Boiling Springs, N.C. - Gardner-Webb wrestling first-year head coach Daniel Elliott is pleased to announce the release of the Runnin' Bulldogs 2012-13 schedule, which includes tournaments such as the Hokie Open, the Cleveland State Open and the Brute Invitational, as well as team dual bouts against non-Southern Conference foes in Indiana, Virginia, George Mason, Ohio, Duke, N.C. State and Bucknell.

"This year's schedule offers a good mix of competition from around the country. With our current NCAA qualifying system, it is important that our student-athletes see the top competitors as often as we can, as this season we will have the opportunity to compete with teams from the Big 10, EIWA, EWL, MAC, and Colonial, among others," stated Elliott. "We will also have three ACC schools visiting Gardner-Webb this season, which will be nice to get some top competition here at home. The program will continue to participate in the Movember movement, as we will host a new event this year in the Movember Duals. This event will help us raise awareness and funding for cancer affecting men's health. We are excited to be moving into our second year as a member of the Southern Conference, and this schedule will help prepare our student-athletes for both the Southern Conference Championship Tournament and the NCAA National Championships come March."

In what has become an annual event, the Runnin' Bulldog grapplers will open up the season at the Hokie Open hosted by Virginia Tech in Salem, Va. on November 4th.

GWU will then return home to host the Movember Duals on November 10th, as the Runnin' Bulldogs welcome both Virginia and George Mason to Paul Porter Arena for a tri-match set to start at 8 a.m.

After hosting Belmont Abbey in a dual match on November 19th at 7 p.m., Coach Elliott's squad will head to the Midwest to compete at the Hoosier Duals hosted by Indiana University on December 1st. There, GWU will take on Indiana, Bucknell and fellow Southern Conference associate member Southern Illinois at Edwardsville in a series of dual matches starting at 9 a.m.

Gardner-Webb will remain on the road to face off with the Mountaineers of Appalachian State in a Southern Conference showdown on December 4th at 6:30 p.m., the Runnin' Bulldog grapplers last dual match of the 2012 calendar year.

The Runnin' Bulldogs will finish out the month of December at two open invitational events, as GWU will have a number of individuals compete at both the CSU Open, hosted by Cleveland State in Cleveland, Ohio, on December 15th and at the Brute Invitational hosted by Lock Haven University on December 29th.

GWU will jump start the New Year with three straight home matches versus N.C. State on January 12th, against Davidson on January 22nd, and versus VMI on January 28th.

After a Southern Conference match up with Campbell on January 28th at 7 p.m. in Buies Creek, N.C., Gardner-Webb will return home to host Chattanooga on February 1st at 7 p.m. and Duke on February 5th at 7 p.m. in GWU's final home matches of the season.

Gardner-Webb will wrap up its 2012-13 regular season slate with a conference match at The Citadel on February 10th at 1 p.m. and at a tri-match with both Ohio and Cleveland State in Cleveland, Ohio on February 23rd.

The 2013 Southern Conference Wrestling Championships will be held on Saturday, March 9th, at Cameron Hall on the campus of VMI in Lexington, Va.

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