The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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Returning NCAA qualifier that will be in the lineup this year — junior Matt Nereim, who finished second in the ACC at 149 pounds. NCAA Championships last season at Binghamton as a true freshman to claim All-America honors. 1 8 85 Career wins at heavyweight between Gwi- azdowski (30), redshirt junior Eloheim Palma (44) and sophomore Josh Davis (11). added a big-time transfer in Ryan Fox, a 165-pound sophomore who finished third at Junior College Nationals last year. • The coaching staff is made up of full-time assis- • In addition to Nick Gwiazdowski, the Pack also Noting The Pack tants Frank Beasley, who spent last year at Bingham- ton with Pat Popolizio, Jamill Kelly, a 2004 Olympic silver medalist who was Popolizio's teammate at Oklahoma State, and director of operations Jeff Breese, a former Pack wrestler from 2002-06. Vol- unteer assistant Noel Loban, a bronze medalist at the 1984 Olympics, rounds out the group. • Senior KaRonne Jones may or may not redshirt, but the 197-pounder ranks among the team's top returning athletes. The Fayetteville native tallied 18 wins last season, including five against ACC compe- tition, the second most among returning wrestlers. Key Wrestlers To Watch Before that, he was the lead assistant at American University, where he helped coach the school's first All-American and build that program into a perennial top-25 team. He accomplished everything at Bing- hamton despite working with fewer than half of the allowable number of NCAA scholarships, and a lack of resources that won't be a problem at NC State. The Pack boasts first-class facilities and an impres- sive coaching staff that includes a pair of Olympic medalists. Popolizio believes everything is in place to eventually be very successful at NC State. "It's good enough to win a national title," he said. "If any other program on campus has done it, it can be done. "Most importantly, our expectations are right now to be first-class citizens outside of the wrestling room. We want to let people know what this wrestling program will be about going forward. We will win, but it's going to take a little time. We're obviously very inexperienced, but I think, day by day, there are improvements. That, to me, is the most important thing, it's not where we're starting, it's where we're finishing." ■ ■ Key Dates To Watch The Wolfpack Open, Nov. 11 — NC State's sea- son kicks off with the tournament that it will host at Reynolds Coliseum. All its athletes should be competing in this event, even ones that plan to redshirt, so this is a great opportunity to see what the Pack has now and for the future. Duke, Feb. 20 — The squad has just three home dual matches, and this will be the season finale against an in-state rival from the ACC. The ACC Championships, March 9 — The Wolf- pack will travel to College Park, Md., for the ACC Cham- pionships this season, and this is where automatic bids for the NCAA Championships are won. Head coach Pat Popolizio admits the team is set up to have more individual success than team victories this year, and this is their time to show it. ter Springs, Fla., will most likely be making the move from 149 pounds to 157 pounds this season. He has a team-high 30 career victories, including 15 by pin. Junior Matt Nereim The middleweight from Win- to college as the No. 1 prep heavyweight in the country, according to W.I.N. magazine, but he has battled injuries after an impressive rookie season. He redshirted last year, and is hoping to regain his form from 2010-11, when he went 23-16 and broke former NCAA champion Tab Thacker's school record for heavyweight wins by a freshman. Redshirt Junior Eloheim Palma The Cary, N.C., native came up 21 wins last season, which stands as the most among all returning Wolfpack grapplers. The product of Asheville, N.C., racked up bonus points in 12 bouts, including seven pins, and is tied for fourth on the team with 28 career wins. Junior Nijel Jones The 165-pounder racked NOVEMBER 2012 ■ 103 Transfer heavyweight Nick Gwiazdowski, who will sit out this year, took eighth place at the By The Numbers