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    Alan Grosbach, NAIA •

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    NAIA Wrestling National Championships Preview

    Grand View (Iowa) enters the championship looking for a sixth straight national title

    TOPEKA, Kan. -- (Schedule | Press Book) The 60th annual NAIA Wrestling National Article ImageChampionships, presented by USA Wrestling-Kansas, opens action Friday at the Kansas Expocentre in Topeka, Kan. The capital city of the Sunflower State hosts the national championships for the fourth-straight season.

    For the second-straight season, all matches at the national championships will be streamed live. Fans can find sessions I -- III on the NAIA Network (www.NAIANetwork.com) and on Trackwrestling via Trackcast. It's recommended that fans use the interactive bracket via the live scoring system on Trackwrestling to find their specific match. The title bouts (session IV) will be distributed on ESPN3.

    Automatic individual qualification for the 2017 NAIA Wrestling National Championships was achieved by a top three finish at one of the six National Qualifiers. The remainder of the 240-wrestler field was filled with at-large individuals. Each of the six qualifying groups received five wildcards, which were chosen by the group's coaches at a post-qualifier meeting. The other 30 individuals were determined by a national selection committee, which consisted of two representatives from each geographic area. Up to 15 nominations from each group were considered and voted upon by the group.

    To learn more about the 2017 NAIA Wrestling National Championships, click here.

    2017 NAIA Wrestling National Championships Notes
  • The NAIA Wrestling National Championships, presented by USA Wrestling-Kansas, occurs March 3 - 4 at the Kansas Expocentre in Topeka, Kan., for the fourth-straight year. In the 60-year history, the event has traveled to 19 states and 35 different host sites. With the 2017 championship, the capital city joins Sioux City, Iowa, as the longest consecutive host in NAIA wrestling history. Sioux City held the championship from 2005 - 2008.
  • Prior to the 2014 championships, the event had visited the Sunflower State three times previously - 1992, 1990 and 1980 in Hays, Kan.
  • The field consists of 240 individuals from 49 teams.
  • Thirty-seven All-Americans from last year's event return to compete in 2017.
  • There are six defending national champions in the field - Mitch Pawlak of Indiana Tech (133 pounds) (125-pound champion in 2016), Jacob Colon of Grand View (Iowa) (133 pounds), Victor Hughes of Baker (Kan.) (149 pounds), Blake Cooper of Warner Pacific (Ore.) (165 pounds), Michael Pixley of Grand View (184 pounds) and Dean Broghammer of Grand View (285 pounds).
  • Pawlak and Tyler Cowger of Southern Oregon (149 pounds) are the most decorated wrestlers among the group, as both are three-time All-Americans. Both grapplers had their best performances last season, as Pawlak won the 125-pound weight class and Cowger finished second at 149 pounds. Prior to 2016, neither individual had claimed better than fifth place.
  • Grand View (Iowa) enters the championship looking for a six-straight national title. If the Vikings claim the banner, they will become the only program in NAIA history to accomplish the feat and only the fourth program in collegiate wrestling history (NAIA, NCAA, NJCAA) to win six-consecutive titles. The other programs to do so are NCAA Division I Iowa (six-straight (1995-2000) and nine-straight (1978-86)), NCAA Division I Oklahoma State (seven-straight (1937-1949)) and NCAA Division II Cal Poly (seven-straight (1968-1974)).
  • Grand View, Indiana Tech and Oklahoma City all bring a full roster of 12 individuals to Topeka. Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) is next with 11 wrestlers competing, followed by Bacone (Okla.), Concordia (Neb.) and Williams Baptist (Ark.), which all bring nine grapplers.
  • There have been 19 programs to previously take home the team title. Former NAIA members Adams State (Colo.) and Central State (Okla.) each took home eight, the most in 58 years. Of the current NAIA programs, Montana State-Northern leads the way with six national championships, with the last coming in 2004.
  • In the event's 60-year history, 115 institutions have had an individual finish atop the podium. Former NAIA member Simon Fraser (B.C.) boasts the most individual champions with 39, while Southern Oregon is second with 36, followed by Montana State-Northern with 30.
  • In 2016, Grand View set a new national championship record with 210 team points. The previous mark was 193 points, which was originally set by Dana (Neb.) in 2006 and tied by the Vikings in 2014.
  • The largest margin of victory in the team race came in 2014 with Grand View (Iowa) taking top honors by 108.5 points more than second-place Great Falls' (Mont.) 84.5 points. Conversely, Lock Haven State (Pa.) edged Bloomsburg State (Pa.) by one point in 1963, 61-60, for the closest team finish. Southern Oregon and Western Montana shared the team title with 94.5 points in 1994. It is the only time the championship has been shared.
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