2022 NCAA Preview: 149 lbs.

Rankings are from theĀ February 18th NWCA Poll.

Northeast 13. UlaszekCoast Guard
Northeast 213. MerrittNorwich
Northeast 3FrostSouthern Maine
Mideast 114. MerwinCortland
Mideast 2ConklinTCNJ
Mideast 3BowlesMuhlenberg
Southeast 11. KalinerStevens
Southeast 2CampbellAverett
Southeast 3SiuGreensboro
Central 14. PetrellaBaldwin Wallace
Central 212. SumnerOhio Northern
Central 3BarrWabash
Lower Midwest 12. RumphWartburg
Lower Midwest 210. AreyanoCentral
Lower Midwest 35. VillarNorth Central
Upper Midwest 1DrexlerUW-Eau Claire
Upper Midwest 2FleckChicago
Upper Midwest 38. BurfordUW-Whitewater

Is this the year for both Stevens and Brett Kaliner? Stevens is looking for their first national championship, and so is Kaliner. He was 2nd as a freshman, the top seed as a sophomore when he finished 3rd, seeded 2nd in 2020, and finished 3rd at the NWCA DIII tournament last year. He has been dominant this year with only four of his 25 victories lasting a full seven minutes.

Kris Rumph was 2nd at last year’s NWCA DIII tournament at 141, and he moved up to 149 this year where he won the Lower Midwest. He took two sets of injury time in the finals against the tough Areyano, but he managed to shake off the injury and score multiple takedowns after the second timeout. Areyano defeated the #2 seed Villar of North Central in the semis, and Villar came back to get 3rd in a weight featuring five different NWCA-ranked wrestlers.

Tony Ulaszek has gone undefeated for Coast Guard with 13 pins in 18 matches, perhaps proving that if your cement mixer is good enough, you can hit it even when the other guy knows it is coming. He pinned Merritt with it in 29 seconds in the regional final. 3rd place Frost is one of three Maine natives in the tournament this year. Jake Drexler of UW-Eau Claire has double-digit losses this season, but his record came on a tough schedule that prepared him to win the Upper Midwest in a #3 seed vs #5 matchup against Fleck in the finals. 8th ranked Jake Burford took 3rd over 7th ranked Brock Parker.

In the Central, Michael Petrella of Baldwin Wallace continued his outstanding season. His only DIII loss is to Kaliner, and he won by major decision over Chase Sumner in the finals. 8th seed Alex Barr of Wabash rolled to 3rd place after giving Petrella his toughest match of the tournament in the quarters. Chandler Merwin lost the takedown battle 3-1 to Conklin in the Mideast final, but his takedown came with four backpoints, and he made it stand up to win in the tiebreaker. 7th seeded Bowles of Muhlenberg lost in the quarters but came back to beat the same guy in overtime in the 3rd place match to punch his ticket.