For the first time this season, the Lock Haven University wrestling team will compete at home in Thomas Fieldhouse in front of the Mat Town USA fans.
 
On Saturday (November 21), Lock Haven plays host to Purdue and Shippensburg in tri-match action.  
 
On Sunday (November 22), the Bald Eagles will host the 10^th annual Mat Town Open.
 
Setting the stage:
Lock Haven enters the weekend at 1-3 overall after opening the dual portion of its 2015-16 schedule last weekend.
 
On Sunday, at the Northeast Duals, LHU went 1-2 on the day, which included a solid-win over Hofstra and a narrow-loss to Buffalo. Leading the way Sunday was 125-pounder Jake Field, who went 2-0 on the day.
 
The weekend schedule:
 
Saturday's Schedule:
11 a.m. Purdue vs. Shippensburg
12:30 p.m. Purdue vs. Lock Haven
2 p.m. Shippensburg vs. Lock Haven
 
Sunday's Schedule:
9:30 a.m. Mat Town Open | Tournament Central
 
Follow along:
Fans who can't make it out to Thomas Fieldhouse Saturday, can watch the two LHU duals here-  http://therecord-online.com/.
 
LIVE RESULTS/BRACKET for Sunday's Mat Town Open.
 
National Rankings:
Returning All-American Dan Neff, 141

• InterMat, #17
• WrestlingReport, #20
• The Open Mat, #16

 
Phil Sprenkle, 197

• WrestlingReport, #33

 
Marching toward 100:
A Bald Eagle trio is closing in on the 100-win mark.

Dan Neff, 87 career wins
Bobby Rehm, 84 career wins
Aaron McKinney, 76 career wins
 
Moore & Fittery enter third year at helm:
LHU head coach Scott Moore enters his third year as the head coach of the Bald Eagles. In the previous two seasons, LHU has gone 10-22. Assistant coach Steve Fittery has been Moore's right-hand man every step of the way and also enters his third season. The two have helped take LHU back to the top. Last year the duo led one student-athlete to All-American status, marking LHU's first All-American since 2007.
 
Starters returning:
LHU returns seven of its 10 regular dual-match starters from a year ago and that experience should bolster the lineup. Jake Field, Bobby Rehm, Dan Neff, Aaron McKinney, Tyler Wood, Phil Sprenkle and Brad Emerick were all starters last year. Cody Wheeler, a regular starter two seasons ago also returns to the lineup this season.
 
Add Sponseller to the mix:
Redshirt-freshman Tristan Sponseller joins the lineup this season at 184 pounds and looks solidify the spot left open in the lineup from the departure of three-time NCAA qualifier Fred Garcia. Sponseller went 26-13 last year while competing unattached. In Sponseller's senior season at Bermudian Springs he went undefeated on the way to a PIAA State Championship. He was a state runner-up as a junior and a three-time PIAA Championship placewinner.
 
A look at last year:
During the 2014-15 season, LHU went 3-3 in EWL action (7-12 overall). The three conference wins mark Lock Haven's most EWL wins since the Bald Eagles were 3-3 during the 2004-05 season. At the 2015 EWL Championships, Lock Haven finished third overall with 101.5 points, thanks to a strong all-around day that saw all 10 wrestlers place among the top-five and nine, who finished fourth or better. It marks the second straight season where LHU has finished third at the EWL Championships. In 2014, when the Bald Eagles took third, it marked their highest finish since 2007.
 
Probable Dual Lineups:
 
Lock Haven (1-3, 0-0 EWL)
125: R-So. Jake Field (South Elgin, Ill./Marmion Academy) 8-5
133: R-Sr. Bobby Rehm (Lancaster, Pa./Penn Manor) 4-4
141: #17 R-Sr. Dan Neff (Quarryville, Pa./Solanco) 4-5
149: R-Sr. Cody Wheeler (Towanda, Pa./Towanda) 1-1
- OR – R-So. Kyle Hammond (Nottingham, Pa./Solanco) 8-6
157: R-Sr. Aaron McKinney (McDonald, Pa./West Allegheny) 5-6
165: Fr. Cody Cordes (Edwardsville, Pa./Wyoming Valley West) 8-6
174: R-Jr. Tyler Wood (West Chester, Pa./West Chester-Rustin) 4-4
184: R-Fr. Tristan Sponseller (East Berlin, Pa./Bermudian Springs) 5-3
197: R-Sr. Phil Sprenkle (Seven Valleys, Pa./Dallastown) 5-3
285: Jr. Brad Emerick (Wilkes-Barre, Pa./Coughlin) 2-5
 
Purdue (2-1, 0-0 B1G)
125: R-Fr. Ben Thornton (Stoddard, Wis./La Crosse Central) 6-2
133: R-So. Luke Welch (Newburgh, Ind./Castle) 5-2
141: #20 Danny Sabatello (Long Grove, Ill./Stevenson) 5-3
- OR – R-Jr. Kyle Ayersman (Dyer, Ind./Lake Central) 8-4
149: R-Jr. Alex Griffin (Lafayette, Ind./McCutcheon) 2-0
157: #14 R-Sr. Doug Welch (Newburgh, Ind./Castle) 2-1
165: R-Sr. Chad Welch (Newburgh, Ind./Castle) 7-1
- OR – R-So. Peter Andreotti (Chicago/Marist) 5-4
174: R-So. Jacob Morrissey (Oconto Falls, Wis./Oconto Falls) 4-3
- OR – R-Fr. Blake Reid (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) 2-4
184: R-Jr. Tanner Lynde (Delphi, Ind./Delphi) 2-2
197: R-Sr. Drake Stein (Francisco, Ind./Princeton Community) 5-4
285: R-Jr. Tyler Kral (Crown Point, Ind./Crown Point) 2-3
- OR – R-Fr. Jacob Aven (Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville) 4-3
 
Shippensburg (1-1, 0-0 PSAC)
125: Fr. Dustin Steffenino (Green Lane, Pa./Upper Perkiomen) 2-0
- OR – Fr. David Reagan (Forest Hill, Md./Bel Air) 0-0
133: Jr. Dante Steffenino (Green Lane, Pa./Upper Perkiomen) 0-2
- OR – R-Fr. Jared Leonetti (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) 0-0
141: Jr. Karl Lightner (Smethport, Pa./Smethport Area) 0-0
149: So. Colin Ochs (Mohnton, Pa./Governor Mifflin) 1-1
157: Fr. Adam Martz (Frostburg, Md./Mountain Ridge) 1-1
165: Sr. Mark Lentz (Boiling Springs, Pa./Boiling Springs) 0-1
- OR – R-Fr. Gray Garber (Perkiomenville, Pa./Boyertown) 1-1
174: So. Hunter Fenk (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum) 1-1
184: No wrestler
197: So. Evan Ramos (Hawthorne, N.J./Hawthorne) 2-0
285: So. Derek Earnest (Hughesville, Pa./Hughesville) 0-2
 
Up next:
Following the Mat Town Open on Sunday, November 22, Lock Haven will return to the mats on Saturday, December 5 at the 2015 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships.