InterMat Staff

The top seed at 165 lbs Matt Malcom of Nebraska-Kearney (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 125 The returning national champion Cole Laya (West Liberty) highlights a field full of monsters set to do battle in St Louis. The team race is going to be close and with the top four teams all having finalist threats at this weight, things will heat up quickly. Half of the 2021 All-Americans are back in the tournament, including the other finalist Nick Daggett (UNC Pembroke). Joe Arroyo (UW Parkside) is returning to the tournament and looking to make the jump from third to first. He will need to stay ahead of Paxton Rosen (Central Oklahoma), who enters as the two seed. Be in your seats for bout number two, Evan Carrigan (Newberry) will wrestle the fourth seed Christian Mejia (McKendree). The two met at the NWCA National Duals tournament and Carrigan won the matchup 13-2. Talk about upset special. The bottom of this bracket is total anarchy waiting to happen. Paxton Creese (St. Cloud State) missed out on a nationals trip in 2021, but he earned the three-seed after wins over 2019 finalist Josh Portillo (Nebraska Kearney), Daggett, and Arroyo. Daggett finds himself on Laya's side of the bracket, but the rest of them are all on the bottom side. This weight class has been crazy all year, 2021 All-American Christian Mejia arrived second semester and promptly won the Midwest Classic. Do not overlook Dawson Collins (Colorado Mesa), he made a run at the MWC that saw him fall in finals to Mejia. Collins is just a freshman, but he holds an impressive resume full of wins over Isaiah DeLaCerda, Dagget, Rosen, and Cody Fatzinger (Western Colorado). A third-place finish in SRVI sees him as one of the best unseeded wrestlers at any weight class. I would be remiss if I did not mention the first NCAA Division II national qualifier in Davenport University history, Manuel Leija. The freshman made the SRIII finals and will need to ride that high to continue his charge through history. Quarterfinals #1 Cole Laya (West Liberty) v #8 Jacob Dunlop (Gannon) #5 Nicholas Daggett (UNC Pembroke) vs Dawson Collins (Colorado Mesa) #3 Paxton Creese (St. Cloud State) vs #6 Josh Portillo (Nebraska Kearney) #2 Paxton Rosen (Central Oklahoma) vs Tyshawn White (Shippensburg) I am picking two different early-round upsets at the weight. Evan Carrigan (Newberry) has already beaten Christian Mejia & a first-round matchup between the two could send the fourth seed to the consolation side early. That would create a match between two unseeded wrestlers in Carrigan & Dawson Collins. I mentioned Collins earlier because he is a young man who has played the role of spoiler well this season and he has already blown up one impressive bracket with his showing at the Midwest Classic. I am picking Tyshawn White (Shippensburg) to mess up seeding on the bottom half, because I think he poses a real style challenge to the seventh-seed Joe Arroyo. The best quarterfinal on paper is Paxton Creese taking on Josh Portillo. The two met at National Duals with the repeat freshman Creese earning a 5-3 victory. Portillo is a #SuperSenior looking to bounce back from a very disappointing tournament in 2021. This is the type of match that cements a legacy in a program, with every fiber of my being I want to pick him to win this match. But I just have a feeling that Creese has learned enough from his first freshman season to avoid the type of mistakes that would see him give up big points from his feet or bottom. The places that Portillo likes to feast. I do think that Paxton Rosen is going to have his hands full with either Joe Arroyo or Tyshawn White. They are both such technically sound on their feet that Rosen could find himself in a 3-2 match and any time the score is decided by the first takedown, anything can happen. Semifinals Cole Laya (West Liberty) vs Dawson Collins (Mesa) Paxton Creese (St Cloud State) vs Paxton Rosen (Central Oklahoma) I could see this weight class only sending one of the top four seeds into the semifinals, that is how thin the margin for error is. Cole Laya has lost just once at the national tournament in two appearances. He is the best wrestler at this weight class until someone proves me wrong on the biggest stage. I really want to see this other semifinal because, how often do two Paxtons meet in a national tournament semifinal match? There can be only one! I am looking for a Highlander situation where the loser of this match has to change their name. Here's the thing, Rosen could face Arroyo who has beaten him in the quarterfinals. Or he could face the very good Tyshawn White. This side of the bracket is just so deep. We could see Creese fall to Portillo in the quarters. This is going to be me making the pick because of what I am looking at now, not trying to hedge my bet and get the most finalists right. I am going with the older, more battle-tested Paxton and picking Rosen. Finals Cole Laya (West Liberty) vs Paxton Rosen (Central Oklahoma) Cole Laya is very, very good. His only loss at the national tournament was in 2019 to eventual national champion Carlos Jacquez. I would have loved to see him in 2020 take on one of the best fields at any weight, thanks a lot Covid. In 2021 he went, Decision-Fall-Major Decision, to win his first title. I do not care who they put across from him in the finals, Danny Irwin may be the best coach in the country at making sure his top athletes' peak. Paxton Rosen will have earned the right to be in the finals if he makes it. That side of the bracket is just one land mine after another. He will earn the Brochos some much-needed points, but running into Laya just makes for a bad Saturday night. 1st Cole Laya - West Liberty University 2nd Paxton Rosen - University of Central Oklahoma 3rd Paxton Creese - St. Cloud State University 4th Dawson Collins - University of Colorado Mesa 5th Joe Arroyo - University of Wisconsin Parkside 6th Tyshawn White - Shippensburg University 7th Josh Portillo - University of Nebraska Kearney 8th Evan Carrigan - Newberry College 133 I honestly feel that the committee did itself a disservice by not making certain that Wesley Dawkins (Nebraska Kearney) and Jon Andreatta (Adams State) were not placed on the same side of the bracket. We missed our chance to see their grudge match in the SRVI finals after an MFF by Andreatta propelled Dawkins to the title. These two fan bases do not like each other and these two athletes seem to care for each other even less than that. They also happen to be two of the most exciting wrestlers at any weight. This weight class is bound to have some “upsets” brought about by the draw and seeding. It seems like the committee put a lot of weight on the performance at the Midwest Classic, and why not? Athletes that have won the MWC have historically done very well at the national tournament. Metzgar defeated fellow national qualifiers Eric Bartos (Mercyhurst), Tanner Hitchcock (Lindenwood), and Reece Barnhardt (Mary) there. His season from then on though was an 11-4 campaign that saw his best win as the replacement for Patrick Allis at Western Colorado, Alex Alvarez. Majid Corbit (Limestone) is undefeated and a Super Regional II champion, he is unseeded. Eric Bartos (Mercyhurst) has an almost as impressive body of work and finished higher in his Super Regional than Metzgar did in his. Garrett Vos (St. Cloud State) also finished third in his Super Regional and still managed to earn a seventh-seed. Vos has won over national qualifiers Corey Gamet (Lake Erie), Elijah Lusk (Lander), and the fifth-seed Reece Barnhardt (Mary). The freshman Marauder did avenge that loss in the Super Regional V tournament though, he sent the returning national finalist to the consolation side. I kind of feel like they did not know what to do with the one-loss Collin Wickramaratna (Kutztown). He avenged his regular-season loss to Eric Bartos in the SRI finals, but his only other quality win is over Devin Flannery. He earned the sixth seed but opens his tournament against undefeated Corbit with the three-seed Jack Huffman (Augustana) looming. Huffman is another wrestler that seemed to be seeded due to some transitive properties, his two wins over Barnhardt highlighted his season results, and Barnhardt's big wins seemed to equal a jump in the seeding for Huffman. Huffman and Barnhardt are going to do damage and if Garrett Vos can bounce back, three podium spots should belong to the SRV crew. I am a little surprised that Tanner Cole (Central Oklahoma) earned the top-seed over Dawkins, but the junior is undefeated with wins over Andreatta, Metzgar, and Tanner Hitchcock (Lindenwood). The 2021 7th-place All-American Hitchcock is unseeded and opens the tournament against Vos in bout number three. Do not be late getting into the arena. Quarterfinals #1 Tanner Cole (Central Oklahoma) vs #8 Collin Metzgar (Colorado Mesa) #5 Reece Barnhardt (Mary) vs #4 Jon Andreatta (Adams State) #3 Jack Huffman (Augustana) vs #6 Collin Wickramaratna (Kutztown) #7 Garrett Vos (St. Cloud State) vs #2 Wesley Dawkins (Kearney) The quarterfinal from the very bottom of this bracket is going to be huge for the team race, the winner between Garrett Vos and Wesley Dawkins will immediately earn All-American finish points for their program and give their team an early boost. I expect Tanner Cole to roll for Central Oklahoma, which puts a lot of pressure on the likes of St. Cloud State and Nebraska Kearney. The four vs five and three vs six battles both feel like toss-ups to me. I know that seems weird, especially in the match between Jack Huffman and Collin Wickramaratna, but this bracket seems poised to get crazy at the quarters. Reece Barnhardt pinned Jon Andreatta at the Midwest Classic and now he gets the chance to show that was not just freshman luck. He is very capable of pulling the “upset” again. I am not sure why I am not as high on Huffman as the seeding committee, but I have reservations. It is not like Wickramaratna has a much flashier resume, it is just the eye test. I hope he passes it on Friday evening. Semifinals Tanner Cole (Central Oklahoma) vs Jon Andreatta (Adams State) Jack Huffman (Augustana) vs Wesley Dawkins (Kearney) We may never see Garrett Vos take on Jack Huffman and that makes me sad. Augustana forfeited the weight in their dual despite having Brandon Carroll, who beat Vos early in the season, and Huffman on the roster. What we will get to see is Huffman take on two-time All-American and four-time national qualifier Wesley Dawkins. Nebraska Kearney fell a point and a half short of a team title in 2021; it stung. I think we are going to see the best effort the Lopers have at every weight. In the top-side battle, Tanner Cole takes on the dangerous Jon Andreatta. I am going to pick Cole because of his style of wrestling, it is just so fundamentally sound that I think he will frustrate Andreatta and create a mistake that he can take advantage of. I could be wrong though and Andreatta could toss him on his head. Finals Tanner Cole (Central Oklahoma) vs Wesley Dawkins (Kearney) Wesley Dawkins and Tanner Cole will find themselves the focus of much of the arena when they meet in the finals. If the team race is still up for grabs, which it probably will be, the winner of this match could secure the trophy for their program and end St. Cloud State's reign. It will also be a rematch of the 2021 consolation finals that Tanner Cole won 12-7. That loss has to have stung looking at the point differential that separated Kearney from the trophy last year. I expect that there has been a freshman tasked with whispering in Dawkins ear at every meal, “remember the Bronchos .”Hopefully, it works out better for him than it did for the Persians. 