Feb. 24, 2005

Charleston, SC - Their final seasons have not gone exactly as planned. But as Citadel seniors prepare for their last home wrestling match tonight, they know there still is time to go out in a blaze of glory.

Four seniors -- Keith Clifton, Billy Linane, Ryan McClester and Mike Martinez -- will wrestle for the last time at McAlister Field House at 7 p.m. today against Gardner-Webb. (Another senior, Sean Markey, is taking a medical redshirt this year.)

But with the Southern Conference tournament set for next week, a return trip to the NCAA Championships is still possible for Clifton, Linane and McClester, each of whom will be gunning for their third trip to the national tournament. "We've had some letdowns this year, most of them through no fault of their own," said coach Rob Hjerling, whose squad is 4-8-1 this season, including a 2-2-1 SoCon mark, after winning the league championship a year ago. "But everybody is feeling better now than they have all year, and we have the best lineup we could have right now.

"All our seniors and the whole team are doing everything they can to put themselves in a position to compete well at the conference tournament."

It's been a challenging year for each of the seniors:

-- Ryan McClester, the SoCon wrestler of the year last season, had to move up in weight class from 125 pounds to 133 and is just now rounding into form at that weight. McClester is 19-8 this season, and with 107 career victories is the only Citadel wrestler to amass 100 career victories (at least, that research has so far uncovered).

"He's just starting to realize how good he can be at 133," Hjerling said. "I think if he gives himself the opportunity at the NCAAs, he could be in contention for All-American honors."

-- Keith Clifton, who also made the NCAA Championships the last two years, is 8-11 at 184 pounds this season and has battled injuries all season.

"He's healthier now but missed some opportunities to wrestle some of the top guys in the country," Hjerling said. "He's almost 100 percent physically and mentally and could really step it up at the conference tournament."

-- Heavyweight Billy Linane is 15-14 this year after making the NCAAs the last two years. "He's been a little inconsistent this year, but he knows he has the ability to win at the tournament," Hjerling said.

-- Mike Martinez, a three-year starter, is 4-6 this year at 149 pounds, and is "a great guy to have in the room and a great student," Hjerling said.

"In my mind, these guys were really a key part of the building process here," Hjerling said. "Keith was in our first recruiting class and the other guys in the second. They really bought into our coaching philosophy and knew the things we wanted to accomplish as a team were tangible.

"They did as much as they could to help take this program to a different level."