2008-09 Season in Review
Pope Wrestles at Nationals
Virgil Pope became the fourth wrestler in MSOE history to participate at the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. Wrestling at 141 pounds, he competed against two eventual All Americans at the meet. Pope lost a 12-4 decision Zach McKray from Wartburg College who finished in second place overall. In the wrestle back rounds, Pope was defeated by Kevin Donahue of Cornell College by the score of 7-to-3. Donahue placed seventh and received All American status.
At the Great Lakes Regional on Saturday Feb. 21, Virgil Pope took 3rd place in the 141-pound division and was voted by the coaches to one of six at-large qualifiers to the NCAA tournament. Pope was the first MSOE wrestler since All-American Matt Schoenherr to make the trip to nationals since 2004.
Other Raiders that fared well at regionals include Matt Olsen, who placed fifth overall in the 165# division, while Sammy Deligio (125) and Adam Chaulklin (174) each won one match on the day, but did not place in the tournament.
The Raiders claimed third place finish at the 2009 Northern Wrestling Association Championship on Feb. 14. Joel VandeBoom, wrestling at 157 lbs., not only defeated a nationally ranked opponent on his way to a Northern Wrestling Association Championship crown, but he did with style. The conference coaches took notice and honored him as the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament. Teammate Virgil Pope won the 149-weight class as the Raiders placed third at the event, behind team champion Lakeland and Concordia Wisconsin. The MSOE wrestling brain trust, Kevin Morin was chosen by his peers as the conference Coach of the Year.
VandeBoom, who is Morin's lone graduate this year, also received Academic All America honors, which was selected by the National Wrestling Coaches Association.
2008-2009 Season Preview
As you look at the roster for the 2008-09 MSOE wrestling team, you will notice that they are a younger team. The squad has only four upperclassmen on the roster including one senior and three juniors but that hardly translates into a lack of talent and credentials for this team. While arguably young, the 2008-09 squad will have five returning conference champions in the lineup that will provide significant strength and experience to this team.
Joel VandeBoom is the lone senior on the team and has been a mainstay for the Raiders during his career. During the 2007-2008 campaign, he was a conference champion, and an Academic All-American, as chosen by the National Wrestling Coaches Association. VandeBoom, who was named co-captain for the second year in a row, had the most wins on last year's team and is currently ninth on the list of career wins by an MSOE wrestler. Joel has been on the Dean's list every term that he has been at MSOE.
Matt Olsen leads the junior class and was a 2008 conference champion at the 184-lb. weight class. Olsen, who won the Al Hanke Invitational last season, will join VandeBoom as the other team co-captain.
The junior class also has two-year starter and all-round athlete Ryan Baird who will compete at 174-pound weight class again and Brian Jacoby who will likely compete at the 133-pound weight class. Baird also competes at MSOE in cross-country and track and field. Jacoby is eager to return to the mats after an injury ended his season prematurely.
MSOE returns a sophomore class that has three returning conference champions in it. Brothers Sam and Dominic Deligio return after each winning conference titles during the freshmen years. Sam won the 125-pound title and was named the conference's Rookie of the Year. Dominic won the 133-pound title in convincing fashion as he recorded a fall in the championship match. Virgil Pope was also a conference champion at the 141-weight class last year. Pope also placed fifth in the very difficult Great Lakes Regional tournament last year and was very close to qualifying for the NCAA tournament as he lost in overtime to the eventual national qualifier.
Lettermen Samuel Bramstedt, Steve Sanchez and David Swanson round out the sophomore class for the Raiders. Bramstedt recorded critical wins last year in the dual meets against UW-Oshkosh and Lawrence University, which enabled MSOE to win those duals. Sanchez, who was a three-time high school state qualifier and all-state wrestler in high school, hopes to avoid the injury bug that plagued him last year so that he can return to the high level that he experienced in high school when he was named the Racine County wrestler of the year his senior year. Swanson will move up to the 149-pound weight class where he will vie for the starting spot at that weight.
Nine freshmen, representing six different states, join the MSOE team this year. Adding depth and challenging for the starting spots in the lightweights will be Harrison Suggs (William Dryer High School, FL), Anthony Porn (St. Francis High School, WI) and Matt Fry, a graduate of Russel Lee Career Center in Ohio. Suggs and Porn were both state qualifiers in their respective states and Fry recorded 40 wins his senior year and 114 career wins in high school. Ted Casper (LaVille High School, IN) Jacob Narveson (Chosen Valley High School, MN) and Bryce Howard (Warren Township High School, IL) will complete in the middle weight classes. Howard was an Illinois state tournament qualifier. Adam Chaulkins (West Allis Central High School, WI) and John Gesse (Lake Park High School, IL) will compete in the upper weight classes.
This squad will work hard to continue to receive accolades for their success both on the mat and in the classroom. The MSOE wrestling team has been recognized for eight years in a row as one of the top academic wrestling teams in the nation and in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 was named the top NCAA Division III academic wrestling team in the nation by the National Wrestling Coaches Association.