1st Wesley Dawkins - the University of Nebraska Kearney 2nd Tanner Cole - University of Central Oklahoma 3rd Garrett Vos - St. Cloud State University 4th Jack Huffman - Augustana University 5th Reece Barnhardt - University of Mary 6th Jon Andreatta - Adams State University 7th Eric Bartos - Mercyhurst University 8th Collin Metzgar - University of Colorado Mesa 141 If you want to see coaches argue and agree at the same time, ask the eighteen coaches how they feel about the seeding of this weight class. There are going to be some very upset program leaders and some very happy ones as well. A, for example, would be Keaton Schorr (Augustana), who was 5-6 at 149lbs before starting for the Vikings at the SRV tournament and making the finals. His best win is over fellow qualifier Tate Murty (Upper Iowa). Caleb Morris (Pitt-Johnstown) and Alexis Soriano (Mercyhurst) both have better season resumes. Unseeded, two-time national champion Tyler Warner has at least as impressive a resume this season, and given his history, deserves to be ahead of him. Morris, Soriano, and Warner's coaches have to be wondering how this happened. More than that, Schorr also got a great draw that should see him advance at least to the quarters. If you are Colby Smith (Lindenwood) or Nick James (Kearney), you have to look at your first match and feel like your path to a national championship is going to be a difficult one right away. Smith drew the 2019 All-American Soriano, while James hits the landmine that is Tyler Warner right away. Even the second-seed Branson Proudlock has to be on upset alert as he takes on Tate Murty (Upper Iowa) right away. Proudlock has been nearly perfect this season, including a Midwest Classic crown. But all it takes is one mistake at the national tournament to go from finalists to 0-2. There will be seeded wrestlers going down at this weight, I guarantee it and everyone should be on upset alert. Quarterfinals #1 Joe Bianchini (St Cloud State) vs #8 Keaton Schorr (Augustana) #5 Christian Small (Kind) vs #4 Zeth Brower (Lander) #3 Colby Smith (Lindenwood) vs Tyler Warner (West Liberty) #7 Peter Kuster (Drury) vs #2 Branson Proudlock (Findlay) I want to voice a complaint right away about this weight class, why are Christian Small and Zeth Brower on a collision course in the quarterfinals? I hate to see this matchup because I feel like after Joe Bianchini, this weight class could have been seeded in so many different ways. Colby Smith as a two seed with Branson Prouldock three could have been switched. Heck, Zeth Brower could be the three if you are going to put that much weight on his win over Small in the SRII finals. I also think that Keaton Schorr and Bianchini meeting in the quarterfinals is another head-scratcher. Why are we running those Super Regional finals again? I do not expect the results to change for either of these matches. The ones to watch will be Colby Smith taking on Tyler Warner and Peter Kuster battling Branson Proudlock. The Kuster match could be one of those sneaky upset specials. Proudlock only has the one loss to Soriano this season and Kuster is very similar. He also has some big wins on his resume. Can Tyler Warner pull a second upset in a row to make the semifinals? Sure. But he will have to be perfect against Colby Smith. Smith took losses to Kuster and Proudlock and then after the Midwest Classic never looked back. Warner has a loss to the Findlay wrestler as well so this match comes down to really, how much of a 141 Warner is. Colby Smith is full-sized and battle-tested at this weight. That could be the difference despite the incredible record of success that Warner has at this tournament. Semifinals Joe Bianchini (St. Cloud State) vs Zeth Brower (Lander) Colby Smith (Lindenwood) vs Branson Proudlock (Findlay) As badly as I want to predict anarchy at this weight, I think that most of it will occur on the backside of this bracket. Joe Bianchini has a clear path to the finals and St. Cloud State needs him to deliver a title to help them build for their team race. Zeth Brower will make history for his program if he makes the semifinals as their first All-American. But he will run into the buzzsaw that is Bianchini. He has scored bonus points in 13 of his 17 wins against Division II foes. Colby Smith versus Branson Proudlock is a rematch from the Midwest Classic that Proudlock won 4-1. If the first semifinal is favored one way, this one is a toss-up. I will probably just flip a coin. Finals Joe Bianchini (St. Cloud State) vs Colby Smith (Lindenwood) A one seed versus a three seed is probably not a great surprise. But when we look back at this tournament bracket in a couple of seasons, I think we will see how impressive a run it was for these two athletes. I already spoke about how big of a weight class this is for St. Cloud State and even more than that, it is important for Bianchini to put a finals loss from 2021 in his rearview mirror. Colby Smith had his designs on a national title in 2021 and his third-place finish has to have been in his mind for the last 365 days. A narrow loss to eventual national champion Isiah Royal (Newberry) kept him from that career goal and now he has a chance at redemption. I worry that whoever comes out of this side of the bracket will have had to leave too much on the mat making the finals to have anything left in the tank. And you do not want to wrestle Bianichini with anything less than a full tank of premium gasoline. 1st Joe Bianichini - St. Cloud State University 2nd Colby Smith - Lindenwood University 3rd Tyler Warner - West Liberty University 4th Branson Proudlock - Findlay University 5th Zeth Brower - Lander University 6th Christian Small - King University 7th Peter Kuster - Drury University 8th Caleb Morris - University of Pittsburgh Johnstown 149 I do not hate the seeding at this weight, but having Dom Means (Gannon) as an unseeded wrestler creates a heck of a landmine at this weight. It may be a good thing that the three seed Noah Hermosillo has a first-round match to get warmed up, because he is not going to want to go into that matchup cold. 2021 141 lb national champion Isiah Royal (Newberry) will need to be ready right away himself, the one-seed draws the very tough sophomore from Northern State, Wyatt Turnquist. He has four wins over national qualifiers, including a regular-season win over Nick Novak (St. Cloud State). Novak rode the momentum of a Super Regional V crown to a seventh-seed at the tournament, and the true freshman will look to start writing his own history at the storied program during his first trip to the national tournament. The best story in college wrestling right now is Darick Lapaglia (Central Missouri), not only is he part of the resurgence of his program but he is also back in the national tournament eight years after earning All-American honors as a freshman for Maryville University. Craig Cook (Davis & Elkins) beat 2021 national champion Lukas Martin (Fairmont State) in his first match of the season, seemingly sending him into retirement. He capped the year off with a Super Regional III crown and now he needs to be on upset alert as he takes on the bigger of the #BaileyBros in round one. Logan Bailey (Indianapolis) has picked up big wins in his two years in the Hounds lineup and is a must-watch whenever he takes the mat. With West Liberty, Nebraska Kearney, and St. Cloud State all having wrestlers at this weight, Central Oklahoma will be hoping for big points from the two-seed Brik Filippo. He could carve a path right through West Liberty and St. Cloud State on his way to make the finals. On the other side of the bracket, Sam Turner (Nebraska Kearney) has a chance to advance through the quarters if he can find a way to beat Jacob Ealy (Pitt-Johnstown). I honestly think he could be a national finalist and from his fourth seed, his path seems very realistic. Quarterfinals #1 Isiah Royal (Newberry) vs Jason Hanenberg (Western Colorado) #5 Sam Turner (Kearney) vs #4 Jacob Ealy (Pitt-Johnstown) #3 Noah Hermosillo (Adams State) vs Logan Bailey (Indianapolis) #7 Nick Novak (St. Cloud State) vs #2 Brik Filippo (Central Oklahoma) In his last two trips to the national tournament where we had wrestling, Isaiah Royal has been a finalist both times. In 2021, he won the 141 crown over Joe Bianchini (St. Cloud State). It very nearly spoiled the Huskies' day and a chance at a national championship. He is going to make the finals again and while I expect Jason Hanenberg to cause a ruckus early, Royal is not one to relinquish the crown so easily. I think the best match of the quarters will be when Sam Turner takes on Jacob Ealy. Turner was the number one wrestler in the country, until his loss to Brik Filippo and to Noah Hermosillo at the SRVI tournament dropped him to the fifth seed at this weight. This hurt the Lopers because now he must face off against the surging Ealy who has gotten even better as the season has progressed. Noah Hermosillo looks to be on a mission and that means Logan Bailey is on the wrong railroad track. Nick Novak could boost the St. Cloud chances with a big upset of Brik Filippo, but I think the true freshman may find that he is running into a seasoned vet who has been here before. Semifinals Isiah Royal (Newberry) vs Jacob Ealy (Pitt-Johnstown) Noah Hermosillo (Adams State) vs Brik Filippo (Central Oklahoma) Isiah Royal will enter the national tournament without having really been tested, he wrestled such an abbreviated schedule in 2022 that you have to wonder if he is totally back. I do not think it matters, he has shown that he knows what he has to do to get it done at the national tournament, and woe to those who try to usurp the Royal crown. Jacob Ealy will be trying to do just that though. He is a seasoned veteran in his own right and the returning All-American is looking to make a big jump from his eighth-place finish a year ago. The repeat sophomore