UIndy recruiting class

[The Guru]

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4/17/2014 11:50:00 AM

INDIANAPOLIS- Head Coach Jason Warthan will add seven new Greyhounds to his 2014-2015 roster, signing the new UIndy student-athletes as a part of National Signing Day April 16.

 

Joining the Hounds will be Kyle Keller, Brendon Kelley, Heath Lange, Tyler Scott, DJ Smith, Brian Wagner and JD Waters. The seven new Greyhounds boast placing at their state meets a total of 16 times, including four state championships. The group contains three grapplers who hold their prep career wins records, and a total record of 1,034-213 with a .829 win percentage, while the group went to the state meet a total of 19 times in their careers. 

 

"We are obviously very excited and proud to add these student-athletes to the Greyhound wrestling family," Warthan said. "They are all character guys that take academics seriously and will all bring a unique set of skills to our team."

 

Keller, who will come in as a 133-pounder for the Hounds, is a Delta, Ohio product, earning four letters for the Panthers. He is a four-time state qualifier, and placed three times at the Ohio State Championships in his career. He boasts a runner-up finish this past season, along with a fourth place finish as a junior and a fifth place finish as a sophomore. Keller closed out his prep career with a record of 178-28, along with 96 career pins. He helped Delta to two state dual championships, and was a four-time league and sectional champion. His 178 wins are a Delta career record, while off the mat he was a four-year honor roll student and a 2014 Academic All-Ohio selection.

 

Kelley is an Indiana native, coming to the Hounds from Evansville Central High School. The three-time IHSAA state placer holds the Bears' record for career wins, posting a record of 169-18 in high school. Kelley went 50-0 with 37 pins en route to the 152-pound Indiana State title, pinning his opponent in 2:24 in the state championship bout. He will come in as a 149 for UIndy, after placing fourth as a junior and fifth as a sophomore. Kelley tallied a total of 121 pins and tech falls during his career, and was a three-time Regional champion a two-time sectional champion and a two-time Southern Indiana Athletics Conference champion.

 

Lange will also make the trip West to UIndy from Ohio. The Huntsville native earned four letters on the mat for Indian Lake High School, posting a career record of 147-36 as a two-time Ohio state placer. Lange, who will come into the UIndy room as a 157, is a three-time state qualifier, taking fourth as a junior and third as a senior. The honor roll student is a four-time All-Area selection, a three-time Conference champion, a two-time sectional champion and Indian Lake's career wins leader.

 

Scott will come in as a 197 for the Greyhounds, from Cedar Lake, Ind.'s Hanover Central High School. The high honor roll student went 139-40 as a prep, placing fourth at the IHSAA state championships as a senior. He is a two-time Regional and Sectional champion, adding a semistate and conference title to his resume as a senior as well. The two-time Academic All-State honoree was also a four-time semistate qualifier during his career for the Wildcats.

 

Smith, from nearby Franklin, Ind., will come into the UIndy room as a 125-pounder. The 2014 Indiana state champion at 113 pounds, Smith is a three-time Midstate, Johnson County and sectional champion. He was a three-time state qualifier and two-time state placer, also taking third as a junior. He boasts a career record of 111-14 with 494 career takedowns as a Grizzly Cub, and is also an Honor Roll student and National Honors Society member.

 

Wagner is also a Central Indiana product, from UIndy alum Chad Red's New Palestine program. Wagner earned nine total letters at New Pal, and will come to UIndy as a 197-pounder. He is a two-time state placer, taking third at 182 in 2013 and second at 195 this past year. He also earned a semistate champion as a senior, and was the sectional and regional runner-up this past year. He leaves New Pal with a career record of 131-29, and is a four-year member of the Academic "A" Team, as well as a member of the National Honors Society.

 

Waters rounds out the class, coming to UIndy as a 149 from Hudson, Mich. The two-time state champion and three-time state placer went 159-48 as a prep, and also was a three-time All-County selection, along with a three-time District and Regional champ. He also was a two-time League and county champion, and was honored as the LCAA Wrestling Scholar Athlete three times. He was also Academic All-State as a senior, and is a National Honors Society member.   

 

The Greyhounds lost seven of their 10 starters from this year's eighth-place finishing team at the NCAA Division II National Championships to graduation or exhaustion of eligibility.