SPORTS
Injury sidelines senior wrestler Kevin Black
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Thursday, February 27, 2003
University of Wisconsin wrestling co-captain Kevin Black will not participate in the 2003 Big Ten Conference Wrestling Championships. The meet, held at the University of Wisconsin Field House March 8-9, is the qualifying tournament for the 2003 NCAA Wrestling Championships.
Black sustained a knee injury during a dual meet against Michigan State Jan. 31 and will undergo a minor surgical procedure to repair the injury. The 2002 All-American at 133 pounds will be unable to return to wrestling at the collegiate level because his eligibility will end at the conclusion of this season.
“It’s tough to lose Kevin,” UW head coach Barry Davis said. “He’s a kid who puts his life into wrestling and winning. He placed fourth last year at the NCAA Championships to earn All-American honors and had an opportunity to win it all this year. So it’s tough to lose a potential national champion, hard on him and hard on the team, but we’ll go on.”
Black, whose brother Tony also wrestles for the Badgers, has built an 85-39 career record at UW with 27 falls. He has qualified for the NCAA championships every year of his eligibility at UW, and as a junior, Black led Wisconsin to a 25th-place team finish at the NCAA championships, placing fourth nationally at 133 pounds. His top-eight finish earned him his first All-American honor, becoming the 47th wrestler in UW history to earn the national award.
This season, the River Falls, Wis., native earned a national preseason ranking of fourth at 133 pounds from both Amateur Wrestling News and WrestlingMall.com. Black jumped out to a strong start this season by winning the Michigan State Open title and placing second in the prestigious Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, helping Wisconsin to an eighth place finish.
He also led the Badgers in dual wins over No. 25 Northern Illinois and No. 17 Northern Iowa as the team compiled an 8-0 non-conference record to start the season. Prior to his knee injury, Black accepted an invitation to compete at the 2003 Cape Cod Potato Chips/National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic in an elite lineup of the nation’s best Division I wrestlers. He compiled a 16-2 overall record this season with a 7-1 dual record and 1-1 record in Big Ten duals; his six pins this season ties him with his brother Tony for most on the team.
A history major at UW, Black plans to graduate in May and will marry his fiancée Liz Reusser this summer. Currently, he is helping the UW wrestling team prepare for the Big Ten championships, and he is considering teaching or ministry work in the future. Reusser, a member of both the UW women’s cross country team and track and field team, was a 2001 Big Ten Outdoor Track Champion in the 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter races. After finishing her bachelor’s degree, she plans to attend the UW School of Pharmacy. Both Black and Reusser would also like to enter the coaching profession. ?compiled from staff reports