is going to find himself on the consolation side once again, but by making the semifinals he will guarantee himself a higher finish. The Noah Hermosillo versus Brik Filippo semifinals will have all kinds of storylines riding on it. The largest will be the team race factor. If the Central Oklahoma junior is the only athlete from the big four to make the finals at this weight and in doing so could hand head coach Todd Steidley a team trophy. The only wrestler to beat Hermosillo this season is Dom Means and guess what, he will not be wrestling Dom Means in this semifinal. Hermosillo is now a four-time national qualifier and seems a lock to improve upon his sixth-place finish from 2021. Finals Isiah Royal (Newberry) vs Noah Hermosillo (Adam State) You can call me crazy, but I think this is the finals match we see for no other reason than it is the one I want. If this is how the seeds and draws are going to be, then this is the finals match I want to watch. These two wrestlers are so good at what they do. Isiah Royal is smooth on his feet and puts a tough enough ride on even the best wrestlers that it shortens the match. Noah Hermosillo is a score from anywhere wrestler and that includes all three positions. It is not so much a battle of styles as a battle of wills. Which athlete can fully impose their will upon their opponent? There will be no team race implications here, just a matter of two guys who can go out there knowing that this is their last college match and they have nothing to lose. 1st Noah Hermosillo - Adams State University 2nd Isiah Royal - Newberry College 3rd Jacob Ealy - University of Pittsburgh Johnstown 4th Brik Filippo - University of Central Oklahoma 5th Dom Means - Gannon University 6th Nick Novak - St. Cloud State University 7th Logan Bailey - University of Indianapolis 8th Darick Lapaglia - Central Missouri University 157 This entire weight class was turned on its head when Chance Esmont (Ashland) upset returning national champion James Wimer at the SRIII tournament. Esmont went on to win the championships while Wimer missed the national tournament. Anthony Herrera (St. Cloud State) jumped John Ridle (Central Missouri) to earn the top-seed at the weight. A loss in the SRVI finals after an injury default kept Josiah Rider (Adams State) from earning the top spot as well. JoJo Gonzalez (American International) was able to navigate a very tough Super Regional I tournament and earn the fourth seed. Ty Lucas (Central Oklahoma) will have to carry the hopes of the Bronchos national tournament title and he has a very good chance to finish about his seed. The biggest surprise qualifier for me at this weight is Patrick “the Wonder Boy” Wunderlich (Coker) who battled back in SRII to finish third. He comes into the tournament at 68 in the D2Wrestlestat rankings. Dallas Boone (King) enters the tournament on a nine-match win streak and momentum can mean everything. That is why it is important to keep an eye on how Esmont starts off his tournament. If you want a real wildcard at the weight, Braydon Huber is one of the most explosive wrestlers at any weight and every time he steps on the mat there is the chance to see a big move. There is a lot of balance at this weight and there are probably six or seven wrestlers who could end up with the national title. Quarterfinals #1 Anthony Herrera (St. Cloud State) vs #8 Braydon Huber (Mary) #5 Ty Lucas (Central Oklahoma) vs #4 JoJo Gonzalez (American International) #3 Josiah Rider (Adams State)vs Nick Young (Gannon) #2 John Ridle (Central Missouri) vs #7 Dawson Combest (Indianapolis) The top half of this bracket should probably wrestle to seed. This is important because it sets up the possibility of a Central Oklahoma versus St. Cloud State semifinal. For that to happen, Anthony Herrera just needs to defeat the always dangerous Braydon Huber again. They met very early in the season and Herrera won that battle 6-3 at the prestigious Finn Grinaker Cobber Open. Then, Ty Lucas will need to “upset” 2021 All-American JoJo Gonzalez. These two had a chance to meet at the Midwest Classic, but it did not happen. Gonzalez can go from zero to 60 faster than a Formula 1 racer and when he puts the pedal down is nearly unstoppable. He is a matchup nightmare for anyone. In a shoot-out, he can wrestle with the best in the country, and now as an All-American, he can wrestle without the pressure. Nick Young (Gannon) is two upsets away from being an All-American. An early win over Ryan Wheeler will put him just one away. Josiah Rider was the number one seed in the tournament before an injury default in the SRVI finals had him fall to the third. If he is healthy, he is a great finals bet. Dawson Combest and John Ridle is an SRIV battle and somehow will be the first meeting between these two. I know, it is really hard to believe that they have never wrestled each other. They are both sophomores so we should get to see this a few more times. Semifinals Anthony Herrera (St Cloud State) vs JoJo Gonzalez (American International) Josiah Rider (Adams State) vs John Ridle (Central Missouri) St. Cloud State needs to win this match, it is the chance for them to score points while Nebraska Kearney and West Liberty miss out. More than that, if Tyler Lucas does not make the semifinals they can stay ahead of Central Oklahoma at this weight as well. Anthony and JoJo Gonzalez have not met and there is no time that they would have matched up. On paper, this should be all Herrera, but not so fast my friend. Herrera wins a lot of matches, but he has done it without scoring big points. The redshirt sophomore has a decorated junior college career on his resume, but that is not the NCAA Division II national tournament. Everybody has a plan until they get hit in the face and I expect Gonzalez to come out swinging hard. On the other side, it is a battle between a couple of young wrestlers. Josiah Rider is a redshirt sophomore as well and he will take on the sophomore John Ridle in what could be the start of an awesome rivalry. Again, I worry about the health of Rider, anything less than 100%, and Ridle is going to be an NCAA finalist as a sophomore. Finals JoJo Gonzalez (American International) vs John Ridle (Central Missouri) I could be way off on this prediction and it is just as likely that we see a battle between the redshirt sophomores Josiah Rider and Anthony Herrera, but I am going with my almost always wrong gut though and picking one of my favorite wrestlers at any weight and a young man who is part of the renaissance happening at Central Missouri under interim head coach John Feeney. The Mules had two national qualifiers and Ridle won their first Super Regional championship since 2015. If the “interim” does not disappear from before Feeney's name, there is something seriously wrong in that athletic department. Gonzalez has been very good for the last three seasons and after being locked out of the tournament in 2020, he made the podium in 2021. I can see him finishing his career with the title, the first finalist for the Yellowjackets since 2000. 1st JoJo Gonzalez - American International University 2nd John Ridle - Central Missouri University 3rd Anthony Herrera - St. Cloud State University 4th Ty Lucas - Central Oklahoma University 5th Dawson Combest - the University of Indianapolis 6th Josiah Rider - Adams State University 7th Braydon Huber - University of Mary 8th Chance Esmont - Ashland University 165 When Alex Faranchek (Gannon) succumbed to a knee injury late in the season, this weight class appeared to be a one-horse race. 2019 national champion and three-time All-American Matt Malcom is back in his fifth national tournament and against anyone not named Fred Green has seemed unstoppable the last three seasons. If there is going to be a challenger though to his attempt to ride off into the sunset a champion, it may come from the redshirt junior from Wisconsin Parkside, Shane Gantz. He is undefeated this season and the Midwest Classic champion. John Dean (Belmont Abbey) will be on the same side of the bracket as Gantz, and the junior wrestled the Super Regional tournament back at 165 after spending part of the second semester at 157. A :20 pin by James Burks (Northern State) is the only blemish on his Division II record this season, and other than that total anomaly he has been perfect. If there is going to be a wrestler to stop him it will almost certainly have to be one of those two. The fourth and fifth seed on Malcom's side includes the surging Jack Eiteljorge (Indianapolis) and undefeated in #D2Wrestle competition Dillon Keane (Pitt Johnstown). Even after his SRIV crown, Eitejorge is a surprise four seed. He has seven losses on his D2 season including to wrestlers who unseeded in this tournament or did not qualify. I thought he was a six or maybe seven seed, but now he has all the pressure of someone expected to make the semifinals. Talon Seitz (Newberry) got into the tournament and the former Loper gets the first crack at his old teammate Matt Malcom in the first round. He is back in the Carolinas and now he is a national qualifier. I wonder if James Penfold's (Lake Erie) MFF in the SRIII finals caused him to fall down the seeds, but at the seventh, he has a path to the quarters. He took an injury default against a teammate during the Storm Open and other than that would be undefeated. Eight of his 12 wins in D2 are by fall, those are some video game-type results. Corey Peterson (McKendree) finished fourth in 2021, but this year was the last wrestler out of SRIV. This weight has clear favorites and then wrestlers who should be All-Americans, the question is who will mess this all up. Quarterfinals #1 Matt Malcom (Kearney) vs #8 Nate Trepanier (Lindenwood) #5 Dillon Keane (Pitt-Johnstown) vs #4 Jack Eiteljorge (Indianapolis) #3 John Dean (Belmont Abbey) vs #6 Corey Peterson (McKendree) #2 Shane Gantz (UW Parkside) vs #7 James Penfold (Lake Erie) Nate Trepanier was looking great in #SRIV headed into the tournament and seemed ready for a rematch against Corey Peterson in the finals. Along came Jack Eiteljorge and a top-six seed turned into the eighth and a quarterfinal match against Matt Malcom. These are both seasoned veterans with plenty of experience, but one of them has the accolades and has proven he can perform when it counts. Jack Eiteljorge will have a chance to prove the doubters wrong right away, as he will battle Dillon Keane, the redshirt freshman who has made a big jump in his third year in the Johnstown room. Then we have a sneaky matchup between John Dean and Corey Peterson. They finished fourth and fifth in 2021 with Peterson picking up a win in their head-to-head meeting in St Louis. Can he do it again? The last quarterfinal could have been a battle of undefeated, but that teammate loss has Penfold sitting on the