No. 23 Panthers Resume Action at #Midlands54

Dec. 28, 2016

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PITTSBURGH - The 23^rd-ranked Pitt wrestling team resumes action Thursday, Dec. 29 in Evanston, Ill., at the 54^th Ken Kraft Midlands Championships hosted by Northwestern University. The first session of the two-day event is set to get underway at 9:30 a.m. in Welsh-Ryan Arena.

The first three sessions of the Midlands can be viewed live on BTN2Go, while the finals (Friday, Dec. 30) will be aired live on the Big Ten Network.

LAST TIME OUT

- The Panthers defeated long-time rival West Virginia Sunday, Dec. 11 in the Fitzgerald Field House.

- Six Pitt wrestlers earned victories en route to a 23-15 win.

- Sophomore LJ Bentley recorded his first dual win of the season by picking up a 12-3 major decision over Pittsburgh native Devin Brown at 125 pounds.

PANTHERS AT MIDLANDS

- Pitt was originally scheduled to attend the Midlands a year ago, but inclement weather forced the team to stay in state and compete at the Lock Haven Classic Tournament.

- The Panthers have competed in the Midlands Championships 11 times as a team and will be attending for the first time since 2012.

- The 2016 appearance will be the first for all current Pitt wrestlers.

- Pitt has seen 27 top-8 finishes, the most coming in 2010 when seven different Panthers placed.

- Pitt first participated as a team in 1987 that saw eventual two-time national champion and four-time All-American Pat Santoro win his weight class at 142 pounds.

- Prior to claiming his first national title, Santoro collected another first place finish in 1988 at 142 pounds. He was also tabbed the Art Kraft Champion of Champions and has been the only Panther to do so since.

- Three Panthers have finished first in their respective weight classes: Pat Santoro (142 lbs. - 1987/1988), Keith Gavin (174 lbs. - 2007), Matt Wilps (197 lbs. - 2010).

- Four Panthers finished second in their weight classes: Matt Kocher (157 lbs. - 2007), Zach Sheaffer (285 lbs. - 2008), Zac Thomusseit (285 lbs. - 2012), Matt Wilps (197 lbs. - 2012).

- Current assistant head coach Matt Kocher earned a runner-up finish at Midlands in 2007 at 157 pounds. Kocher was an All-American and four-time NCAA qualifier.

PITT IN THE POLLS

- As a team, the Panthers rank No. 23 in the latest USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll.

- Pitt is one of four ACC teams ranked among the top 25 with Virginia Tech checking in at No. 6, while NC State ranks 10^th and Virginia comes in at No. 24.

- Last year, the Panthers were ranked for nine consecutive weeks (Dec. 15-Feb. 16) and jumped in after upsetting then-ranked No. 15 Wisconsin early in the season. Pitt reached as high as No. 16 in the polls.

- Individually, four Panthers rank among the top 20 best wrestlers in the country according to InterMat last week. Leading the way is junior Dom Forys (133) at No. 7, sophomore TeShan Campbell (165) at No. 11, redshirt junior Ryan Solomon (285) at No. 15 and sophomore LJ Bentley (125) at No. 18.

LOCAL PRODUCTS PROVIDING SPARK

- Pittsburgh products Dom Forys and TeShan Campbell have provided consistent performances thus far.

- Forys, 133 pounds, and Campbell, 165 pounds, combine for 34 of Pitt's 93 dual points this season.

- Last season alone, Forys racked up a team-high 68 points. The next closest was Campbell, who was then at 174 pounds, with 40 points.

- Campbell is 5-1 in duals this season, while Forys is 4-1.

LOOKING AHEAD

- The Panthers return to Pittsburgh Saturday, Jan. 14 to host the annual Pitt Duals featuring 13 teams.

- Pitt will face Franklin & Marshall, Davidson and Bloomsburg.

- Action will get underway at 9 a.m. in the Fitzgerald Field House.

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No. 23 Panthers Resume Action at #Midlands54

Players Mentioned

LJ Bentley

TeShan Campbell

Dom Forys

Ryan Solomon

Zac Thomusseit

Matt Wilps

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