IU ready for Tigers

The No. 23 Hoosier wrestling team faces a tough chore this weekend, competing in two matches against high quality opponents. First, IU travels Saturday to the No. 5 Missouri Tigers to wrestle in a dual meet and then returns home Sunday to battle Eastern Illinois, Gardner Webb and Wabash in a four-team match. \nThe busy weekend will test the wrestlers in more ways than one.\n"The only real difficulty in this is not the number of matches but weighing in on consecutive days," IU coach Duane Goldman said. "They have to maintain their weight throughout the course of the day, whereas typically they'll make weight and not have to worry about it until the next week."\nThe wrestlers have to maintain their weight all week, weigh in on Saturday, wrestle, return home and then once again weigh in before Sunday's match. In a sport where weight is crucial, one extra Whopper can tip the scales in the wrong direction.\n"It's not as hard for me as it is the other guys," sophomore Joel Powers said, who is in the heavyweight division where the wrestler can be any weight. "It is going to be tough for them, but it will get them ready for the end of the year."\nThe first roadblock is in Columbia, Mo. The undefeated Tigers are fresh off a win against the defending national champion, Oklahoma State. Three injured starters make this dual meet a challenge for the Hoosiers.\n"We have a difficult task ahead of us," Goldman said. "It's one of the best teams we'll face all year. But I feel real confident with the guys we are putting out there."\nThe IU wrestlers are ready and have the hunger to knock down a higher-ranked team.\n"It's real exciting to go up against a team like Missouri," Powers said. "I was a true freshman last year when they were a top 20 team and beat them. I think we can beat them again."\nIU returns home Sunday for a four-team meet. Eastern Illinois is a senior-laden squad that is a traditional rival. Wabash is an in-state rival and Gardner Webb, a Division I team from North Carolina, is making their first trip to Bloomington. This is the second home match for the Hoosiers this season and the squad looks forward to competing.\n"This is probably the best Eastern Illinois team that they've had since I've been at IU," Goldman said. "Gardner Webb, we saw them last year at a different event. And Wabash, we try to get to the teams in state. It's good exposure for everyone."\nHaving two meets in the same weekend is not a new experience for the Hoosiers. They do it regularly throughout the year. Most team members are familiar with this type of weekend and look to make solid showings at both meets.\n"This is the same thing as last year," said sophomore Joe Dubuque. "But it's still hard though."\n-- Contact staff writer Colin Burns at coaburns@indiana.edu.