Utah Valley at #18 Oregon State
Saturday, Nov. 21, 2015  |  2 p.m. MT/1 p.m. PT
Corvallis, Ore.   |   Gill Coliseum
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Utah Valley vs. #15 Rutgers
Saturday, Nov. 21, 2015  |  4 p.m. MT/3 p.m. PT
Corvallis, Ore.   |   Gill Coliseum
 

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UVU WRESTLING HEADS TO CORVALLIS TO FACE TWO RANKS FOES
OREM, Utah – The Utah Valley University wrestling team will return to dual action this weekend in Corvallis, Oregon, when it faces off against both No. 18 Oregon State and No. 15 Rutgers on Saturday afternoon at OSU's Gill Coliseum. UVU will open the day against the host Pac-12 Beavers at 2 p.m. MT/1 p.m. PT before taking on the Scarlet Knights of the Big Ten Conference at 4 p.m. MT/3 p.m. PT.
 
The Wolverines (1-2, 0-0 Big 12) will enter the dual meets with a 1-2 record after taking one out of three contests at the Eastern Michigan Duals on Nov. 7. There, UVU recorded its first win in program history over a Big Ten foe with a 30-6 rout over Michigan State before falling to both No. 11 Illinois (32-6) and Rider (20-12).
 
Seniors Chasen Tolbert (125 pounds) and Derek Thomas (197) led Utah Valley at the EMU Duals by each going a perfect 3-0 at the opening season competition. Fellow senior Jade Rauser (133) and redshirt sophomore Dustin Dennison were next by both going 2-1 on the day.
 
Tolbert and Rauser will enter Saturday's duals ranked on the latest InterMat polls, as the 2015 NCAA qualifier Tolbert comes in at 12th in the nation in his weight class while the three-time qualifier Rauser finds himself rated 18th in the country at 133 pounds. Rauser went from being just outside of InterMat's top-20 poll to 18th after defeating the then 15th-ranked Robert Deutsch of Rider by a score of 5-2 two week's ago.
 
ABOUT THE OPPOSITION
The 18th-ranked OSU Beavers (2-1, 0-0 Pac-12) moved up two spots in the USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll this week after going 2-1 against a trio of ranked opponents at the Northeast Duals this past Sunday. After suffering a 25-6 setback to No. 10 Nebraska, Oregon State bounced back nicely with back-to-back wins over No. 19 West Virginia (23-9) and No. 25 Northern Iowa (23-12).   
 
Sophomores Amarveer Dhesi (heavyweight) Ronnie Bresser (125) lead the Beavers as they'll enter Saturday ranked fifth and 10th in their respective weight classes. Dhesi also leads the team with an unblemished 8-0 record, while Bresser sits at 5-2.
 
Saturday's contest against Oregon State will mark the third all-time meeting between UVU and OSU. The Beavers will enter the competition with a 2-0 series lead after defeating the Wolverines by a score of 36-6 in Orem last season and 49-0 at the Jack Hancock Dual Invitational in 2006.
 
Rutgers (5-1, 0-0 B1G) will enter Saturday's action ranked 15th in the country after winning five of its first six dual meets on the season. After not losing a match in three duals against Binghamton (38-0), Centenary College (46-0) and Franklin & Marshall (47-0), the Scarlet Knights went 2-1 against three ranked foes on Sunday at the Northeast Duals. RU defeated No. 13 North Carolina (19-13) and No. 25 Northern Iowa (28-10) but fell to No. 22 Oklahoma by a mere point (19-18) for its lone loss of the season.
 
Rutgers has three wrestlers ranked in the top-10 in the nation, as the unbeaten Anthony Ashnault is ranked third at 141 (5-0) while Billy Smith (5-1, heavyweight) and Anthony Perotti (4-1, 165) come in at seventh and ninth, respectively.
 
Saturday's matchup between RU and UVU will be the first all-time meeting between the Wolverines and the Scarlet Knights.
 
UP NEXT FOR UVU
Following Saturday's duals, Utah Valley will return to Orem for its home opener against Boise State on Saturday, Nov. 28. The Big 12 vs. Pac-12 showdown will begin at 4 p.m. at UVU's PE Building.