2002-03 Season Preview

10/8/2002 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling

Bloomington, Ind. - If the 2001-02 season was supposed to be one where the Hoosiers enjoyed success on the conference and national fronts, fate didn't get the message. The campaign for victory in 2001-02 was compromised when unfortunate injuries began to plague the team.
Head coach Duane Goldman and his staff had set their expectations high last season, ready for a breakthrough the team and coaches were prepared to enjoy.

"We were expecting last year to be one of the best years we ever had. As athletics are sometimes, you just never know. There were so many injuries," Goldman said.

The golden season that fate would not allow began with a bizarre twist when Goldman was involved in a serious car accident, breaking his pelvis.

"The whole team followed their coach with injuries. At certain times of the year we were competing without three or four starters. This year is actually supposed to be our rebuilding year because we have a lot of young kids. But we have some talent in there. We're looking forward to this season," Goldman said.

A rundown of the team through weight classes shows that Goldman's hopes for a stellar season on the mat are not unfounded.

125
At 125 pounds, Joe Dubuque begins the season as a redshirt freshman. Dubuque won two New Jersey state titles and was a high school national champion. His contribution at 125 is expected to be key to success in the 2002-03 season.

"Joey had some good results in open tournaments last year. We're really looking forward to his contribution this season," said Goldman.

133
Followers of the Hoosier program will notice the absence of NCAA qualifier Greg Schaefer at 125, the weight at which he qualified at last season. Goldman and his coaching staff are expecting that Schaefer will make the transition to 133 pounds for his senior year.

"Greg's had a couple of real successful years. One of his problems towards the end of the year was that the weight-cutting got to him," said Goldman.

Goldman looks for Cameron Sakon, a redshirt freshman from Indianapolis, to be a force in the practice room. Nick Spatola will come into the Hoosier program at 133 as a transfer from Mount St. Joseph, where he wrestled last season. Spatola was a four-time Ohio state placewinner. The presence and force of Sakon and Spatola gives the team great depth in the 133 weight class.

141
Another NCAA qualifier returns to the Hoosier lineup at 141 pounds in junior Coyte Cooper. After suffering through an injury for the first half of last season, Cooper went on to rack up a 22-10 record. He was the highest placing Hoosier at the Big Ten Championships, where he finished third.

149
At 149 there is still a big question mark for the Hoosiers.

"The 149 slot has us guessing right now," said Goldman.

Steve Amy - who finished last season with a 15-17 record, including a 2-6 mark in the Big Ten and eight pins - returns for his sophomore campaign. His record leaves the door open to challengers. Goldman looks to freshmen Kevin Kennedy and Matt Cooper to be pressuring Amy for the starting spot. Kennedy won the Illinois state title in 2002 with a 47-1 record at 135 pounds and compiled a four-year record of 145-19. Cooper - the younger brother of Hoosier standout Coyte - holds an impressive credential as he is a former Washington State Champion. Although these two have no collegiate experience on the mat, their respective athletic resumes offer the Hoosiers the promise of excellence at 149 pounds.

157
In the 2001-02 season, Rocky Mantella was IU's starter at 157 pounds. The spot remains open with a number of wrestlers vying for position.

Mike Engberg begins the 2002-03 season as a redshirt freshman. He was a high school state champion in 2001 at the 152-pound weight class and was additionally a two-time AAU National runner-up and three-time all-state honoree at Lake Central High School.

However, Engberg will be continually challenged by Alex LaPointe. LaPointe has started intermittently for IU over the last two years, amassing a 9-13 record during an injury-plagued season at 165. In the 2000-01 campaign he ended the season with a 15-12 mark, including an impressive 12-2 tournament record.

165
Pat Trabucco comes into the Hoosier wrestling program after spending last year at Lock Haven. The coaching staff knows that Trabucco has the potential to be a commanding force at 165 as he was a four-time New Jersey state place-winner. Trabucco will still have four years of eligibility remaining because he redshirted last season. Trabucco finished fifth at the 2001 High School Nationals at 160 pounds.

"Pat will be a very nice addition to our team this season," said Goldman.

