Central Michigan University Athletics
Wrestling Picked To Win MAC
10/12/2001 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Oct. 12, 2001
MOUNT PLEASANT - The Central Michigan wrestling team has been chosen to win the 2002 Mid-American Conference wrestling title by the MAC coaches.
The Chippewas picked up 36 points to top the poll. Ohio was second with 28 points followed by Kent State (24), Buffalo (23), Northern Illinois (21) and Eastern Michigan (10).
"In the MAC, everyone is after us. But I would rather be the chased, than the chaser," said head coach Tom Borrelli. "I think that Ohio will be competitive as always. Kent State has a ton of talent and will challenge for the title. Northern Illinois is a team that could step up to the next level this year and battle for the title. Eastern Michigan and Buffalo are both teams that will challenge us and we can not overlook them."
Five CMU wrestlers were named the favorite at their repective weight class. Returning MAC champs Ty Morgan (Huber Heights, Ohio/So.) at 149, and Jason Mester (Mineral Pointe, Wis./So.) at 141, were two of the wrestlers picked along with returning national qualifiers Jordan Webster (Washington, Ill./Jr.) at 131, Brett Faustman (Mason/Jr., at 197, and Jack Leffler (Morris, Ill./Sr.) at heavyweight.
Jeff Pangborn (Durand/So.) was picked second at 184 while Kevin Carr (Warsaw, Ind./So.) was picked third at 165. Russ Vanderheyden (Rockton, Ill./Fr.) at 174 and David Bolyard (Akron, Ohio/Fr.) at 157 were both selected to finish fourth.
"The sky's the limit with this team," said Borrelli. "We gained a lot of valuable experience last year with a young team, and that experience should be a great asset for us this season. We competed at a higher level than I expected last year, so it should be interesting to see how much we can improve this year."
2001-02 MAC Wrestling Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Central Michigan 36
2. Ohio 28
3. Kent State 24
4. Buffalo 23
5. Northern Illinois 21
6. Eastern Michigan 10
