LA GRANDE, Ore. – The Eastern Oregon men's and women' wrestling teams open their season this weekend, with the men taking on No. 3 Montana State-Northern Friday, October 26 and the women open Saturday, October 27 against Providence.

Men's Wrestling

The Mountaineers have a lot of new faces this season, and they will be put to the test right away when they head into Havre. EOU just missed the top-20 in the preseason NAIA poll, and finished 19th at Nationals last season.

Head coach Dustyn Azure brought in a dynamic recruiting class of thirteen student-athletes to the program. There is a mix of freshman and transfers, most notably being Dino May, who has been with the team as an assistant since the program came back in 2016. May recently decided to enter graduate school and compete during his last year of eligibility, which is a huge acquisition for the Mountaineers.

Eastern Oregon will retain three wrestlers that went to Nationals last season, who will be leaders for this 2018-19 Mountaineer team alongside May. Seniors Drake Randall and Mhar Caballa and junior Blake McNall all competed well enough to reach the national stage last season, and will look to build on that experience coming into this year. Randall is ranked No. 8 in the 165-lb weight class to open the season, followed by McNall at No. 9 at 133 pounds and Caballa is No. 12 at 125 pounds.

The Mounties are projected to finish sixth in the CCC this year, which is a very competitive conference. Four Cascade teams will start the year in the top-10, including Montana State-Northern at No. 3, Providence at No. 4, Menlo at No. 6, and Embry-Riddle at No. 10. EOU will have their work cut out for them this season, but will have ample opportunity to compete against the best of the best.

The Blue and Gold will get a taste of elite competition right away, facing the No. 3 and No. 4 programs in back-to-back days opening the season. Montana State-Northern and Providence are predicted to finish first and third in the CCC respectively, meaning the Mounties will need to be on top of their game right from the start this year.

The first home match for EOU is slated for November 3, at 7 p.m. in Quinn Coliseum. The Mountaineers will be hosting Big Bend Community College, a team they haven't met since the wrestling program was reintroduced in 2016.

Women's Wrestling

The women's wrestling team is coming off of a 4-4 season in 2017-18, and took 15th place in the Women's Collegiate Wrestling Association Championships in Oklahoma City. They open their season this Saturday, October 27 at 6 p.m. in Great Falls, taking on Providence.

The Mountaineers are about to start their third season as an official EOU program, finishing 15th at Nationals the previous two years. The program increased in size from nine wrestlers to fourteen this season, with seven newcomers.

The Mountaineers had one wrestler advance to Nationals last season in Jessica Dehart, who finished fourth. Her finish stands as the best in program history, and she is the only wrestler to be an All-American twice, accomplishing the accolade in the previous two seasons. However, Dehart will be redshirting this season, meaning the Mountaineers will be missing their top wrestler. The newcomers will look to step up and assist the returners to fill the void of losing the two-time All-American.

Other key returners for EOU include sophomore Alexis Cavero, who led the team in wins a year ago and was a win away from becoming an All-American. Junior Amber Pair is expected to have an even better year this season after winning two matches at nationals last season. Junior Lisa Megargee and sophomore Renay Monohan will also look for improved years for the Mounties.

EOU will also play host to Big Bend CC on Nov. 3rd,  their first home event of the year. Other highlights of the schedule include two prestigious events in the Mike Clock Tournament and Spokane Open, taking place at Forest Grove, Oregon and Spokane, Washington respectively. The 2018-19 WCWA Nationals are set for Feb. 8 in Atlanta, Georgia.

For more information on Eastern Oregon wrestling, follow @EOUAthletics or visit eousports.com.

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Contact: Iain Dexter; 541-962-3946; idexter@eou.edu