The 165-pound Doc Vecchio became an All-American this past weekend at NCAA Championships in Albany, N.Y.

Its that time of year again. The NCAA wrestling tournament is set to start Thursday in Albany, NY. Penn State will send seven wrestlers to the 2002 championships, one more than the past two seasons, looking to improve on last year's performance of no All-Americans and a 25th place team finish.

It's college wrestling's equivalent to a play-in game. One last shot to get to the NCAA tournament.

After hoping to qualify six or seven wrestlers last week before heading to Champaign, Ill., Penn State wrestling coach Troy Sunderland was pleased with his squad when seven of the 10 grabbed spots.

This is the second story in a series previewing the Big Ten Wrestling Tournament.

Is it possible for one team to sweep all 10 weights at this year's Big Ten wrestling championships at Illinois on March 9-10?

As he sits on the bench, wearing jeans and his Penn State wrestling sweatshirt, he can only watch realizing that he can’t help his team sitting on the sideline, and already thinking of his next opportunity on the mat — next year.

For Scott Moore, it was the best of times and it was the worst of times.

Starting last week, when Penn State pushed Iowa to the brink, it has been a new-look Lions wrestling team. This past weekend provided a perfect example.

One statistic does a pretty good job of summing up the Penn State wrestling team's 33-6 loss to Michigan Friday night. Total number of takedowns: Michigan 44, Penn State 9.

Border Brawl I, as dubbed in the Midwest, lived up to all hype in more ways than one.

Work ethic. Penn State wrestler Doc Vecchio certainly has it. Penn State coach Troy Sunderland sees every day in practice how hard he works.

In the past, he gave his all for the good of Penn State wrestling. Now, he's doing everything he can to beat the Nittany Lions.

Penn State (4-6) trailed Indiana (6-5) 9-6, before the two sets of twins took to the mats, and grabbed control in the dual match Sunday at Rec Hall. The foursome of No. 10 Josh Moore, Scott Moore, Jason Woodall and James Woodall racked up 16 points en route to a victory, 26-9.

The Nittany Lions were halfway through their Big Ten opening dual meet against Indiana and a lethargic start saw them lose three of the first five bouts to fall behind the Hoosiers, 9-6.

Two of the three unranked Big Ten teams, Penn State (3-6) and Indiana (6-4), square off on Sunday at Rec Hall. Penn State coach Troy Sunderland knows that right now is the time to perform as the Big Ten schedule begins.

Three years ago, while having a sub-par year, Ohio State brought in one of the top recruiting classes in the country, with the anticipation of being a powerhouse in a couple of years.

For decades, the Big Ten has been at the epicenter of the collegiate wrestling world, consistently racking up national championship teams and individuals, and creating a conference dynasty unparalleled in college athletics.

Penn State wrestling opened its dual meet season with a win at Clarion and a loss the following day in a close battle at No. 14 Edinboro.

Losing is never a happy experience, but just imagine multiplying that feeling times three. This is the state the No. 17 Penn State wrestling team finds itself in today.

Six bouts were taking place at the same time, but it seemed unanimously that everyone was focused on one.

Josh Moore and Marat Tomaev had been there before.

Kyle Cathcart has done it all in high school, and he is now bound for Penn State.

For years, the power base of the Penn State wrestling lineup has been the lightweights.

At yesterday's Varsity Wrestle-Offs at Rec Hall, three of the 10 weight classes did not see any action at all, while another match was halted halfway through, and the fifth one continued without the top wrestler at the weight class.