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Pre-Championships Awards Standings Update

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Johnson & Wales (R.I) 174-pounder Stephen Jarrell leads all three divisions with 17 technical falls.The NCAA has released the updated standings for the 2017 NCAA Wrestling Awards that will be awarded in March at the respective Division I, II and III Wrestling Championships. Last weekend featured the Pac-12 Championships in Division I, super regionals in Division II and regional competition in Division III.

The inaugural NCAA Wrestling Awards were presented at the 2012 wrestling championships. The three awards, given in each division, honor the Most Dominant Wrestler as well as the student-athletes that have accumulated the most falls and the most technical falls throughout the course of the regular and postseasons.

For falls and tech falls to be counted they must come against opponents in the same division. Ties in the two categories are broken based on the aggregate time.

Three-time national champion and the 2016 Division III Most Dominant Wrestler Riley Lefever of Wabash averages 5.58 team points per match to lead all divisions.

Hunter Harris of Messiah has pulled ahead further in Division III with 30 falls this season at 133 pounds, five more than his nearest competitor.

Stephen Jarrell of Johnson & Wales (Rhode Island) has 17 tech falls at 174 pounds to hold a lead of four over Ursinus 149-pounder Alex Kramer and Messiah 174-pounder Ben Swarr.

New NCAA award standings after championship competition (NCAA.com)

NCAA STAT LEADERS – MOST DOMINANT
Division III
Rank Name School Weight Avg. Team Points
1 Riley Lefever Wabash 197 5.85
2 Lance Evans Wartburg 285 5.27
3 Robert Dierna SUNY Cortland 157 5.12
4 Troy Stanich Stevens 133 4.85
5 Jake Evans Waynesburg 285 4.85
6 Lucas Malmberg Messiah 125 4.83
7 Sam Schneider Ithaca 149 4.66
8 Christoper Chorzepa Williams 184 4.65
9 Zachery Roseberry Delaware Valley 285 4.64
10 Owen Webster Augsburg 184 4.60
Most dominant rankings are based off of a minimum of 17 matches
NCAA STAT LEADERS – FALLS
Division III
Rank Name School Weight Falls Time
1 Hunter Harris Messiah 133 30 89:18
2 Jake Evans Waynesburg 285 25 64:11
3 Troy Stanich Stevens 133 19 62:00
4 Guy Patron Loras 197 18 35:55
5 AJ Kowal Stevens 197 18 43:34
6 Corbin Bunsold Otterbein 184 18 48:50
7 DJ Tirelli Johnson & Wales (RI) 141 17 28:01
8 James Bethel SUNY Oneonta 285 16 37:08
9 Frank Aiello Wheaton (IL) 157 16 60:53
10 Troy Beaman St. Olaf 285 15 30:25
NCAA STAT LEADERS – TECH FALLS
Division III
Rank Name School Weight Tech Falls Time
1 Stephen Jarrell Johnson & Wales (RI) 165 17 98:11
2 Alex Kramer Ursinus 149 13 46:49
3 Ben Swarr Messiah 174 13 79:04
4 Seth Lansberry Lycoming 149 12 50:01
5 Lucas Malmberg Messiah 125 12 66:47
6 Jason Lynch Chicago 184 12 66:57
7 Zach Wilhelm Stevens 149 10 59:06
8 Carlos Fuentez Wheaton (IL) 125 10 60:54
9 Connor Brummett Wabash 165 10 62:55
10 Zach Joseph Springfield 157 9 44:08












Returning All-Americans for 2017

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Here are the 44 wrestlers in the 2016 NCAA Championships who have been All-Americans at some point in the past. Please leave a comment if someone was missed.

125
Lucas Malmberg, Messiah – 2nd in 2014, 2nd in 2015, 1st in 2016
CJ Pestano, Central – 2nd in 2016
Zac Denny, Whitewater – 4th in 2016
Arnulfo Olea, Wartburg – 5th in 2016
James Kaishian, Ithaca – 7th in 2016

133
Nathan Pike, NYU – 6th in 2015, 2nd in 2016
Connor Campo, Wartburg – 8th in 2015, 7th in 2016
Chris Williams, Millikin – 6th in 2016 at 141

141
Greg Warner, York – 5th in 2016
Devin Broukal, Wabash – 1st in 2016 at 133
Dustin Weinmann, La Crosse – 3rd in 2016 at 133

