MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES WRESTLER OF THE WEEK
MAC Wrestler of the Week
Todd Porter, Missouri—Senior, House Springs, Mo. (Northwest High School)
Missouri senior Todd Porter won both of his matches by major decision last weekend. On Friday, Porter defeated the then No. 1-ranked Chris Perry of Oklahoma State by major decision, 9-1. Porter won in decisive fashion, accumulating two takedowns, a two-point nearfall, an escape, and even got Perry to stall twice for an extra point. Porter totaled 2:58 of riding time in the bout against the top-ranked 174 pounder. The following night, Porter defeated Matt Reed of Oklahoma, also by major decision. Porter added four more take downs to give him a team-leading 43 takedowns in dual matches this year. In his first year as a starter, Porter is now 13-0 in dual meets this year, and 73-31 in his four year career at Mizzou.
Additional Nominees:
Joe Roth, Central Michigan—Junior, Dixon, Ill. (Dixon High School)
Central Michigan junior Joe Roth kicked off a 25-6 dual meet victory over Old Dominion Sunday with a 5-2 decision over No. 14 Jerome Robinson. Roth took an early 2-0 lead with a first-period takedown and after an escape to start the third took Robinson to the mat once again to secure the 5-2 victory.
Aaron Sulzer, Eastern Michigan—Senior, Cleveland (Holy Name High School)
Eastern Michigan senior Aaron Sulzer match against Kent State's Tom Sasfy Friday night began as a closely-contested affair. In the second period with the match 1-0 in favor of Sulzer, the Cleveland, Ohio native pulled off a quick attack on Sasfy and pinned him to the mat at the 3:37 mark. Sulzer's fall was the second of the evening and stunned the Kent State sideline while opening up a nine-point Eastern Michigan lead, 15-6. Sulzer is now 16-9 on the year and 4-0 in MAC matches. He has a chance to become the second Eagle in as many season to post an undefeated 5-0 record in conference tussles.
Sam Wheeler, Kent State—Freshman, Copley, Ohio
Kent State freshman Sam Wheeler helped turn a pair of Kent State’s deficits into conference dual victories this past weekend. With Kent State trailing Eastern Michigan 15-9 after six matches, Wheeler came through with a 14-5 major decision over Jacob Durulla. The Flashes went on to defeat the Eagles in Ypsilanti 24-15. Two days later in Buffalo, the Bulls led the Flashes 19-3 heading in the 174 bout. Taking on No. 18 John-Martin Cannon, Wheeler built a 7-0 lead, before winning by injury default. Kent State then completed a big comeback to defeat Buffalo 22-19.
Joey Lazor, Northern Iowa—Junior, McDonough, Ga. (Union Grove High School)
Northern Iowa junior Joey Lazor continues to get stronger this season after rehabbing an injury last year. He picked up two bonus point wins over the weekend. Lazor pinned Ben Gillette of South Dakota State in 4:26. He came back a couple of days later to get a 10-0 major decision win against Mark Erickson of No. 25 North Dakota State. He is ranked 13th by Amateur Wrestling News and 15th by Intermat. He is ranked second in the MAC. Lazor redshirted last year with his injury. His overall record is 26-7, with four of those wins being by major decision. He has six tech falls, and five pins this year. His career record is 56-29, and he is 18-13 in duals. He is 1-0 in the MAC.