Feb. 14, 2012

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COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The 17th-ranked Maryland wrestling team (14-1, 4-1 ACC) concludes its dual meet slate at George Mason Thursday night. The meet is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the Recreation Athletic Complex in Fairfax, Va.

Maryland
Maryland features five wrestlers currently ranked in InterMat's top-20 led by second-ranked Josh Asper (165). The Parkton, Md., native is 22-0 with five technical fall victories which leads the team.

At 197, fifth-ranked Christian Boley leads the Terps with 28 victories including 14 dual wins. Boley has only dropped one match this season. It came against top-ranked Byron Tate of Division III Wartburg College at the Midlands Championships.

Spencer Myers, ranked eighth at 285, recently returned to action for Maryland. Myers is 18-5 and 5-1 in dual competition.

Jimmy Sheptock has risen to 13th in country at 174. Sheptock is 12-0 in duals which is the third most wins on the team behind Asper and Boley (14).

At 157, 19th-ranked Kyle John has scored four team points or more in five of his last seven duals.

Last Time Out
On senior day, Maryland utilized an senior-laden lineup in its final home meet of the season to defeat Duke, 22-12, and clinch a share of the ACC regular season title. Senior Kyle John tallied a major decision in the victory and fellow seniors Joey Boone (133), Owen Smith (174) and Ryan Gray (285) were victorious in their final home meet.

Series History
The Terps and Patriots have met every year since 2001 and are 15-7-1 against the Patriots all-time. Maryland has won six in a row in the series and nine of the last 10 meetings.

Projected Lineup
125: Shane Gentry (13-4)
133: Geoffrey Alexander (19-9)
141: Frank Goodwin (10-10), Lou Mascola (8-10) or Danny O'Malley (4-6)
149: Ben Dorsay (14-9)
157: No. 19 Kyle John (19-9)
165: No. 2 Josh Asper (22-0)
174: No. 13 Jimmy Sheptock (22-4) or Owen Smith (3-2)
184: Ty Snook (13-13) or Tony Gardner (17-7)
197: No. 5 Christian Boley (28-1) or Tony Gardner (17-7)
285: No. 8 Spencer Myers (18-5)

George Mason

The Patriots enter the matchup fresh off a 35-9 victory over Millersville Saturday.

Frankie McLaughlin (174) leads the team in wins with 18. McLaughlin and Jaaziah Bethea (157) have combined for 10 major decisions this season.

Mendbagana Tovuujav (197) has tallied a team-high five pins and added three wins by major decision.

Tovuujav and 125-pound Vincent Rodriguez are the squad's top-two dual meet performers. They are 15-3 and 10-3, respectively.

Projected Lineup
125: Vince Rodriguez (15-7)
133: Brian Benton (0-4) or Zach Isenhour (11-16)
141: Denny Herndon (8-12)
159: Kevin Tomothy (4-7)
157: Jaaziah Bethea ( 11-17) or Shohei Takagi (5-12)
165: Ty Knepp (11-14)
174: Steve Swayze (1-17)  or Seth Robertson (1-5)
184: Ryan Hembury (8-11)
197: Bagna Tovuujav (15-3)
285: Hunter Manspile (4-12)

-Terps-