1three-time defending nCAA eAst region ChAmpions

QUICK FACTS

Quick Facts ............................................................................... 1

Media Information ................................................................... 2

Flames Sports Network ............................................................ 3

2009-10 Outlook ...................................................................... 4

Head Coach Jesse Castro .......................................................... 7

Coaching Staff ........................................................................... 9

Flames Spirit and Tradition ..................................................... 10

2009-10 Roster ....................................................................... 11

Meet the Flames .................................................................... 12

2008-09 Results ...................................................................... 34

2008-09 Statistics ................................................................... 35

Wiseman Wrestling Room ...................................................... 36

Vines Center ........................................................................... 38

All-Americans ......................................................................... 39

Records and History ............................................................... 40

Eagle Medal Club .................................................................... 42

Honors and Awards ................................................................ 43

All-Time Roster ....................................................................... 44

Year-By-Year Results ............................................................... 47

Liberty University ................................................................... 54

Academic Affairs for Athletics................................................. 58

Liberty University Administration ........................................... 59

Liberty Athletics Administration ............................................. 60

Athletics Excellence ................................................................ 62

Athletics Hall of Fame ............................................................. 64

Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award ............................................... 65

City of Lynchburg .................................................................... 66

Sports Medicine ..................................................................... 68

2009-10 Liberty Wrestling Quick Facts

General InformationName of School ............................................. Liberty UniversityCity/Zip.................................................... Lynchburg, Va. 24502Founded ............................................................................ 1971Enrollment ..................................................................... 11,311Nickname ....................................................................... FlamesSchool Colors ........................................... Red, White and BlueHome Arena .......................................................... Vines Center Capacity............................................................................ 8,085Affiliation ......................................................... NCAA Division IConference ............................ Independent (NCAA East Region)Founder ............................................................ Dr. Jerry FalwellChancellor ........................................................ Jerry Falwell, Jr.Exec. Vice President .................................... Dr. Ronald GodwinDirector of Athletics ................................................. Jeff BarberAthletic Dept. Phone......................................... (434) 582-2100

Wrestling InformationHead Coach ....................................... Jesse Castro (Liberty, ‘81)Record at Liberty ..................................... 39-29-2 (Three Years)Career Record .................................................................. SameAssistant Coach ............................ Joe Pantaleo (Michigan, ‘89)Graduate Assistant Coach ......... Joe Kemmerer (Kutztown, ‘09)Volunteer Assistant Coach ................................. Allen HackmanWrestling Office Phone ..................................... (434) 582-74632009-10 Record ............................................................... 12-9-1

HistoryFirst Year of Wrestling ....................................................... 1974All-Time Record......................................................... 218-126-7..................................................................... 179-97-5 (1975-94)....................................................................... 39-29-2 (2007-09)NCAA East Regional Titles/Last ..................................... 3/2009NCAA Division I National Qualifiers ...................................... 33............................................................................... 19 (1986-94)............................................................................... 14 (2007-09)

Athletics Communications InformationAsst. A.D. - Communications. ........................... Todd WetmoreAth. Communications Office Phone ................. (434) 582-2292Cell Phone ......................................................... (434) 841-8974Email Address ...................................... twetmore@liberty.eduAssoc. Athletics Communications Dir. ........... Ryan BombergerEmail Address ................................... rbomberger@liberty.eduAsst. Ath. Comm. Dir. .......................................... Paul CarmanyEmail Address ...................................... pjcarmany@liberty.eduAsst. Athletics Communications Dir. ....................... Eric BrownEmail Address ........................................ eqbrown@liberty.eduAth. Communications Grad. Asst. ................... Jennifer SheltonEmail Address ...................................... jbshelton2@liberty.eduAth. Communications Fax ................................. (434) 582-2076Wrestling Contact .............................................. Todd WetmoreMailing Address .....1971 University Blvd., Lynchburg, VA 24502Athletics Website ................................... LibertyFlames.com

This publication has been produced by the Liberty Office of Athletics Communications.

