Mocs wrestlers meet with head coach Heath Eslinger. The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga climbed one notch to No. 22 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association poll this week, and much of the reason for the Mocs’ 11-5 record can be linked to freshmen.
Dawson Peck (285) is 5-1 since joining the team the week after the Southern Scuffle, while Michael Pongracz (149) is 16-9 and Scottie Boykin 15-11. That’s a combined record of 36-21 with a .632 winning percentage.
“All three are doing a great job. They love to compete. All three have usable weapons in that each is really good at certain things,” Mocs coach Heath Eslinger said. “That’s one thing that’s helped them be successful. Some people would say they’re young. They don’t act like it. They know you have to work hard in order to compete.”
The Mocs put their ranking and their 2-0 Southern Conference record on the line tonight when they visit The Citadel in Charleston, S.C.
“They have a super solid team — 10 good guys and a couple of really good guys: a returning All-American at 141 and a top-12 guy at 165,” Eslinger said of the Bulldogs. “We definitely need to be ready to compete.”