The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling team is back home for a pair of matches before the holiday break this weekend.  The Mocs host No. 17 Ohio on Friday, Dec. 18, and Southern Conference foe Southern Illinois-Edwardsville on Sunday, Dec. 20. 
 
Both matches are at Maclellan Gym, with the Ohio match starting at 5:30 p.m. (E.S.T.).  Fans who come to the Ohio match can take their ticket stub across the street to McKenzie Arena for a free ticket to the men's basketball game against Kennesaw State following the wrestling action. 
 
Competition gets underway at 1:00 p.m. against SIUE.  Live scoring and live video are available for both matches.  Links can be found on the wrestling schedule page on GoMocs.com.
 
Chattanooga Mocs (4-1, 2-0 SoCon) Probable Lineup
125: Alonzo Allen (Fr. – 7-4) or Cody Minnick (Fr. - 0-0)
133: Cody Hill (So. - 3-3) or Jake Huffine (Fr. - 1-2)
141: Michael Pongracz (Jr. – 8-0)
149: Roman Boylen (Fr. - 5-2), Andrew Webb (Fr. - 1-1) or Jacob Murphy (So. - 3-4)
157: Kamaal Shakur (Fr. – 11-2)
165: Dominic Lampe (Fr. – 10-3)
174: Sean Mappes (Jr. – 8-3)
184: John Lampe (Sr. – 11-1)
197: No. 18 Scottie Boykin (Jr. - 8-3)
285: No. 13 Jared Johnson (Jr. - 8-1)
 
The Mocs have won four straight after dropping the season opener to No. 24 Stanford.  Chattanooga is 2-0 in Southern Conference action thanks to last week's wins at VMI and Campbell.   
 
UTC fields a young lineup, with seven freshmen among the probables.  However, Chattanooga is led by a pair of ranked juniors at the bottom of the lineup.  Scottie Boykin is No. 18 at 197 with an 8-3 overall record.  Jared Johnson is 8-1 at heavyweight and ranked 13th.  His only loss is No. 1 and defending NCAA Champion Nick Gwiazdowski of N.C. State at the Wolfpack Open. 
 
Junior Michael Pongracz is off to a great start.  After missing the Hokie Open with a should injury, he bounced right back to win the Wolfpack Open at 141.  He is 8-0 on the year and did not allow a point in two matches last week. 
 
Freshman Kamaal Shakur has won nine in a row at 157 and is 11-2 on the year.  Senior John Lampe is on an eight-match run after winning the Wolfpack Open and is 11-1 overall at 184
 
Chattanooga was picked to win the Southern Conference race for the 30th time since joining the league in 1978.  UTC returns six starters and four NCAA qualifiers from last year's team that went 13-6 overall and 7-0 in league action. 
 
Head Coach Heath Eslinger is in his seventh season at UTC.  A two-time Southern Conference Coach of the Year, he owns a 78-42 (.650) career dual record.
 
Ohio Bobcats (3-1, 0-0 MAC) Probable Lineup
125: Shakur Laney (Fr. - 11-4) or Hayden Lee (Fr. - 10-6)
133: Cameron Kelly (Fr. - 8-3) or Zack Hassan (So. - 8-7)
141: Noah Forrider (So. - 9-2)
149: Cullen Cummings (So. - 5-4)
157: Spartak Chino (Sr. - 12-3)
165: Ausitn Reese (Fr. - 9-4) or Grayson Davis (Fr. - 4-6)
174: No. 9 Cody Walters (Sr. - 7-2) 
184: Andrew Romanchik (Sr. - 3-3)
197: No. 12 Phil Wellington (Sr. - 13-1)
285: Jesse Webb (So. - 8-4) or Devin King (Fr. - 6-8)
 
Ohio is currently 3-1 and ranked No. 17 in the Intermat Dual Meet Top 25.  The Bobcats are also No. 21 in the NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll.  They have wins over Michigan State, Edinboro and Olivet, all at the Eastern Michigan Duals on Nov. 7.  The lone loss was to No. 8 Missouri on Dec. 13.
 
The Bobcats boast a pair of ranked individuals in No. 9 Cody Walters (174) and No. 12 Phil Wellington (197).   
 
Walters won his first eight matches, but lost in his last two outings.  Both of those were to ranked opponents in Princeton's No. 15 Jonathan Schleifer in the finals of the Navy Classic and in a dual against No. 8 Blaise Butler of Missouri.
 
Wellington is 14-1, with his only loss coming against Princeton's 10th-ranked Brett Harner in the finals of the Navy Classic. 
 
The Mocs have one four straight in the series that is tied 6-6 overall.  The Bobcats last visited Chattanooga on Dec. 12, 2011, for a very tight 18-17 affair won by Chattanooga. 
 
SIU Edwardsville Cougars (1-4, 0-0 SoCon) Probable Lineup
125: Joe Antonelli (Fr. - 11-8)
133: Dakota Leach (Jr. - 3-8)
141: John Muldoon (Fr. - 6-6)
149: John Fahy (So. - 9-5)
157: Nate Higgins (Fr. - 9-6) or Erik Travers (So. - 7-8)
165: Nate Higgins (Fr. - 9-6) or Erik Travers (So. - 7-8)
174: Clayton Bass (Jr.  - 1-9)
184: Derek Nagel (Sr. - 6-6)
197: Jake Tindle (Jr. - 8-5)
285: Chris Johnson (Sr. - 8-5)
 
SIUE started 0-4 but had a huge win in its last outing against Northwestern.  The Cougars posted a 28-18 victory against the Wildcats on Dec. 13 for their first win over a Big 10 opponent since 1989.
 
SIUE has competed against a tough schedule, with the other losses coming to Arizona State (38-6), No. 9 Illinois (41-3), No. 9 Missouri (36-7) and Indiana (25-12). 
 
The Cougars were picked sixth in the preseason SoCon race, but have been without reigning SoCon Champ Connor McMahon at 165. 
 
UTC scored a 31-6 win in last year's dual and holds a 7-5 advantage in the all-time series.  
 
The 197 matchup is a good one between returning SoCon Champ Jake Tindle and UTC's No. 18 Scottie Boykin.  Boykin scored a 10-5 win in the dual last year, but Tindle beat him 5-4 in the first round of the SoCon Tournament.
 
Heavyweight is also one to watch between Chris Johnson and UTC's No. 13 Jared Johnson.  SIUE's Johnson won the regular season meeting 4-2 in overtime in their only meeting last year.