Editor: Todd Wetmore

Assistant Editors: Ryan Bomberger, Paul Car-many, Eric Brown and Jennifer Shelton

Photography: Les Schofer, Kevin Giedd, Jamie Hall, Jordan Crossingham, Scott Bruhn, Duke Photography and LU Archives

Cover Design: Brian Wallace, Todd Wetmore, Ryan Bomberger and Paul Carmany

Printing: MultiAd, Inc., Peoria, Ill.

liberty Wrestling 2009-102

MEDIA INFORMATION

Media Information Please assist us in providing you with the most accurate information possible by observing the media guidelines listed below when dealing with any Liberty University athletics program.

Media Parking Wrestling parking is located between the Vines Center and the DeMoss Learn-ing Center. Please call the Office of Ath-letics Communications with any parking questions or concerns you may have.

Match Press Services The staff of the Office of Athletics Communications will be at your service throughout the contest. All members of the media will be provided with lineup cards, any game notes, media guides, statistics, play-by-play sheets and any other pertinent information before and after each match. Full statistics will be available at the end of the match. Telephones and a fax machine will also be available for the media’s use.

Interview Policy All interview requests must be coor-dinated by a member of the Office of Athletics Communications staff. Player interviews will not conflict with classes, meetings or practice times. Players are typically available after practice. Inter-views are not permitted in the locker room or training room.

Post-Match Policy Contact a member of the Athletics Communications staff for specific infor-mation regarding the post-match policy. Liberty Head Coach Jesse Castro and re-quested wrestlers are available for com-ment after a brief 10-minute cooling pe-riod after the match’s conclusion.

Daily Practice Sessions Practices are conducted inside the Wiseman Wrestling Room. Practices are generally open to the media, unless otherwise announced. Please contact a member of the Athletics Communica-tions staff if you plan to attend a work-out.

Liberty University Office ofAthletics Communications

ToDD WETMoREAssistant AD for Communications/

Wrestling Contact

RYAN BoMBERGERAssociate Athletics

Communications Director

PAUL CArmANyAssistant Athletics

Communications Director

JENNiFER SHELToNAthletics

Communications Graduate Assistant

ERiC BRoWNAssistant Athletics

Communications Director

Reaching Coach Castro To speak with Liberty Head Coach Jesse Castro, please contact the Athletics Com-munications Office to make arrangements.

Flames Club Luncheons At various times during the season, the Flames Club hosts a luncheon in the Donor Room of the Williams Football Operations Center. Lunch begins at noon, followed by comments from various coaches. Follow-ing the luncheon, Coach Castro is usually available for interviews.

