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 Eric Pretto National Rankings As of Jan. 8, 2008 157 Pounds 1. Jason Rhoten, Minnesota State-Mankato 2. Joe Ellenberger, Nebraska-Kearney 3. Antonio Guerra, Findlay 4. Muhammad Abdur-Rahman, Ashland 5. Jason Leavitt, Central Oklahoma 6. Eric Pretto, SIU Edwardsville 7. Michael Horton, Indianapolis 8. Travis Eggers, Upper Iowa |
January 8, 2008 Pretto Finishes Fourth, Defeats Two National Qualifiers EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. -- Eric Pretto (Orland Park) defeated Findlay's Antonio Guerra and Indianapolis' Mike Horton on his way to a fourth-place finish in the 157-pound division at the Midwest Classic this past weekend in Indianapolis. The wins were good enough to vault Pretto into the nation's elite. A true freshman, Pretto is 14-9 overall and is ranked sixth in the nation at 157 pounds in the latest NCAA Division II poll. Pretto defeated Guerra 5-4. As a three-time NCAA Division II tournament qualifier, Guerra has won two national championships over the past two seasons at 149 and 157 pounds. Assistant Coach Tyron Woodley said he feels this is the type of weekend that will allow Pretto to develop into a national contender. "This is a good stepping-stone match for Eric as long as he continues to do the things he has been doing to get better. If he keeps it up, he should become an All-American," said Woodley. In his next match, Pretto defeated Horton 6-5. An Indianapolis senior, Horton was a national qualifier and posted a record of 30-13 last year. "Eric really broke through this weekend. He has had a few matches that have been really close this year. His hard work is really starting to pay off and can be seen on the mat," said Coach Pat McNamara. -siue cougars- |