one. Regardless, after this match, he will have a second. Gantz has looked like a monster this season just going out and winning match after match. Semifinals Matt Malcom (Nebraska Kearney) vs Dillon Keane (Pitt Johnstown) Corey Peterson (McKendree) vs Shane Gantz (UW Parkside) I feel bad for anyone standing in the way of Matt Malcom making the finals. He has a 75% bonus rate this season and that is against all competition, not just Division II. When you factor in just matches against Division II wrestlers, it is an astounding 85%. I think that Dillon Keane can pull the upset in the quarterfinals to become an All-American, but he will have to do the rest of his work in the consolation rounds. Much like Kean, Corey Peterson can pull that quarterfinal upset. But like Kean, he will run into a buzzsaw in the next round. Gantz has scored bonus points himself in 12 of his 17 matches against Division II. He seems on a collision course with Malcom in the 165 finals. Finals Matt Malcom (Nebraska Kearney) vs Shane Gantz (UW Parkside) This is the final I want to see and I believe it is the one we deserve to see. These two athletes have been the best at the weight this year and they will put on a show in St Louis. One of these two #SuperSeniors will walk away into retirement as a national champion and the other will just walk away. I mean with an All-American finish, so it is not like they will leave empty-handed. In a match that turns into a scoring fest, Matt Malcom will have the advantage. He will also have the most pressure as his winning a title boosts his team's chances at the trophy. If this match stays close, Shane Gantz has more than enough offense to find that final takedown. He has a heck of a coach in his final who just happens to know a thing or two about winning Division II national titles. Even if his brother tried to run me over with a scooter last year. 1st Matt Malcom - University of Nebraska Kearney 2nd Shane Gantz - University of Wisconsin Parkside 3rd Corey Peterson - McKendree University 4th John Dean - Belmont Abbey College 5th Nate Trepanier - Lindenwood University 6th Dillon Keane - University of Pittsburgh Johnstown 7th John Penfold - Lake Erie University 8th Jack Eiteljorge - University of Indianapolis 174 The University of Nebraska Kearney did a bit of a weight class shuffle late in the season and Austin Eldredge moved down from 184 to start at the 174 class. He has won all 11 of his matches at the weight by tech fall, I feel like I'm telling a lie typing that. He has wrestled 11 matches at 174 and he has won every one of those matches by tech fall. If you want to be even more impressed, he has only allowed a total of nine points in those 11 matches. He has found a #D2Wrestle cheat code. New Mexico Highland University may have taken longer than any team in the country to update their roster, hopefully, they get a jump on 2023 and add “national qualifier” to the bio of Allen Michel. The senior almost won more matches in 2022 than he did his first three seasons wrestling for New Mexico Highlands. Hunter DeLong won 37 matches this season and this is his reward? He faces the third seed Andrew Sams (Indianapolis) in the first round. Sams is a very solid three-seed and a semifinal matchup with Cade Mueller (Augustana) is looking likely. Mueller just won the #SRV crown after beating Trevor Turriff (MSU Mankato) and the Viking could be the first Augustana finalists since 2019. I spoke about Caleb Spears in my “dark horse” article, if Dan Beemer (Ashland) is still injured then he could be a quarterfinalist very quickly. Heck, Beemer needs to be on upset alert as he takes on Dillon Walker (Mercyhurst). The freshman has come into Division II ready to wrestle and is a terrible draw for anyone who is not 100%. Job Ayala (UW Parkside) wrestled matches at 197 last season, he either cut off a leg or sold his soul to the devil to make 174. Either way, he is a national qualifier and a very serious All-American threat from the eighth seed. West Liberty's Ty McGeary is on Eldredge's side of the bracket and if they match up it will impact the team race. Central Oklahoma has Alex Kauffman facing Mueller in the first round, so the junior JUCO college All-American may need to do some work on the consolation side to feed the Bronchos title hopes. This is a big weight because those three teams can all make up ground or possibly build leads while St. Cloud State is without a point scorer. Just a note, 2021 fourth-place finisher Josh Jones (McKendree), is unseeded. So is two-time All-American Brock Biddle (Pitt-Johnstown), it goes to show the committee is looking for what you did this season. Quarterfinals #1 Austin Eldredge (Nebraska Kearney) vs #8 Job Ayala (UW Parkside) #5 Ty McGeary (West Liberty) vs #4 Trevor Turiff (MSU Mankato) #3 Andrew Sams (Indianapolis) vs Caleb Spears (Newberry) Josh Jones (McKendree) vs #2 Cade Mueller (Augustana) I fully expect the tech fall run to continue for Austin Eldredge at the national tournament. This means that Job Ayala is going to have his hands full with the hottest wrestler in Division II at the worst possible time. The Parkside Ranger is going to have to win a match on the consolation side if he wants to be an All-American. In what is a tiny bit of an upset, I think that Ty McGeary gets it done against Trevor Turiff in the quarters. The Hilltopper only has a loss to Dan Beemer on his record and he did not get the chance to avenge that in the SRIII finals. Turiff was a national finalist in 2021, but this season has been tougher with the addition of Cade Mueller to the weight class and it puts him on a much tougher path to return to the stage. Andrew Sams is firing on all cylinders at the right time and the Greyhound is going to be a very tough matchup for Cade Mueller in the semifinals. Josh Jones is now a three-time national qualifier, he knows what it takes to win big matches, but he is wrestling a man who is fully prepared for the national tournament. Semifinals Austin Eldredge (Nebraska Kearney) vs Ty McGeary (West Liberty) Andrew Sams (Indianapolis) vs Cade Mueller (Augustana) If the streak is still alive for Eldredge, this is where it stops. He is not going to come out and just steamroll Ty McGeary off the mat. He will still probably beat him and it could possibly even be a major decision, but it will not be a match termination. West Liberty arrives at the national tournament ready to wrestle and that is a good thing. When that whistle blows, Eldredge is going to be coming forward looking to score. The match between Andrew Sams and Cade Mueller is going to come down to the first takedown. The matches that Sams has lost this season have all seemed to happen when he allows his opponents to score first. In low-scoring matches or when he has the lead to build on, Sams can shut them down. Cade Mueller can score but can let high-level competitors hang around. Someone is going to get that first takedown and whoever does is going to win. Finals Austin Eldredge (Nebraska Kearney) vs Cade Mueller (Augustana) I just do not know how you could pick against Austin Eldredge, unless you are an Augustana fan, or possibly a St. Cloud State one. You know that they and Central Oklahoma will be cheering for Cade Mueller in this match. If the Lopers can get two finalists, that would be two more than they had when they fell short in 2021. Matt Malcom seems to be one, and Austin Eldredge could be number two. Cade Mueller will be looking to be the first Augustana national champion since 2010. 1st Austin Eldredge - University of Nebraska Kearney 2nd Cade Mueller - Augustana University 3rd Andrew Sams - University of Indianapolis 4th Ty McGeary - West Liberty University 5th Alex Kauffman - University of Central Oklahoma 6th Brock Biddle - University of Pittsburg Johnstown 7th Trevor Turiff - Minnesota State University Mankato 8th Josh Jones - McKendree University 184 Coming into the 2021 season, I do not think that was the only person following Division II wrestling who thought this weight class wasn't Heath Gray (Central Oklahoma) and then everyone else. Billy Higgins (Kearney) has entered the lobby. He ended Gray's 50-plus match win streak, knocked him to the second seed despite being the returning national champion, and set up a possible semifinal match with huge team race ramifications. This is another weight without a St. Cloud State wrestler, so the points that West Liberty, Central Oklahoma, and Nebraska Kearney all earn here are huge. It just so happens that those three teams all have top three seeded athletes. 2019 national champion and 2021 runner-up Connor Craig (West Liberty) sits atop the bracket. Caden Steffen (Southwest State) was a bit of a surprise All-American last season, although given his lineage he should not have been. This season he is not sneaking up on anyone and as the fifth-seed will have expectations to shoulder. 2021 All-American Noah Curreri made history for Queens as their first All-American in program history, if he wants to add to that total he will do so starting unseeded. He also draws returning All-American Dan Filipek (McKendree) right out of the gate. Martin Verhaeghe (Fort Hays State) has won well over 100 matches in his career, it will take at minimum three more for him to become a first-time All-American, before he graduates this spring. He needs to be on upset alert as he will face Kutztown's, Matt Weinberg. Kutztown has Weinberg listed as a freshman but some results from the Penn State Wrestling Club list him as a sophomore. Whatever class he is, he's dang good. Cole Houser lost his program at Urbana and then helped to build Glenville State into a surprise sophomore contender. He earned a spot at his first national tournament to be part of his new program's history. Heath Gray is good. If he had not lost that squeaker to Higgins, this weight class would write itself. Quarterfinals #1 Connor Craig (West Liberty) vs Logan Hall (Notre Dame) #5 Caden Steffen (Southwest State) vs #4 Dan Filipek (McKendree) #3 Billy Higgins (Nebraska Kearney) vs Matt Weinberg (Kutztown) #7 Anderson Salisbury (Colorado Mines) vs #2 Heath Gray (Central Oklahoma) West Liberty needs wins, but they also need them to include bonus points. I am not sure they can match their three finalists from 2021, but if they cannot they need to add bonus points to every win. Connor Craig can turn it on and he needs to do so against a familiar foe in Logan Hall. Caden Steffen will have the chance to join his father, Link Steffen, in Southwest Minnesota State program history as a semifinalist. Last season, Jackson Ryan accomplished the feat, and imagine what it would be like for Steffen to do the same. In 2021, Dan Filipek had the fastest pin of the tournament against Steffen in :17, I expect this go-around to be a much different match. The four-time