149
Kenny Martin, Wartburg – 1st in 2015, 1st in 2016
Seth Lansberry, Lycoming – 4th in 2016

157
Robert Dierna, Cortland – 3rd in 2013, 2nd in 2014, 1st in 2016
Logan Meister, Ferrum – 6th in 2016
Grant Parker, Augsburg, 7th in 2016
Nick Bova, Wabash – 8th in 2016
Derek Arnold, Ursinus – 4th in 2015 at 149

165
Logan Hermsen, Stevens Point – 1st in 2016
Nolan Barger, Lycoming – 3rd in 2015, 3rd in 2016
Colin Navickas, Stevens – 4th in 2016
Nick Velez, Ithaca – 7th in 2016
Andrew Steiert, Wartburg – 6th in 2015
Larry Cannon, Messiah – 4th in 2016 at 157
Tristan Zurfluh, Luther – 5th in 2016 at 157

174
Ben Swarr, Messiah – 1st in 2016
Eric DeVos, Wartburg – 2nd in 2016
Sonnieboy Blanco, Washington & Jefferson – 5th in 2016
Tory Cain, RIT – 5th in 2015
Richard Carlson, La Crosse – 6th in 2015 at 184

184
Justin Kreiter, Luther – 4th in 2016
Christopher Chorzepa, Williams – 3rd in 2014, 4th in 2015
Jordan Newman, Whitewater – 8th in 2015 at 174
Doug Hamann, TCNJ – 8th in 2016 at 174

197
Michael Swider, Wheaton – 7th in 2016
Riley Lefever, Wabash – 1st in 2014, 1st in 2015, 1st in 2016 all at 184
AJ Kowal, Stevens – 3rd in 2016 at 184
Carlos Toribio, Ithaca – 5th in 2016 at 184
Matt Seabold, Central – 8th in 2015

285
Zach Roseberry, Delaware Valley – 4th in 2014, 3rd in 2015, 1st in 2016
Donny Longendyke, Augsburg – 1st in 2015, 2nd in 2016
Lance Evans, Wartburg – 3rd in 2016
Paul Triandafilou, Gettysburg – 5th in 2016
James Bethel, Oneonta – 4th in 2015











Geographical Distribution of 2017 Qualifiers

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112 of the 180 qualifiers attend college in the same state as their listed hometown.

25 of the 50 states are represented.

List of Qualifiers by School Including Hometowns

Map of Qualifiers

View 2017 NCAA Division III Qualifiers in a full screen map

Qualifiers by State

State Number
NJ, NY 22
MN 20
IL 16
WI 15
PA 14
IA 12
CA 8
IN, MI, OH 7
VA 6
CT 4
LA, MD, RI 3
MO, NC 2
AZ, MA, ME, NE, SD, VT, WV 1

2017 Regional Results and NCAA Qualifiers

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Northeast – Live Results | Preview | Official Website
Mideast – Live Results | Preview | Official Website
East – Final Results | Preview | Official Website
Midwest – Team Scores | Final Brackets | Preview | Official Website
Central – Final ResultsPreview | Official Website
West – Team Scores | Final Brackets| Preview | Official Website

2017 NCAA Qualifiers Link












2017 Regional Results & Sunday Live Stats

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List of NCAA Qualifiers as of Saturday Night

Live Results for Today:
Northeast – Saturday & Sunday – Live Results | Preview | Official Website
Mideast – Saturday & Sunday – Live Results | Preview | Official Website

Final Results so Far:

East – Friday & Saturday – Final Results | Preview | Official Website
Midwest – Friday & Saturday – Team Scores | Final Brackets | Preview | Official Website
Central – Saturday – Final ResultsPreview | Official Website
West – Saturday – Team Scores | Final Brackets| Preview | Official Website












2017 Regional Live Results

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The top three finishers in each weight class move on to the 2017 NCAA Division III Championships March 10-11 in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

East – Friday & Saturday – Live Results | Preview | Official Website

Midwest – Friday & Saturday – Live Results | Preview | Official Website

Central – Saturday – Live Results | Preview | Official Website

West – Saturday – Live Results | Preview | Official Website

Northeast – Saturday & Sunday – Live Results | Preview | Official Website

Mideast – Saturday & Sunday – Live Results | Preview | Official Website











2017 Mideast Region Preview

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wrest-2-22-16

Date – Saturday and Sunday, February 25-26, 2017

Location – York College; York, PA

Teams (19) – Baldwin-Wallace, Brockport, CWRU, Elizabethtown, Heidelberg, John Carroll, Keystone, Lycoming, Messiah, Mount Union, Muskingum, Oswego, RIT, Scranton, Thiel, Washington & Jefferson, Waynesburg, Wilkes, York

