CLINTON, S.C. – A season-closing stretch of eight straight duals will begin on Thursday night for the Presbyterian College men's wrestling team, hosting perennial Southern Conference powerhouse Appalachian State for a 7:00 start.

ESPN+ will have live coverage of the dual, as the Blue Hose look to play giant-killer against a club that has captured the last three league championships.

Presby has yet to defeat the Mountaineers in six attempts, hoping to erase a 42-0 result in Boone nearly 12 months ago.

Both PC and App State participated in the Southern Scuffle last weekend, colliding once in weight class 165. There, ASU's Noah Gonzalez defeated Brandon Jacoby with a 2:40 fall in Chattanooga.


 
GAMEDAY INFO – THURSDAY, JANUARY 8

Presbyterian (0-5) vs. Appalachian State (3-4)

WHERE / WHEN: Templeton Gymnasium | 7:00 PM
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE RESULTS: Track Wrestling


 
SCOUTING THE MOUNTAINEERS

 
- PC prepares to do battle with an opponent that has accumulated 30 dual wins over the past three seasons. App State saw three national qualifiers last spring after claiming the SoCon Tournament title for the third time in a row.

- As is normally the case, the Mountaineers played a tough non-conference schedule versus the likes of #20 West Virginia and #10 NC State. They've not wrestled in a dual setting since December 17, a 31-8 victory at Duke.

- In contrast to Presbyterian, who has already faced two league foes (Campbell and Davidson), tomorrow will be the SoCon opener for Appalachian State.

- Head coach JohnMark Bentley leads the Mountaineers in his 17^th season, a four-time finalist for National Coach of the Year and a seven-time SoCon Coach of the Year winner.


 
LAST TIME OUT

 
- After losing three duals a week before Christmas against Davidson, Air Force, and Franklin & Marshall, the Blue Hose made their first appearance of the new year on Saturday in the Southern Scuffle tourney.

- None of PC's nine wrestlers were able to advance to the second day of the bracket, with senior 184-pounder Reed Douglass progressing the furthest on three wins.

- Head coach Mark Cody's unit nearly won their first conference clash of the season back in November, falling to Campbell on the deck of a Charleston battleship by a single point. Their only other SoCon endeavor was a 21-9 setback to Davidson.

- Senior Ryan Luna leads the Blue Hose this season with a record of 13-7, winning his 35^th career match at the Southern Scuffle. Douglass ranks second on the team with six wins this winter.