Roberts Heads to St. Louis for NCAA Championships
March 20, 2008 | Men's Wrestling
March 19, 2008
ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Competing in the nation's most deep and talented weight class, junior Mike Roberts will be making his second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Championships, beginnning Thursday (March 20) at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo.
Roberts enters the national tournament will a 28-9 record on the year and has been ranked nationally at 149 pounds for the majority of the season. All nine of his losses were against fellow NCAA qualifiers.
"[The 149-pound weight class] is definitely the toughest at the NCAAs this year," said head coach Carl Adams. "It's one of the toughest ever in terms of depth and talent."
At this year's Southern Scuffle, held on Dec. 30 at UNC-Greensboro, Roberts claimed the 149-pound title after scoring victories over then-No. 3 Darrion Caldwell (N.C. State) and then-No. 1 Dustin Schlatter (Minnesota).
Caldwell, who Roberts pinned at the 6:58 mark of their match, happens to be Roberts' first-round opponent on Thursday. Caldwell is seeded seventh in the tournament, while Schlatter is seeded second.
"Mike is going to have to wrestle really well to place," added Adams. "We're confident that he will do a good job representing our program."
Roberts made his NCAA debut last season after claiming the Colonial Athletic Association title at 149. He nearly knocked off 11th-seeded Cyler Sanderson (Iowa State) in the first round and earned a win in the consolations before suffering his second loss.
"Last year's experience will definitely help him," said Adams. "He came close to a couple big wins and hopefully having been there will be the difference this time around."
Check back to GoTerriers.com for full updates throughout the tournament.
