The NIU wrestling squad won all five of its road dual meets this weekend by a combined score of 167-43, upping its season record to 12-2.

On Friday, the Huskies topped Central Michigan 21-15 and beat Ashland College 35-6. The Huskies upended Ferris State 19-15, and Chicago State 57-0 on Saturday. At their final stop of the weekend, they defeated Marquette 35-7.

“Ferris State was great,” coach Ed Vatch said. “I personally was really up for that one. They have an excellent squad. Their 158-pounder is ranked second (in the country), their 167 is ranked first, their 177 is ranked second and their 190 is ranked second. That’s quite a team. We didn’t take the lead until the 190-pound match (in which Anton Kossakowski decisioned Joe Chapman 16-11).”

For the Huskies, Anton Kossakowski (190 pounds) led the way with a perfect 3-0 weekend. John Willems (118), Jim Herdman (142), Jim Kossakowski (150), Brett Messerli (158), Ted Anderson (167) and Mark Kuehl (Hwt) all won four matches and lost one.

Other NIU tallies were Tino Gonzalez (134), 2-0-1, Joe Madonia (177), 3-1, and Bill Jepsen, 0-1 at 177 pounds and 2-0 at 190 pounds.

“Tino (Gonzalez) deserves some applause,” Vatch said. “He hasn’t lost in his last eight matches. Against Marquette, he was down 3-0 but he came back for a draw. He had the ‘I want it bad’ attitude. I’m real pleased with his performance.”

Vatch also pointed to the efforts of Mark Kuehl, who has had four pins in his last seven matches, and Ted Anderson, who has wrestled “seven of the top eight guys in the country and done it well.”

The Huskies host Northern Iowa Friday. The Panthers have been a consistent top 10 team in recent years and Vatch knows his team will be underdogs.

“They (the Panthers) have all the credentials of the national championship team,” Vatch said. “They’re at the national limit for scholarships, and have 60 some guys on the team.

“We don’t have the money for a lot of scholarships. When I can dig some up, I’ll give it to the guys we have now.”

“The guys we have now aren’t here for the scholarships, money, or the prestige; they’re here because they want to be here wrestling. They’re hard-nosed kids who like being the underdog.”

The Huskies’ 12-2 record is their best since 1985 when they went 13-3 for the season. But Vatch has his sights set higher; as in a national ranking.

“If we improve as much this month as we did last, we could possibly make the top 20,” Vatch said. “My wife told me yesterday that the CIA will want to know how I can hide a secret like the one we’ve got now.”