March 18, 2009

• NCAA Wrestling Championship Notes

2009 NCAA Championship InformationScottrade Center • St. Louis, Mo.
Session 1 • Thursday, March 19 • 11:00 am    • Pigtails and First RoundSession 2 • Thursday, March 19 • 6:30 pm    • Preliminaries    • Wrestle-back First Round    • Wrestle-back Preliminaries, as needed    Consolation Pigtail Championship Round    • Consolation RoundSession 3 • Friday, March 20 • 10:00 am • ESPNU    • Quarterfinals (middle four mats)    • Wrestle-back Second/Third Rounds (outside mats)Session 4 • Friday, March 20 • 6:00 pm • ESPN2/U    • Semifinals (inside two mats)    • Wrestle-back Fourth Round (outside four mats)    • Wrestle-back Fifth Round (all six mats)Session 5 • Saturday, March 21 • 9:30 am • ESPNU    • Wrestle-back semifinals    • Third - Seventh-place medal round matchesSession 6 • Saturday, March 21 • 5:30 pm • ESPN    • Championship Finals & Awards Ceremony>> ESPN360 (internet) will provide live coverage for all rounds of the championship>> All times are central

The Road to the 79th NCAA Wrestling Championship
• Five members of the Navy wrestling team will begin their journey for an NCAA title on Thursday morning at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo. Session 1 of the tournament is set to begin at 11:00 am CT.
• Representing Navy are 2008 All-American and four-time NCAA selection Joe Baker (133), two-time NCAA qualifier and 2009 EIWA Champion Bryce Saddoris (149), while making their first appearances are senior Casey Caldwell (184) and rookies Prescott Garner (125) and Luke Rebertus (174).
• For the fifth-consecutive year, Navy has at least five wrestlers advancing to the national tournament.
• The Mids are looking to build off of the 18th-place finish they have turned in in each of the last two tournaments ... their best placement since 1989-90 when Navy finished 13th.
• The program's best finish in NCAA Tournament action was a fourth-place finish in 1954.
• Navy has won three national titles, by two men - Pete Blair won the 191-pound title in 1954 and `55, while Dan Muthler earned the crown in 1973 at 142 pounds.
• At least one Navy wrestler has participated in the NCAA Championship in each of the last 13 years, including all nine under head coach Bruce Burnett.
• This is Navy's 61st NCAA Tournament appearance ... in addition to winning three individual titles, 58 wrestlers have garnered All-America recognition, including seven under Bruce Burnett's direction.
• After becoming just the 25th wrestler in program history to earn a pair of EIWA individual titles, senior Joe Baker is now just the fifth wrestler in Navy history to qualify for the NCAA Championship all four years ... he joins John Reich (1980-83), Frank Shaffer (1980-83), Scott Schleicher (1987-90) and Dan Hicks (1992-95).
• After earning All-America recognition a year ago, Joe Baker is looking to be crowned a two-time All-American ... should he accomplish the feat, he would be only the 15th wrestler in program history to claim All-America recognition multiple times.
• With two of the five wrestlers seeded, both in the top 10 (Bryce Saddoris 7, Joe Baker 8), the Mids have a solid chance of having two stand atop the championship platform ... last year three Mids (Matt Stolpinski, Ed Prendergast and Joe Baker) gained All-America status, marking the first time Navy has produced three All-Americans in one season sine the 1966-67 campaign (Gary Burger, John Kent, Pete Vanderlofske) ... meanwhile it's only happened four times in school history.