NIU wrestling coach Dave Grant thought the 2007-2008 season would be a challenge, as half of his lineup was composed of freshmen.

“I knew that at the beginning of the year we couldn’t be in the same place that we were at the end,” Grant said. “I felt that we were in a much different place at the end of the year, and I think the results showed it.”

The Huskies wrestled five freshmen in their lineup with T.J. Wunnicke, Pat McLemore, Bryan O’Connor, Brad Dieckhaus and Jake Smith all contributing. But these weren’t the only young Huskies to contribute. When McLemore went out with an elbow injury, redshirt freshmen Tristen DeShazer and Vince Castillo stepped in. And when junior Jesse Linczmaier was injured late in the season, redshirt freshman Bryan Deutsch took over.

But the freshmen weren’t just in the lineup – they succeeded. O’Connor made it to the MAC Tournament finals and placed third, the same place Deutsch finished. Also, Wunnicke finished third in the MAC with 10 pins.

But the most impressive performance came from McLemore. After missing more than two months, McLemore came back to win the MAC championship at 141 pounds, earning him a trip to the NCAA Wrestling Championships in St. Louis.

On the road to winning the conference title, McLemore pinned returning MAC champion Eric Kruger of Central Michigan in the semifinals and defeated nationally ranked Drew Lashaway of Kent State in the finals.

“We got information that McLemore was out for the year,” Grant said. “What he’s done, it’s really remarkable.”

As a team, the Huskies finished third in the MAC regular season and tournament, behind Central Michigan and Kent State. Kent State was nationally-ranked at the end of February while Central Michigan finished the season ranked No. 7.

NIU also earned one of the bigger wins in school history on Nov. 30 when Northwestern came to the Convocation Center. The Huskies earned a 22-19 victory over the Wildcats, who finished 13th at the NCAA Championships.

“They obviously had some people out, and that helped us,” Grant said. “But then again, we had to beat a ranked guy to do it.”

NIU wrestled a lot of freshmen this season, but the team did return 2007 national qualifiers Pat Castillo and Duke Burk.Castillo didn’t disappoint in his final campaign, adding more accomplishments to his Huskie career.

The senior won the MAC championship for a second straight season and led the nation in major decisions. He also earned his third career placing at Midlands.

At the MAC tournament, Castillo was named the tournament’s most outstanding wrestler for the second straight season. The award is voted on by the MAC coaches.

“To me that says a lot,” Grant said. “To have respect from other coaches from opposing teams, that’s what it’s all about. Here’s a guy I can say that every time he walked on the mat he did his best.”

At the National Championships, Castillo earned his 100th victory as a Huskie and finished just one match away from becoming an All-American.

“Overall I wrestled pretty tough,” Castillo said. “Leading the nation in majors and winning the MAC, that’s something I can look at and be proud of.”

Burk returned to Nationals for the second straight season. The sophomore went 28-7 on the year and placed second in the MAC tournament. Burk also fell just one match short of being an All-American.

The future looks bright for the NIU wrestling team. The Huskies will lose three wrestlers who had winning records in 2008 in Castillo, Dave Benner and Kalen Knull. However, the team returns everybody else and will only have one senior next season in Linczmaier.

Grant will also have a talented incoming recruiting class to work with, which includes four-time Wisconsin state champion Bobby Wunnicke, brother of T.J.

“I’m excited about where our programs going and the possibilities here,” Grant said. “I’ve been here 12 years and I’ve never been in a position like this. A lot of exciting things are going on here at Northern, it’s a time to be very positive.”