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Wrestling Welcomes Seven Freshmen And New Full-Time Assistant Coach
10/5/2007 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
DURHAM, N.C. ? Head coach Clar Anderson and the Duke wrestling squad will welcome seven freshmen wrestlers and a new full-time assistant coach when their season opens next month. The wrestlers represent seven different states and five different weight classes.
Dan Adamo - 5'9”, 157
Closter, N.J./Northern Valley Demarest
Prep: Compiled a 106-16 record as a four-year letterwinner at 145 and 152 pounds ... Bergen County tournament champion as a senior, when he posted a 27-2 record ... ranked fourth in the state before an injury ended his senior campaign ... four-time all-county and first-team all-league selection ... two-time top-four finisher in regional tournament ... two-time district champion ... first wrestler in school history to reach 100 wins ... two-time captain of the team. Personal: Born Daniel Michael Adamo on June 23, 1989, in Secaucus, N.J. ... son of John and Carol Adamo ... has two brothers, Anthony (20) and Nicholas (17).
Mike Bell ? 5'5”, 141
Rockwall, Texas/Baylor School (Chattanooga, Tenn.)
Prep: Lettered six years, having wrestled varsity since seventh grade ... recorded an overall record of 155-37 in four years ... individual state champion in 2007 as a senior ... team's most valuable wrestler as a senior ... runner-up at states as a junior and third-place finisher as a sophomore ... school was Tennessee team champions all four years of high school ... team accumulated a record of 92-18 in his four years ... captain during his senior year ... national merit finalist. Personal: Born Michael Todd Bell on September 3, 1988, in Maryland ... son Gregg and Sharon Bell ... has two brothers, Chris (16) and Matt (15).
A.J. Guardado- 5'9”, 141
West Covina, Calif./West Covina
Prep: Four-year letterwinner who compiled a 179-36 record overall ... led team to a 72-12 mark in his four seasons ... two-time state qualifier ... two-time CIF runner-up ... four-time league champion ... holds school records for team points, pins and wins and single-season records for team points and wins ... placed seventh at states as a senior ... named most outstanding freshman in 2004 when he was the first Southern Section Masters tournament qualifier in school district history. Personal: Born Andrew James Guardado on December 5, 1988, in Covina, Calif. ... son of Terry Marquez Guardado ... has two brothers, Gilbert (21) and Lukas (12).
Colby Johnson- 5'10”, 149
Conrad, Mont./Conrad
Prep: Four-year letterwinner with a 148-18 career record ... two-time state champion ... NHSCA All-America as a junior ... Brute-adidas All-America as a sophomore ... four-time divisional champion ... four-time academic all-state honoree ... most valuable wrestler on his team as a senior ... team was three-time state champion and runner-up once ... team's record in his four years was 52-12 ... three-time letterwinner in football ... all-conference in football and team MVP ... lettered one season in track. Personal: Born Colby Ray Johnson on March 10, 1989 in Conrad, Mont. ... has one brothers, Ross (21), and one sister, Taylor (14) ... father played football at Pacific Lutheran University from 1976-1978.
Anthony Jorge- 5'7”, 125/133
Lakeland, Fla./Lake Gibson
Prep: Ran up a 170-13 record as a four-year letterwinner ... two-time Florida state champion ... runner-up at 125 pounds in states as a senior ... placed sixth at states as a freshman in the 103-pound weight class ... four-time Greco-Roman wrestling All-America. Personal: Born Anthony Adolfo Jorge on September 25, 1988, in Lakeland, Fla. ... son of Rudy and Bridget Jorge ... has three brothers, Gabe Gibbs (25), Brett (16) and Brandon (13) ... hopes to enter medical school after Duke and become an otolaryngologist.
Willy Mello III- 5'11”, 157
Chesapeake, Va./Chesapeake Great Bridge
Prep: Four-year letterwinner ... wrestled to 104-27 record in career ... placed second in states as a senior ... regional and district individual champion in 2007 ... finished fifth at Beast of the East meet as a senior ... team went 113-4 in his four years ... won three state team championships and one second-place finish ... two-year letterwinner on the crew team. Personal: Born Charles William Mello III on March 14, 1989, in San Diego, Calif. ... son of Charles Jr. and Pamela Mello ... has one brother, Robert (16), and two sisters, Katherine (13) and Elizabeth (12).
Vince Taweel- 5'9”, 141
Columbia, Md./Hammond
Prep: Put together a 149-9 record as a four-year letterwinner ... tallied 56 falls in that stretch ... three-time state champion ... four-time regional and country champion ... ranked as high as sixth nationally at 135 pounds ... two-time county wrestler of the year ... three-time all-metro selection ... two-time team captain ... team compiled a 74-24 record in his four years ... team won two state championships and was runner-up twice more ... all-academic team member ... three-year letterwinner in soccer and lacrosse ... all-county team member in lacrosse. Personal: Born Vincent Ramsey Taweel on November 10, 1988, in Columbia, Md. ... son of Ramsey and Colleen Taweel ... has one brother, Lance (12), and one sister, Justine (20) ... father wrestled at Maryland in the early 1970's.
“I am very excited to work with our freshmen recruits,” said Anderson. “They have come to campus fired up and all have high expectations, as we do for them. Collectively they meet the mold of the student-athlete that Duke Athletics seeks. All excelled academically and athletically in high school. Between the seven recruits they have earned 13 state titles.
“They will immediately contribute to the team by striving to meet our athletic and academic goals, which are to compete nationally and maintain our number one ranking for the highest team GPA in the nation.”
Additionally, the team welcomes back former Blue Devil wrestler and 2005 Duke graduate Mark Thompson, who will take over duties as a full-time paid assistant coach. There had been no full-time paid assistant coach in previous years under Anderson.
Thompson joins the Duke wrestling staff this year after completing his MBA at The Citadel in Charleston, S.C. Thompson began his career as a Blue Devil on the mat at 197 pounds and on the football field in 2001. He immediately placed highly in nationally-recognized wrestling tournaments and earned a football scholarship during the spring of his freshman year. He suffered what some would consider a career-ending injury as a sophomore when he completely dislocated his elbow on the mat. He was able to come back to wrestle as a senior, placing second at the ACC championships to a nationally-ranked foe.
While competing as a graduate student at The Citadel, he was nationally-ranked and defeated top 10 opponents. He finished second in the Southern Conference in his final season of eligibility. Thompson finished his career as a two-time NCAA Academic All-America.
Thompson placed second in New Jersey during his senior year of high school. He also quarterbacked his high school's state championship football team.
He is applying to the Fuqua School of Business in the hopes of completing a doctoral program in Organizational Behavior and Leadership Studies.
The first wrestling meet will be the Freshman and Sophomore Open in Charleston, S.C., on Sat., Nov. 3 at 10 a.m. The Blue-White exhibition matches, to determine the team's rankings at each weight class, will be held on Sat., Oct. 27 in the Wilson Center on Duke's campus.
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