Bison prepare for test

The Forum, Fargo, North Dakota

By Jeff Kolpack jkolpack@forumcomm.com
Sports - 02/20/2006

North Dakota State will see an unfamiliar name tonight in its last home wrestling dual this season. But American University of Washington, D.C., is not another one of those vagabond Division I pretenders.

For starters, the Eagles have the top-ranked 184-pounder in the country in sophomore Josh Glenn. They also have two others who are nationally ranked, meaning NDSU will not have a lot of room for mistakes at the Bison Sports Arena.

“I’d much rather wrestle the top teams,” said NDSU freshman Jacob Bryce. “It’s a good gauge of where we’re at. If you go in and beat those teams, it’s a great moral victory for us. It’s a great reward for the work that we’ve put in.”

Bryce has been on a surge of late, winning six of his last seven matches. No Bison, however, has had a better year than sophomore Matt Wetterling.

He’s won 25 matches -- 18 by pin -- and leads the team with 47 dual points.

He’ll get his ultimate test tonight: he’s at the same weight as Glenn. Wetterling struggled the last time he faced a top-notch opponent. The University of Pennsylvania’s Dustin Wiles pinned Wetterling in January.

“It will be interesting to judge Matt on where he’s at at this stage,” said Bison head coach Bucky Maughan. “We think he has a great future.”

The Bison, 6-5, will be shooting for a winning dual record after dropping a 26-15 decision at Northern Iowa on Saturday. The emergence of freshmen like Bryce has been a key. He’s one of six rookies in the NDSU starting lineup.

“All things considered, there are probably a lot of people scratching their heads on how we’re doing since the beginning of the season,” Bryce said. “I think we’ve pulled together and have had good chemistry on this team. It just makes it a lot more fun to wrestle. It’s easier to stay focused.”

Readers can reach Forum reporter Jeff Kolpack at (701) 241-5546