CLINTON, S.C. – Halfway through the group's four-match stretch within a single week (all amongst Southern Conference foes nonetheless), the Presbyterian College men's wrestling team gets set for another busy two-day league series on Friday and Saturday, staying at home tomorrow evening to face Chattanooga before an immediate trip to Campbell the following afternoon. UTC comes to Templeton Gymnasium at 6:00 on Friday, while PC's final bout of January the next day is set for 1:00 in Buies Creek, North Carolina.

While the Blue Hose and program director Mark Cody currently hold an 0-3 mark against conference opponents, that figure proves very misleading considering the number of near-misses that nearly swayed in Presbyterian's favor. Last Sunday was another of those instances against VMI, witnessing an 11-0 mid-match burst from PC only for the Keydets to squeeze out a 20-17 triumph.

The second half of last weekend's SoCon doubleheader involved The Citadel, a sequence in which the Bulldogs acquired a 31-11 win. Cordel Duhart (184) and Trenton Donahue (141/149) each won both of their meetings over VMI and their in-state adversary, gaining an extra two wins from 165-pounder Tyler Chittum (one of which came in exhibition style).

Donahue and Chittum both rank near the top of the Blue Hose roster in terms of total wins since the campaign's November start, finding their hands raised 23 times put together. Sophomore Malcolm Wiley (197) presently holds the top distinction on the squad at 13-6, while the tandem of Duhart and Zach Wells have synced up for 17 combined W's in consecutive weight classes despite missing time due to injury early in the season.

Two of the most battle-tested groups in the conference stand in PC's path over the next 48 hours, as Chattanooga and Campbell have competed against nine nationally-ranked schools over the past two and a half months, each of them without a league loss in three combined attempts.

Friday's dual versus the Mocs will stand as the penultimate home outing of 2023, taking on a core that already has claimed wins over VMI and Davidson (two mutual foes of Presbyterian) by an added margin of 69-12. In between those SoCon blowouts, coach Kyle Ruschell's team gave #24 West Virginia all they could handle in Tennessee, narrowly falling to the Mountaineers 22-16.

Held to single-digits in their first three contests, the Mocs have vastly improved during the most pivotal portion of the schedule, winning three of their previous four matches with their only two dual losses at home coming in the aforementioned WVU series and against #2 Iowa.

Holding the smallest conference match sample size of any league member but making up for it with a strength of schedule that would make many quiver, Campbell's 10-8 overall record encompasses the likes of #14 Iowa State, #5 Michigan, #16 North Carolina, #17 Nebraska, #23 Maryland, and #19 South Dakota State. Less than two weeks back, the Fighting Camels downed the Terps at a neutral site in Hampton, Virginia by a 21-14 clip, winning their lone SoCon dual to this point over Gardner-Webb 25-12.

Saturday's matchup against the Blue Hose comes in the middle of a five-match home streak for coach Scotti Sentes' unit, beginning that foray with a 24-point triumph over CSU Bakersfield and an eight-point W atop Central Michigan. However, American University spoiled their fun with a 19-18 nail-biter in Campbell's last appearance on Sunday.

Tomorrow's Templeton tune-up with Chattanooga will be broadcasted live on ESPN+. At the top of this page or below, a link to live stats and video – as well as another statistical link to the Campbell dual on Saturday – can be found.
 
PC vs. Chattanooga Live Video - https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/d974b938-d658-47a9-9093-e37d47202884?om-navmethod=espn%3Aglobalsearch%3Aresults
PC vs. Chattanooga Live Stats - https://www.trackwrestling.com/seasons/DualMatches.jsp?TIM=1674758421537&twSessionId=wdquemuewa&dualId=6703494132&teamId=971576143
PC vs. Campbell Live Stats - https://www.trackwrestling.com/seasons/EventDuals.jsp?TIM=1674758421537&twSessionId=wdquemuewa&eventId=6698821132&teamId=971576143