2014 Budd Whitehill Duals Central
2014 Bracket (PDF)
Follow the duals on Trackwrestling

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Olivet College highlights a group of eight ranked teams that will head to Lamade Gymnasium on Friday, Jan. 10, for the start of the two-day, 20-team 26^th annual Budd Whitehill National Duals hosted by Lycoming College, as the field is again a very strong and deep one according to the bracket released by the rankings committee on Tuesday, Jan. 7.
 
The event will also feature the dedication of a plaque that will hang in the entryway of Lamade Gym for legendary coach Budd Whitehill on Saturday, Jan. 11, at 3 p.m. before the championship round. Whitehill coached the Warriors for 37 years and won 376 matches and 10 Middle Atlantic Conference titles.

Olivet, ranked seventh in the nation, earned the top seed and will face Muskingum in the opening round at 9 a.m. on Friday, while No. 2 seed SUNY Cortland, ranked eighth, will face York (Pa.). No. 3 seed Ithaca, ranked 10^th, will face Case Western Reserve and No. 4 seed Messiah, ranked 13^th, will take on RIT in the other 9 a.m. matches.
 
At 10:30 a.m., No. 5 Johnson & Wales, ranked 14^th, will face Ohio Northern, No. 6 Heidelberg, ranked 23^rd, will take on Lycoming, No. 7 Wisconsin-Stevens Point, the defending champions that are ranked 25^th, will face Williams and No. 8 Thiel, ranked 26^th, will face The College of New Jersey.
 
At 12 p.m. Alfred State, Oswego State, Coast Guard and Trine will begin their quest at the tournament, facing the winners of the 9 a.m. round of matches.
  
Lycoming will feature one of the most balanced lineups in the past five years, thanks to an influx of three freshmen starters along with a solid corps of returners. Seven Warriors have winning percentages above .600, including first-year starters in sophomore Jake Witmer (Sunbury, Pa./Shikellamy) (125 pounds, 12-7) and freshman Seth Lansberry (Klingerstown, Pa./Line Mountain) (149, 17-6).
 
In addition, junior Caleb Willey (Towanda, Pa./Towanda Area) (141, 15-8), junior Brian Watkins (157/165, 14-7), sophomore Matt Neff (Sunbury, Pa./Shikellamy) (165, 6-4) and senior Greg Wetzel (Pleasant Valley, N.Y./Arlington) (184, 17-6) are all also enjoying solid starts to the season. Two other starters are just below the .600 mark in freshman Nolan Barger (Clearfield, Pa./Clearfield Area) (165, 13-9) and senior Johnathan Secor (Pompton Lakes, N.J./Pompton Lakes) (174, 12-9).

The Warriors are looking to place at the event for the 18^th time in its 26 years and for the first time since taking eighth in 2010. In 2013, the team finished the tournament with a 1-3 mark, posting a win over Gettysburg.
 
Lycoming's first opponent, 23^rd-ranked Heidelberg, has placed at the duals once, taking fifth in 2006. The team is led 133-pound sophomore Colin McDermitt, who is ranked 10^th in the latest d3wrestle.com individual poll. 125-pounder Joseph Brodman is listed as a contender in the rankings along with 165-pounder Jeremy Stepp, 197-pounder Jason Russell and heavyweight Nino Majoy.
 
In the second round, if the Warriors win, they will wrestle in the quarterfinals at 3:30 p.m. against Ithaca, Case Western or Coast Guard. If they lose, they will face the loser of the Ithaca and Case Western bout at 2 p.m. The Warriors are 65-39 (.625) all-time at the duals and have won titles in 1997 and 1999. Lycoming is 17-6 (.739) in the opening round of the event.
 
Seven rounds of the duals will take place on Friday, Jan. 10, with four matches taking place in each round on mats spread across Lamade Gymnasium. On Saturday, Jan. 11, the tournament will conclude with five rounds of wrestling. The championship round is set for 3:20 p.m. with the tournament awards following at 5 p.m.