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Dec. 11, 2007

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Seven Midshipmen are among the second installment of the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) rankings released Tuesday morning, including senior Matt Stolpinski (Westfield, Mass.) and junior Scott Steele (Baltimore, Md.) who are the favorites in their respective weight classes.

Stolpinski is the reigning EIWA champion at 174 pounds and is ranked sixth in the country according to the last rankings list released on Dec. 4. The 2007 All-American owns a 13-3 record this year, including a 2-2 mark against nationally-ranked competition. He turned in a fifth-place performance in his last tournament, the highly-competitive Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, Nov. 30-Dec. 1. Stolpinski dropped a tough 8-6 decision in the first tie-breaker against Michigan's Steve Luke, who was ranked No. 3, in the semis, sending him to the consolation bracket where he was beaten by Nebraska's Brandon Browne, ranked No. 10. Stolpinski, though, came back to take the fifth-place match against 11th-ranked John Dergo from Illinois.

Though 2007 NCAA Championship qualifier Ed Prendergast (St. Louis, Mo.) is back for his senior year, he has been beaten twice by Steele at the heavyweight division. Arguably a good problem to have, both Prendergast and Steele have been solid this season. Steele is undefeated in his nine matches, taking titles at the Eastern Michigan Open, as well as the Navy Classic, beating Prendergast for the title in both. Meanwhile, Prendergast, who is not ranked among the EIWA top six, boasts a 10-4 record and ranked 15th in the last NWCA rankings report. Steele was unable to compete at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational because of an illness, but Prendergast took the opportunity to compete in one of the nation's elite tournaments. Prendergast won his first three matches, two by fall, before dropping a 4-2 decision to third-ranked Wade Sauer of Cal State Fullerton.

Three Midshipmen are currently ranked fourth, including freshman Bryce Saddoris (Spring Creek, Nev.) who is 13-4 at 149 pounds. Saddoris placed third at the Eastern Michigan Open, as well as the Navy Classic before posting a 3-2 record at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Unranked nationally, Saddoris picked up his first collegiate win over a nationally-ranked competitor when he turned in a 4-3 decision over Missouri's Josh Wagner, ranked 10th, in the second round of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.

Two-time NCAA qualifier Joe Baker (Poway, Calif.), ranked fourth at 133 pounds, is coming off an eighth-place finish at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational where he produced a 3-3 record. Baker missed the opening tournament of the year, the Eastern Michigan Open, still mending from off-season surgery, but came back to place second at the Navy Classic in mid-November. He owns a 6-4 record this season.

Boasting a 7-2 record, 184-pounder Matt Parsons (Dunkirk, Md.) has gotten off to a solid start to his senior campaign. Ranked fourth in the EIWA, Parsons owns a four-match winning streak, including a pin in just 46 seconds over Bloomsburg's Jesse Hasseman to win the Navy Classic title. He opened the year with a 3-2 record at the Eastern Michigan Open.

Navy's final two wrestlers ranked are juniors Joel Ahern (Herkimer, N.Y.) and Tyler Moyer (Bremerton, Wash.), who are fifth at 157 and 197 pounds, respectively. Ahern owns a 5-1 record, but has been hampered by injuries this season. He missed the opening tournament after getting hurt in the Mids' challenge matches, but came back to take second place at the Navy Classic. Ahern won his first two matches at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational before bowing out to injury.

Meanwhile, Moyer continues to fight for some consistency on the mat. With an 8-6 record, Moyer has been unable to string together more than two wins in a tournament, but continues to improve. He placed fifth at the Navy Classic and turned in a 2-2 record at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.

Finally, Navy slipped one spot from second to third in the latest EIWA team rankings. Defending champion Cornell remains the top vote-getter, but it was Penn who leap-frogged from fourth to second, pushing Navy to the third spot.

Team Ranking (by vote of all EIWA Head Coaches)
1.	Cornell
2.	Penn
3.	Navy
4.	Army
5.	Harvard
6.	Columbia
7.	Bucknell
8.	Lehigh
Individual Ranking (by vote of EIWA Ranking Committee)
125
1.     Rollie Peterkin, Penn So
2.     Fernando Martinez, Army Sr
3.     Brandon Kinney, Columbia Sr
4.     Greg Hart, Bucknell So
5.     Jasen Borschoff, American So
6.     Tony Communale, Princeton Fr
133
1.     Robbie Preston, Harvard Sr
2.     David Marble, Bucknell So
3.     Mike Grey, Cornell Fr
4.     Joe Baker, Navy Jr
5.     Whitt Dunning, Army Jr
6.     Rick Rappo, Penn Jr
141
1.     Matt Kyler, Army So
2.     Steve Adamcsik, Rutgers Sr
3.     Kyle Borshoff, American So
4.     Corey Jantzen, Harvard Fr
5.     Sean Carr, ESU Sr
6.     Sal Tirico, Columbia Jr
149
1.     JP O'Connor, Harvard So
2.     Cesar Grajales, Penn Jr
3.     Trevor Chinn, Lehigh Jr
4.     Bryce Saddoris, Navy Fr
5.     Adam Frey, Cornell Jr
6.     Kevin LeValley, Bucknell Fr
157
1.     Jordan Leen, Cornell Sr
2.     Christian Snook, Army Sr
3.     Dave Nakesone, Lehigh Sr
4.     Derek Sickles, Columbia Jr
5.     Joel Ahern, Navy Jr
6.     Thomas Timothy, Penn Fr
165
1.     Mike Cannon, American So
2.     Mack Lewnes, Cornell Fr
3.     Andy Rendos, Bucknell So
4.     Zach Shanaman, Penn Jr
5.     Andrew Flanagan, Harvard Jr
6.     Mike Galante, Lehigh So
174
1.     Matt Stolpinski, Navy Sr
2.     Steve Anceravage, Cornell Sr
3.     Justin Herbert, Franklin & Marshall Jr
4.     Alex Caruso, Lehigh Fr
5.     Jeff Zannetti, Penn Sr
6.     Shane Riccio, Bucknell So
184
1.     Louis Caputo, Harvard Jr
2.     David Craig, Lehigh So
3.     Lior Zamir, Penn Sr
4.     Matt Parsons, Navy Sr
5.     Scott Ferguson, Army Sr
6.     David Thompson, Bucknell Fr
197
1.     Josh Glenn, American Sr
2.     Richard Starks, Army So
3.     Nick Sommerfield, Columbia Sr
4.     Dan Zander, Penn Jr
5.     Tyler Moyer, Navy Jr
6.     Lamar Brown, Rutgers Jr
HWT
1.     Scott Steele, Navy Jr
2.     Zack Hammond, Cornell Sr
3.     Nathan Thobaben, Army Sr
4.     Levon Mock, Brown Sr
5.     George Hingson, Bucknell So
6.     Nico Somers, Franklin & Marshall Jr

### Go Navy ###