national qualifier has the experience on Steffen, but the gap has closed in 2022 between these two. Against anyone not named Billy Higgins in the last three seasons, Heath Gray has walked away with a Division II victory. He is not wrestling Higgins in the quarterfinals, so I expect history to hold. Anderson Salisbury (Colorado Mines) will need to win one more match on the backside to become a two-time All-American. What I expect to be a very good match will be Billy Higgins taking on the unseeded and upset-minded Matt Weinberg. We all want to see the rematch between Higgins and Gray, but the Loper will have to make it that far for us to get what we want. Semifinals Connor Craig (West Liberty) vs Dan Filipek (McKendree) Billy Higgins (Nebraska Kearney) vs Heath Gray (Central Oklahoma) I am not certain the last time that Heath Gray walked out on a mat with the expectations that he will be carrying during his semifinal battle. He has fallen short of the finals once before in this round and this time, as a senior trying to win an individual and team title I wonder how heavy that burden must be. Billy Higgins wants to help his team win a trophy and earn his own crown, but this will not be his last trip to the championship. A tight Heath Gray and a loose confident Billy Higgins could spell doom for the Bronchos. Then again, this is Heath Gray and we all know this is the match he wants. Connor Craig has never wrestled in the NCAA tournament and has not been a national finalist. He wants to be a national champion again and only one more win stands between him and a chance at revenge against Gray. Dan Filipek is good, but much like Gray, Connor Craig is on a different level. Three of the top-four seeds at this weight will graduate after the 2022 season, that is just crazy. Finals Connor Craig (West Liberty) vs Heath Gray (Central Oklahoma) Wrestling is all about adjustments. I believe that Heath Gray will make them in his rematch against Billy Higgins and I know that Connor Craig will make them when he faces off against Gray again. The match was a 3-2 win for Gray in 2021 and it kept West Liberty from finishing third in the team race. I remember talking with him and his teammates after the tournament and you could already see the hunger in his eyes. It is very easy to switch those types of results between two top-tier athletes and while Gray needs to be thinking about Higgins, Connor Craig is already focused on what he needs to do to beat Gray. 1st Connor Craig - West Liberty University 2nd Heath Gray - University of Central Oklahoma 3rd Billy Higgins - University of Nebraska Kearney 4th Dan Filipek - McKendree University 5th Martin Verhaeghe - Fort Hays State University 6th Matt Weinberg - Kutztown University 7th Anderson Salisbury - Colorado School of Mines 8th Logan Hall - Notre Dame College 197 We could wrestle this bracket 100 times and we would probably see 100 different top eights, and that is just a guess because I do not remember how to do the math of probabilities like that. I just mean to say that this weight is poised on the razor's edge of anarchy and, as an agent of chaos, I am always happy to advocate for that. We could see upsets right away out of Walker Uhl (Ashland) and Logan Kemp (West Liberty). They are both very dangerous unseeded wrestlers who have landed in the bracket in a great place to cause havoc. Logan Kemp is a national qualifier again, but for West Liberty to challenge for a team trophy they need him to finally break through and become an All-American. St. Cloud State will have the two-seed Noah Ryan, the returning All-American could make a run to the finals. Central Oklahoma has its own firepower here in returning national finalist Dalton Abney. One of the strongest, smoothest, most dominating wrestlers in the country will have a shot at putting away the team trophy race if he can win it all. The Lopers will have the sixth seed in Hayden Prince. Prince has lost to four of the national qualifiers, but two of those were to Abney and Ryan. A bracket-buster would benefit West Liberty the most here. Alderson Broaddus is still looking for the first All-American in program history, and Gino Sita has been close before. In 2019, he lost in the blood round, falling just short of standing on the podium. Darius Parker (Lander) has his name in the Lander history books, and he can add to it by becoming the first All-American for head coach RC LaHaye. Brian Kennerly (Kutztown) is a tough wrestler to grade, he enters as the fourth-seed after winning SRI but without the history in #D2Wrestle, it is hard to know just how good he is. I know he is good, but is he making a run to the finals good? To do so he will have to get through 2019 national champion Nicholas Mason (Tiffin). The Dragon is up to his old tricks again after blowing through the #SRIII regional tournament. He seems poised to put the 0-2 2021 national tournament in his rearview mirror and end his career as an All-American. Quarterfinals #1 Dalton Abney (Central Oklahoma) vs #8 Gino Sita (Alderson Broaddus) #5 Nicholas Mason (Tiffin) vs #4 Brian Kennerly (Kutztown) #3 Derek Blubaugh (Indianapolis) vs Logan Kemp (West Liberty) #7 Joel Leise (Gannon) vs #2 Noah Ryan (St. Cloud State) The quarterfinals could look very different than my prediction, but I expect that Dalton Abney and Noah Ryan are safe bets to make it that far. Brain Kennerly was a heavyweight for Division I Virginia in 2020 and 2021. You may remember that the last wrestler from a Division I school in Virginia who transferred to Kutztown found a lot of success. He was not tested this season before the Super Regional and then he just went out and pinned Gino Sita in overtime and beat Joel Leise by a major decision 15-6. I don't know. It may be sentimental, my picking of Nicholas Mason in this match, but we all know how good Mason can be when he is good. Derek Blubaugh has a chance to make the finals for the Hounds, but he will need to make his way past Logan Kemp here. I have Kemp earning the upset first round over Hayden Prince (Nebraska Kearney), but either way, Blubaugh should be the favorite in the quarters. The Joel Leise matchup with Noah Ryan is one of those you want to take a little longer look at. Ryan beat him in the wrestlebacks in 2021 and this could come down to who has gotten better since then. The record seems to show that it is Noah Ryan. Semifinals Dalton Abney (Central Oklahoma) vs Nicholas Mason (Tiffin) Derek Blubaugh (Indianapolis) vs Noah Ryan (St Cloud State) I am sure of my pick for Dalton Abney to reach this point but I keep wanting to go back and change my Nicholas Mason/Brian Kennerly prediction. It is too late, I broke my “delete” button on this keyboard years ago and have never looked back. Either way, I believe that Abney is the wrestler to beat at this weight and he should advance. Derek Blubaugh taking on Noah Ryan is a redshirt freshman taking on a redshirt junior. If Indianapolis is in the middle of the team race, despite my bold “pretender” prediction, this semifinal looms large for the Hounds. It's a chance to score big points while also knocking out a team race competitor. That holds true for Noah Ryan too, the Huskies will need every point they can find to hold off Central Oklahoma and Nebraska Kearney. The margin for error is so small in these matches that I will lean on the experience of Noah Ryan to get it done. Finals Dalton Abney (Central Oklahoma) vs Noah Ryan (St. Cloud State) Dalton Abney can ride. This match may come down to what Noah Ryan chooses when he has to make a decision. Does he go under and know that he will need to find a way to earn an escape, or does he choose neutral and rely on his offense. It also may come down to how the referee interprets “stalling”. If the official allows Abney to control the position from top without really attempting a turn, it could be a rough finals match for Ryan. On their feet, I would grade these two fairly close. That mat wrestling is going to be the decision-maker. Knowing he may be unable to choose bottom adds that much more urgency to every exchange for Ryan and can cause mistakes. 1st Dalton Abney - University of Central Oklahoma 2nd Noah Ryan - St. Cloud State University 3rd Nicholas Mason - Tiffin University 4th Derek Blubaugh - University of Indianapolis 5th Brian Kennerly - Kutztown University 6th Logan Kemp - West Liberty University 7th Gino Sita - Alderson Broaddus University 8th Walker Uhl - Ashland University HWT Andrew Dunn (Kutztown), Francesco Borsellino (West Liberty), and Kameron Teacher (St Cloud State) have a combined 2021 record of 52-1 in Division II. Dunn is the 2019 national champion. Borsellino is a returning All-American. Teacher is a three-time All-American and 2021 national champion. They are all on the same side of the bracket. Opposite of them are SRIV champion Shawn Streck (Central Oklahoma), SRV champion Darrell Mason (MSU Mankato), and 2021 finalist Weston Hunt (Mines). This bracket is the “fair and balanced” of brackets. Darrell Mason's upset finals victory over Teacher threw this entire weight class into disarray and took what should have been the premier finals match and made it a semifinal battle. Good for him. A miserable failure for me as a fan. Returning All-Americans Steven Hajas (Augustana) and AJ Cooper (Fort Hays State) are not even seeded in the bracket. Neither is Weston Hunt who finds himself in an opening-round match against Division I transfer Shawn Streck. Lee Herrington (Nebraska Kearney) can keep his team's hopes alive if he can finish his season with a win, he fell to Steven Hajas in the consolation finals last year. AJ Cooper starts right off against Jacob Robb (Mercyhurst), have your cameras ready because these two will go big quickly. Robb has lost to Dunn and Ian Kuehl (McKendree) both twice this season. That was enough to propel Kuehl to the fifth seed despite not even being a #SRIV finalist. Or at least that is what I have to think. Neither of his losses to Division II wrestlers was to an athlete who qualified for the national tournament. This weight class could finish exactly how the seeds play out and I would still argue that it was seeded wrong. I mean, Borsellino is a returning All-American who won all of his matches scoring bonus in more than 80% of them and you are telling me should be seeded LOWER than where he finished in 2021? Quarterfinals #1 Andrew Dunn (Kutztown) vs #8 Francesco Borsellino (West Liberty) #5 Ian Kuehl (McKendree) vs #4 Kam Teacher (St. Cloud State) #3 Shawn Streck (Central Oklahoma) vs #6 Lee Herrington (Kearney) #7 Jacob Robb (Mercyhurst) vs #2 Darrell Mason (MSU Mankato) I can admit when I am wrong and I am going to be wrong at about at least one name in these quarterfinals. The separation among these athletes is so thin that I expect to see more than one