March 18, 2003

Duke University senior Tommy Hoang (Cushing, Okla.) will compete at the 2003 NCAA Wrestling Championship in Kansas City, Missouri this weekend. The three-day tournament is scheduled to begin on Thursday, March 20 and continue through Saturday, March 22.

Hoang, a 125-pounder, posted a 17-6 record with a team best six wins by fall this season. He placed third in the ACC Tournament to earn his third consecutive wild card bid to the NCAA Championship. Hoang enters the NCAA Championship with a career record of 87-46, ranking sixth all-time in career wins at Duke.

The Cushing, Okla. native has posted a 2-4 record in his two previous NCAA trips, including a pin (4:05) of Marlon Felton of Northern Illinois last season and an upset of fourth-seeded Jason Powell (Nebraska) in 2001. Hoang is just the third three-time NCAA wrestling qualifier at Duke, joining Joel Puleo (1973-75) and Chris Heckel (1995, 1997-98).

Hoang's opening round opponent will be Oregon State's Michael Delaney. Delaney, 9-12 on the season, placed fourth in the PAC-10 Tournament to earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. The winner of the Hoang-Delaney match will face either third-seed Ben VomBaur (Boise State) or Matt Valenti (Penn).