Duke Wrestling To Compete In Pembroke Open, MatJam Duals This Weekend

DURHAM, N.C. ? The Duke wrestling team will hit the road this weekend to compete at the UNC Pembroke Open in Lumberton, N.C., on Friday and Saturday before competing in the MatJam Duals on Sunday in Boone, N.C. The Blue Devils had great success in their opening weekend, posting eight top-five finishes at The Citadel Open last Saturday.

The UNC Pembroke Open will feature over 200 wrestlers from approximately 20 colleges and universities. Duke registered nine top-five finishes at last year's UNC Pembroke Open, highlighted by first-place finishes from sophomore Wes Kuser and junior Antwone Floyd.

The Blue Devils will then travel to Boone, N.C., on Sunday to compete in the MatJam Duals. The MatJam Duals, which will be held at the Holmes Center on the campus of Appalachian State University, is a competition between the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Southern Conference. Duke and North Carolina will represent the ACC, while Appalachian State, VMI and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga will represent the Southern Conference.

At the MatJam Duals, the Blue Devils will face two nationally-ranked teams, No. 22 Tennessee-Chattanooga and No. 24 North Carolina, as the Mocs and the Tar Heels both earned top-25 preseason rankings from W.I.N. Magazine. North Carolina and Tennessee-Chattanooga both won their conference crowns last season.

“We will see good competition this weekend,” stated Duke Head Coach Clar Anderson. “We will be able to test our young student-athletes against some nationally-ranked wrestlers. I plan on giving a lot of our freshmen opportunities to compete. It should be a great opportunity for the younger guys to gain competitive experience that will benefit us during the season, at the ACC Championships and at the NCAA Championships.”

After the UNC Pembroke Open and MatJam Duals, the Blue Devil grapplers will compete on Sunday, Nov. 20 at the UPenn-Keystone Classic in Philadelphia, Pa.

Duke's MatJam Duals Schedule
10:00 a.m. Duke vs. VMI
11:30 a.m. Duke vs. Tennessee-Chattanooga
1:00 p.m. Duke vs. Appalachian State
4:00 p.m. Duke vs. North Carolina

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