Preview: @UNCBearsWrestle faces Cal Poly at home, Oklahoma on the road

GREELEY, Colo.- A short memory is important for Northern Colorado wrestling as they prepare for another dual Friday night against Cal Poly. UNC will hit the road right after and travel to take on Oklahoma in another conference dual on Sunday.

Dylan Gabel [184] continues to move up in the national rankings and is currently sitting as high as 15th according to W.I.N. Magazine. Gabel is one of the veteran wrestlers for the Bears and will be relied on to earn bonus points for the team in both duals this weekend.

Keilan Torres [165] is maintaining his role as the fall guy for UNC, as he currently leads the team with nine this season. Torres added to his total against Duke when he pinned Zach Finesilver at 3:43. From the national perspective, Torres is ranked 19th by Intermat.com and he continues to have exciting matches every dual.

Along with Torres and Gabel, Rico Montoya [133] is another Bear who is recognized nationally. Montoya is currently ranked 18th by both Openmat.com and Flowwrestling.com. Montoya had a tough pair of matches against Duke and Bakersfield, but still has 13-8 record and looks to refocus against Cal Poly and OU.

Tanner Davis represented UNC in the 197 lb weight class for the first time this season in the two duals this past weekend. Davis was unable to pick up a win in either of his matches but wrestled well in the place of the injured Jacob Seely.

UNC is coming off two tough defeats at home against Duke and CSU-Bakersfield this past Sunday. The Bears were narrowly edged by the Blue Devils 19-18, before losing to Bakersfield 22-12 at Bank of Colorado Arena.

UNC has an opportunity to put the losses behind them, starting with Cal Poly on Friday and then Oklahoma on Sunday.

Scouting Cal Poly
The Mustangs have a 0-3 dual meet record in head coach Jon Sioredas's second season in charge of the team. Cal Poly has dropped a dual against fellow Big 12 member Fresno State, along with duals against Penn and Northwestern. At the Reno Tournament of Champions, the Mustangs placed three wrestlers and were tied for ninth as a team. Cal Poly also competed at the Cliff Keen Invitational, where they were tied for 31st and had two placers.

UNC and Cal Poly met last season in San Luis Obispo, Calif. with the Mustangs defeating the Bears, 21-18. The Bears could not hold onto an early 14-0 and the dual was decided by the last match, giving the Mustangs the comeback victory.

Scouting Oklahoma
In head coach Lou Rosselli's second season, the Sooners have a 5-6 record entering the dual against UNC. OU defeated No. 20 Lock Haven 21-15 this past week and also has wins over Bucknell (21-13), Fresno State (27-8), Appalachian State (19-13), and Sacred Heart (53-0). The Sooners suffered defeats against ranked opponents No. 19 Rutgers (22-9), No. 8 NC State (27-13), No. 9 Virginia Tech (32-3), and No. 11 Northern Iowa (25-9).

The two teams faced off last season in Greely, with OU getting the better of UNC, 35-6. Keilan Torres and Trey Andrews both upset higher seeds, but they were the only UNC wrestlers to pick up wins on the day.

Projected Lineups
Northern Colorado (1-4, 1-1)
125 – Sean Cannon (7-8) or Michael Johnson (9-9)
133 – No. 18 Rico Montoya (14-8)
141 – Benjamin Polkowske (9-9)
149 – Jimmy Fate (16-8)
157 – Tyler Kinn (8-10)
165 – No. 19 Keilan Torres (12-6)
174 – Sethan Bogulski (6-10)
184 – No.15 Dylan Gabel (14-5)
197 – Tanner Davis (1-8)
HWT – Robert Winters Jr. (8-12)

Cal Poly (0-3)
125 — Yoshito Funakoshi (2-4)
133 — Ty Schilling (1-7)
141 — Colton Schilling (8-5)
149 — Joshy Cortez (7-9)
157 — Jett Moy (2-7)
165 — Ryan Farina. (3-6)
174 — Matt Wilhelm (10-6)
184 — Sohrab Movahedi (5-5)
197 — Tom Lane (11-5)
285 — Spencer Empey (5-8)

Oklahoma (5-6, 0-2)
125: No. 17 Christian Moody, RSo. (17-8; 9-2 dual)
133: Jake Rubio, RJr. (11-6; 7-4)
141: Mike Longo, Sr. (12-12; 3-7)
149: Davion Jeffries, Jr. (16-11; 6-5) OR Noah Teaney, RJr. (6-4; 0-0)
157: Justin Thomas, RFr. (18-9; 6-5)
165: Dawaylon Barnes, Sr. (14-7; 5-3)
174: No. 11 Yoanse Mejias, Sr. (19-5; 8-1) OR Jeremy Thomas, RFr. (3-7; 0-2)
184: Matthew Waddell, Fr. (5-11; 3-7)
197: Andrew Dixon, Sr. (13-12; 4-7)
HWT: Marquise Overton, Jr. (0-2; 0-2) OR Connor Webb, Fr. (5-13; 2-7)

Following the Bears
Northern Colorado meets Cal Poly on Friday, January 19at 7 pm MT in Bank of Colorado Arena. Tickets for the dual are $8 for adults and $5 for youths and can be purchased online (fees may apply). The match can be streamed live with the free PlutoTV app for any smart device. Follow the match on Twitter for live updates and results with @UNCBearsWrestle.

CALLING ALL KIDS: UNC Wrestling will host the 2018 Kids Clinic on Friday, Jan. 26, prior to their dual against Fresno State. Tune-up your skills with the team at 5:45 pm then cheer on the bears at 7! To register for the free clinic, visit uncbears.com/kidsclinic or for more information call 351-1832.

*Please note This year's clinic does NOT include a ticket to the match but tickets are available at a special discounted rate of $3 for kids and $5 for adults (plus fees). These can be purchased ahead of time online with promo code WRKidsDay or at the time of registration at the Bank of Colorado Arena Box Office.

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Players Mentioned

Sethan Bogulski

Sean Cannon

Tanner Davis

Jimmy Fate

Dylan Gabel

Michael Johnson

Tyler Kinn

Rico Montoya

Benjamin Polkowske

Jacob Seely

Keilan Torres

Robert Winters Jr.

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