Trailing 114.5-108.0 with two matches remaining, Navy rallied behind the efforts of Koser and Birchmeier. Koser, who not only went 3-0 on the day, but he did not give up a point, got the Mids to within two points following his 16-0 tech fall over VMI's Zach Brown in the 197-pound title match. Birchmeier, who has twice secured dual victories for the Mids this season (Maryland and Bucknell), sealed the team victory by way of his 10-4 win over Air Force's Kayne Hutchison in the final match of the evening.
Navy (117.5) won the team crown by ONE point over second-place Air Force (116.5), who had three wrestlers win individual titles. VMI placed third (48.0), followed by Coast Guard (47.5), The Citadel (34.0), Merchant Marine (18.5) and Norwich (12.5). VMI and Coast Guard both crowned an individual champion. Koser was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler, while Treaster was the recipient of the Most Pins in Fewest Amount of Time Award with two in 2:15.
"I am very proud of the team and its performance today. The character and resiliency our wrestlers showed bout after bout in tonight's medal matches was incredibly impressive," said sixth-year Navy head coach Joel Sharratt. "The team came together and knew we had only seven in the finals, but five of those where important head-to-head bouts. Starting out with three strong wins really set a great tone for the big guys to follow. It took all 10 guys to get today's title and many of the names out there today weren't familiar to our casual fans. We really had the NEXT MAN UP guys step in and perfrom well for the team and overall team score."
The Highlights
• Navy has been the dominant team, winning 16 of the 26 championships including 13 of the last 17.
• The Mids have won 103 individual crowns in All-Academy Championship history, including 77 of the 170 titles over the last 17 years.
• The Mids won the team title in 1995, `97, `99, `04, `05, `06, `07, `09, '10, '11, '12, '13, '14, '18,'19 and '20, while they claimed five or more individual titles in 1997, `99, `04, `05, `07, `08, '10, '11, '13, '17, '18, '19 and '20.
• Four of the five Mids who claimed individual titles were first-time All-Academy Championship winners - Logan Treaster (125), Cody Trybus (141), Jacob Koser (197) and John Birchmeier (285).
• Junior Casey Cobb (133) earned his second All-Academy Championship in as many appearances. He is the 24th Navy wrestler to win at least two All-Academy Championship titles.
• It was the first appearance at the All-Academy Championship for six Navy wrestlers - Logan Treaster (125), Wyatt Long (149), Jack Stanton-Taddeo (157), Andrew Buckley (184), Jacob Koser (197) and John Birchmeier (285).
• Jacob Koser (197) and John Birchmeier (285) are just the 10th and 11th freshmen in Navy history to win an individual title at the All-Academy Championship and the first since Jared Prince in 2017. It's the first time Navy has had two freshmen win in the same year. It's also the first time a Navy freshman has won at the two heaviest weights.
• A remarkable 13 of the 25 individual victories by Navy today were bonus-point matches. Jacob Koser (197) earned bonus points for all three of his victories - one by fall and two by tech fall.
More from Coach Sharratt
• Cobb (133) and Trybus (141) are finding their stride at the right time and they make an impressive start to every competition. I felt like the All-Academies was a great showcase of their talent tonight.
• Koser (197) being named the Outstanding Wrestler of the All-Academy Championship is a testament to the competitor he is on the mat every time he steps out there. He continues to improve each week and that's being recognized in results and national spotlight.
• Treaster also had an impressive performance with dominating victories to the finals and a battle against two of the highest ranked wrestlers in the field.
• Birchmeier opened up and was extremely driven to put points on the board to seal the team victory. His roll through cradle and strong position leg attacks combined with his agility make him a big threat in competition.
What's Ahead
• Navy returns to dual action next weekend when it faces EIWA foes American and Drexel on back-to-back days.
• The Mids travel to Washington, D.C. on Friday, Feb. 31 to battle American (7:00 pm) and then make the trip on Saturday to Philadelphia, Pa. for a 4:00 pm match at Drexel.
• Navy will also send a handful of wrestlers to compete at the Edinboro Open on Saturday, Feb. 1 (9:00 am).
Team Standings (# of Champions)
1 - 117.5 - Navy (5)
2 - 116.5 - Air Force (3)
3 - 48.0 - VMI (1)
4 - 47.5 - Coast Guard (1)
5 - 34.0 - The Citadel
6 - 18.5 - Merchant Marine
7 - 12.5 - Norwich
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