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Five Blue Devils Ready to Take on NCAA Field
3/17/2015 8:39:00 AM | Wrestling
2015 NCAA Wrestling
March 19-21, 2015
St. Louis, Mo. | Scottrade Center
ESPNU | WatchESPN
Setting the Scene
• Duke landed a program-record five wrestlers in the NCAA Championship field with four automatic bids and one at-large berth
• Mitch Finesilver (133), Marcus Cain (149), Jacob Kasper (184) and Conner Hartmann (197) each earned automatic bids to the NCAA Championship field, while Immanuel Kerr-Brown captured one of the six at-large berths in the 157-pound division
• For the first time in program history, Duke posted a pair of Big Ten victories, beating Maryland and Michigan State ... Duke had never beaten a Big Ten opponent prior to the 2014-15 season
• Duke finished fourth at the 2015 ACC Championship with 44 points ... The finish was the highest for Duke since a third-place showing in 2004, while the 44 points are the most scored by the Blue Devils since 2005
• Kerr-Brown is making his second appearance at NCAAs, while Hartmann qualified for a third straight year ... Finesilver, Cain and Kasper are first-time qualifiers
About the NCAA Championship
• ESPN will provide comprehensive coverage of the NCAA Championship from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis ... For the second consecutive year, all six sessions will be televised and every match carried on ESPN3 throughout the three-day competition.
Schedule
First Round: Thursday | 12-3:30 p.m. (ESPNU) | Second Round: Thursday | 7-10:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Third Round (QF): Friday | 11 a.m.-2 p.m. (ESPNU) | Fourth Round (SF): 8-11 p.m. (ESPN)
Medal Round: Saturday | 11 a.m.-2 p.m. (ESPNU) | Finals: 8-11 p.m. (ESPN)
Duke by the Numbers
76 – Career wins by redshirt senior Immanuel Kerr-Brown heading into the NCAA postseason event
48 – Of Kerr-Brown's wins that have come in the past two seasons alone after breaking through in 2013-14
24 – Wins by Jacob Kasper, a team-high and nine more than he had last season
11 – Dual wins by the Blue Devils in 2014-15, the most since the 2004-05 campaign
16 – Times Duke has sent multiple qualifiers to the NCAA Championships with a program-best five going this year
10 – Conner Hartmann's seed in the 197-pound bracket after being ranked seventh much of the season
73.0 – Percentage of matches won by Conner Hartmann in his two-plus seasons in a Duke singlet
9 – NCAA qualifiers coached by Glen Lanham in his three seasons, two more than Duke had combined in the eight seasons prior to Lanham taking over the reins
Duke In the NCAAs
Duke finished a program-best 29th last season with 10.5 points thanks to an All-America showing from Conner Hartmann and a solid performance from Immanuel Kerr-Brown ... Two Blue Devils (Konrad Dudziak and Conner Hartmann) have captured the three All-America awards ... Duke's highest point total was 17 in 2009 when Dudziak took home runner-up honors at heavyweight.
Blue Devils Wrestling Trending Up under Lanham
The numbers are all pointing in the right direction for the Blue Devils with head coach Glen Lanham at the helm ... For the first time in program history, Duke landed five wrestlers in the NCAA Championship field and defeated a pair of Big Ten opponents ... Prior to the 2013-14 season, Duke had wrestled just two Big Ten teams overall and never earned a victory ... Under Lanham, Duke has now competed against eight of the current Big Ten squads ... Seven of 10 of Duke's starters have double-digit wins, while eight are above .500 for the year, an improvement from the respective six and four numbers from the 2013-14 campaign ... Lanham has coached nine NCAA qualifiers since becoming the head coach, two more than Duke had in the eight seasons prior to him taking the reins.
How Kasper Got Here
Jacob Kasper earned one of the two spots at 184 pounds with a runner-up finish at the ACC Championship ... Seeded second, Kasper defeated Nicky Hall of NC State in a tight 6-4 decision ... In the final, NCAA No. 2 seed Max Thomusseit handed Kasper a tough 14-6 major decision ... Kasper had lost to Thomusseit just 5-2 in the regular season.
Kasper Nearing 25-Win Mark
Jacob Kasper heads to the NCAA Championship with a team-best 24-10 record ... It is a nine-win improvement from his freshman campaign, while his three ACC victories are a career-best ... He is six wins shy of matching the 10th most in Duke single-season history ... With one more win he will become the seventh Blue Devil to reach the 25-wins benchmark in a season since the 2008-09 campaign.
Hartmann Crowned ACC Champion
Redshirt junior Conner Hartmann finished the ACC dual season with a perfect 5-0 mark and capped the regular season with an ACC Championship title at 197 pounds ... He is the first Blue Devil to win at that weight, the 22nd Blue Devil to win an ACC title and the first to do so since 2010 ... Hartmann has just two losses this season with one coming against reigning NCAA champ J'Den Cox of Missouri in the Southern Scuffle Championship bout.
Hartmann's Opening Bout
Hartmann headlines Duke's five selections as the No. 10 overall seed at 197 pounds ... The returning All-American will wrestle Canaan Bethea of Penn with a 16-7 overall record … Bethea finished second at the EIWA Championship to earn his second NCAA Championship appearance … It will be the first meeting between Hartmann and Bethea … The winner advances to wrestle the winner of the Kevin Beazley of Old Dominion and No. 7 seed Abram Ayala of Princeton.
