This Weekend in Peacock Wrestling... After a third-place finish at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, Upper Iowa is ready to open their Northern Sun Conference schedule this weekend with duals at Northern State University and the University of Mary on Saturday and Sunday in Aberdeen, S.D. and Bismarck, N.D., respectively.

Peacocks in the Polls... Upper Iowa is currently ranked #3 in the latest NWCA Top 20 Poll and six individuals are also ranked in the top 8 in the nation. The ranked Peacocks are Kyle Pedretti (125, #1), Trevor Franklin (133, #1), Wade Gobin (174, #6), Mitch Schultz (184, #4), Carl Broghammer (197, #4), and Zach Rosol (285, #5).

The Peacocks opened as the #3 team in the preseason poll and climbed up to #2 prior to the holiday break.  The most recent poll, releases on Wednesday, Jan. 11, mirrored teams' finishes at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals.  St. Cloud State regained their hold of the #1 ranking thanks to their team title, while Newberry dropped back to #2 and Nebraska-Kearney held firm at #4.  The final team in the top five is Augustana, another Northern Sun member.

Pedretti moved up a spot in the individual rankings, while Franklin remained at #1 with his undefeated record.  Gobin made his debut in the national rankings, while Schultz and Broghammer dropped to #4 in their weight classes, while Rosol remained at #5.

Peacock Probable Starters (4-1)... 125 - Pedretti (12-2) or Chris Paulus (18-9); 133 - Franklin (13-0); 141 - Blake Hilmer (12-15) or Duane Richardson (15-12); 149 - Jordan Rinken (21-4); 157 - Winston Robbins (18-7); 165 - Blake Sorensen (14-6); 174 - Gobin (23-10); 184 - Schultz (17-4); 197 - Broghammer (18-7); 285 - Luke Stika (14-11).

Scouting the Wolves (3-3)... The Wolves went 1-2 at the National Duals to move their dual meet record to 3-3. After a first-round loss to #6 Central Oklahoma (29-10), NSU defeated Truman State (39-12) in the consolation bracket. Their run ended after losing to #5 Augustana (25-15). Heavyweight and defending National Champion Matt Meuleners leads the Wolves; he is currently ranked #2 in the country with a 16-2 record. Probable starters include: 125 - Anthony Bruno; 133 - Ian Muirhead; 141 - Terrence Fox OR Benton Crow; 149 - Beau Vogeli; 157 - Neil Sell; 165 - Blake Lundgren; 174 - Donnie Bowden; 184 - Chad Gibson; 197 - Baker Haar; 285 - #2 Matt Meuleners

Scouting the Marauders (0-0)... The Marauders have competed in five open tournaments to this point in the season. U-Mary will open their NSIC schedule with a daunting doubleheader on Sunday. They will face off with the #1 Huskies of St. Cloud State at noon and then battle the #3 Peacocks at 2 p.m. Redshirt Sophomore Trevor Johnson leads the Marauders with an 18-4 record including three wins by fall, one tech fall and seven major decisions. Probable starters include: 125 – Hunter Menendez;133 – Kyle Larson; 141 – Trevor Johnson; 149 – Tanner Beaman; 157 – Collin Engelhardt; 165 – Taylor Nagel; 174 – John Devito; 184 – Brady Anderson; 197 – Kriss McCleary; 285 – Martin Patron.