LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University wrestling program will experience a few more "firsts" on Sunday.

Bellarmine is set to host its first-ever Division I event, which simultaneously represents its first-ever home duals in Southern Conference action. The Knights will oversee a tri-meet with new conference counterparts The Citadel and Presbyterian.

Bellarmine (0-4, 0-2 SoCon) will square off with The Citadel (2-2, 1-1) at noon (ET) in Knights Hall before facing Presbyterian (0-0) at 2 p.m. The Bulldogs and Scotsman will lead things off at 10 a.m.

"The guys are excited to take the mat this weekend at home," Knights Coach Spencer Adams said. "It's always fun to wrestle at home, but this weekend is special for multiple reasons, not the least of which is we have an opportunity to break the ice and win our first dual as a team. To pick up our first win in front of all of those who support and believe in our program would be a great feeling."

Bellarmine made its SoCon debut last Sunday in a tri-meet at Appalachian State, falling 27-16 to Davidson and 45-0 to the host Mountaineers. Sophomores Mitch Collica (149) and Devan Hendricks (174) won by decision and senior Eric Beck (165) captured a major decision in the former dual. Beck and Hendricks notched a win in both of Bellarmine's tri-meets.

"So far, we have improved each week and are moving steadily in the right direction," Adams said. "The guys remain focused and committed each day and, as a coach, I can honestly say that I am proud of how they continue to respond and move forward. As I've said before, this is a special group of guys. I don't know what the outcomes will be this weekend, but I do know that we are controlling the things that we can control: our attitude, commitment and work ethic. If we continue to focus on those three controllable aspects, we will continually get better as individuals and as a team."

The Citadel split its SoCon duals last weekend at Gardner-Webb. The Bulldogs were edged 17-15 by Chattanooga but regrouped for a commanding 32-9 win over the host school. Presbyterian will be making its season debut.

"The Citadel and Presbyterian are both well-coached teams and will be coming here to pick up two wins on the weekend," Adams said. "On paper, every dual between all three teams should be hard fought and exciting to watch. Depending on matchups, every dual is up in the air on who will come out victorious. Each team believes they can beat the other. It really doesn't get much better than this as far as competiveness goes. I'm really looking forward to this weekend just as a wrestling fan in general."

In these unprecedented times, it's been a 0-to-100 kind of season for Bellarmine, but Adams said the Knights are starting to settle in to their new environment.

"I think that one major difference between our first dual and where we are now is that the guys are starting to believe that they can compete at this level," Adams said. "We have wrestled some of the top individuals in the country in various weight classes and our guys were in on shots, got some takedowns and had moments of success. I've heard from several guys after matches say, 'I can beat that guy.' Confidence goes a long way and we are starting to gain that right now. We haven't yet put our best foot forward on the mat, but with each day, we edge closer to that moment where it all clicks and, once we get there, I think this team will be a whole new animal."

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