174
With Trabucco as the only foreseeable candidate at 165, the Hoosiers will look to preseason practice to determine the starter at 174.

This weight class has been another big question mark for the coaching staff - but they hope to change that in 2002-03.
"174 has been a weak weight for us for no apparent reason. It hasn't been for lack of an individual...it's just that no one has really stepped forward. We have hopes that this year someone will step up at this weight," said Goldman.

He will look to Andrew Wolf and Brady Richardson this season. Wolf finished last year with a 7-17 record wrestling at 174, while Richardson enters the program after redshirting last season. In unattached competition he recorded a 2-2 record and won honors at the Missouri Open in the 174 Freshman/Sophomore Division.

Another wrestler to watch at this weight is Allen Wienzapfel, a redshirt last season. Wienzapfel went 39-3 as a senior and was the 2001 Indiana State Champion at 160 pounds.

184
At 184 pounds there should be yet another battle as Andy Rios comes off his redshirt freshman year as the preseason leader at this weight. It won't be an easy go of it for a variety of reasons. First, both Jack Barnhisel and Brandon Sisson will look to challenge Rios for the starting spot. More challenging than those two competitors will be trying to fill the void left by Hoosier All-American Viktor Sveda at 184. Sveda was only the second Hoosier to be an NCAA qualifier all four years. He was a two-time All-American and leaves the school as its all-time leader in wins (149) and pins (47). During most of his senior campaign, Sveda was the No. 1-ranked wrestler in the nation at 184 pounds.

197
Two-time NCAA qualifier Ty Matthews was set to excel at 197 in the 2001-02 campaign but ran into a road block, suffering his second injury, resulting in reconstructive surgery. He returns for his final season facing a challenger in sophomore NCAA qualifier Pat DeGain. DeGain finished just shy of All-American honors, falling to Nebraska's All-American and eventual third-place wrestler, Justin Ruiz. Matthews was an NCAA qualifier in both 2000 and 2001.

"Ty's injury created an opening - the two (DeGain and Matthews) never really wrestled off. It's going to be a good battle. So we'll have to see what happens there. Ty is doing well now so we have some situations that are going to have to play out," Goldman said.

HWT
One option would put Matthews at heavyweight, a spot where he wrestled in the 2002 Big Ten Championships when DJ Radnovich scratched with an injury of his own. Though not 100 percent, Matthews rose to the challenge of wrestling through injury for the sake of the team.

Newcomers
With a recruiting class ranked 9th by W.I.N. Magazine, this rebuilding year could prove better than the expectations could hope for in the offseason. Although Goldman is impressed with the accomplishments of his incoming class he also notes the challenge of making the transition from the high school to the national collegiate level.

"I think it's a hard adjustment - but I think it is for everyone across the board. These athletes chose to come to a Big Ten school and even though it will be difficult, there should be no surprises. This is the world they chose," said Goldman.

In a team with such youth and relative inexperience on the national level, Goldman will look to Schaefer, Cooper and DeGain to step into the leadership role his team needs in their pursuit of excellence in the 2002-03 campaign.

"Coyte is one of our hardest workers and he really leads by example in his work ethic. He and Greg are both very hard workers. Pat really proved himself to be a good leader for the team last year, just very vocal and very encouraging and a very good attitude. I really look for those three guys to be the leaders this year. They've shown themselves not just to be good wrestlers, but they've shown themselves to be good leaders," said Goldman.

In the end, Goldman knows that this season holds endless opportunity with the strength and combined experience of his leaders. While there are a lot of question marks heading into the season, there will be time to answer those questions in the preseason and enough talent on this 2002-03 squad to fill in the voids.

"Ultimately, our guys have to step out there alone - with no teammates, nobody else. They have to step out there individually and prove their worth," said Goldman. "At the same time, though, if there are 10 weights and six guys are getting it done, that doesn't work. I need a full team effort. This is an individual sport - but there is always that team aspect. We just prepare them to step onto the mat and prove themselves."

If fate was set on not allowing last year's team to allow the success they had anticipated, this year's team is ready to outwork fate and find the success that is now long overdue.