Mavericks Travel to Cedar Falls for the UNI Open
OMAHA, Neb. – The top-ranked University of Nebraska at Omaha wrestling team will travel to Cedar Falls, Iowa to compete in the Northern Iowa Open on Sunday, Dec. 7. The meet will begin at 9 a.m.
Records & Rankings
The Mavericks are ranked No. 1 in the latest National Wrestling Coaches Association poll released on Wednesday. They received seven of eight first-place votes and had 158 points total. Minnesota State-Mankato is second with 147 points and Nebraska-Kearney is third with 145 points. Eight Mavs are among the top eight in their individual weight classes.
Senior #Ross Taplin#, a national runner-up last year, is the top-ranked wrestler in the 174 pound weight class. Junior #Cody Garcia#, who is a two-time national champion at 125 pounds, is ranked second at 133.
Other UNO wrestlers ranked in their weight class include:
8. Mario Morgan, 141
5. Esai Dominguez, 149
3. Aaron Denson, 165
2. Austin Boehm, 184
4. Jacob Marrs, 197
5. Tony Lewis, 285
The Coach
Mike Denney is in his 30th season as the Maverick head coach. The Dakota Wesleyan graduate has a 276-109-5 career mark. He has twice been named the NCAA II National Coach of the Year and led the 1991, 2004, 2005, and 2006 Mavericks to NCAA II national championships. Denney has coached 157 All-Americans and 28 national champions during his career.
Outlook
Coming off a third place finish at the 2008 NCAA II National Championships last March, the Mavericks return eight All-Americans and two national champions to a lineup seeking their fourth national title in the last six years.
On Deck
The Mavericks will head to Kearney, Neb. to compete in the Nebraska-Kearney Open on Saturday, Dec. 13. The meet will get underway at 9 a.m.
