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    Alan Grosbach, NAIA •

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    Grand View remains No. 1 in NAIA for 30th straight installment

    Rankings: Individual | Team

    KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Grand View (Iowa) keeps its stranglehold on the top mark, holding the No. 1 ranking for the 30th straight installment of the NAIA Wrestling Coaches' Top 20 Poll, the national office announced Wednesday. The 2016 Postseason Poll with be announced following the national championships on March 10.

    Top 25 Highlights (historical information dates back to 2000-01)

  • Grand View (Iowa) pushes its top-ranked streak to 30-straight polls after receiving 193 points in this edition. The Vikings, who have held the top-spot consecutively starting on Nov. 21, 2012, own 35 all-time No. 1 rankings since the start of the 2000-01 season. Former member Lindenwood (Mo.) holds the record for most No. 1 appearances during that time with 39.
  • Grand View once again boasts 12 ranked individuals, all but one of which are ranked no lower than No. 5 in their respective weight class. Jacob Colon (133 pounds), Andrew Long (149 pounds), Tanner Werner (157 pounds) and Michael Pixley (184 pounds) are the top-ranked individuals for Grand View.
  • Colon and Werner are the only new No. 1 individuals this edition. Colon received an automatic berth into next week's national championship field by winning the 133-pound title at the Central Qualifier. The win puts the Clear Lake, Iowa, native at 27-6 on the season. Similar to Colon, Werner - a senior from Waverly, Iowa - won the individual medal at 157 pounds. Both grapplers knocked off teammates in their respective finals.
  • No. 2 Missouri Valley (92.5 points) and No. 3 Montana State-Northern (89.5 points) round out the top three for a second-straight week.
  • Missouri Valley's squad features three top-ranked wrestlers in Jake Ekster (141 pounds), Riley Boomer (174 pounds) and Gabi Musallam (285 pounds). The trio, who all qualified automatically by taking first-place at the Central National Qualifier, are a combined 48-6 on the season. Musallam is the defending national champion at 285 pounds and has held the No. 1 mark all season.
  • Montana State-Northern won the West Group Qualifier with 152.5 points and claim nine ranked individuals.
  • No. 1 125 pounder Adrian Gaines of Oklahoma City and top-ranked Blake Cooper of Warner Pacific (Ore.) at 165 pounds are the only No. 1 individuals that are not part of a top-three ranked team.
  • No. 17 (tied) Doane (Neb.) and No. 19 Cumberland (Tenn.) are the two newcomers to the Top 20. The Phoenix tied for first at the East Qualifier, while Doane took four in the North.
  • The West Group boasts the most ranked teams among the qualifying groups with five -- Montana State-Northern, No. 8 (tied) Menlo (Calif.), No. 8 (tied) Southern Oregon, No. 16 Great Falls (Mont.) and No. 20 Warner Pacific.
  • Since 2001, only Grand View (2013-14, 2014-15), former members Notre Dame (Ohio) (2010-11) and Lindenwood (2006-07) have spent the entire season ranked No. 1.

    Poll Methodology
  • The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the six national qualifying groups.
  • One day prior to the national poll, each qualifying group rater submits the top six individuals from each weight class in his geographic area into the system. Only wrestlers listed on a qualifying group ballot are considered for the national ballot.
  • The top 16 individuals in each weight class is based on how each voter ranks the best individuals. An individual receives 20 points for each first place vote, 18 for second place and so on through the list. This same point system is used to determine the team ranking.
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