Finesilver Making His Move
Rookie 133-pounder Mitch Finesilver has hit his stride in the final few weeks of the season ... Since joining the Duke starting lineup and taking off his redshirt at the Pitt Duals in January, the Colorado native is 11-7 ... He closed out his ACC schedule with an upset of then-No. 17 Kevin Norstrem of Virginia Tech ... In his last 10 matches, Finesilver is 7-3 after starting 4-4 in his first eight outings.
How Finesilver Got Here
Mitch Finesilver grabbed an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship thanks to his runner-up finish at ACCs ... The rookie 133-pounder, seeded sixth, upset No. 3 seed Kevin Norstrem of Virginia Tech in a thrilling 4-3 match ... The win was his second straight over the Hokie ... Up against No. 2 seed Troy Heilmann in the semifinal, Finesilver scored a takedown with 20 seconds left to advance to the title match where he lost to 14th-ranked George DiCamillo, 12-6 ... Finesilver is the third true freshman in Duke wrestling history to advance to the NCAA Championship.
About Finesilver's Opponent
At 133 pounds, Mitch Finesilver will go up against No. 2 seed Ryan Taylor of Wisconsin … Taylor, 23-3 overall, took second at the Big Ten Championship … Taylor wrestled at 125 last season and went 2-2 at the NCAA Championship and finished the year ranked ninth.
All in the Finesilver Family
Mitch Finesilver is joined on the team by his twin brother Zach Finesilver, who wrestles at 149 pounds ... They both excelled at Cherry Creek in Colorado with Mitch winning a pair of state titles and Zach taking home the crown at 138 pounds his senior year ... They also have younger twin brothers back in Colorado who are following in their footsteps as wrestlers at Cherry Creek.
Cain Finds Success Back Down At 149
Redshirt junior Marcus Cain, after wrestling at 165 a year ago, moved back down to 149 and has found success ... The Winston-Salem, N.C., native is 21-7 this season and took third at the ACC Championship to earn the third automatic bid ... At 165 a year ago Cain finished 11-17 overall and went 2-4 against ACC foes and 0-2 at ACC Championships ... In his two seasons at 149, he is 43-18.
How Cain Got Here
Marcus Cain went into the ACC Championship as the No. 4 overall seed and took third ... Cain upended TJ Miller of Virginia in the opening bout, 8-3, before falling to the top seed from Pittsburgh in the semifinal ... Cain rebounded by cruising past Sam Speno of NC State to set up a rematch with TJ Miller in the consolation final ... Cain headed into the second period in the down position, quickly escaped and nearly got taken down ... The veteran scrambled out of the danger zone and quickly put Miller on his back for the fall and win ... It was just the third fall of the season for Cain.
Cain's Opening Bout
Making his first appearance in the NCAA Championship field, Cain is matched up against No. 5 seed Christopher Villalonga of Cornell … Villalonga, 27-3 overall, captured his second straight EIWA crown and is a three-time NCAA qualifier.
How Kerr-Brown Got Here
Redshirt senior Immanuel Kerr-Brown earned a spot in the NCAA Championship field thanks to one of the six at-large bids at 157 ... Kerr-Brown, ranked throughout the year in both the RPI and coaches panel rankings, is 22-11 overall and took fourth at the ACC Championship ... He is the 12th Blue Devil to advance to the NCAA postseason multiple times and the second under Glen Lanham.
Kerr-Brown Opens with Rematch
Kerr-Brown opens the NCAA Championship in a pigtail match against Maryland's Louis Mascola ... The pair met at the Grapple at the Garden with Kerr-Brown coming away with a 7-3 victory … Mascola and Kerr-Brown share a common opponent in James Green of Nebraska … Green won by major decision over Mascola 16-3 and edged Kerr-Brown in a 12-7 decision.
Comprehensive ESPN and ESPN3 Schedule
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 1) |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 8) |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 7) |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 6) |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 5) |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 4) |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 3) |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 2) |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPNU/WatchESPN |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships |
First Round |
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3/19/2015 12:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships Scoreboard |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 1) |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 2) |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 3) |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 4) |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 5) |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 6) |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 7) |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 8) |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPNU/WatchESPN |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships |
Second Round |
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3/19/2015 19:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships Scoreboard |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 1) |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 2) |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 3) |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 4) |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 5) |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 6) |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 7) |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 8) |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPNU/WatchESPN |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships |
Quarterfinals |
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3/20/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships Scoreboard |
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3/20/2015 20:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 1) |
Semifinals |
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3/20/2015 20:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 2) |
Semifinals |
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3/20/2015 20:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 6) |
Semifinals |
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3/20/2015 20:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 5) |
Semifinals |
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3/20/2015 20:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 4) |
Semifinals |
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3/20/2015 20:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 3) |
Semifinals |
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3/20/2015 20:00 |
ESPN/WatchESPN |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships |
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3/20/2015 20:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships Scoreboard |
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3/21/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 1) |
Medal Round |
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3/21/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 2) |
Medal Round |
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3/21/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships (Mat 3) |
Medal Round |
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3/21/2015 11:00 |
ESPNU/WatchESPN |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships |
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3/21/2015 11:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships Scoreboard |
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3/21/2015 20:00 |
ESPN/WatchESPN |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships |
Championships |
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3/21/2015 20:00 |
ESPN3 |
2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships Off The Mat |
#GoDuke
Players Mentioned
149
/ Wrestling
125
/ Wrestling
141
/ Wrestling
197
/ Wrestling
184
/ Wrestling
149
/ WrestlingConnor Barket Post ACC Championship
Monday, March 10
Season Opener Video
Friday, November 01
Duke Athletics: A Tour of Campus
Saturday, October 19
Welcome to Duke
Saturday, October 19