Top Ten Ranked Individuals (2016 All-Americans in bold)
125 – #1 Malmberg (Messiah), #5 Haas (Brockport), #7 Rea (Wilkes)
133 – #4 Flynn (York)
141 – #2 Grossman (Wilkes), #6 Cotton (Mt. Union)
149 – #2 Lansberry (Lycoming), #5 Peacock (Brockport)
157 – none
165 – #4 Cannon (Messiah), #5 Barger (Lycoming), #10 Seymour (Oswego)
174 – #1 Swarr (Messiah), #5 Blanco (W&J), #7 Cain (RIT)
184 – #5 Bushey (Oswego), #8 Decker (Heidelberg)
197 – #6 Engle (Brockport), #9 Koser (Messiah)
285 – none

Top 30 Teams (d3wrestle.com list)
#2 Messiah College
#12 Lycoming
#14 Brockport
#15 Wilkes
#28 Baldwin Wallace
#28 Oswego
#28 RIT

Messiah College has won the Mideast Region three years in a row, and the Falcons look to run their streak to four in 2017. Messiah boasts four wrestlers ranked in the top 10 and several others should threaten to make the trip to Lacrosse including 2016 All American Jeff Hojnacki at 157 and NCAA pins leader Hunter Harris at 133. If the Falcons have any chance to make noise at the NCAA tournament they will have to battle through a deep, talented region.

One of the deepest teams in the region is Baldwin Wallace. The Yellow Jackets have an individual ranked somewhere on the d3wrestle.com list in nearly every weight. With a peak performance they could easily put together enough team points to threaten for the team title. Brockport is a bit more top heavy as their lineup has been bolstered by DI transfers Haas (125) and Peacock (149). Those two combined with regional favorite Tristan Engle at 197 make the Golden Eagle squad a force to reckon with. Lycoming College is led by Senior All Americans Nolan Barger and Seth Lansberry; both should score a lot of point at the regionals and nationals.

Wilkes University should benefit from two 2015 All Americans who were not in the lineup last year. Matt Grossmann won a national title at 133, but did not compete last season. His results suggest that he should be in the running to challenge for regional and national gold at 141 this year. Similarly 125 lbs. Guesseppe Rea sat out last season after an All-American performance in 2015. While those two were All-Americans in 2015 but not 2016, there are two 2016 All-Americans not in the list above because they are currently outside the top ten in their respective weights. Hojnacki (Messiah) was mentioned previously, and the other is Warner (York) who lost his preliminary match in Cedar Rapids but won five matches after that to finish 5th.











2017 West Region Preview

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Date – Saturday, February 25, 2017

Location – Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota

Teams (11) – Augsburg, Concordia-Moorhead, Concordia Wisconsin, Eau Claire, Lakeland, MSOE, Oshkosh, Pacific, Platteville, St. John’s, St. Olaf

Top Ten Ranked Individuals (2016 All-Americans in bold)
125 – #9 Gliva (Augsburg)
133 – none
141 – none
149 – #8 Epps (Augsburg)
157 – #7 Sladek (Concordia-Moorhead)
165 – none
174 – #4 Goetz (Platteville), #10 Mergener (Concordia Wisconsin)
184 – #2 Webster (Augsburg)
197 – #7 Baumgartner (Concordia Wisconsin)
285 – #3 Longendyke (Augsburg), #6 Bellile (MSOE), #10 Davis (Concordia-Moorhead)

Top 30 Teams (d3wrestle.com list)
#5 Augsburg
#17 Platteville
#28 Concordia-Moorhead

Augsburg will again be a heavy favorite in what is again the weakest region by far. The Auggies have nine wrestlers who appear in the d3wrestle.com rankings, while no other team in the region has more than four. They also have the only two returning All-Americans in the region in two time finalist Longendyke at 285 and 7th place finisher Parker at 157. Concordia-Moorhead is the host and has finished in second place each of the past three years, while Platteville had five qualifiers last season and could qualify a big group again.

Heavyweight is where the action will be in the West region this year, as there are three top ten ranked wrestlers including the already mentioned Longendyke. He won the NCAA championship in 2015 before dropping the finals match last year. Davis of Concordia-Moorhead was a 2015 qualifier, while Bellile of MSOE is 21-2 and has avenged one of those losses late this season. Also in the mix could be Johnson of Platteville who qualified at this weight last season.

Augsburg has a trio of highly ranked freshmen in the lineup this year in Gliva (125), Epps (149), and Webster (184). All three were Minnesota state champions before heading to Augsburg and have combined for just 5 total DIII losses among them. Webster was the #40 overall recruit in his class and is currently ranked 2nd in the d3wrestle.com rankings and will be a title contender for sure in La Crosse.

