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December 09, 2012 2:00 AM
DURHAM ? Three days a week, a curtain is drawn over the far end of the Hamel Recreation Center gymnasium, concealing the University of New Hampshire club wrestling team while it practices.
As far back as 1966, UNH wrestling was a Division I NCAA program. For decades, the team ranked among the powerhouses of wrestling in New England. In the final 11 seasons under coach Jim Urquhart, the Wildcats boasted over 100 wins, 18 New England champions and 20 wrestlers in the NCAA Division I championships.
In 1991, university president Dale Nitzschke made a $309,000 budget cut on athletics, putting an end to wrestling as a varsity sport and effectively removing UNH from the collective mind of the wrestling world.
UNH wrestling was resurrected as a club sport in 1999 and joined the National Collegiate Wrestling Association (NCWA), the governing body for college wrestling clubs.
The Wildcats have resumed their winning tradition, capturing the Northeast Conference title last spring and routinely being ranked in the top 10 in the nation.
"We won the conference last year and we have everybody back," said seventh-year UNH head coach Henry Marsh. "We should do very well."
UNH is currently ranked ninth in the nation among club teams. At this rate, Marsh expects his team to be as high as fifth or sixth in the point standings in the spring. The Wildcats ranked as high as second last season.
"We have a lot more guys," said senior wrestler Ian Wedemeyer. "Instead of having one guy in a certain weight class, we'll have two or three."
On Nov. 18, UNH hosted the Wildcat Open and competed against the wrestling clubs of UMass-Amherst, Northeastern, Rochester Polytechnic Institute and SUNY Cobleskill. The meet was a round-robin style tournament that allowed wrestlers to test their abilities before the season heats up.
"It's good to get back into the flow," said Wedemeyer, who won his 235-pound weight class with three pins.
Wedemeyer has been a state champion and a New England champion. Last year in the national championships he had two of the fastest pins at 20 and 22 seconds.
The Wildcats traveled to Gorham, Maine, for their second meet and finished sixth out of 10 teams. Among the opponents were NCAA Division III teams such as the University of Southern Maine and Plymouth State University.
During the winter break, the wrestlers take it upon themselves to cut weight by exercising on their own time and joining in on high school wrestling practices.
"When you're a college kid, you've got to take care of yourself," UNH's Gabe Horton said.
When they return in the spring, the wrestlers will be in their peak condition in order to compete at the season's most demanding time.
"I think we'll have a lot of guys who will place second or third in the conference if not first," Wedemeyer said.
The Wildcats' next meet will be at MIT on Jan. 26. They will host the New England championships, which they have won the past six years, on Feb. 17.
This year's team also includes Pat Terrin, Michael LeVeille, Mark Torrey, Sean Mooney, Dylan Lockard, Brandon Paige, Andrew Ford, Sam Rabuck, Mike Grillakis, Paul Tremblay, Adam Bates, Alexander Hautanen, Griffin Smith, Pav Pluhar, Mike Brannen and Ryan Schwalbenberg.
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Source: http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20121209-SPORTS-212090363
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