The Cal Poly wrestling team will face its stiffest dual meet competition thus far when the No. 25 Wyoming Cowboys enter Mott Gym on Friday.
The premier matchup comes at 165-pounds between No. 17 Ryan DesRoches of Cal Poly and No. 6 Shane Onufer of Wyoming. DesRoches currently owns a 24-4 record including 13 pins with one taking just 11 seconds. Currently he is four pins shy of the season record he set last year.
Co-head coach Mark Perry said DesRoches’ strong work ethic and leadership abilities on and off the mat make him deserving of top titles and wins.
“Ryan is the leader of this program, he is the leader of this team from a work ethic standpoint and from a lifestyle standpoint,” Perry said. “Ryan does everything right, he deserves to win, he deserves to be a national champion, he deserves to be an All-American.”
Three of his four losses came at the hands of wrestlers ranked in the top-10 in the country, one being against Onufer in finals of Reno Tournament of Champions, where he lost 10-2, a major decision.
The match takes on even more importance because it is the only battle between two wrestlers ranked in the top-20 in the nation.
“And it all comes down to he needs to step up,” Perry said. “With the preparation he puts in, it should be fun when he steps on the mat.”
A hotly contested rematch will also take place at 125-pounds when Brandon Rocha, who had been wrestling at 133-pounds before Filip Novachkov’s return, takes on No. 20 Tyler Cox for the second time this season. Rocha, who is 10-5 on the season, fell to Cox in a narrow 11-10 decision in the Reno Tournament of Champions. He has yet to be pinned this season, falling to opponents by a combined 15 points in his losses. An upset win against a ranked opponent to open the meet could provide the Mustangs a boost.
The Mustangs do appear to have the upper hand in some rematches, including Ryan Smith’s matchup against LJ Helbig at 197-pounds. Smith racked up a seven-point win against Helbig in Reno, yet a victory by eight or more on Friday could add valuable team points to the Mustangs total.
The only other Mustang to face a Cowboy this season was Steven Vasquez, who opened his Reno Tournament of Champions with a 8-5 win over Dallas Hintz at 174-pounds.
The Mustangs will be heavy favorites at 133 and 141-pounds with Filip and Boris Novachkov, respectively. The brothers, who are both ranked in the top-10 nationally, will look to get into mid-season form against unranked opponents, along with Barrett Abel at 157-pounds.
Abel won the PAC-10 title last year, but as a member of the UC Davis Aggies. He landed at Cal Poly after Davis cut wrestling last spring.
“My ultimate goal is to be at the top of the podium,” Abel said.
And starting off the heart of the season with a win would help push one of the newest Mustangs up the standings.
On the opposite side of the coin, Wyoming appears to have the upper hand with No. 20 Cole Dallaserra at 149-pounds and No. 6 Joe LeBlanc at 184-pounds, as they do battle with unranked Cal Poly wrestlers.
Observers of the team dual should have a good clue as to which side will come out ahead following the four rematches, with the team that racks up more points in those matches having a slight advantage.
As most close matches do, the final result will have a lot to do with what team can maximize its wins and minimize its losses.When a wrestler wins by eight or more points, they earn more points than winning by seven or fewer. If a wrestler, at any point, pulls ahead by 15 points, the match is over and the team earns even more points. Finally, a pin earns the most team points of all.
Therefore, by holding the Cowboys to minor decisions (wins by seven points or less) in matches where a Mustang is the underdog, combined with picking up pins from Cal Poly’s heavy hitters, the Mustangs could have a winning formula.
Another ingredient to the formula is homecourt advantage. Filip Novachkov said he is hoping for a packed house to support his team in its biggest home meet of the season.
“We want more people to come out and support us,” Novachkov said. “It’s good to see a packed gym at home, it feels good when you step out on the mat and compete.”
The dual against the Cowboys marks the first in a stretch of matches against highly ranked opponents. The Mustangs face Pac-10 foes No. 29 Oregon State and No. 3 Boise State away from San Luis Obispo next week. The match against Wyoming starts at 6:30 p.m.