With only 11 teams, the brackets will be small, but there will also be a good number of brackets with fewer than 11 wrestlers. Beyond that, there could be 15 or more wrestlers in the tournament with fewer than five wins on the year. It seems likely that there will be fewer than 100 entries overall. Thirty of these will qualify for the NCAA Championships. This is a problem in need of a solution.











Ice Hour 19: Lonnie Morris

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In 1997, Lonnie Morris started a wrestling program just a few miles from where he wrestled collegiately. With a 23-1 record in duals this season, Johnson & Wales has gone from nothing to the nation’s third-ranked Division III wrestling program, all under the watchful eye of Coach Morris.

On Episode 19 of The Ice Hour, Morris talks about the foundation of the program from its start, to now the schools’ 20th year with wrestling and 300 dual meet wins. It’s not just a cooking school, right?

Learn about the dynamic of Rhode Island’s college wrestling scene, starting with Johnson & Wales.

The Ice Hour is proudly sponsored by My House Sports Gear.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE ICE HOUR
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JOIN THE TEAM
And if you’re a fan of the extensive and broad-based reach of the shows on the Mat Talk Podcast Network, become a TEAM MEMBER today. There are various levels of perks for the different levels of team membership. If you like wrestling content — scratch that — if you LOVE great wrestling content, consider becoming a team member. You’ll get some cool stuff too.

Looking to start a podcast of your own?
Get a free month with Libsyn by using the promo code MTO when you sign up. You’ll get the remainder of the month from when you sign up as well as the next month free. It’ll be enough time to kick the tires and lights some fires.











Ohio Wesleyan to add wrestling for 2018-19

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Ohio Wesleyan adds men's wrestling and women's rowing

Ohio Wesleyan University will reinstate men’s wrestling and add women’s rowing as varsity sports for the 2018-19 academic year, it was announced by athletics director Roger Ingles.

“It is a bold move to add two new sports, but they will provide great opportunities for our student-athletes,” Ingles said. “Through the addition of these two new programs, the growth of the Ohio Wesleyan athletics department will play an integral part in the University’s strategic growth.”

Ingles anticipates having head coaches for the two sports in place by July 1. Both head coaches will begin recruiting student-athletes during the summer of 2017, the teams will compete as club sports in 2017-18, and varsity competition will begin in 2018-19.

The return of men’s wrestling and the addition of women’s rowing increases Ohio Wesleyan’s complement of varsity sports to 25, with 13 for women and 12 for men. They are the first varsity sports to be added at Ohio Wesleyan since 2010, when women’s golf was added for the 2010-11 season.

Ohio Wesleyan becomes the first North Coast Athletic Conference institution to sponsor women’s rowing and the second NCAC institution to sponsor men’s wrestling, joining Wabash College.

A total of 102 NCAA Division III institutions sponsor men’s wrestling, and a total of 42 NCAA Division III institutions sponsor women’s rowing. The NCAA sponsors Division III championships in both sports.

“We are excited about reinstating the men’s wrestling program,” Ingles said. “Wrestling has continued to be active on campus through our club system and has registered high interest among our student body. Ohio Wesleyan’s location — in the center of several states with outstanding high school wrestling — and our past wrestling history and success will allow us to develop a highly competitive program.”

Wrestling was a varsity sport at Ohio Wesleyan from 1954-84. Ray Leech ’49 began the wrestling team when he joined the Ohio Wesleyan faculty in 1954 and oversaw it for 30 years, coaching 16 Ohio Athletic Conference individual champions along the way. In 1984, with Leech retiring and Ohio Wesleyan leaving the OAC to help form the NCAC, wrestling was discontinued.

“We are extremely excited about adding women’s rowing and providing women the opportunity to continue competing in their sport post-high school while getting a first-class education,” Ingles said. “Rowing makes sense because of the growth of the sport in Ohio and nationally, as well as its fit with the demographics of our student body. We will not only be expanding our offerings for women’s sports but we also will be able to utilize some of our nearby natural resources.”

Possible sites for women’s rowing competition include Hoover Reservoir, on the Scioto River in western Delaware County, and Alum Creek Reservoir in eastern Delaware County.

President Rock Jones said expanding the number of varsity sports also fits with Ohio Wesleyan’s commitment to the liberal arts and to graduating well-rounded individuals.

“Ohio Wesleyan is committed to preparing our students to lead healthy, happy, and productive lives,” Jones said. “Athletics is a vital component of this work. The teamwork, the group problem-solving, and the focus on attaining shared goals all are qualities that translate in meaningful ways into every aspect of life. And, of course, everyone at OWU is excited about being able to cheer on more Battling Bishop student-athletes.”











