Indiana Opens Big Ten Play Against Minnesota

Bloomington, Ind. - At long last, the Indiana Hoosiers are set to begin their Big Ten schedule for the 2015-16 season. Indiana will begin their campaign in wrestling's most competitive league on the road, Friday night against #20 Minnesota. Follow the action at IUHoosiers.com, and on Twitter @IUWrestling1.

Big Ten Wrestling
Friday, December 11
Indiana (1-0) vs. #20 Minnesota (4-4)
8:30 pm ET | Minneapolis, Minn. | BTN Plus

Probable Lineups:

Indiana Hoosiers (1-0)
125 – Elijah Oliver, Fr. (8-1)
133 – Alonzo Shepherd, Sr. (5-5)
141 – Cole Weaver, r-Fr. (8-4)
149 – Luke Blanton, r-So. (6-3)
157 – Jake Danishek, r-Fr. (1-0)
165 – Bryce Martin, r-Fr. (6-7)
174 – #11 Nate Jackson, r-Jr. (9-1)
184 – Matt Irick, r-Jr. (4-4)
197 – Jake Masengale, r-So. (2-5)
HWT – Garret Goldman, r-Sr. (6-4)

#20 Minnesota Golden Gophers (4-4)
125 – Skyler Petry, r-Fr. (10-8)
133 – Sam Brancale, r-Jr. (12-6)
141 – #11 Tommy Thorn, r-Fr. (16-4)
149 – #10 Jake Short, r-So. (8-2)
157 – Brandon Kingsley, r-Jr. (9-5)
165 – Brandon Krone, r-Fr. (7-5)
174 – Nick Wanzek, r-So. (7-4) -or- Jordon Rothers, r-So. (3-5)
184 – Chris Pfarr, r-So. (8-8)
197 – #5 Brett Pfarr, r-Jr. (16-1)
HWT – #8 Michael Kroells, r-Jr. (14-3)

This is Indiana's first dual meet against the Golden Gophers since the 2013-14 season. For many of the younger wrestlers, this will be their first experience of the intense atmosphere and competition provided by a Big Ten dual.

"Minnesota always has a great crowd, it's a really raucous environment," said Indiana head coach Duane Goldman regarding the excitement of the Big Ten season. "It'll be a great experience for a lot of our guys."

Many of Indiana's wrestlers will face their toughest opponents of the early season on Friday, according to the list of probable starters. Four of Minnesota's wrestlers are ranked nationally in their respective weight class. Hoosier sophomore Luke Blanton is up for the challenge, as he takes on the #10 wrestler at 149 lbs., Jake Short.

For Blanton and the rest of the Hoosiers, they don't see this week as anything out of the ordinary, and they'll train as hard as they do for any other competition.

"You've got to have a really good week of practice, which I think we've had," Blanton said. "You have to keep preparing like we've always prepared, and you have to take the mat like it's your match to win."

Hoosier Notes: Indiana vs. Minnesota

IU-MINNESOTA SERIES
The Hoosiers and Golden Gophers will lock up for their 51st meeting on Friday evening. Minnesota leads the series, 46-4-1, with Indiana's last win coming in Bloomington on January 26, 1968.

TOP OF THE CLASS
Indiana redshirt junior Nate Jackson maintained the #11 national ranking (InterMat) in the 174 lb weight class after a win by tech fall against Clayton Bass (SIU-Edwardsville. With two tournaments and a dual meet under his belt, Jackson has a 9-1 record with one pin, three technical falls, and one major decision this season.

UNDERCLASSMEN IMPACT
This season's underclassmen are already making noise in the early stages of their IU careers. Indiana's freshmen have achieved eight podium finishes in the team's first three tournaments, including a Keystone Classic Championship win by Elijah Oliver (125 lbs). All eight of Oliver's wins have been dominating, as the freshman has one pin, one tech fall, and six major decisions.

Redshirt freshman Jake Danishek made a strong debut for the Hoosiers in the 157 lbs. class. He recorded his first career win last Sunday, an 11-5 decision, in the Hoosiers' dual against SIU-Edwardsville.

PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE
The Hoosiers are in their 106th season of competition in 2015-16. Indiana returns this year after sending two Hoosiers to the 2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships: national runner-up Taylor Walsh (165 lbs) and Nate Jackson (174 lbs).

This year, the Hoosiers return six starters and bring in 13 newcomers, and will look to talent both familiar and new for success this year.

FAMILIAR FACES
The Golden Gophers weren't a part of Indiana's 2014-15 Big Ten schedule, but a few of the probable bout matchups will create similar matchups from previous meetings in their careers. At 133 lbs., Alonzo Shepherd faces Sam Brancale for the second time in his career. Their first meeting in the 2013-14 season went in favor of Brancale.

Another enticing matchup comes in the heavyweight division, where Indiana's Garret Goldman will rematch against national #8, Michael Kroells. The two met in last season's Big Ten Tournament, when Kroells took the decision 7-2.

SOCIALLY ACCEPTABLE
Hoosier wrestling is active in the social media world. Up-to-the-minute news, team notes, live match results and much more can be found by following @IUWrestling1 on Twitter. In addition, 'like' the team's official Facebook page by searching "Indiana University Wrestling" and check for news on IUHoosiers.com.

Four-time IU All-American, NCAA National Champion, and Pan-American gold medalist Angel Escobedo's pursuit for Olympic Gold in Rio (2016) can be tracked on the Twitterverse as well, follow @driven2dominate.

BTN PLUS
The Hoosier wrestlers will appear eight times on BTN Plus (formerly Big Ten Digital Network) for the 2015-16 season, which will also include the Ken Craft Midlands Championships. Indiana's dual at Michigan State on January 22 will air live on the Big Ten Network.

BTN Plus programming includes non-televised games and events available on BTN2Go with a purchase of a BTN Plus subscription. BTN Plus content features live games produced by students at Big Ten universities. A subscription to BTN Plus on BTN2Go does not require a Big Ten Network TV subscription with a TV provider (from BTN website).

You can subscribe for a school pass for $9.95/month ($79.95/year) or for all of BTN Plus content for $14.95/month ($119.95/year) (Note: All options automatically renew).

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Players Mentioned

Luke Blanton

Jake Danishek

Garret Goldman

Matt Irick

Nate Jackson

Bryce Martin

Jake Masengale

Elijah Oliver

Alonzo Shepherd

Taylor Walsh

Cole Weaver

Indiana University Athletics