Hannibal-LaGrange has received votes for the NAIA rankings in the past, but has never been as close to breaking into the top-20 as it is now.
The team also supports three nationally ranked individuals in junior Bryce Alexander, junior Nathan Downs and sophomore transfer Dan Carey.
After finishing last season with the most wins in team history, Alexander opens the 2012-13 season ranked seventh in the 165 pound weight class. The Maryville, Mo. native is a two time NAIA national qualifier and has accumulated 60 wins in his collegiate career.
"Bryce is going to move up throughout the season in the rankings," stated Head Coach Scott Hawes, "but it all matters what you do at the end of the year in the last tournament. I'm confident that he has as good of a chance as anyone."
"Nathan Downs has that same potential. Any of the top eight guys in his weight class could end up, at the end of the year, on the top of the platform. Nathan has just as good of a shot at that as anyone else."
Downs will start the season ranked eighth in the 174 pound weight class after qualifying for and finishing 12th in the NAIA National Tournament last season. Carey begins the year ranked 14th in the 197 pound weight class in his first season at Hannibal-LaGrange.
"Dan Carey is definitely a huge addition to the program this year. Coming in as a newcomer and being nationally ranked is a big plus for us. We're really excited to have him with the program and to get him out there representing the scarlet and blue."
Junior Trojan Dan Capp (184 lbs.) is another wrestler to watch this season as he is currently ranked fifth in the Central Region. He is a two year national qualifier and is tied for the second most wins in a season behind Alexander.
The Trojans will open its season November 3 at the Loras Open in Dubuque, Iowa before getting a chance to prove itself in a road dual at No. 10 Missouri Baptist University on November 7.
Hannibal-LaGrange University is a Division I NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) institution and a member of the American Midwest Conference.
-Jordan Argo, HLGU SID
