LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The Lock Haven University wrestling team is ready to hit the mats again as the Bald Eagles head to the Hersey Duals tomorrow (Saturday, November 13) to begin to the 2010-11 season.

Second-year head coach Robbie Waller and his Haven grapplers have a lot to be excited about the season looks to be another solid step forward for the Crimson and White.

A number of talented wrestlers return to the mats this year giving LHU valuable experience. Waller also adds his first full recruit class to the mix, one that is filled with talent.

The Hershey Duals begin tomorrow at 9 a.m. as wrestling returns to historic HersheyPark arena.

Lock Haven will take on George Mason, Drexel and North Carolina.

Other teams competing include Edinboro, Kent State, The Citadel, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Johns Hopkins, Shippensburg, Waynesboro and York.

The Hershey Duals are run run by Wrestle for a Cure, Inc.; a non-profit corporation founded in 2009 to organize, promote and operate Folkstyle, Freestyle and Greco Roman wrestling tournaments and events for the benefit of charity. All proceeds from The Duals @ Hershey will benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Central Pennsylvania.

Leading the way this year for LHU is redshirt-junior John Trumbetti (Montvale, N.J./St. Joseph Regional), who ranked nationally in several polls.

Last season Trumbetti was a National Qualifier after winning the Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) Championship. On the year he was 27-9 with five major decisions.

Bald Eagles probable starters:
125: Nick Hyatt
133: #17 John Trumbetti
141: Matt Bonson
149: Owen Wilkinson
157: Seth Creasy
165: Colton Spade
174: Mike Khoury
184: Jake Bachman
197: Travis Stem
HWT: Harry Turner

Alternates:
125: Tyrus Nickoli
133: Evan Kolb
149: Dalton Cunningham
174: Derek Caldwell
197: Chris White

Scouting the lineup heading into the season:

125 - Probable Starter: Nick Hyatt (Sr.)
Nick Hyatt returns for his senior season on a mission. With a season high 21 wins last year and a 4th place finish at the EWL championships, Hyatt looks to go out in style at the NCAA Championships in March.

Top Contenders: Colton Dalberth (Fr.), Rasheim Smith(Soph.), Tyrus Nickoli(R-Fr.)
2X NY State Finalist Colton Dalberth, 2009 MD State Champion Rasheim Smith, and Tyrus Nickoli will push veteran Nick Hyatt for the starting job.

133 - Probable Starter: John Trumbetti (R-Jr.)

Top Contenders: Troy Dolan (R-Jr.), Evan Kolb (Sr.), Sean DiEmma (Fr.)
3X State PA State Champion and veteran Troy Dolan will challenge Trumbetti for the starting spot while Evan Kolb and freshman Sean DiEmma provide valuable depth.

141 - Probable Starter: Matt Bonson (R-Jr.)
2009 NCAA National Qualifier Matt Bonson transferred to LHU in December of 2009 and looks poised to make a run at his second National Tournament in 2011.

Top Contenders: Justin Loudon (So.)
Workhorse, Justin Loudon provides depth at the 141lb weight class.

149 - Probable Starter: Owen Wilkinson (Sr.)
Owen Wilkinson moves up from the 141lb wieght class and looks to make a run to Philadelphia in his final season for the Bald Eagles.

Top Contenders: Billy Randt (Fr.), Aaron Fry (Fr.), Dalton Cunningham (Fr.)
PA State Placewinners Billy Randt and Aaron Fry will challenge Wilkinson for the starting position. Dalton Cunningham will provide depth to this deep weight class for the Bald Eagles.

157 - Probable Starter: Seth Creasy (Sr.)
Seth Creasy returns at this weight class with a summer of great training and a full season of competition under his belt.

Top Contenders: Dylan Caprio (Fr.), Matt Colvard (Fr.)
NC State Champion Matt Colvard and Pa. State Qualifier Dylan Caprio will immediately challenge Creasy for his reign at the 157lb weight class.

165 - Probable Starter: Colton Spade (Fr.)
3X State Qualifier and Pa. State Place-winner Colton Spade will take hold of the 165lb weight class for the Bald Eagles.

He brings a great sense of maturity and intensity to this weight class.

174 - Probable Starter: Derek Caldwell (Sr.)
Graduate-student Derek Caldwell has returned for his last year of eligibility with something to prove. His progress last year continued throughout the summer and he looks to gain a hold on EWL supremacy in his final season.

Top Contender: Mike Khoury (Fr.)
New Jersey native and State Place-winner Mike Khoury has been working hard throughout the pre-season and expects to challenge Caldwell for his starting position.

184 - Probable Starter: Jake Bachman (Fr.)
Freshman Jake Bachman comes off a successful redshirt campaign and looks to solidify himself as the 184lb starter.

Top Contender: Nathan Dick (Fr.)
Freshman Nathan Dick has been vastly improving throughout the pre-season and has a successful future for the Bald Eagles at this weight class.

197 - Probable Starter: Travis Stem (Sr.)
Travis Stem returns for his final year of competition with something to prove. He will be looking to knock off the EWL foes and punch his ticket to Philadelphia in March.

Top Contenders: Chris White (Fr.)
Western Pa. native Chris White will provide valuable depth at this weight class.

285 - Probable Starter: Harry Turner (R-So.)
Sophomore Harry Turner hit the weights over the summer and will compete as the Bald Eagle anchor in the 2010-11 season. Last year, Turner finished fourth in the Clarion open at the 285lb weight class.

Full Season Preview:

In Year No. 2 as head coach of the Lock Haven University wrestling program, Robbie Waller wants to continue building.

Last year was a transition year for the entire program. Waller took over just two weeks prior to the start of practices.

