DURHAM, N.C. –Duke heavyweight Jacob Kasper captured his second ACC Wrestler of the Week honor of the year as the Blue Devils head into a midweek dual at Gardner-Webb Wednesday night. Kasper and the Blue Devils are back in action in Boiling Springs at 7 p.m., against the Runnin' Bulldogs.

Kasper Named ACC Wrestler of the Week

•  A two-win week, including an upset of the nation's No. 3 heavyweight, earned Kasper his second ACC Wrestler of the Week award. Kasper, ranked fifth last week in the InterMat poll, pinned Will Hilliard of Old Dominion at the 0:57 mark of their bout last Wednesday to spark the Blue Devils 18-16 comeback victory over the Monarchs in Norfolk. He followed that up with a 15-7 major decision over Virginia Tech's Ty Walz, who was ranked third nationally by InterMat, in the Blue Devils' loss to the Hokies on Sunday. The loss by Walz was only his third in 19 bouts and his first to someone other than Wisconsin's Connor Medberry, the nation's second-ranked heavyweight.

About the Match

• Duke and Gardner-Webb will square off Wednesday at 7 p.m., at Paul Porter Arena. Admission is free and for those unable to make it can catch the action live on BigSouthSports.com.

Series History

• The Blue Devils and Runnin' Bulldogs are squaring off for the 30th straight season. Duke is 26-2-1 all-time against Gardner-Webb. The Runnin' Bulldogs earned their first victory since 1997 last season when they bested the Blue Devils 19-18 in Durham. Duke will look to avenge the loss to pick up the 27th victory against the Big South school.

Climbing the Rankings

• Kasper jumped up another spot to fourth in the InterMat heavyweight rankings. The redshirt junior was unranked in the preseason and debuted at No. 14 in the Nov. 8 poll. He dropped back to No. 18, but has made the steady climb into the top five since winning the Southern Scuffle.

• Connor Bass remains steady at No. 17 in the InterMat rankings with a 15-8 overall record. He is 4-4 against ranked foes this season. Bass, unranked for the early weeks of the season, moved into the top 20 at No. 15 Jan. 4.

About the Blue Devils

• Duke heads to Gardner-Webb in search of its fourth win of the season. The Blue Devils are 3-6 overall following a hard-fought setback to fifth-ranked Virginia Tech. Four of Duke's six losses came against ranked opponents, while the wins are against Hofstra, Old Dominion and LIU Post.
• Kasper leads the Duke contingent with a 23-1 overall record and is riding a 17-match win streak dating back to Nov. 18. He is 5-0 against top 20 opponents and has his sights set on joining the 30-win club.
• Senior Cole Baumgartner is coming on strong down the stretch for Duke as a winner in each of his previous three matches. He is 16-8 overall at 133 pounds and 6-3 in duals.
• Zach Finesilver (141), Thayer Atkins (125) and Bass (174) all are in the double digit wins column with 13-8, 17-7 and 15-8 records, respectively. Finesilver has scored bonus points for the Blue Devils in four of his six dual wins this season, while Bass looks to even his dual record Wednesday. Two of his dual setbacks came against top 20 foes.

Probable Lineup

125: Thayer Atkins (17-7)

133: Cole Baumgartner (16-8)

141: Zach Finesilver (13-8)

149: Xaviel Ramos (3-12)

157: Jake Faust (6-2)

165: Garrett Neff (1-6)

174: No. 17 Connor Bass (15-8)

184: Alec Schenk (7-11)

197: Luke Farinaro (1-6) or Alex Belaia-Martiniouk (1-6)

HWT: No. 4 Jacob Kasper (23-1)

Scouting Gardner-Webb

• Gardner-Webb is 5-6 overall following its 33-10 loss to No. 19 South Dakota State. The Runnin' Bulldogs will have a balanced lineup against the Blue Devils with six of the 10 starters having at least 13 wins to their names. The trio of Chris Vassar (149), Ryan Mosley (157) and Boyce Cornwell (HWT) has 17 wins apiece, while veteran 174-pounder Austin Trott is 15-3 on the year. Tyler Marinelli rounds out the group of six with a 13-4 mark at 165 pounds.
• Four Runnin' Bulldogs were listed in the first NCAA coaches panel rankings. Gamble led the way at No. 17 at 184 pounds, while Marinelli and Trott were 23rd in their respective weight classes. Cornwell was 27th in the first release thanks to his 15-4 record at the time.

Probable Lineup

125: Landon LoAlbo (2-10)
133: Philip Anderson (5-13)
141: Ryan Hull (7-12)
149: Chris Vassar (17-7)
157: Ryan Mosley (17-9)
165: Tyler Marinelli (13-4)
174: Austin Trott (15-3)
184: Hunter Gamble (16-3)

197: Payton Mills (6-13)
285: Boyce Cornwell (17-7)

In Common

• Duke and Gardner-Webb share a common opponent in Appalachian State. The Runnin' Bulldogs battled the Mountaineers tough in a 19-17 setback, while Duke lost 25-11.

Rematches

• Atkins will likely have a rematch against Landon LaAlbo at 125 pounds. Atkins defeated LoAlbo by a 10-2 major decision at the Southern Scuffle. Baumgartner is set up to face Philip Anderson again at 133 after getting the 9-2 decision in the Southern Scuffle.
• Garrett Neff, with more experience under his belt, will try to avenge a loss to Marinelli at the Wolfpack Open in November. Alec Schenk will look to do that same and garner quality RPI points against Gamble, who defeated Schenk 3-0 in the Wolfpack Open.
• Finesilver aims to match his performance from last season when he pinned Ryan Hull in the second period.

Up Next

• Duke returns home Sunday, Feb. 5 to host ACC foe Virginia at 2 p.m. The Blue Devils will honor five seniors prior to the match against the Cavaliers. The match will be streamed on ACC Network Extra.