with a fifth-place finish at the Big 12 Championship at 197 pounds.
-Redshirt senior Dane Pestano is making the jump up to 184 pounds after spending last season trying to make 165 pounds. Pestano was a NCAA qualifier in 2016 at 184 pounds.
-2015 NCAA qualifier Dante Rodriguez is back and healthy. He spent the last two seasons battling an elbow injury. Now a redshirt sophomore, Rodriguez and Degen will battle for the 149 pound starting spot.
-Hilton Coliseum will have a new look for wrestling this season. The team has elected to take down the partitioning curtain, and the entire arena will be open for home wrestling duals. They have also added new banners to the rafters highlighting all of Iowa State's "Trophy Finishes" (top four or better at NCAAs).
-Iowa State's home slate features eight home duals, the most since 2011-12. One of those eight, the matchup against Rider, will take place in Stephens Auditorium.

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Players Mentioned

Marcus Harrington

Dane Pestano

Dante Rodriguez

Chase Straw

Tanner Weatherman

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Iowa State University Athletics