The Panther wrestlers are trying to stay focused while five starters are questionable for their next meet.

Pat Dowty, Matt Veach, Adam Sesso, Jim Kassner and Kenny Robertson all missed Sunday’s meet with injuries and, with the exception of Robertson, the meet before as well.

Eastern turned to its freshmen in the dual meets against 21st ranked Northern Iowa and the Big Ten’s Northwestern.

“It’s pretty tough to beat a Big Ten team missing half your starters,” Eastern head coach Ralph McCausland said.

Three of the five freshmen in the lineup were getting their first or second starts of the year.

“I started all four years in high school so I was ready for it,” freshman Adam Beeler said. “But it’s a whole different level of competition.”

Beeler said the injured starters have kept their hopes up but are frustrated to not be out there in some of the biggest matches of the year.

But McCausland is trying to keep the team’s mind off the injuries and let the wrestlers have some time off after a rough stretch of meets.

“We’re trying not to dwell on the negatives,” McCausland said.

McCausland compliments the freshmen on their enthusiasm and wants to try to keep them focused. The status of the injured starters remains questionable for Sunday’s match up with Big Ten powerhouse Purdue.

“We’ll make mid-week evaluations and have to make some decisions,” McCausland said. “We don’t want to risk anyone going back too early and getting hurt again.”

This season isn’t the first season that McCausland’s crew has faced adversity regarding injuries. Last season, Dowty was hampered with several injuries throughout the season but still managed to get himself healthy enough to qualify for the NCAA Regionals.

In its last two dual meets, Pete Ziminski scored the team’s only points. The five starters that are missing have accounted for nearly half of Eastern’s wins in dual meets.