first-round match go into sudden victory. When that happens, upsets are sure to follow. I feel like Andrew Dunn and Kameron Teacher are going to be exceptions to that rule as neither of them should be tested right away. Francesco Borsellino and Ian Kuehl will start their days off with tough matches. I feel that Borsellino is better than the eighth, but no matter his seed, there is too much separation between him and Dunn. The same thing goes with Kuehl and Kam Teacher. Shawn Streck has been perfect since joining Central Oklahoma and they will need him to send the Kearney big man to the consolation side to maximize their team points. Herrington was a 2021 All-American, but in their dual meeting, Streck was the victor, 5-2. I am picking an upset special this round, Jacob Robb will find a way to score the takedown he needs to beat the two-seed Darrell Mason. Mason is coming off a huge win over Kam Teacher in the #SRV finals, but he only wrestled one Division II wrestler who was not from that Super Region. His lone win out of #SRV was McKendree backup heavyweight Julian Ramirez. He is going to be tested in round one by Freddie Nixon (Gannon) and from there it does not get any easier. Semifinals Andrew Dunn (Kutztown) vs Kam Teacher (St. Cloud State) Shawn Streck (Central Oklahoma) vs Jacob Robb (Mercyhurst) Am I a little bitter that that is a semifinal instead of a finals match at this weight? Am I upset that this super match could be how we ended the 2022 NCAA Division II Men's Wrestling National Tournament and instead it is a semifinal? Have I wracked my brain wondering why this is happening? The answer to all of those questions is yes. The last time these two met was the 2019 national tournament semifinals in Cleveland, so I guess they should meet in this round again. Then it was Andrew Dunn pulling the upset and sending the second-seed Kam Teacher into the consolation of the bracket. Will Kam Teacher return the favor and vault his team ahead on the leaderboard? Shawn Streck was a national qualifier as a freshman for Purdue in Division I. His arrival in Division II at Central Oklahoma was a huge boon to their national title hopes and may end up being the difference. He will face the dangerous Jacob Robb in the second semifinal. This could be a battle of styles as Robb tends to be more successful when there is more mat action. Streck is so strong and keeps such great positioning that it may end up difficult for Robb to find those attack angles that lead to big points. Finals Andrew Dunn (Kutztown) vs Shawn Streck (Central Oklahoma) I am rolling with “Dunnyboi” no matter who, where, or why in this national tournament. He has not lost a match to a Division II wrestler. He is now a four-time national qualifier and the way he has bounced back after being forced to miss all of the 2021 season due to Covid is a testament to his mental fortitude and commitment to the sport of wrestling. If he passes the test in Kam Teacher in the semifinals he faces a fellow Division I transfer in Streck. They have a history dating all the way back to 2018 CKLV. There Streck was a 5-1 victor over Dunn in what would be their only collegiate meeting. Their paths have diverged since then, but now they find themselves on a collision course with a national title on the line. Andrew Dunn is the champion of this weight until someone defeats him and it has not happened yet. 1st Andrew Dunn - Kutztown University 2nd Shawn Streck - Central Oklahoma University 3rd Kameron Teacher - St Cloud State University 4th Francesco Borsellino - West Liberty University 5th Jacob Robb - Mercyhurst University 6th Darrell Mason - Minnesota State University Mankato 7th Lee Herrington - University of Nebraska Kearney 8th Weston Hunt - Colorado School of Mines I know you are all dying to see my team race prediction as well. I truly believe that this will be a four-team race between Nebraska Kearney, St Cloud State, West Liberty, and Central Oklahoma. Keep your eye on Indianapolis, Gannon, and Kutztown as they look to play spoiler while pushing for the top five as well. Team Champions: University of Nebraska-Kearney Runner-up: Central Oklahoma University 3rd Place: St Cloud State University 4th: West Liberty University 5th: University of Indianapolis

Ridge Lovett (right) and Jaden Abas at the 2021 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com NCAA brackets have been released! The first of our many articles related to the 2022 NCAA Championships will focus on the best opening round matches. There are plenty at every weight class, but we'll focus on one per weight. While anyone is susceptible to a loss, these competitors will have to be ready to go, match number one, out of the gate! 125 lbs #9 Devin Schroder (Purdue) vs. #24 Sam Latona (Virginia Tech) It's sort of surprising to see a 9/24 matchup as one of the best of the first round, but Sam Latona isn't a typical 24th seed. Latona was an NCAA All-American a year ago and entered the tournament as the second seed. Schroder is a two-time Big Ten finalist that came up a match shy of the podium a year ago. Both were in the top ten to start the year and this was a bout you'd expect to see in the bloodround moreso than session one. 133 lbs #9 Michael Colaiocco (Penn) vs. #24 Ramazan Attasauov (Iowa State) Another good one at 9/24. EIWA champion Michael Colaiocco makes his NCAA tournament debut after the 2020 event was canceled. He's only lost twice this year and comes in on an 11-match winning streak. More often than not, your recent record is more important than season totals at the NCAA Tournament. That bodes well for Ramazan Attasaouv, who finished third at the Big 12. During dual competition, Attasauov hung tough with #2 Daton Fix and #5 Austin DeSanto. 141 lbs #14 Dresden Simon (Central Michigan) vs. #19 Chad Red Jr (Nebraska) Two of the most notable at-large selections at 141 lbs will clash in the opening round as three-time NCAA All-American meets Dresden Simon, a 2021 NCAA Round of 12 finisher. Last year, the two squared off in the Round of 16, as Red Jr. was the eighth seed and Simon the ninth. In that instance, Simon pulled the ever-so-slight upset, 6-3. That evened the score between these two, who also met at the 2016 Midlands, while redshirting. Red Jr. got that one, 9-3. We'll have to see what condition both are in, mentally and physically, after both going 1-2 and failing to place at their respective conference tournaments. 149 lbs #10 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) vs. #23 Jaden Abas (Stanford) This is another matchup that feels like it should take place in the quarterfinals or the bloodround, rather than right off the bat. Jaden Abas was a seventh-place finisher at the tournament last year, while Lovett entered the 2021 championships as the fifth seed, after making the Big Ten finals. These two already met at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and Lovett had a surprisingly one-sided, 9-2 decision. But, Abas has been there and done that, at the big show, while Lovett was 1-2. 157 lbs #16 Brady Berge (Penn State) vs. #17 Hunter Willits (Oregon State) Seeing Big Ten third-place finisher Brady Berge as the 16th seed doesn't really pass the eyeball test, but I'm sure his lack of matches hurt him in the seeding room. That didn't hurt him in Lincoln, as he started B1G's as the tenth seed and reeled off a pair of wins over Kaleb Young (Iowa) and dominated Kendall Coleman (Purdue). Hunter Willits is as solid as they come. While he has six losses this year and turned in a subpar performance in Vegas. Willits has risen to the level of his competition and taken undefeated #3 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) into extra time on two occasions. 165 lbs #15 Austin Yant (Northern Iowa) vs. #18 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) In the 2021 Tournament, Anthony Valencia was the second seed at 165 lbs. On the opposite side of the bracket, Austin Yant was the lowest-seeded wrestler of the bunch at #33. Yant has improved dramatically, finishing third in the Big12 and sporting a record with only six losses. Valencia started the year winning 13 straight, but now is in the midst of a 3-6 slump. If Valencia can right the ship, he can get an "upset" that's only an upset in number. 174 lbs #12 Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) vs. #21 Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) One of the more underappreciated wrestlers at this weight has been Bailee O'Reilly. O'Reilly seized the starting role for the Gophers after a third-place showing at the Southern Scuffle. A strong showing at the B1G's could have catapulted him into the top ten, but instead, he had to pull out with an injury. Hopefully, it's something he can fight through in Detroit. He'll see a familiar face in Cade Devos, someone who edged him by a point at the Bison Open, 3-2. DeVos also blossomed in 2021-22, a regular season that was highlighted by a title at the Scuffle. 184 lbs #16 Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) vs. #17 Jeremiah Kent (Missouri) By the numbers, 16 vs 17 should be the most competitive bout at every weight. That certainly looks like the case at 184 lbs. Two-time NCAA All-American Dakota Geer fought through Jeremiah Kent in the school's classic dual meet with a 2-0 win. Kent seems to have heated up at the right time and defeated #7 Marcus Coleman (Iowa State) in the season finale, before doing so again in the Big 12 semifinals. Geer, on the other hand, did not automatically qualify and had to rely on an at-large berth. 197 lbs #10 Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) vs. #23 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) Obviously, the NCAA season is folkstyle, but both of these two have proven themselves in freestyle. Braxton Amos with a Junior world title and Yonger Bastida a Junior world silver medal and a bronze at U23's. However, this plays out; we should see a lot of offense from the pair. As one may expect, Bastida has seen his results improve as he becomes more acclimated to folkstyle. Amos had sky-high expectations this year, but hasn't been able to crack into the top-20 consistently. But none of that matters with a couple of wins next week. 285 lbs #16 Zach Elam (Missouri) vs. #17 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) This is another matchup where the lower-seeded wrestler is a multiple-time All-American. That's Trent Hillger, albeit a very slight underdog, seeding-wise. Hillger had an off-song Big Ten and had to settle for ninth-place, though he still qualified automatically. Zach Elam was an upset victim at the Big 12 Championship, but rallied for third place. These two have a history with each other at the NCAA Tournament. While both were freshmen, they met in the bloodround and Hillger prevailed, 1-0.