2017 Northeast Region Preview

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Cortland Wrestling

Date – Saturday and Sunday, February 25-26, 2017

Location – Roger Williams University, Bristol, Rhode Island

Teams (19) – Bridgewater State, Castleton, Coast Guard, Cortland, Ithaca, Johnson & Wales, New England College, Norwich, Oneonta, Plymouth State, Rhode Island, Roger Williams, Springfield, Trinity, Southern Maine, Wesleyan, Williams, Western New England, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Top Ten Ranked Individuals (2016 All-Americans in bold)
125 – #4 Jordan (JWU), #6 Kaishian (Ithaca)
133 – #5 Albis (JWU)
141 – #7 Wahba (Ithaca),
149 – #3 Del Gallo (Southern Maine), #4 Schneider (Ithaca)
157 – #1 Dierna (Cortland), #2 Joseph (Springfield), #5 Sullivan (Coast Guard)
165 – #3 Jarrell (JWU), #6 Velez (Ithaca)
174 – #6 Barber (Cortland)
184 – #3 Chorzepa (Williams), #9 Espinal (Cortland)
197 – #3 Thomas (JWU), #4 Carrillo (Wesleyan), #5 Toribio (Ithaca)
285 – #4 Bethel (Oneonta), #5 Foster (Roger Williams), #9 O’Brien (Ithaca)

Top 30 Teams (d3wrestle.com list)
#2 Ithaca
#4 Johnson & Wales
#9 Cortland
#17 Roger Williams
#26 Springfield
#28 Southern Maine

The Northeast regional could see a tight battle between Ithaca and JWU, a pair of top five teams with designs on a team trophy in La Crosse. Ithaca has five wrestlers ranked in the top ten, while JWU has four of its own. With three returning All-Americans, Ithaca hopes to defend its title from last season while bringing a strong contingent to Wisconsin. Johnson & Wales has taken a step up this year and will be a force. #9 Cortland will also be in the mix with strong competitors at every weight including the only returning NCAA Champion in the tournament in Bobby Dierna at 157.

A couple of former All-Americans are looking to make a return trip to the podium after missing out last season. Chorzepa (Williams) is a two time All-American who missed the podium during his junior season. Bethel (Oneonta) placed as a freshman but did not compete last year at all. Both of them are ranked to place in La Crosse but will face stiff tests in a tough region. A pair of familiar foes will again match up at the 125 lbs. weight class as Jordan (JWU) and Kaishian (Ithaca) should be the top two seeds. They have gone back and forth over the years. Last season Jordan was the #2 seed at the NCAA Championships but failed to place while the #6 seed Kaishian came home with a seventh place finish. The next few weeks are their last chance to meet up, as Kaishian is a senior.

Southern Maine has relied on a pair of brothers to lead the team this year. Senior Daniel Del Gallo is looking for his first All-American award after qualifying each of the past two years. The two time Elite 90 award winner (given to the NCAA qualifier with the highest overall GPA) is ranked 3rd and will be aiming to go out on a high note. His brother, freshman Peter Del Gallo, is 31-1 with a single overtime loss. The Maine Wrestler of the Year in 2016 is hoping to join his older brother to give the Huskies multiple qualifiers from the same family in 2017.











2017 Central Region Preview

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Date – Saturday, February 25, 2017

Location – Five Flags Center, Dubuque, Iowa

Teams (15) – Augustana, Buena Vista, Central, Coe, Cornell, Dubuque, Huntingdon, Loras, Luther, MacMurray, Millikin, Nebraska Wesleyan, Simpson, University of the Ozarks, Wartburg

Top Ten Ranked Individuals (2016 All-Americans in bold)
125 – #2 Pestano (Central), #10 Rosenberg (Coe)
133 – #2 Williams (Millikin), #10 Timok (Central)
141 – #9 Cannone (Wartburg)
149 – #1 Martin (Wartburg)
157 – #4 Thomsen (Wartburg), #10 Kalkbrenner (Dubuque)
165 – #2 Vandall (Central)
174 – #2 DeVos (Wartburg), #8 Maksimovic (Cornell)
184 – #4 Kreiter (Luther), #6 Levsen (Wartburg), #7 Giatras (Augustana)
197 – #2 Fank (Wartburg), #10 Patron (Loras)
285 – #2 Evans (Wartburg), #7 Jones (Augustana)

Top 30 Teams (d3wrestle.com list)
#1 Wartburg
#11 Central
#21 Augustana, Millikin
#26 Cornell

Wartburg won this region by 30 points last year and followed it up two weeks later by winning the NCAA Championship by 29.5. The Knights look to run away with the regional title again this year. They have seven wrestlers ranked in the top ten with two more lurking just outside. One of those just outside the rankings is returning All-American Olea at 125 who is certainly a threat to be back on the podium this March. Central has come a long way since head coach Eric Van Kley took over, and they will be the top challenger with three top ten individuals including last year’s surprise finalist Pestano at 125. Coe does not have many top ranked individuals, but the Kohawks have seven wrestlers appearing somewhere in the d3wrestle.com rankings.

