Feb. 18, 2016 • Live Video


The Navy wrestling team (9-3, 3-1 EIWA) will close out the regular season on Saturday evening with the annual Star Match against archrival Army West Point (3-6, 2-2 EIWA). Part of an Army-Navy tripleheader at Alumni Hall in Annapolis, the Army-Navy women's basketball game will kick off at 11:00 am, followed by the men's basketball game at 1:30 pm. The day's events will conclude with Army-Navy wrestling set for 7:30 pm at Alumni Hall.

Fans unable to attend Saturday night's match can watch the action online for free via NavySports.com or PatriotLeague.TV with Pete Medhurst calling the action.

More on the Series
Navy holds a 1015-774-41 (.566) all-time record against Army West Point. In overall meetings against the Cadets over the last 20 years, Navy owns a 369-234-8 (.610) record including a 279-149-8 (.649) lead in Star Games.

Heading into this weekend, the annual Army-Navy series is knotted up at 8-8-1 (.500), while the Mids have a slight edge in the Star Series, 8-7-1 (.531). The following teams have the distinction of winning Stars for the Midshipmen this year (in chronological order) - Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country, Men's Swimming & Diving, Women's Swimming & Diving, Football, Men's Basketball, Men's Indoor Track & Field and Gymnastics. Meanwhile, there are seven remaining Stars up for grabs - Wrestling (2-20 at Annapolis), Women's Tennis (4-2 at Annapolis), Men's Outdoor Track & Field (4-2 at West Point), Women's Outdoor Track & Field (4-2 at West Point), Men's Lacrosse (4-16 at West Point), Men's Tennis (4-23 at Annapolis) and Baseball (4-23 at Annapolis).

Meanwhile, Navy has been the dominant team in the series on the mat, boasting a 48-6-5 advantage, including a 26-1-2 record in matches staged in Annapolis. The Midshipmen have suffered just two setbacks (1997, 19-12 and 2015, 21-10) to Army in the last 53 matches, as Navy owns a spectacular 46-2-5 record during that span.

Navy Notebook
The Midshipmen have amassed a 9-3 dual meet record this season that has featured a 3-1 mark against EIWA competition. Among the 12 duals, Navy owns a flawless 7-0 mark at home. The Mids, however, are coming off back-to-back losses to Old Dominion, who they lost to in a tie-breaker, 19-18, and 13th-ranked North Carolina, 24-12. Navy was missing a handful of starters in both matches, but the Mids are expected to be at full strength against Army.

Six of Navy's 10 starters have reached the 20-win milestone this season, including the trio of Jadaen Bernstein, Mathew Miller and Michael Woulfe, who wrestle at 174, 184 and 197 pounds, respectively. Bernstein is atop the wins leader board with a 28-9 record that includes a 7-0 mark in dual action. Ranked 19th nationally, he needs just two wins to join an elite list of Navy wrestlers who have achieved 30 wins in a season. Fourty-four wrestlers have combined to achieve that milestone mark 49 times in program history. Meanwhile, with a 52-24 record in his first two seasons, he is only one win shy of joining the the school's top-five leader board for most wins by a wrestler in his first two seasons combined.

Miller enters the weekend with a 25-6 record and also boasts a 7-0 mark against dual competition. He has won nine straight matches with six of the last seven coming by way of fall. Fifteen of his 25 wins this season have been by fall, while 38 of his 73 career victories have been by fall. He stands third on Navy's career pins list, just one behind Ed Prendergast (2005-08), while he is tied for tied for the fifth-most single-season pins. He is second among DI wrestlers in pins this season against DI competition.

Woulfe is atop the nation's leader board in falls, producing 16 this season which is the fourth-best mark in a Navy single season. He has put together a 26-10 record this season and owns a 7-1 mark in dual compeition, suffering a one-point loss to nationally-ranked John Bolich of Lehigh in early January. He heads into the Army West Point Match having won nine of the last 10 bouts, including each of the last five.

Sophomores Zack Davis and Corey Wilding, along with freshman Nicholas Gil have also won 20 or more matches this season. Davis owns a 22-13 mark (7-3 dual) at 133 pounds and has won five in a row, Wilding stands 20-13 (6-4 dual) at 149 pounds and Gil has amassed a 21-11 record (5-3 dual) at 141 pounds.

Senior Salute
Navy will honor its nine senior members of the wrestling program and their families prior to Saturday night's match. The Navy senior wrestlers include Jonathan Clemente, Mathew Miller, Alberto Salabarria, Luke Schaeffer, Stout Watson, Michael Woulfe and team captain John Keck. Additionally, senior managers Forrest Cookie and Cody Solari will be recognized.

