By Jim O'Hara
 
ROME, Ga. – Since he took over the wrestling program five years ago, Shorter head coach Josh Henson made it a point to make sure his teams had the opportunity see how they fared against high-profile opponents.

Opening the season last month by taking on the Oklahoma Sooners, one of the nation's most storied teams, for the second straight year lends credence to his plan for the Hawks as they compete as a full NCAA Division II member for the first time.

On Saturday, Shorter's quest to face the best comes home.

For the first time ever in the history of the team, the Hawks will host a major Division I program when the Duke Blue Devils arrive in Rome to take on Shorter in their home opener at the Winthrop-King Centre at 7:30 p.m.

"It is always fun to wrestle top competition," Henson said about the match against the Atlantic Coast Conference foe, "but hosting an ACC school is truly a unique opportunity for us.

"The match versus Duke," he added, "is a great chance to measure where we our as a team at this point in the season."

Although it will be the first time Duke has even had a team compete in Rome, the Blue Devils are no stranger to the city. Included on the roster will be former Rome High standout Immanuel Kerr-Brown, who will be wrestling in his own backyard for the first time since he took his talents to the Durham, N.C., school four years ago.

A two-time state Georgia high school champion, Kerr-Brown emerged as one of the nation's top 157-pound wrestler in Division I last year when he qualified for the NCAA national tournament and is eager to make a return to the spotlight this year having opened the season with a 7-2 record and carrying a No. 18 ranking.

The Hawks, however, appear poised to hold their own against the Blue Devils entering the match with a 4-2 record. Shorter opened the year falling on the road to Oklahoma, rebounded by reeling off three straight wins that included a victory over Central Florida and emerged with the team title at the UCF Open. The Hawks' latest outing resulted in a one-point setback to Life.

The two-time Georgia Intercollegiate state champions, Shorter currently has five wrestlers ranked in the top 12 nationally in Division II.

Leading the Hawks against Duke includes freshman Aldon Isenberg, who is ranked No. 5 thanks to an 8-1 record, while junior Ben Smith (125), junior Wally Figaro (165), senior Dalton Lane (174) and senior Terrence Smith (184) have also garnered national rankings.

Rounding out Shorter's lineup against Duke will be freshman Colby Rinehart, senior Nate Galloway, sophomore Kannon Madden, freshman- Robert Hunter and senior Andrew Ewers.

Following their showdown against the Blue Devils, the Hawks close out the 2014 portion of their schedule on Dec. 13 when Shorter heads to Indiana to compete in the 36^th annual Midwest Classic hosted by the University of Indianapolis.