Kenny Martin returned at 149 for Wartburg in January and has only wrestled ten matches, but he has managed to go undefeated so far in his quest for a third consecutive NCAA championship. In each of the past two seasons, he has managed to be at his best when the lights are brightest. Wartburg’s other returning finalist, Eric DeVos, has had a similar season to Martin with only 12 matches to his name. Only one opponent has manager to avoid giving up bonus points, however. Wartburg will hope that the lack of matches this season will not slow these two down as they work toward the top of the podium.

There are several returning All-Americans whose seasons have not warranted top ten status at this point in the year, Olea has already been mentioned, but his teammate Campo (133) has gone just 7-9 this year after a 7th place finish in 2016 and an 8th place finish in 2015. Similarly, Harrington of Coe placed 3rd at 174 last year and 4th the year before, but he dropped to 165 this season where he has gone 10-7. Both of these competitors have shown the ability to get the job done in February and March, and neither will be an easy out this weekend or, potentially, in La Crosse two weeks later.











2017 Midwest Region Preview

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Date – Friday and Saturday, February 24-25, 2017

Location – Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Indiana (Manchester hosting)

Teams (17) – Adrian, Alma, Chicago, Elmhurst, La Crosse, Manchester, Mount St. Joseph, North Central, Ohio Northern, Olivet, Otterbein, Stevens Point, Thomas More, Trine, Whitewater, Wabash, Wheaton

Top Ten Ranked Individuals (2016 All-Americans in bold)
125 – #3 Denny (Whitewater), #8 Fuentez (Wheaton)
133 – #6 Brodman (Whitewater), #7 Weinmann (La Crosse) #9 Braun (Elmhurst)
141 – #1 Weinmann (La Crosse), #3 Binion (North Central), #4 Wilson (Manchester), #8 Hauser (Elmhurst)
149 – #6 Kelley (Olivet), #7 Geary (La Crosse)
157 – #3 Bova (Wabash)
165 – #1 Hermsen (Stevens Point), #7 Brummett (Wabash), #9 Noverini (Elmhurst)
174 – #3 Carlson (La Crosse)
184 – #1 Newman (Whitewater), #10 Fekete (Wheaton)
197 – #1 Lefever (Wabash)
285 – none

Top 30 Teams (d3wrestle.com list)
#5 Wabash
#7 La Crosse
#8 Whitewater
#17 Elmhurst
#21 Olivet, Wheaton, Stevens Point
#28 North Central

There has only been one four time Division III champion in the 40+ years of Division III. Marcus LeVesseur won four in a row for Augsburg without taking a loss in his career. Riley Lefever of Wabash is working toward becoming the second four time champ in Divison III history. He will not finish his career undefeated, but he has never lost to a Division III opponent. He hopes to keep that streak alive for two more tournaments. His team is the favorite to defend their regional championship from last year. Teammate Broukal is also a returning DIII champ, but has had limited action this season. #7 La Crosse and #8 Whitewater will have something to say about the team title here, as both have strong squads. Each boasts a #1 ranked wrestler and others who will be in the mix for podium spots in their home state two weeks later.

Logan Hermsen was a bit of a surprise NCAA champion last year out of the 5th seed, but he has followed up that win with an outstanding season. He has one loss at 165 to a Division I wrestler and was the champ at the tough Wheaton Invitational. He has a tough weight with two other ranked wrestlers and two d3wrestle.com Contenders. The toughest weight, for the second year in a row, looks to be 141 with four wrestlers in the top ten. That does not even include Broukal, who won the NCAA title at 133 a year ago. At least one top ten wrestler is guaranteed to have his season end at this tournament, and it could be two if Broukal has more late season magic in him.

Several of the wrestlers listed above missed all or most of last season for various reasons. Fuentez (Wheaton) was a qualifier at 125 in 2015 but was sidelined with an injury in 2016. Carlson (La Crosse) was an All-American in 2015 but missed last year. Newman also placed in the same bracket as Carlson in 2015 and is back after only wrestling in a pair of opens last season. All three will be contenders this weekend and in La Crosse two weeks later.











