Augsburg won the 15-team regional for the fifth year in a row with 173 points, topping second-place North Central (Ill.) with 115 points. Auggie wrestlers won 35 of their 36 individual bouts on Saturday, collecting four pins, six technical falls and eight major decisions.
The Auggies are currently ranked No. 2 in the latest NCAA Division III national rankings by the National Wrestling Coaches Association. The Auggies finished third at last year's Division III national championships.
Top-ranked Wartburg College (Iowa), the defending Division III national champions, has also qualified all 10 of its wrestlers to the national championships, following its win at the Iowa Conference tournament on Thursday.
The NCAA Division III National Championships will be held March 2-3 at the Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa. Loras College (Iowa) is the host school.
Top-ranked Marcus LeVesseur (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn./Bloomington Kennedy HS) dominated the 165-pound weight class and maintained his unbeaten collegiate record, claiming two pins, a technical fall and a 16-5, major-decision win over Ben Youel of North Central (Ill.) in the championship match, qualifying for the national tournament for the fourth time.
LeVesseur, who won Division III national titles at 157 pounds three times (2003, 2004, 2005), improved to 27-0 on the season and improved his collegiate career record to 151-0, the second-longest winning streak in college wrestling history, behind the 159 of Cael Sanderson at Iowa State (1998-2002).
Quincy Osborn (Jr., Grand Rapids, Minn.), ranked No. 1 nationally at 141, scored a pin and two major decisions, including a 17-3 triumph over Kenny Thomas of Elmhurst (Ill.) in the championship match, to qualify for the Division III national tournament for the first time. Osborn is now 40-2 on the season, having won 21 matches by pin.
The national tournament will be Osborn's third of his collegiate career. As a wrestler at Minnesota in the 2004-05 season, Osborn finished fifth at the Big Ten championships and competed at the Division I national tournament. He also competed at the Division I national meet in the 2003-04 season.
At 157, No. 2-ranked Jeremy Anderson (Jr., Thief River Falls, Minn.) collected three victories, including a 4-2 win over Bobby Gingerich of North Central (Ill.), the No. 3-ranked wrestler nationally, in the championship match. Anderson, who was a national runner-up at 157 last season in his first year at Augsburg, qualified for his second national tournament and improved to 35-2 on the year.
At 149, Jared Evans (Sr., Blue Earth, Minn./Blue Earth Area HS), a two-time All-American ranked No. 4 nationally, qualified for the national tournament for the third time after winning all three of his matches at the regional. He claimed a 5-4 win over Jeff Kastel of Elmhurst (Ill.), ranked No. 6 nationally, in the championship match. Evans, now 33-3 on the season, finished fourth nationally last season and seventh nationally in 2004-05.
At 133, Jafari Vanier (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn./Bloomington Kennedy HS), ranked No. 3 nationally, improved to 18-1 on the season with three victories at the regional, qualifying for the national tournament for the second straight year. Vanier opened the regional with a 20-3 technical-fall win, then won two decisions, including an 8-3 triumph over North Central's Adam Johnson, ranked No. 4 nationally, in the title match. Vanier finished second nationally at 133 last season.
At 174, Robbie Gotreau (Jr., Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson HS), ranked No. 3 nationally, qualified for the national tournament for the second straight year with a dominating regional performance. He opened his tournament run with two technical falls, claimed a 3-0 decision in the semifinals, and scored a 14-2, major-decision win in the championship match. Gotreau, who finished fourth nationally at 174 last year, is now 39-4 this season.
Seth Flodeen (So., Cannon Falls, Minn.), ranked No. 3 at 125, improved to 32-4 on the season with three victories, including a first-period pin and 11-0 major-decision triumph, to win his weight class and qualify for the national tournament for the first time.
Also qualifying for the national tournament for the first time is 184-pounder George Lynaugh (Jr., Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley HS), who collected four wins, including a 17-1 technical fall, to win his weight class. Lynaugh, who transferred last season after spending his freshman year at Division II Minnesota State Mankato, is now 31-5 on the season.
Wally O'Connor (Jr., Oshkosh, Wis./Oshkosh West HS) scored four victories, including a major decision, to reach the national tournament for the first time with his regional triumph at 197. He claimed a 3-1 win over St. Olaf's Steven Wood in the championship match. O'Connor is now 20-14 on the season.
Heavyweight Andrew Neumann (Sr., Somerset, Wis.) dominated his first three matches, with a 15-0, first-period technical fall in his opening match and consecutive major decisions (14-0 and 9-1). But he suffered the Auggies' only loss on the day in the championship match, a 2-1 setback to Jaran Rutledge of Knox (Ill.). However, Neumann rallied back in the "true-second" match with a 9-5 win over Clayton Neske of Concordia-Wisconsin to qualify for national tournament for the second time in his career as a wild-card entrant.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now