Phone: (434) 582-2292 | Fax: (434) 582-2076

2009-10 LiBERTY WRESTLiNGmEDIA OUTLETS

Flames Sports Network - TVBruce Carey, Producer

LBN1971 University Blvd. | Lynchburg, VA 24502

Phone: (434) 582-2708 | Fax: (434) 582-2895

Flames Sports Network - RadioJamie Hall, Station Manager

WWMC - 90.9 FM “The Light” 1971 University Blvd. | Lynchburg, VA 24502

Phone: (434) 582-3691 | Fax: (434) 582-7461

WDBJ-TV/Channel 7Travis Wells, Sports Director

2807 Hershberger Rd. NW | Roanoke, VA 24017

Phone: (540) 344-7000 | Fax: (540) 344-5097

WSLS-TV/Channel 10John Appicello, Sports Director

P.O. Box 10 | Roanoke, VA 24022

Phone: (540) 981-9126 | Fax: (540) 343-2059

WSET-TV/Channel 13 Dennis Carter, Sports Director

2320 Langhorne Rd. | Lynchburg, VA 24501

Phone: (434) 528-1313 | Fax: (434) 847-8800

Liberty ChampionSports Editor

1971 University Blvd. | Lynchburg, VA 24502

Phone: (434) 582-2124 | Fax: (434) 582-2420

Lynchburg News and Advance Chris Morris, Sports Editor

Chris Lang, Beat Writer 101 Wyndale Drive | P.O. Box 10129

Lynchburg, VA 24506

Phone: (434) 385-5554 | Fax: (434) 385-5538

Richmond Times-Dispatch Sports Editor

P.O. Box 85333 | Richmond, VA 23293

Phone: (804) 649-6554 | Fax: (804) 775-8085

The Roanoke TimesSports Editor

P.O. Box 2491 | Roanoke, VA 24010

Phone: (540) 981-3100 | Fax: (540) 524-4698

NWCA/interMat WrestlingJason Bryant, Director of Media Relations

P.O. Box 254 | Manheim, PA 17545Phone: (717) 653-0827 | Fax: (717) 653-8270

Associated PressSports Desk

600 East Main St. | Richmond, VA 23219-2684

Phone: (800) 552-9935 | Fax: (800) 357-8525

3three-time defending nCAA eAst region ChAmpions

FLAMES SPORTS NETWORK

For the most complete and up-to-date information on the Liberty Uni-versity Athletics Department, log on to the program’s official web site - Lib-ertyFlames.com - the best avenue to find out breaking news on the Flames’ wrestling program. Wrestling is not the only sport covered by LibertyFlames.com. You can access rosters, players and coaches’ bios, statistics and schedules for each of Liberty’s 20 NCAA Division I sponsored athletics programs. Fans can catch up on the latest athletics department news and notes just by clicking on the numer-ous links found on LibertyFlames.com. Visit today!

For the first time in program history, the Flames Sports Network (FSN) will tele-vise most of the Liberty wrestling team’s home dual events during the 2009-10 season. The network, which is slated to broadcast four Flames home contests live from the Vines Center, has covered Liberty’s athletics teams for the past 29 years, including both radio and television coverage. FSN’s broadcast team will consist of three former Flames wrestlers, Ray Jones, Roy Jones and Jeff Helgeson. Ray Jones (1980-81) and Roy Jones (1978) were with the program during its run of five-straight NCCAA national champion-ships, while Helgeson (1986-88) helped the Flames to three-consecutive Top 10 finishes at the NCAA Division II champi-onships.

Ray Jones, who will handle play-by-play duties during the dual events, is no stranger to the FSN broadcast teams. This past year, he returned to the network to reprise his roles as color commentator for football, while handling play-by-play du-ties for volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball. Roy Jones and Helgeson will share color commentating roles during the wrestling broadcasts. FSN’s television broadcast team con-sists of trained professionals who have worked for most of the major sporting networks in the United States, includ-ing ESPN, ABC Sports, CBS Sports, NBC Sports, NASCAR, SportSouth, Comcast and Fox Sports. FSN’s television broadcasting of Lib-erty’s home athletics events is handled through the Liberty Channel, a satellite/cable network offering family-friendly television. The Liberty Channel can be viewed in the greater Lynchburg area on most cable systems. Additionally, all FSN’s wrestling broadcasts will be video streamed via the Big South Network and available for

viewing anywhere in the world via the internet. The Big South Network is a sub-scription-based package where views can watch select sporting events via an inter-net web stream. For more information about FSN’s television broadcasts, contact Kevin Keys, Liberty University Associate AD for Exter-nal Operations, at (434) 592-3905 or by email at kkeys@liberty.edu.

Head coach Jesse Castro (middle) talks with Jeff Helgeson (left) and ray Jones (right) of the Flames Sports Network broadcast team following a wrestling match.

2009-10 Schedule of FSN Wrestling

Television Broadcasts

Date opponent TimeJan. 23 Bucknell 3 p.m.Jan. 30 Campbell 3 p.m.Feb. 2 UNC Greensboro 7 p.m.Feb. 12 Rutgers 7 p.m.

Bruce Carey - Liberty UniversityProducer - Athletics TV Broadcasts