Five-Star Matchups

Welcome to the first edition of "Five-Star Matchups" for 2011. Conference play resumes in full force on Saturday and here are the games to watch.

Dickinson at Haverford (Men's Basketball)
The surprising Red Devils (4-1 CC, 6-6) look to tighten their hold on second place in the CC when they visit the Main Line to play the Fords (3-2, 6-5). Haverford has won four straight in the series and 15 of 24 since the inception of the Conference. Dickinson's last win at Gooding Arena was in 2008 (51-50). The Devils' Matt Dolan ranks in the CC top 10 in scoring (14.4) and rebounding (8.3), as does the Fords' Sam Permutt (15.8, 9.2).

Ursinus at Johns Hopkins (Women's Basketball)
The first-place Blue Jays (6-0, 9-1) welcome the Bears (5-2, 8-3) to Goldfarb Gym, looking to extend their nine-game winning streak. Hopkins has not lost since its opening game and has won five in a row versus Ursinus. The Bears have not won in Baltimore since 1995 (74-70) - a stretch of 15 games. Although JHU is second in the Conference in scoring offense (68.3), expect a low-scoring contest, as the Jays (46.0) and Bears (48.7) are 1-2 in the Centennial in scoring defense.

Swarthmore at Franklin & Marshall (Women's Basketball)
The Garnet (4-1, 8-2) finds itself tied for second place in the Conference but faces a road challenge against the Diplomats (4-2, 6-5). Swarthmore registered its first-ever season sweep of F&M last winter, including an 88-83 overtime win that snapped a seven-game losing streak at Mayser Center. Kathryn Stockbower is second in the CC in scoring (17.4) and first in rebounding (13.6) for the Garnet, while the Diplomats are second in the Conference in field goal percentage defense (.328). Watch LIVE!

Gettysburg vs. Washington and Lee (Wrestling)
The Conference dual-meet schedule gets underway as the Bullets (0-0, 1-1) tangle with the Generals (0-0, 1-0). The day's best match could come at 165 between Gettysburg's Dan Grabfelder (13-8, 8 falls) and W&L's David Dennis (8-5). Freshman 174 Jared Leon has the Bullets' top record at 16-7, while rookie 197-pounder Jordan Yost leads W&L with a 7-2 mark.

2010 Wrestling Championship

The Centennial Conference Wrestling championship makes its first stop in the Garden State as the Stevens Institute of Technology hosts the 17th annual event on Saturday. The champion of each of the 11 weight classes will advance to the NCAA Division III championship in two weeks, while another "wild-card" wrestler will be selected to participate in the national event. The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy is the two-time defending champion and the 13th ranked Mariners are the favorite to "three-peat."

Who 2 Watch 4?

125: The gold should come down to USMMA's defending champion Jordan Alfaro (16-13) or McDaniel's Earl Eppard (15-13). Hopkins' Adam Stevens could also reach the final.

133: McDaniel's Tommy Goretsas (24-9) and Ursinus' Alex Blank (22-8) both have over 20 wins, while Hopkins' Paul Marcello could also reach the final.

141: Stevens' Ryan Bridge (12-2) is undefeated in Conference bouts this winter and is the favorite to win the gold medal before the home folks. W&L's Sam Campbell (15-5) and Ursinus' Dan Glover (20-7) will also factor in the weight class.

149: Ursinus' Connor McCormick (17-0) has 11 falls to his credit and is the favorite. USMMA's Martin Bell (13-10) and McDaniel's Brent Lowe (23-10) are his main contenders.

157: USMMA's Dan Twito (26-6), the defending champ at 149, has the most overall wins, but W&L's David Dennis (13-4) was undefeated in Centennial bouts. Stevens' Charles Favia (19-11) makes 157 the most interesting of the early weight classes.

165: USMMA's Vincent Renaut (20-3) is the defending champion, but will be challenged by Stevens' Joe Favia (22-6) and Johns Hopkins' Eric Levenseller (21-9).

174: This class figures to be a battle between USMMA's Justin Diesel (23-7) - ranked eighth nationally - and Stevens' Bobby Bishop (19-7) with Hopkins' Andrew Giannascoli (6-4) could also reach the final.

184: Ursinus' Nate Murren (20-3) is the favorite and will be challenged by McDaniel's Will Yeo (19-12) and Stevens' Vincent Termini (13-9).

197: The day's best final could pit USMMA's Eric Vincent (24-3) - the two-time defending champion and ranked 10th nationally - and Ursinus' Connor McNamara (27-3).

285: The championship will end on a high note with a talented class of heavyweights, led by 2009 Centennial Wrestler of the Year Brock Glotfelty (35-4) of McDaniel. The defending champion has 15 falls to his credit and is ranked ninth nationally. USMMA's Justin Connell (16-6) and Gettysburg's Bobby Christopher (21-5) will also contend for gold.

You can watch the finals LIVE on your computer, courtesy of Stevens. You can also get the championship bout results by following us on Twitter.

Five-Star Matchups

The atmosphere in Centennial gyms should be electric this weekend as the second semester is underway throughout Conference campuses. The basketball seasons hit the halfway mark for Conference play, while the dual wrestling season kicks off with a quad involving the top four teams in the Centennial.

McDaniel at Franklin & Marshall (Men's Basketball)
The first-place Green Terror (7-1 CC, 12-3) travel to Lancaster to take on the Diplomats (6-2, 13-2) in a game that will tell us a lot about both squads. McDaniel looks for a season sweep of F&M after downing the Blue, 66-57, just 11 days ago in Westminster. The Diplomats have dropped four straight to the Terror after winning 18 in a row from 1998-2007. Keep an eye on two matchups - guards Miguel Jones and Georgio Milligan and pivotmen Josh McKay and James McNally.

Muhlenberg at Washington (Women's Basketball)
Ordinarily, a matchup between the #25 team in the country and a team that has lost four of its last five would not warrant much attention. But if history teaches us nothing else, it's that if we don't learn from it, we're doomed to repeat it. On their last trip to the Eastern Shore in 2007, the Mules traveled to Chestertown sporting a national ranking and a 22-game win streak against the Shorewomen and were upset, 64-63. You've heard of the play, "Six Characters in Search of an Author." Well, this game may turn on how Washington (4-4, 9-5) can contain Muhlenberg's (10-0, 13-2) "Three Scorers in Search of a Nickname" - Alexandra Chili (15.7), Lauren Boyle (14.6) and Kelly McKeon (11.6). The Mules are just the fourth team to start the Centennial season 10-0.

McDaniel, Merchant Marine, Washington & Lee at Stevens (Wrestling)
The Centennial dual-meet season opens Saturday with the Green Terror (2-0, 6-9), Mariners (0-0, 7-6) and Generals (1-0, 2-2) traveling to Hoboken to face the Ducks (0-0, 6-6). USMMA is ranked 13th nationally and features a trio of ranked grapplers in #8 Philip Greene (133), #8 James Beshada (14-3, 141) and #6 Dan Twito (12-4, 149). Stevens' Mark Bisitis (141) is 16-5, while the Dormann brothers - Leo (157) and Ryan (174) - are 18-8, 19-7, respectively. W&L's John Christopher is 10-4 at 285 and could face McDaniel's Brock Glotfelty (23-1), ranked 10th nationally, in one of the premier bouts of the day.