Purdue set to face Wyoming at National Duals

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - The National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) released the regional brackets for the 2013 National Duals on Tuesday, naming the 16th-ranked Purdue wrestling team the No. 2 seed in the Missouri Regional.

The Boilermakers will face third-seeded and 20th-ranked Wyoming in the first round, marking just the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools.

This marks the highest-ever seed for the Boilermakers, accepting an invitation to the National Duals for the third straight season and just the fifth time in school history. The event has undergone its second change in format in as many years, setting four regional events (Missouri, Cornell, Kent State and Oregon State) with four teams set to compete at each venue.

The winner of each regional will advance to the national finals at the University of Minnesota on Feb. 22, where four automatic qualifiers await (Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio State).

The Boilermakers are 2-0-1 all-time against Wyoming, which enters the weekend 8-4 in dual competition, and are set to meet for the first time since 2004, when Purdue earned a 19-16 victory in Hampton, Va. The winner of the Boilermakers and Cowboys will face the winner of sixth-ranked and top-seeded regional host Missouri and Maryland.

Purdue has wrestled both the Tigers and Terrapins this season, falling to Missouri 23-9 in West Lafayette and suffering a narrow 20-19 loss to Maryland at the Northeast Duals.