ERIE, Pa. -- The Mercyhurst College wrestling squad holds on to its No. 2 ranking in the latest East Region poll as eight different athletes are ranked in the top six of their respective weight classes.

The Lakers (5-1) sit behind top-ranked Newberry while Pitt-Johnstown, West Liberty and Shippensburg round out the top five teams of the East Region, respectively.

At 125 lbs, Payne Lint jumped two spots and owns the region's No. 2 ranking after posting a 7-2 record in December with one pin, two technical falls and a major decision. Lint owns a record of 15-8 overall mark, including a 5-1 mark in dual meets.

At 133 lbs, Michael Baxter also ranks third behind top-ranked and fellow PSAC grappler Joe Kemmerer of Kutztown and second-ranked Shane Valko of Pitt-Johnstown. Baxter posted three falls en route to a 5-3 record during the month and maintained his undefeated dual meet record. The freshman is now 16-7 overall.

At 149 lbs, Lenny Calhoun is ranked sixth. At 157 lbs, Andy Lamancusa slides up one spot to No. 2 spot behind West Liberty's Mitch Smith. He improved his record to 16-8 overall after finishing December an even .500 at 3-3. Of his losses, two came narrowly as he fell to Smith 5-4 in a dual meet before falling in the third-place match of the PSAC Championship to Hadley Harrison of Division I Clarion, 3-2.

Josh Shields held on to his No. 2 ranking at 165 lbs and improved to 6-2 on the year with a 3-1 mark during December. At 184 lbs, Brian Wolff owns the No.6 ranking thanks to a 6-2 record to improve to 16-7 on the year. At 197 lbs, Trevor Gallo (6-6) ranks fourth, while at heavyweight, Mike Sullivan cracks into the rankings for the first time this season with a 5-1 mark at No. 6

Mercyhurst will face some of the nation's top teams this weekend, Jan. 10-11, at the National Wrestling Coaches Association/Cliff Keen Duals on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa. Brackets for the event will be released later this week along with the latest NCAA Division II National Rankings.

Following the duals, Mercyhurst will host regional rival Pitt-Johnstown on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. 

Team Rankings
1 Newberry (NC) (10-1)
2 Mercyhurst (MC) (5-1)
3 Pitt-Johnstown (UPJ) (2-1)
4 West Liberty (WL) (0-2)
5 Shippensburg (Ship) (3-0-1)
6 Kutztown (KU) (3-1-1)
7 Limestone (LC) (0-3)
8 Gannon (GU) (0-1)
9 UNC-Pembroke (UNCP) (2-3)
10 Anderson (AU) (3-8)
11 Carson Newman (CN) (2-1)
12 Belmont Abbey (BAC) (1-2)
13 American Intl (AIC) (4-6)
14 Seton Hill (SH) (4-5)
15 St. Andrews (SAPC) (0-2)


125 Pounds
1 Matt Oliver (NC)
2 Chris Neidermeier (BAC)
3 Payne Lint (MC)
4 CJ Hamilton (AU)
5 Russell Weakley (UNCP)
6 Scott Morgan (UPJ) 

133 Pounds
1 Joe Kemmerer (KU)
2 Shane Valko (UPJ)
3 Michael Baxter (MC)
4 Andrew Young (NC)
5 Mike Nash (UNCP)
6 Ethan Swope (GU) 

141 Pounds
1 Doug Surra (WL)
2 AJ Milanak (GU)
3 Tony Washington (NC)
4 Adam Whetstone (UPJ)
5 Jeremy Parker (LC)
6 John Paukovits (KU) 

149 Pounds
1 Latra Collick (NC)
2 Kayne Melko (WL)
3 Nick DiCarlo (AU)
4 Joey Anceravage (Ship)
5 Brett Martinez (KU)
6 Lenny Calhoun (MC) 

157 Pounds
1 Mitch Smith (WL)
2 Andy Lamancusa (MC)
3 Brandon Monin (GU)
4 Sean Byrnes (NC)
5 Chris Chambers (KU)
6 JJ Jackson (AU) 

165 Pounds
1 Kyle Keane (UPJ)
2 Josh Shields (MC)
3 Jake Wilson (Ship)
4 David Zeek (KU)
5 Trevor Sandford (AU)
6 Vinnie Salek (NC) 

174 Pounds
1 Joby Shreckhise (LC)
2 Chris Barrick (Ship)
3 Josh Whitelock (NC)
4 Will Campbell (CN)
5 Adam Phillips (BAC)
6 Steve Makin (UPJ) 

184 Pounds
1 Dan Scanlan (LC)
2 Bryant Blanton (NC)
3 Nick Padezan (SH)
4 Jacob Tazzi (GU)
5 Jon Hade (Ship)
6 Bryan Wolff (MC) 

197 Pounds
1 Keeno Griffin (NC)
2 Pat Walsh (UPJ)
3 Scott Snyder (KU)
4 Trevor Gallo (MC)
5 Tim Stanton (BAC)
6 Dave Spinelli (GU) 

285 Pounds
1 Cy Wainwright (NC)
2 Trey Moss (LC)
3 Chris Dempsey (UPJ)
4 Frank McGrath (GU)
5 Kevin Bolinsky (KU)
6 Mike Sullivan (MC)