F&M Wrestling Vs. Hofstra (SUNDAY, February 20; 2 p.m.) - Senior Day

Last Week

• F&M retained control of the Rupp Cup with a 29-10 win at Millersville
• The Diplomats won seven of the 10 bouts and recorded bonus points during five of those victories
• F&M has now won 10 of the 11 Rupp Cups since Mike Rogers became head coach
• The team also recorded its eighth dual victory of the season, marking the most of head coach Mike Rogers' tenure with the Diplomats
• F&M has now won four straight duals heading into Sunday's regular season finale, the team's second such winning streak of the season

Hofstra

Sunday, February 20 (2 p.m.)

Mayser Center (Lancaster, Pa.)

Series History

F&M vs. Hofstra

• First meeting: December 12, 1947; F&M won 20-6
• All-Time: Hofstra leads, 9-5
• At F&M: Teams are tied, 3-3
• Most recent: Hofstra won, 45-3
• Last F&M win: January 13, 1996
• The Diplomats have wrestled the Pride every year since the 2016-17 season
• After F&M won in 1996, the teams wrestled once in 1999 and the series was dormant until the 2016-17 campaign

100 and Counting

Wil Gil (101-43 career record) achieved his 100th career win with a technical fall against McDaniel on Wednesday, February 2

F&M's senior captain was ranked No. 28 in the most recent NCAA RPI Rankings

The senior has a .722 Division I winning percentage at 141 lbs. and will have two chances to add to that mark this week as he is also slated for an extra countable match following the regular dual

Gil was receiving honorable mention in FloWrestling's preseason national rankings and is 21-5 during his senior season

F&M's senior captain has won at least 20 matches during each of his four seasons wrestling for the Diplomats, achieving a career-best 31 wins during the 2020 season

He is 9-1 against EIWA opponents with victories against Army, Cornell, Penn, Brown, Bucknell, Drexel, Sacred Heart (2x), and LIU

Gil is the third wrestler in program history to reach the 100 win milestone, joining All-Americans Rick Durso '16 (145-38 career record) and Craig Blackman '81 (111-31-2 career record)

Gil is a two-time EIWA place winner and was the alternate to the 2019 NCAA Division I Championships

Weekly Notables

F&M Notables

• The Diplomats have excelled in duals with a 66-22 record in those bouts, a .750 winning percentage
• Wil Gil (141 lbs.) is a perfect 9-0 in dual meets
• Gio Diaz (5-0 at 125 lbs.) and Noah Fox (4-0 at 174 lbs.) are also undefeated in dual action
• Fox is slated to make his season debut at 165 lbs. this weekend
• All 10 of F&M's projected starters have a winning record in dual meet competition
• Pat Phillips (7-1 at 133 lbs.), Cristiaan Dailey (7-1 at 149 lbs.), Chase McCollum (6-3 at 157 lbs.), John Crawford (4-1 at 174 lbs.), James Conway (8-1 at 184 lbs.), Mike Waszen (5-4 at 197 lbs.), and Cenzo Pelusi (7-1 at 285 lbs.) give the Diplomats a strong lineup across all 10 weights
• F&M has started its season 8-1 just 13 times in school history. This is the first such occasion since the the 1966-67 campaign
• Only seven wrestling teams in school history held a record of 9-1 or better after nine duals, a feat the Diplomats can accomplish with a win on Sunday
• F&M would become the first team since the 1948-49 season to start 9-1 or better with a victory on Sunday
• The Diplomats have already secured their first winning season since 2013-14 and have matched the highest single-season win total under head coach Mike Rogers
• F&M has a strong balance of experience and youth as six Diplomats have previously competed at the EIWA Championships

Individual Winning Streaks (3+)

• Gio Diaz - 7 straight (8-2 since dropping to 125 lbs.)
• James Conway - 7 straight (undefeated in 2022)
• Noah Fox - 5 straight (includes Messiah Open title)
• Cenzo Pelusi - 6 straight (9-1 in last nine matches)
• Mike Waszen - 5 straight (three techs in last four matches, including Messiah Open title)
• Wil Gil - 4 straight (including two tech falls, one pin)
• John Crawford - 3 straight (two of three by bonus)

Double digit wins this season

• Gio Diaz: 11-8 (125/133 lbs.)
• Pat Phillips: 14-9 (133 lbs.)
• Wil Gil: 21-5 (141 lbs.)
• Cristiaan Dailey: 12-5 (149 lbs.)
• Chase McCollum: 11-12 (157 lbs.)
• Noah Fox: 17-8 (174 lbs.)
• James Conway: 18-9 (184 lbs.)
• Mike Waszen: 10-11 (197 lbs.)
• Cenzo Pelusi: 12-5 (285 lbs.)
• John Crawford is two wins away from making that list include all 10 starters as he only missed time due to injury
• F&M's 10+ win wrestlers include five seniors and four wrestlers making their collegiate debuts this season (two sophomores, two first-years)

Hofstra Notables

• Hofstra is 3-11 in dual meet action, including a 2-6 record against EIWA opponents
• Hofstra sent seven wrestlers to the NCAA Division I Championships last season and saw all 10 members of their starting lineup place at the conference championship
• Charles Small (184 lbs.) is ranked 31st in the NCAA Coaches Poll and 33rd in the Intermat Rankings
• Trey Rogers (197 lbs.) is ranked #32 by InterMat
• Zachary Knighton-Ward (285 lbs.) is 15-4 this season, including a perfect 6-0 record against EIWA opponents
• Knighton-Ward is ranked #18 by Intermat and 19 in the NCAA Coaches Poll
• The Diplomats and Pride have one common opponent this year: Sacred Heart
• Hofstra won its dual with Sacred Heart by a 37-15 while the Diplomats were victorious by a 28-13 margin
• Competing at some of the same tournaments, F&M and Hofstra have matched up just three times this season, but none of those matches are expected to take place on Sunday
• Avery Clarke (149 lbs) picked up a 10-2 major decision vs. Hofstra's Eric Shindel at the Messiah Open

UNDEFEATED IN EIWA DUALS

• Franklin & Marshall is the only remaining EIWA school that is undefeated in conference duals this season, having earned wins against LIU and Sacred Heart
• Since officially joined the EIWA during the 1947-48 season, the Diplomats have never gone undefeated in conference duals
• All nine of F&M's undefeated campaigns came from 1925-26 through 1941-42 before the Diplomats officially joined the EIWA

Assistant Coach Steve Borja

• Entering ninth season at Franklin & Marshall
• Previously served as an assistant coach at Millersville University and Manheim Central High School
• Graduated from Virginia Tech in 2008 where he was a two-time first-team All-CC wrestler who was ranked as high as fourth in the country during the 2007 season

UP NEXT

EIWA Championships

Saturday, March 5 - Sunday, March 6

At Cornell