2017 East Region Preview

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Date – Friday and Saturday, February 24-25, 2017

Location – Franklin County High School, Rocky Mount, Virginia (Ferrum hosting)

Teams (19) – Centenary, Delaware Valley, Ferrum, Gettysburg, Greensboro, Hampden-Sydney, Hunter, Johns Hopkins, King’s, McDaniel, Mount St. Vincenct, Muhlenberg, NYU, Southern Virginia, Stevens, TCNJ, US Merchant Marine Academy, Ursinus, Washington & Lee

Top Ten Ranked Individuals (2016 All-Americans in bold)
125 – none
133 – #1 Stanich (Stevens), #3 Pike (NYU), #8 Bylykbashi (W&L)
141 – #5 Ambacher (Delaware Valley), #10 Drummond (McDaniel)
149 – #9 Kramer (Ursinus), #10 Wilhelm (Stevens)
157 – #6 Arnold (Ursinus), #8 Poklikuha (Stevens), #9 Meister (Ferrum)
165 – #8 Navickas (Stevens)
174 – #9 Messinger (NYU)
184 – none
197 – #8 Kowal (Stevens)
285 – #1 Roseberry (Delaware Valley), #8 Triandafilou (Gettysburg)

Top 30 Teams (d3wrestle.com list)
#9 Stevens
#12 Delaware Valley
#15 NYU
#17 Ursinus

Stevens looks to be the class of this region again and is well-positioned to repeat their championship from a year ago. A pair of All-Americans (Navickas and Kowal) are bolstered by returning qualifiers Wilhelm and Murray, while newcomer Troy Stanich has gone undefeated at 133 during his freshman campaign. Delaware Valley has a strong tournament squad, while Ursinus and NYU can put a strong top-to-bottom lineup on the mat that should score well. The host team Ferrum should not be overlooked either after a runner-up finish at the Pete Willson Wheaton Invitational.

Zachery Roseberry is the only returning NCAA champion in this region after an upset victory in the heavyweight national finals last March. He is currently undefeated and favored to win the regional again on his way to becoming a four time All-American for the Aggies. National finalist Nathan Pike is back or NYU after an abbreviated season that has seen him wrestle just nine times with his first match coming on January 21st. 133 is a tough weight with Pike, the top ranked Stanich, and the 8th ranked Bylykbashi in the mix. Bylykbashi is hoping to give W&L a qualifier for the second year in a row after enduring a 15 year drought that ended last season.

157 is the other weight with three ranked in the top ten as 2015 All-American Arnold and 2016 All-American Meister are sandwiched around Poklikuha who is making the most of his first season as a full time starter. The weight also features 2016 NCAA qualifier Jazikoff (NYU) and three other competitors who appear in the d3wrestle.com rankings. Others looking to return to the NCAA Championships in search of their first All-American award include Murray (Stevens), Tan (Ursinus), and Velez (Delaware Valley) at 125, Drummond (McDaniel) at 141, Wilhelm (Stevens) at 149, Herring (TCNJ) at 165, and Messinger (NYU) and Schweiger (Delaware Valley) at 174











Thursday Results 2/16

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Wilkes 36, King’s 12
Wilkes 44, Penn College 9
King’s 48, Penn College 12 – Ned McGinley coached his 906th and final dual meet before retiring after 48 years on the King’s bench.

SW Minnesota State 19, Concordia-Moorhead 15

Western New England 31, Plymouth State 15











Wednesday Results 2/15

0

2-15-17-WREST

Messiah 43, McDaniel 5

Ithaca 27, Cortland 17











Updated NCAA Award Standings

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Here are the latest standings in the Most Dominant, Most Falls, and Most Tech Falls season-long awards. As a reminder, only matches against Division III competition count in the calculation of the awards. For the Most Dominant standings, a minimum of 16 DIII matches are required for inclusion.

