Even though it is early in the season, the Penn wrestling team has one of its biggest meets in recent memory tomorrow, when perennial national power Iowa visits the Palestra at 6:30 p.m.
In the latest polls, the Hawkeyes are ranked No. 5 in both the Intermat and the W.I.N. rankings, while Penn stands at No. 10. Iowa holds a 1-0 lifetime record against the Red and Blue, winning 30-3 in 1998.
"We believe we've got a shot to win this dual meet," Penn coach Roger Reina said. "We're ready to battle.... We'll have to compete at a championship level to win."
This meet is a chance for the Quakers to prove that they belong in the upper-echelon of wrestling, but the task against Iowa will be tough. The Hawkeyes had six and three first-place finishers, respectively, at their first two tournament competitions this year.
Not that the Quakers haven't been chugging along nicely this season. Penn crowned four champions at Wyoming's Cowboy Open on Nov. 11, and it repeated that feat last weekend at the Keystone Classic at the Palestra, finishing second behind No. 6 Iowa State.
The top two performers this year so far for the Quakers are senior captains Yoshi Nakamura and Rick Springman. Nakamura won the 157-pound title at both the Cowboy Open and Keystone Classic, while Springman completed the same feat in the 174-pound weight class.
"I've been very pleased with Yoshi and Rick so far this year," Reina said. "They haven't been tested."
Perhaps the most surprising member of the Quakers so far this year has been freshman Matt Feast. In his home debut, Feast won the 225-pound division, defeating No. 19 Mark Knauer of Iowa State after beating No. 20 Bronson Lingamfelter of Brown earlier in the day. For Feast's performance, he was named co-EIWA wrestler of the week.
Feast looks to have an even tougher task this weekend, as Iowa's Steve Mocco, No. 3 in the country, looms in the heavyweight class. Mocco, also a freshman, has made quite an impression this year so far, as he was unranked at the start of the season.
Iowa also has the consensus No. 1 ranked wrestler in the 149-pound weight class, senior Mike Zadick. Either Penn senior Joe Henson or junior Jody Giuricich will face him tomorrow night.
After the Iowa meet, the Quakers will travel to State College, Pa., on Sunday for the Penn State Open. Reina is not worried about the effect of two meets in three days.
"The big meets at the end of the season are two, three days in a row," Reina said. "This weekend will help us prepare for that."
But Friday's meet is the main concern for now. The Quakers, who have achieved a meteoric rise in the 16 years Reina has been coaching, look to prove that they can hang with the big teams in the nation.
"In many ways, this is a defining moment for our program," Reina said. "We'll see Iowa again in the season, but we'd really like to beat them this Friday."
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