The 2019 d3wrestle.com Wrestler of the Year is Darden Schurg of Wabash. Schurg capped a 26-1 season with a championship at 174 lbs. at the NCAA championships. He was the champion at the Michigan State and Concordia Opens, and he was 2nd at the Little State and Central Regional. He defeated the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 7th place finishers at his weight either during the season or during the NCAA tournament and was undefeated against DIII competition. He topped the defending NCAA champion at this weight in both the opening tournament of the year and in the NCAA finals. His only loss this year came in the Little State finals to the 2019 NAIA national champion.
A senior from Crown Point, Indiana, Schurg is a two time All-American and three time NCAA qualifier. He finished fourth at 174 lbs. in the 2018 NCAA Championships. At that event, he lost to the 2nd and 3rd place finishers while picking up a win over the returning runner-up in the consolation semifinals who had defeated Schurg in the quarterfinals in the 2017 championships. During his freshman year, he was injured after just two matches and missed the rest of the season.
Schurg’s record is now 107-16, and he is a three time NCAA qualifier, two time All-American, and a national champion. He has helped the Little Giants finish 3rd, 5th, and 9th in his three trips to the championships, and he is the second Wabash wrestler to be named Wrestler of the Year along with two time winner Riley Lefever. Congratulations to Darden Schurg.
Previous Winners
2018 – Jordan Newman, Whitewater
2017 – Riley Lefever, Wabash
2016 – Riley Lefever, Wabash
2015 – Mike Fuenffinger, Augsburg
2014 – Nazar Kulchytskyy, Oshkosh
2013 – Nazar Kulchytskyy, Oshkosh
2012 – Byron Tate, Wartburg
2011 – Minga Batsukh, St. John’s
2010 – Clayton Rush, Coe