NCAA STAT LEADERS – MOST DOMINANT
Division III
Rank Name School Weight Avg. Team Points
1 Riley Lefever Wabash 197 5.81
2 Lance Evans Wartburg 285 5.28
3 Troy Stanich Stevens 133 4.94
3 Lucas Malmberg Messiah 125 4.94
5 Devon Carrillo Wesleyan (CT) 197 4.83
6 Alec Donovan Centenary (NJ) 157 4.78
7 Jake Evans Waynesburg 285 4.77
8 Dan Del Gallo Southern Me. 149 4.72
9 Christoper Chorzepa Williams 184 4.64
10 James Bethel SUNY Oneonta 285 4.59
Most dominant rankings are based off of a minimum of 16 matches
NCAA STAT LEADERS – FALLS
Division III
Rank Name School Weight Falls Time
1 Hunter Harris Messiah 141 26 80:40
2 Jake Evans Waynesburg 285 22 60:20
3 Troy Stanich Stevens 133 18 59:40
4 AJ Kowal Stevens 197 17 41:54
5 James Bethel SUNY Oneonta 285 15 33:29
6 Corbin Bunsold Otterbein 184 15 40:08
7 Jamiel Stapelton Johnson & Wales (RI) 149 15 47:30
8 Guy Patron Loras 197 14 29:03
9 Keajion Jennings Millikin 184 14 35:52
10 Tom Lynd Lycoming 285 14 36:42
NCAA STAT LEADERS – TECH FALLS
Rank Name School Weight Tech Falls Time
1 Stephen Jarrell Johnson & Wales (RI) 174 17 98:11
2 Alex Kramer Ursinus 149 12 43:15
3 Lucas Malmberg Messiah 125 12 66:47
4 Jason Lynch Chicago 197 12 66:57
5 Seth Lansberry Lycoming 149 10 43:53
6 Connor Brummett Wabash 165 10 62:55
7 Ben Swarr Messiah 174 10 67:47
8 Zach Wilhelm Stevens 149 9 52:31
9 Carlos Fuentez Wheaton (IL) 125 9 56:02
10 Mason Geary Wis.-La Crosse 149 8 32:12












Rankings #10 Analysis

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The most recent set of d3wrestle.com Rankings should be the last until after the regional tournaments. Here is some analysis of the rankings with regard to the six unequally sized regions used for NCAA qualification. Each region, regardless of size, will qualify 3 wrestlers at each weight to the NCAA Championships, thus creating a bracket with 18 competitors at each of the ten weights. The West is the smallest region with 11 teams, while the Northeast, East, and Mideast are the largest with 19 teams each.

d3wrestle.com Rankings #10 – February 14, 2017 | Current Regional Alignment

Every iteration of the d3wrestle.com Rankings has 26 wrestlers listed at each weight, and they are broken into the Top Ten, eight Contenders, and eight Honorable Mentions. The order of the wrestlers in the latter two categories is a loose, but by no means definitive, representation of position. The following table lists the share of ranked wrestlers for each category in each region.

Number Total Top 10 Cont. HM Percentage Total Top 10 Cont. HM
W 29 10 12 7 W 11.15 10 15 8.75
C 48 18 12 18 C 18.46 18 15 22.5
MW 46 19 13 14 MW 17.69 19 16.25 17.5
ME 56 18 18 20 ME 21.54 18 22.5 25
E 37 15 15 7 E 14.23 15 18.75 8.75
NE 44 20 10 14 NE 16.92 20 12.5 17.5

The West region, as has been the case for the entirety of the regional system, lags behind the other five regions in the rankings. This can be seen the performance of the regions over the past four years of the regional system. Click Here to see a breakdown of each region’s performance at the NCAA Championships over the past four years.

Another way to look at the rankings before the postseason is to see which weights in which regions have fewer than three wrestlers listed. If a weight has fewer than three listed for a region, that means a wrestler who is not currently among the top 26 wrestlers at his weight will qualify for the NCAA Championships. This table shows the number of ranked individuals at each weight per region.

125 133 141 149 157 165 174 184 197 285
W 2 2 2 2 3 3 5 2 3 5
C 3 8 5 5 3 5 5 8 3 3
MW 3 5 7 5 4 5 5 3 3 6
ME 6 5 7 7 5 5 5 6 6 4
E 5 4 2 3 7 3 3 2 4 4
NE 7 2 3 4 4 5 3 5 7 4

There are eight regional weight classes where a wrestler not on the final rankings will qualify for the NCAA Championships. Five of these are in the West, two are in the East, and one is in the Northeast. Half of the weight classes in the West are guaranteed to send at least one wrestler to the championships that does not appear in the latest d3wrestle.com top 26.

There are two main schools of thought when determining NCAA qualifying spots. The first is the idea that the NCAA Championships should have the 18 best wrestlers at each weight, regardless of where they go to school. The second is the idea that qualifiers should be geographically distributed. The current system implements neither school of though. More can be read about this HERE and HERE. There is some hope that the flaws in the current system can be corrected before the 2017-2018 season, but nothing is guaranteed.











Tuesday Results 2/14

1

Luther 38, St. Olaf 9

Muskingum 24, John Carroll 22

Heidelberg 32, Ohio Northern 6