Navy's Probables
125 - Brant Leadbeter (15-18, 4-6) / Cody Lambert (0-0, 0-0)
133 - Zack Davis (22-13, 7-3) / Dane Lemmon (1-9, 0-2)
141 - Nicholas Gil (21-11, 5-3) / Adam Connell (2-2, 2-1)
149 - Corey Wilding (20-13, 6-4) / Casey Cowan (12-9, 2-0)
157 - Drew Daniels (13-9, 7-1) / Jonathan Carrera (7-9, 0-2)
165 - Michael Coleman (13-11, 3-4) / John Keck (14-14, 2-4)
174 - #19 Jadaen Bernstein (28-9, 7-0) / Ryan Harman (16-10, 2-1)
184 - #12 Mathew Miller (25-6, 7-0) / Robert Mannier (9-11, 2-3)
197 - Michael Woulfe (26-10, 7-1) / Austin Faunce (0-2, 0-0)
285 - Nick Mabry (8-18, 0-8) / Thomas Ott (9-12, 0-2)

Black Knights Bullet Points
Second-year Army West Point head coach Kevin Ward has led the Black Knights to a 3-6 record this season and a 2-2 EIWA mark. They have captured wins over LIU Post, Binghamton and Hofstra, while dropping decisions to nationally-ranked programs North Carolina, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, along with NC State, Penn and Drexel. The Cadets enter the weekend having lost three straight duals.

Leading the way for Army West Point is 18th-ranked Brian Harvey at 174 pounds. Harvey, who stands 19-8 overall and 6-2 in dual action, has won 10 bonus point matches. Junior Russell Parsons Jr. owns a team-best 23 wins, posting a 23-9 mark at 157 pounds this season. He is 7-2 in dual competition and leads the team with 11 bonus-point victories.

Army West Point Probables
125 - Sean Badua (8-11, 2-4) / Jacob Fontanez (1-4, 0-2)
133 - Austin Harry (9-14, 3-5)
141 - Logan Everett (17-11, 3-6)
149 - Mark Marchetti (10-10, 1-3) / Javier Rodriguez (9-10, 2-3)
157 - Russell Parsons Jr. (23-9, 7-2)
165 - Andrew Mendel (14-14, 3-6)
174 - #18 Brian Harvey (19-8, 6-2)
184 - Simon Imonode (11-14, 1-7)
197 - Bryce Barnes (18-8, 6-2)
285 - David Farr (11-10, 1-4) / Trevor Smith (9-7, 1-3)

Familiar Foes
All eyes will be focused in to the 174-pound bout which will featured 18th-ranked Brian Harvey of Army West Point and #19 Jadean Bernstein of Navy. Harvey is 3-0 against Bernstein over the last two seasons, twice beating Bernstein in the All-Academy Championship finals (7-6 in 2015, 4-2 in 2016) and in last year's dual (2-1).

There could be four rematches from last year's dual - Navy's Brant Leadbeter scored a 6-2 victory over Army West Point's Sean Badua at 125, Javier Rodriguez earned a 9-4 win against Navy's Corey Wilding at 149 pounds, Russell Parson Jr. dealt Navy's Drew Daniels a 7-1 loss at 157 pounds and Brian Harvey edged Navy's Jadaen Bernstein, 2-1, at 174 pounds.

In addition to Bernstein, five other wrestlers have faced their potential foe during the regular season in 2015-16. Navy's Brant Leadbeter split against Sean Badua at 125 pounds, losing to him 6-5 at the Southern Scuffle before taking a 10-3 win at the All-Academy Championship. The Mids' Nicholas Gil dropped a 6-5 decision to the Cadets' Logan Everett in the All-Academy Championship match. Senior team captain John Keck defeated Andrew Mendel, 5-3, at the Bearcat Open in November. Finally, Mathew Miller pinned Army West Point's Simon Imonode in just over a minute to win the All-Academy Championship title.

Yard Access
As a reminder to fans coming to Navy's home match on Saturday evening against Army West Point, vehicle access to the Naval Academy is limited to those with a Department of Defense identification card. Fans are encouraged to park at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium ($5 per vehicle) and ride the free shuttle bus to and from the match. Shuttle bus service will begin one hour prior to the start of the match. Note that a government issued identification card must be carried and presented by visitors ages 18 and older to gain access to the Academy grounds.

Mini Mids Section
Kids are invited to participate in the new Mini Mids section at Navy home wrestling matches this season! Come cheer on the team in a special reserved section next to the mat. Kids will also be able to enter to win head gear autographed by the Navy wrestling team!

Free Prematch Clinic
The Navy wrestling team will put on a free clinic for kids ages 6-12 prior to the Army-Navy wrestling match (6:00 pm). Please contact Melissa Perez in the Navy Marketing Department at 410-293-8787 or email denning@usna.edu to register.

Meet the Mids
Members of the Navy wrestling team will conduct an autograph session on the concourse of Alumni Hall following Saturday's match against the Black Knights.

Up Next
Navy will have nearly two weeks to prepare for the 2016 EIWA Championship slated for March 5-6. Princeton will serve as the host with action taking place at Jadwin Gym. Opening-day action is set for 9:00 am, while Sunday's semifinals and wrestlebacks are due to start at 10:00 am.

### Go Navy ###