Now, with a full staff and his first recruiting class under his belt, the second-year head coach is looking for that next step.

"I thought our guys fought hard last year all the way around," Waller said. "I think our guys came to wrestle every single match, win or lose. We are looking for more of that and better execution. Our guys that trained here over the summer became smarter wrestlers. When you do that, you can make gains on some people.

"First of all, we need to have health. Because we are a smaller squad, I think our health is going to play a big factor in our season. The way our freshmen progress and the way our seniors lead will also play into it. Those are the three things I look for in the competition."

Waller has a variety of athletes on his roster.

He has two guys with national tournament experience in John Trumbetti and Virginia transfer Matt Bonson.

He returns starters in Nick Hyatt, Owen Wilkinson, Seth Creasy, Derek Caldwell and Harry Turner.

Then, you have talented freshmen like Colton Spade, Mike Khoury, Colton Dalberth, Aaron Fry and others looking to crack the starting lineup.

That's not counting Missouri transfer Troy Dolan or former Central Mountain standouts Dylan Caprio and Jake Bachman.

Yes, Waller is starting to make progress with a Bald Eagle program that was in the cellar with no signs of life.

"Last year was a huge transtition," Waller said. "I didn't take over until two weeks before the season started and had no recruits. I was blessed with some good kids here. I'm excited about it. It's going to be fun. We need to stay healthy and battle through the adversity.

"I think the kids we brought in, and the kids that are still here with us, are hard workers. It's one step at a time. This year will just be another step. I look for us to knock some people off that we shouldn't."

The national experience comes from Trumbetti and Bonson, projected at 133 and 141, respectively.

Coming off a red-shirt year in 2008-09, Trumbetti won the EWL tournament at 133, posting a record of 27-9. He finished 21-10 as a freshman at Lock Haven, and had a successful scholastic career in New Jersey.

"He wants to be an All-American and he expects that," Waller said. "We expect that from him. There is a lot of weight on his shoulders, but one he wants to carry. He's been banged up in the preseason, some bumps and bruises, but you can tell he is frustrated about it. We have to pull him back. He would wrestle with one leg ripped off if he could. He needs to realize that March is the goal."

Bonson qualified for the national tournament in 2009 at Virginia, and transferred to Lock Haven last year. He was a three-time state placer at Lewistown and a Fargo Cadet All-American.

The red-shirt junior picked up an impressive 15-3 victory over teammate Justin Loudon in last week's Crimson and White match.

"He knows the kind of competition we are wrestling, and he's been against it before," Waller said. "He got focused on what he needed to do. We have a game plan for him, and he's been a hard worker. Our fans will love watching him."

Hyatt and Wilkinson, both starters last season, are expected to occupy the 125- and 149-pound weight classes, respectively. Both, though, will have to fend off challenges through the season. Dalberth sits in the 125-pound weight class and has a pretty impressive scholastic resume that includes more than 100 wins. Wilkinson will have to contend with Fry, a Muncy graduate, who sported a high school record of 145-21. Wilkinson edged Fry, 2-0, at the Crimson and White match last Saturday.

Caldwell is a graduate student that wrestles at 174. He'll be pushed, though, by Khoury - a talented New Jersey freshman with more than 100 scholastic wins.

"He thinks he's good. He knows he's good. And he wants to prove it," Waller said of Khoury. "A lot of the freshmen have that mindset that they expect to earn a starting role here at Lock Haven. Mike Khoury wants to be in the lineup this year. That's what you want to see from a wrestler."

At 157, Creasy returns after posting eight wins in 2009-10, but he'll also be pushed by Caprio - a 100-match winner at Central Mountain in his career.

Sitting at 165 and 184, respectively, are freshmen. Spade, at 165, just came to Lock Haven in the fall after wrestling at Lewistown last year. Bachman took a red-shirt year in 2009-10 and had a .500 mark in open tournaments.

"The big thing for the freshmen in our lineup is the wins and losses will come," Waller said. "You have to learn from every match, and they are not being defeated because of confidence. You have to stay motivated. The wins and losses come. But when you run across someone at the national tournament, you might beat him. That's where it will count. You might lose in the dual, but beat him at EWLs. That's where it counts. We gear our training and mindset toward March."

After wrestling at 197 one year ago, Turner jumps to heavyweight to replace Dan Craig, who will use a red-shirt year this season.

At 197, Turner was 12-19 last year with three majors, one technical and one fall.

"I like Harry at heavyweight," Waller said. "He's a little more mobile at that weight. He's gotten bigger and stronger. We've worked on moves and tatics at the upper weight. If he sticks to the game plan, he could do well."

Taking Turner's place at 197 is red-shirt senior Spike Stem, a Bald Eagle Area graduate.

"I haven't seen him competitively since I've been here so I'm anxious to see him wrestle," Waller said of Stem. "I know that he's a fun guy to watch in the room."

The schedule is beefed up.

In addition to the Hershey Duals (North Carolina, George Mason and Drexel), the Body Bar Invite, Mat-Town and the Southern Scuffle, Lock Haven will have non-league meets at Penn State, at Michigan State, at Bucknell and home with Illinois, Hofstra and Ohio University.

"We got what we wanted," Waller said. "Our guys will know at the end of the year what they have to do now and what they have to do in the future to be an All-American and national champ."

*Season Preview courtesy of Tom Fox, Sports Editor – The Express, Lock Haven, Pa.

Results for the Hershey Duals can be found at the link listed below in yellow.

Up Next:

Lock Haven will be back in action next weekend (Saturday, November 20) when they travel to No. 1 Cornell to take part in the prestigious Body Bar Invitational.

-Full Hershey Duals Results