Wrestling Starts Season in East Stroudsburg

On Saturday morning, the Columbia wrestling team will take to the mat for the first time this season at the 41st annual East Stroudsburg Open. This tournament is an all-day affair, which attracts about 300 wrestlers from some of the strongest wrestling programs in the country.

The last time that the Lions participated in the ES Open was during the 2005-2006 season. During that tournament two years ago, four Lions placed, including current senior Brandon Kinney. As a sophomore, Kinney finished fifth at the ES Open at the 125-pound level.

Two years later, Columbia is a much different team heading into the ES Open. Columbia is a year removed from its first top-25 ranking and a second place finish in the Ancient Eight.

The ES Open will be used mainly as a tune-up by the Lions. Head coach Brandon Buckley will be able to assess his nine-man freshman class for the first time against outside competition in this day-long event. Though the team already had its annual Blue-White intra-squad scrimmage, this is the first time this season that the Lions will be able to gauge themselves against other schools.

With the field of the tournament expected to be comprised of some top competition from across the country, the Light Blue will have a tough test in its first event of the year. Some key wrestlers for the Lions will be Kinney at the 125-level, sophomore Matt Dunn at 149 pounds, junior Derek Sickles at 157 pounds, and senior Nick Sommerfeld at 197 pounds. All four of these wrestlers are coming off strong seasons last year and will be looking to start the 2007-2008 season on the right foot.

The ES Open will take place at Koehler Fieldhouse at East Stroudsburg University on Saturday. The event will begin at 9 a.m. and run throughout the day.