The 2022 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships will take place Detroit (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com The brackets have been released for the 2022 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. The event takes place March 17-19 in Detroit. Link: Brackets

Three-time national qualifier Jacob Robb of Mercyhurst (Photo courtesy of Mercyhurst athletics) Did you know the first known usage of the phrase “dark horse” is from some guy named Benjamin Disraeli's novel The Young Duke way back in 1831? What it meant and still means, is a horse that gamblers do not really know much about and is therefore tough to place odds on. In the #D2Wrestle world, and therefore in my world, it means a wrestler who I think will challenge for a national title that most people will not see coming, if all they look at is the top seeds in the brackets. In 2021, Fairmont State University had a national champion in Division I transfer Lukas Martin (149). In 2019, I picked Kutztown's heavyweight Andrew Dunn to make a run, and then he went out and exceeded my expectations, winning a national title. I do not expect you to go out on a limb; that is my job. So watch me walk way out on these branches as I pick a wrestler at each weight. I expect to not only upset the apple cart, but to flip the whole thing over. 125 Josh Portillo - University of Nebraska Kearney There is no one in Division II I am a bigger fan of than Josh Portillo. He is a four-time NCAA Division II national qualifier. You would think that the 2019 finalist would be resting on his laurels. One of those laurels is the NCAA Elite 90 Award, which basically means he is the smartest guy in all of Division II (it really means he had the highest GPA of all qualifiers). He has been open about his battle with mental health in an attempt to dispel the stigma among athletes. He and his brother are active on social media and had one of the most exciting matches in college this season when Grand View traveled to Kearney. He has also promised to become my internet nemesis after this season. All of that aside, let's look at the bracket. As the sixth-seed, he has a path that would include the three-seed Paxton Creese (St. Cloud State) and the two-seed Paxton Rosen (Central Oklahoma) to make the finals. They are both wrestlers who defeated him this season. A year ago, a loss in the bloodround ended his season and may have mathematically cost the Lopers the team championship. In 2022, I don't think there is any way that he comes up short again. He has put his heart and soul into this team. 133 Collin Wickramaratna - Kutztown University Collin Wickramaratna was a Division III national qualifier for Ursinus College back in 2019. He is now a two-time Division II national qualifier and will look to end his junior season as an All-American. He sits in the bracket as the sixth-seed with a path to the quarterfinals and semifinals within reach. Two seasons ago, he upset returning national champion Tyler Warner (West Liberty) in the SRI finals (Warner was at Pitt-Johnstown at the time), but was denied his chance to wrestle for the podium by the cancellation of the tournament. He is 28-1 against Division II foes, with the lone loss to Eric Bartos (Mercyhurst) avenged in the SRI finals. I want to watch the New Jersey native go full Jersey Shore and fist pump on the podium. He hails from Cherokee High School in Marlton, which is closer to PA than to the shore, but I am not about to let geography rain on my parade. 141 Tyler Warner - West Liberty University Why is a three-time All-American, two-time defending national champion a “dark horse”? Well, when you go up a weight class and then take two losses on the season, you have to wonder if he has lost a step. Then again, he is the most decorated wrestler in all of Division II at the moment. When you add in his 2020 NWCA All-American honors, he is already a four-time All-American. Some athletes just know when to turn it on and Tyler Warner has shown me over his history that when the lights shine the brightest, he will be ready. He would have back-to-back matches against 2021 All-Americans to just make the semifinals, where he gets a shot at revenge against Branson Proudlock (Findlay). Every win he earns in St. Louis adds to his legacy and the history books he has been writing alongside head coach Danny Irwin since their time together at Wheeling Jesuit. 149 Dom Means - Gannon University The 2020 NWCA All-American from Gannon University, Dom Means, is the 2022 Midwest Classic Champion. That tends to bode well for performance at the national tournament and, while I understand that he has taken two losses late in the season, they were to Jacob Ealy (Pitt-Johnstown) and to the undefeated at the time Josh Laubach (Alderson Broaddus). Means already has a win over Noah Hermosillo (Adams State), Wyatt Turnquist (Northern State), Jason Hanenberg (Western Colorado), and Brik Filippo (Central Oklahoma). From his position, he is what we like to refer to as a “bracket buster.” Pick against him at your own peril. 157 Chance Esmont - Ashland University It is unclear to me how Chance Esmont did not do enough at the SR3 tournament to warrant a seed in St Louis. The #SuperSenior from Pickerington, Ohio, has saved his best for last. His win over 2021 returning national champion James Wimer (Findlay) propelled him to the national tournament and his victory over three-time national qualifier Noah Tarr (Davis & Elkins) made him a super-regional champion. An early test against the dangerous Mason Boutain (San Francisco State) looms and after that, he faces 2021 All-American Ty Lucas (Central Oklahoma). If he continues his hot streak, those are winnable matches. I want to see his story continue and he has the skill set to keep writing his name upon the record books. 165 Dillon Keane - University of Pitt-Johnstown Let me be clear, Dillon Keane is my pick to make it to the 165 semifinals against Matt Malcom (Kearney). What will happen when he gets there is up to him. Keane is a redshirt freshman out of Bradford High School in McKean, Pennsylvania, who was unable to advance to the national tournament in 2021. This season he has run his record to a perfect 15-0 against Division II wrestlers and earned himself the 5th seed at the national tournament. He will open the tournament with Rashaan Vereen (UNC Pembroke) and after that test, he will have Drew Weichers (Ashland). The two met early in the season and Keane was able to win a 9-7 match in TB1. Two wins to start the day and he will meet the surprise fourth-seed Jack Eiteljorge (Indianapolis) with All-American status on the line. Besides the win over Weichers early on, he also owns a win over 2021 national qualifier Chase Morgan (West Liberty) and 2020 national qualifier Evan Fisler (Gannon). 174 Dillon Walker - Mercyhurst University If you are looking for a first-round upset special, keep an eye on true freshman Dillon Walker when he takes on Daniel Beemer (Ashland) right away. Beemer was forced to MFF from the SR3 finals and it cost him at the seeding meeting. He now meets a very good athlete in Dillon Walker who can and will take full advantage if he is not 100%. The path for Walker is set after that as he would face Caleb Spears (Newberry). Spears has won 12 straight matches, but at the Midwest Classic, he fell to Walker by technical fall. Looking at the freshman's results this season, it is weird to see three matches lost in SV-1 by the score of 3-1. If he can win one or two of those next weekend, he will be an All-American. Walker has made the jump from being a two-time Ohio state placer for LaSalle High School in Cincinnati to a possible All-American in his first season in Division II. 184 Billy Higgins - University of Nebraska Kearney I am sure everyone is aware of Billy Higgins after his win over returning national champion Heath Gray (Central Oklahoma) in their dual meeting. But here is the thing, at this weight, that was only good enough for the third seed. A two-time Nebraska Class B state champion at Omaha Skutt Catholic High School, Higgins found himself wrestling in Colorado in college. After three years with the University of Northern Colorado, Higgins transferred to Kearney and took over the 174-pound spot. It did not seem like a great fit, though; he started off with just a 7-6 record. Then came the move to 184 and a 10 match winning streak that saw him defeat Gray, Nolan Krone (Colorado Mesa), and Martin Verhaeghe (Fort Hays State) twice. He is one of the most important parts of the Loper push for a team trophy. If he wrestles as well as I think he can, he could be the athlete who brings the team title back to Kearney. 197 Nicholas Mason - Tiffin University But Bryce, Mason is a 2019 NCAA champion; he cannot be a dark horse. I disagree. It has been three years since his run to the top of the podium and since then, he has had a national tournament canceled in 2020 and gone 0-2 at the 2021 tournament. It's been three years since he has won a match on the biggest stage. This season he has taken three losses in Division II. Going into the postseason, he was ranked outside the top five by myself. Do you want to read a crazy statistic, Nicholas Mason is 16-3 in his Super Regional with a 14 match win streak and four straight titles. Do you want dominance? How about 10 falls? Or maybe you will be impressed by six consecutive pins and an MFF (in the finals, no less). Nicholas Mason is a #SuperSenior with unfinished business and the talent to back up that hunger. The Utica High School product out of Shelby Township in Michigan, has been a staple of Division II these last few years and capping his career off with another crown would be Manning retiring after a Superbowl win. The perfect ending to an amazing story. Not too shabby for a kid who was just a two-time state qualifier, never placing higher than 5th. 285 Jacob Robb - Mercyhurst University At a weight class with a clear favorite in Andrew Dunn (Kutztown) and another returning national champion, it is hard to see someone else making a run to the finals. And most people would pick a wrestler like Darrell Mason (MSU Mankato) or Shawn Streck (Central Oklahoma) if they were going to pick anyone. Streck has dominated since entering the lineup in the second semester and Mason just defeated Kam Teacher in the Super Regional V finals. But give me the pinning machine #SuperSenior from Armstrong High School in Kittanning, Pennsylvania. He is a member of the century club in Division II and, for the last three seasons, has been one of the most prolific bonus machines in the country. As a heavyweight! His four losses in Division II this year? Andrew Dunn and Ian Kuehl (McKendree). He was undefeated a year ago before injury ended his season. Robb just pushed Dunn to an overtime match in the Super Regional I finals. Sleep on this explosive big man if you want, but I, for one, could see him going on a run and finding himself in the NCAA finals. Nearly half of his wins this season have come by fall. Overlook him at your own peril.

