Lions debut at No. 9 in wrestling rankings

The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, under the guidance of veteran head coach Troy Sunderland, is ranked No. 9 in the 2006-07 W.I.N. Magazine pre-season rankings. Junior Phil Davis is No. 1 at 197 pounds to lead six ranked individuals.

Sunderland's Lions, which are coming off a 13-4 dual match season and a ninth place finish at the 2006 NCAA Championships, are one of nine Big Ten teams listed in the top 25, five of which are in the top ten. Minnesota leads the early season national poll at No. 1, followed by defending national champion Oklahoma State at No. 2 and Oklahoma at No. 3.

Big Ten entry Iowa is No. 4, followed by Missouri (No. 5), Iowa State (No. 6), Michigan (No. 7) and Cornell (No. 8). Penn State (No. 9) and energized Ohio State (No. 10) round out the top ten. Other Big Ten schools ranked are Northwestern (No. 11), Michigan State (No. 16), Illinois (No. 20) and Indiana (No. 24).

Davis, the returning National Runner-Up, is No. 1 at 197 and is coming off a 25-4 season and is a two-time All-American. He sports a 62-14 career record and is the defending Big Ten Champion at 197 pounds. Joining Davis as a returning All-American is senior James Yonushonis, who is ranked No. 4 at 174 pounds. Yonushonis went 24-9 last year and made good on his first trip to nationals with an eighth-place, All-America finish. Yonushonis is 53-44 for his career.

Claxton given Big Ten preseason recognition

Penn State junior forward Geary Claxton has been named a pre-season first-team All-Big Ten selection by Lindy's and CBS SportsLine.com and a second-team pick by SportingNews and Athlon in the pre-season college basketball magazines that hit newsstands in the last week.

Claxton, who is the top rebounder (7.5 rpg) and second leading scorer (15.2 ppg) among Big Ten returners, was also recognized as one of three "Players on the Rise."

The Nittany Lions are coming off their best campaign in five years having posted a 15-15 record and hosted an opening round NIT game last season. Claxton was a 2006 first team USBWA All-District I and third team All-Big Ten selection. The Nittany Lions return 80 percent or more of their scoring, rebounding, assists, blocks and steals from last year's team.