Two meets in two days for IU

A busy weekend awaits the Hoosier wrestling team as they host a meet Saturday afternoon and go on the road to Indianapolis Sunday. The grapplers will face off against Duke, Eastern Michigan, and Missouri Valley in Bloomington with matches starting at 11 a.m. \nThe team quickly bounces back and heads north to the state capital to compete in the Indianapolis Duals with action kicking off at 11 a.m. Sunday. The close proximity of this event coupled with a home meet bodes well for a squad that has seen its fair share of the road this season.\n"We've been on the road the past couple weekends, and it's nice for us to stay at home," said IU coach Duane Goldman. "Even going to Indianapolis on Sunday, we don't have to leave until the day of. It's a nice weekend for us if we take care of business."\nFor the wrestlers themselves, the two meets close to home are beneficial but stressful, with two meets in two days being no walk in the park.\n"When you travel a lot, you're on the bus for five, seven hours, and then you have to stay in a hotel," said sophomore Matt Cooper. "The close meets are real nice, but two meets in a row will be a little more of a challenge because after the first day you are a little beat up."\nSaturday's meet is an event IU has had for the past few years. The Hoosiers invite Duke and Eastern Michigan to compete and then a random third team is picked. Duke is 2-0 this season in dual meets and is coming off wins over Duquesne and Slippery Rock. Eastern Michigan, despite being 1-3 on the year, boasts the 10th ranked wrestler in the country in the 165-pound weight class, J.J. Holmes. \nThe meet will be a challenge for the Hoosiers.\n"The teams are good D-I competition on Saturday," Goldman said. "Yet it is non-conference, so it gives us an opportunity to get some different guys wrestling."\nThe meet on Sunday, the Indianapolis Duals, is an event the team has been going to the last couple of years. The matches are hosted by the University of Indianapolis Greyhounds, and the Hoosiers are focused on team and individual goals.\n"I'm personally looking forward to go undefeated," said junior Pat DeGain. "There is a kid from Cumberland College who I lost to earlier in the year. He'll be at Indianapolis, and that will give me the opportunity to get revenge."\nThe Indianapolis Duals will be the last meet before the team heads into Big Ten conference action that starts next weekend. But coach Goldman wants his team to focus on the matches at hand and for the people of Indiana to see the team in action.\n"They have a good crowd up in Indy," Goldman said. "It's a good opportunity for us to be seen by people from the state."\n-- Contact staff writer Colin Burns at coaburns@indiana.edu