Delgado's move to 157 strengthens weight class
This is the third installment of a five-part series previewing the 2014-15 Oregon State wrestling team. Today we look at the 157- and 165-pound weight classes.
Some familiar faces in new locations should make for an interesting battle at 157 pounds for the Oregon State wrestling team this season.
And a veteran coming off an injury has the inside track at 165 pounds, but he could be challenged by a holdover and some talented newcomers.
“We don’t have a lot of experience in those middle four weights,” OSU coach Jim Zalesky said, lumping the 157- and 165-pound classifications in with 141 and 149 pounds, where the Beavers are also somewhat unproven. “Those are key weights for us where somebody is going to have to step up for this team to take the next step.”
The Beavers could be very solid at 157. Redshirt sophomore Joey Delgado, the Pacific-12 Conference champion and an NCAA qualifier at 141 pounds in 2013-14, moves up to his natural weight and is already ranked No. 28 nationally by the Associated Wrestling Press in its preseason poll.
“It’s a better weight,” Zalesky said of the 157-pound classification, dominated by the graduated R.J. Pena the past four seasons. “Last year Joey really had to be dedicated to get down to 141.
“We just told him to lift all summer and see how big you get. He got to about 170 pounds,” but has since slimmed down.
Delgado was 24-16 in 2013-14, with five majors, a technical fall and four pins. He won 2 of 3 matches at the National Duals and was 3-0 at Pac-12s before being eliminated in two close decisions at NCAAs.
However, he’ll be challenged by redshirt senior Alex Elder, who drops from 165 to his natural weight. Elder was 24-9 with five majors, four technical falls and eight pins.
“It’s a good position to have,” Zalesky said of the competition.
Junior Seth Thomas, who did not compete for much of the 2013-14 season because of injury, might have the inside track at 165. He was 11-4 with five pins in three open tournaments.
“Looking at it you’d think Thomas is the favorite to win the spot,” as senior Nick Schlager (9-6) is the only other experienced upperclassman. “We have those freshmen (Rodney Williams, Kennen Lanteri) in the room but you don’t know how they will compete. They both came from good programs.”
The annual intrasquad match is set for Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. OSU’s first dual is Nov. 13 against Southern Oregon at Gill Coliseum. A victory would be the 1,000th in school history and the 100th in Zalesky’s tenure at OSU.
For more information on the OSU wrestling team, follow the club’s official Twitter account at Twitter.com/OSU_Wrestling or by Facebook at Facebook.com/OregonStateWrestling.
157
RETURNING: RSo. Joey Delgado (26-16 at 141, NCAA qualifier); RSr. Alex Elder (24-9 at 165); RSo. Jordan Henrickson (22-8).
NEWCOMERS: Fr. Kennen Lanteri.
LOST: R.J. Pena (34-6, NCAA qualifier); So. Jay Tovey (5-7, now at 149).
165
RETURNING: Sr. Francisco Castro-Guzman (0-0); Sr. Kurtis Ramsay (6-4); Sr. Nick Schlager (9-6); Jr. Seth Thomas (11-4).
NEWCOMERS: Fr. Rodney Williams; : Fr. Kennen Lanteri; Fr. Shane Roach.
LOST: Toney Chay (29-17); RSr. Alex Elder (24-9, now at 157).