February 18, 1998 

MONMOUTH,IL -- Fighting Scot wrestling coach Mike Olson, currently in his 34th year of collegiate wrestling and his 8th season at Monmouth College, recently passed another personal milestone in his coaching career. The Scots' 50-3 victory over Central College (Iowa) on January 24 was Olson's 400th dual-match win and puts the Monmouth coach in elite company among all college divisions.  

Monmouth has since won seven additional matches to give Olson 407 career victories and this year's team a 13-10 dual-match record heading into this weekend's match at Knox College. Olson has coached the Fighting Scots to an 86-50-1 record in eight seasons at MC, a winning mark of over 62 percent. His 1995-96 team holds the school record for most dual match wins in a single season (17) and this season is the fifth time in the last seven years the Scots have recorded double-figure dual victories.

 A 1959 graduate of Coe College, Olson received a Master of Science degree from Wayne State University and also began his coaching career at the Nebraska school. He has also coached at Upper Iowa University, Pembroke State (North Carolina) and Dickinson State (North Dakota). Olson reached the 200-win mark in 1980 at Pembroke and earned his 300th victory at Dickinson State during the 1986-87 campaign. While at Dickinson State Olson was inducted into the NAIA Wrestling Coaches' Hall of Fame (1985) and also led a group of wrestlers on a cultural exchange tour of China and Korea (1986).