LHU Men’s Wrestling set to host Cleveland State Friday; Bald Eagles head to Edinboro Saturday

LOCK HAVEN– The Lock Haven men’s wrestling team is set to close the 2023-24 regular season this weekend with a pair of matches and a home Mid-American Conference (MAC) dual vs. Cleveland State on Friday, Feb. 16 will jump-start the action for the Bald Eagles.

Lock Haven will host Cleveland State Friday at 7 p.m. in Thomas Fieldhouse and a number of special promotions are planned as it marks the final home match of the season for the Bald Eagles.

Friday’s home match will serve as Alumni Night 2024 and the Bald Eagles will honor seniors Cory Johnston and Zack Zeamer. Head coach Scott Moore and the Bald Eagles will also honor all past conference champions in attendance, and a pre-match social is scheduled for 5 p.m. in Lock Haven’s Durrwachter Alumni Conference Center. The social is open to all for just $10, and more details including registration information can be found at GoLHU.com.

Following Friday’s home match with Cleveland State, the Bald Eagles will officially close the regular season Saturday (Feb. 17) night at Edinboro.

The Haven will enter the weekend with a 6-10 overall dual record. The Bald Eagles are 3-3 in MAC action and looking to snap a two-match losing streak. Last weekend, Lock Haven fell to host Northern Illinois, 22-15, in a tightly-contested conference dual.

Lock Haven is 2-1 at home on the season thanks to a pair of dominating wins over George Mason and Clarion. On Feb. 1 at home, the Bald Eagles scored a thrilling 25-16 victory over Clarion.

All season, the Bald Eagles have been led by the front half of the lineup which includes standouts Anthony Noto (125), Gable Strickland (133), Wyatt Henson (141) and Nick Stonecheck (149).

When the NCAA Coaches Rankings were released in January, Noto, Strickland and Henson were all ranked.

Noto, a returning All-American, was ranked No. 8 at 125 pounds. He’s 12-2 on the season and has 77 career victories.

Strickland is ranked No. 29 at 133 and improved to 24-10 on the season with a victory last weekend at Northern Illinois. He now has 72 career wins and he’s won three straight matches in dual action including an upset-win vs. Navy.

Henson is ranked 13^th at 141 and is on an absolute tear. With a win last weekend, he improved to 30-2 on the season and picked up his 14^th tech fall. He leads all NCAA Division I wrestlers in tech falls and the 14 tech falls are the third-most in Lock Haven history for a single season.

Yesterday (Feb. 13), Henson was named the MAC East Wrestler of the Week for the third time this season.

At 149, Stonecheck has won four of his last five matches and the wins have included two pins, a tech fall and top-33 upset.

Noto, Strickland, Henson and Stonecheck were all ranked among the top-three at their respective weight class when the Mid-American Conference announced updated rankings for February today (Feb. 14). Noto and Henson remained at No. 1 at 125 and 141, respectively. Strickland (133) is ranked second and Stonecheck (149) is ranked third. In all, nine of 10 projected championship starters are ranked in the top-10 at their weight class.

Cleveland State is 5-7 overall and 3-2 in MAC action. The Vikings have won two straight thanks to victories over Edinboro and Ohio. Following Friday’s match at Lock Haven, Cleveland State will head to Bloomsburg Saturday.

Both Cleveland State and Lock Haven were ranked in the top-5 in the MAC February Team Rankings, released earlier today. To date, Cleveland State is projected to finish fourth at the upcoming conference tournament, just ahead of Lock Haven as the Bald Eagles are ranked fifth.

Edinboro is 2-10 overall and 1-6 in MAC duals. The Fighting Scots will close the regular season on Feb. 25 at No. 1 Penn State.

Lock Haven Projected Dual Lineup:
125: #8 R-Jr. Anthony Noto (Lima, N.Y./Honeoye Falls-Lima) 12-2
// OR // 125: Fr. Logan Sallot (Erie, Pa./McDowell) 5-14
133: #29 Jr. Gable Strickland (Benton, Pa./Benton) 24-10
141: #13 R-So. Wyatt Henson (Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg) 30-2
149: Jr. Nick Stonecheck (Alpharetta, Ga./Buford) 14-10
157: Jr. Connor Eck (Bensalem, Pa./Bensalem) 24-17
// OR // 157: R-So. DaShawn Farber (Bethlehem, Pa./Nazareth) 12-7
165: R-Fr. Eric Alderfer (Harleysville, Pa./Faith Christian Academy) 8-16
174: Jr. Tyler Stoltzfus (Mifflinburg, Pa./Saint Joseph’s Academy) 6-6
184: R-Jr. Colin Fegley (Mahanoy, Pa./Mahanoy) 13-14
197: So. Cael Black (Warren, Pa./Eisenhower) 10-19
285: So. Ethan Miller (York, Pa./Central York) 6-19
*#, Individual National Ranking = NCAA Coaches’ Panel (Jan. 22)

Up Next:
Following Saturday’s (Feb. 17) MAC dual at longtime rival Edinboro, Lock Haven will turn its attention to the postseason. The 2023-24 Mid-American Conference Championships are set for Friday and Saturday, March 8-9 at Kent State University.