NEWARK, N.J. — No. 15 Wisconsin (2-0, 0-0 Big Ten) travels to New Jersey to wrestle two dual matches against North Carolina (3-2, 0-0 ACC) and Hofstra (0-0, 0-0 EIWA) in the Garden State Grapple hosted at the Prudential Center in Newark.
Both matches will be streamed live on BTN+. The Badgers wrestle the Tar Heels at 4:30 p.m. CT and then face the Pride at 6:30 p.m. CT.
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Don't miss head coach Chris Bono's latest Jump Around Weekly update video.
Here are five more things to know before the Badgers step on the mats:
1. LAST TIME OUT: The neutral-site event marks Hofstra's first dual of the season and will be Wisconsin's first competition in two weeks. Wisconsin defeated Little Rock, 32-13, at the Battle of the Bluffs on Nov. 12, hosted by UW-La Crosse Wrestling. The unique event featured Division I, II and III matches.
2. TAKE DOWN THE TROJANS: The Badgers were led in scoring against Little Rock with six wrestlers scoring bonus-point victories. Austin Gomez (149) and Trent Hillger (285) both pinned their opponents, while teammates Chris Weiler (184) and Braxton Amos (197) earned first-period tech falls. Garrett Model (157) also won by 16-4 major decision over Little Rock's Chase Tebbets.
3. SCOUTING THE TAR HEELS: This past Sunday, North Carolina defeated Campbell 24-12. The victory extended UNC's home dual win streak to four dating back to last season. The Tar Heels took seven out of 10 bouts from the Fighting Camels, highlighted by ranked wins at 174 and 185 by No. 15 Clay Lautt (3-2 Dec) and No. 23 Gavin Kane (7-3 Dec). North Carolina fell to Nebraska, 27-6, on Nov. 17 on the road. Jaime Hernandez (133) and Khizan Clarke (141) earned the Tar Heels' lone victories, 10-4 and 3-1 (SV) decisions respectively.
4. SCOUTING THE PRIDE: Hofstra enters the Garden State Grapple following a solid showing at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic on November 14. The Pride saw Justin Hoyle (141) and Zachary Knighton-Ward (285) finish first in their weight pools, while Michael Leandrou (149), Joe McGinty (157) and Charles Small (184) all took second, and Ricky Stamm (165) placed third. Hofstra will wrestle both Wisconsin and fellow Big Ten competitor Rutgers at the Prudential Center. This marks the Pride's first duals of the 2021-22 season..
5. LINEUPS: PROBABLE STARTERS
| Weight |
#15 WISCONSIN |
NORTH CAROLINA |
HOFSTRA |
| 125 |
#6 Eric Barnett |
Spencer Moore |
Jacob Moon or Dylan Acevedo |
| 133 |
Ethan Rotondo or Kyle Burwick |
#10 Jaime Hernandez or Joe Heilman |
Matt Templeton |
| 141 |
Joseph Zargo |
#10 Kizhan Clarke |
Justin Hoyle |
| 149 |
#19 Austin Gomez or Aidan Medora |
#16 Zach Sherman or Mason Phillips |
Mike Leandrou |
| 157 |
Garrett Model |
#7 Austin O'Connor |
Joe McGinty |
| 165 |
#26 Dean Hamiti or Drew Scharenbrock |
Sonny Santiago or Joey Mazzara |
Ricky Stamm |
| 174 |
#8 Andrew McNally |
#15 Clay Lautt |
Ericson Velesquez or Corey Langner |
| 184 |
#14 Chris Weiler or Tyler Dow |
#23 Gavin Kane or Mark Chaid |
#30 Charles Small |
| 197 |
#16 Braxton Amos |
#26 Max Shaw or Hunter Queen |
#29 Trey Rogers |
| 285 |
#5 Trent Hillger or Peter Christensen |
Brandon Whitman |
#20 Zack Knighton Ward or Ben Somerville |
| Head Coach |
Chris Bono |
Coleman Scott |
Dennis Papadatos |
| Asst. Coach |
Jon Reader (Assoc. HC) |
Tony Ramos (Assoc. HC) |
Jamie Franco (Assoc. HC) |
| Asst. Coach |
Seth Gross |
Jamill Kelly / Gary Wayne Harding |
Mauro Correnti |
| Preseason Team and Individual Rankings InterMat Nov. 23, 2021. Wisconsin is ranked #15 in Tournament; #17 in Duals; #19 by NWCA in Tournament |