3x Big Ten Champion Gable Steveson (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The Big Ten Conference tournament wrapped up on Sunday. No. 1 Penn State finished with four individual champions, but No. 2 Michigan walked away with the tournament title. Along the way, there were several top statistical performers. These performances say a lot about not only a wrestler's showing on the conference level but also their prospects at next week's NCAA tournament. No. 1 Nick Lee (Penn State) recently completed an undefeated regular season. His last loss came in the 2021 Big Ten final against No. 2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa). Since then, Lee has won all of his matches, including a pair of rematches against Eierman. The two seemed destined to meet in the Big Ten finals once again before Lee received a medical forfeit and took home the conference title. While Lee only wrestled two matches at the Big Ten tournament, his dynamic scoring was on full display. He scored 3.14 points per minute, while only allowing 0.10 points per minute. His +3.04 point differential was the highest of the entire tournament. In his two matches against No. 24 Joseph Zargo (Wisconsin) and No. 10 Jake Bergeland (Minnesota), Lee scored five takedowns, three four-point near falls, three two-point near falls and two reversals. Interestingly enough, both of his reversals came in the third period to close out technical falls. The only point he allowed was a first-period escape against Bergeland. Despite having the lowest bonus rate of his career this season (58.82%), Lee appears to be rounding into form and poised to make a run at his second NCAA title. He will enter his final tournament as the number-one seed and the clear favorite. The rest of the top five in point differential features some of the usual suspects. No. 3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) forfeited out of the tournament after making the semifinals. No. 5 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) suffered a close loss against eventual champion No. 3 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) at 165 pounds, before bouncing back with a sudden victory upset over No. 7 Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) in the third-place match. Top Five Point Differential Performances Nick Lee (Penn State) +3.04 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) +2.13 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) +1.44 Nick Suriano (Michigan) +1.38 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) +1.13 No. 1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) continued his historic run through the heavyweight division. Like Lee, he received a medical forfeit in the finals, but he scored a 20-5 technical fall over No. 15 Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) and a 14-6 major decision over No. 5 Mason Parris (Michigan). His points per minute rate was the highest of the tournament as he edged out Lee's rate by only 0.006. In those two matches, Steveson had 13 takedowns and added three two-point near falls. He, as per usual, allowed nothing but escapes. For the season, he has outscored his opponents 201 to one excluding escapes, and that one point was a penalty point for shoving Parris out of bounds during their regular season match. After adding 13 takedowns this past weekend, Steveson now has 81 for the season. He has not come close to surrendering one this year. If he is able to finish the NCAA tournament without giving up a two-point score, he should take home his second-straight Hodge trophy and ride off into the WWE craziness. Top Five Points per Minute Performances Gable Steveson (Minnesota) 3.14 Nick Lee (Penn State) 3.14 Nick Suriano (Michigan) 2.04 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) 1.92 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) 1.57 While Lee only allowed one point through two matches and had the lowest points allowed per minute rate (0.10), the wrestler who displayed the second-best defense was a bit of a surprise. No. 6 Cameron Amine (Michigan) entered the tournament as the fourth seed, and he ended up facing off against Kharchla in the semifinals. He won that match and moved on to the finals. Amine allowed only five points through his four matches. The only match where he allowed more than one point was the final. Marinelli managed to best him via a 2-1 score. Even in that performance, Amine allowed only an escape and a stalling point. So far this season, Amine has a 16-5 record. He has only allowed 2.29 points per match, and he has only allowed more than three points in three of his matches on the year. Having a lot of close matches can be risky, but at the same time, the strategy often pays dividends at tournament time. If Amine can show this type of defense at the NCAA tournament, he might be able to get on a roll and score a few more upsets. Top Five Points Against per Minute Performances Nick Lee (Penn State) 0.10 Cameron Amine (Michigan) 0.17 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) 0.19 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) 0.24 Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) 0.25 Amine's trip the finals was an essential part of Michigan's tournament victory. The Wolverines won their first Big Ten crown since 1973. As a team, they averaged 0.78 match points per minute and allowed 0.49 per minute. This left the squad with a collective +0.29 differential. Despite finishing with only one champion and finishing third, Iowa had the highest point differential. The Hawkeyes scored 0.82 points per minute, which was the second-highest scoring rate behind Wisconsin (0.87). Defensively they allowed only 0.41 points per minute, which was second-best behind Penn State (0.39). Top Five Point Differential Performances by Team Iowa +0.41 Penn State +0.40 Michigan +0.29 Wisconsin +0.10 Ohio State +0.06 Many wrestlers choose to slow down the pace when tournament time comes around. While early in the season, folks are willing to let it fly, there is a lot of the line in a qualifier for the NCAA tournament. This was mostly the case last weekend, as the average combine points per match was 9.41. However, there was one in the 157-pound weight class that defied this trend. In the first round of the tournament, No. 13 Kendall Coleman (Purdue) and Lucas Cordio (Maryland) combined to score 30 points, and Coleman walked away with the major decision victory. Cordio actually started off the scoring with a takedown 10 seconds into the match. The Purdue wrestler appeared to then take over with three takedowns of his own. However, Cordio got back into the match with a takedown in the last 45 seconds. The comeback came up well short. This time Coleman really did take control. He scored five more takedowns and walked away with the major decision victory.

DII's top-ranked 133 lber Tanner Cole (photo courtesy of UCO athletics) I am sure all of you need some sort of #D2Wrestle corkboard motivation and I am here to provide it. Last time (2019), I did a "Contenders & Pretenders" piece. I got the chance to fly home with one of the pretenders who was able to tell just how wrong I was after they finished in the top-10. Shout out to that 2019 Newberry College team that almost missed their flight out of Cleveland. But looking back, I was pretty accurate overall. First off, let me be clear, being a "pretender" is not necessarily a slight against your program. Realistically, there are four teams who can really make a run at the 2022 NCAA Division II Men's Wrestling team national championship. To win the crown, it will take, at minimum, six All-Americans and multiple national finalists. Last season, St. Cloud State University had five finalists and were only able to finish ahead of the University of Nebraska Kearney by one and a half points. The battle for the top-10 is pretty wide-open, but if you want that team trophy, or to take home any of that hardware, it's going to take a full team effort. The contenders will be the teams I see chasing that trophy and if your team happens to fall into the pretender category, it's only because I see them missing the firepower needed to upset one of those programs in the standings. They could still be forces to be reckoned with and can enjoy their chance to play spoiler. The fanbases of teams will be expanded as Lopers' fans cheer for anyone wrestling St. Cloud or Central Oklahoma, while the Huskies will be rooting for anyone taking on Central Oklahoma or Kearney. Think Oklahoma State fans cheering for the Hawkeyes against Penn State kind of thing. To the teams who do not make my contender list, prove me wrong and I promise to eat crow. Here are the 11 teams I expect to perform the best and my analysis of their team trophy chances, in alphabetical order. Ashland University National Qualifiers: 5 Super Regional Champions: 2 The Eagles will send five athletes to St. Louis in Colt Sponsellor's second season at the helm. They may have put two athletes at the top of the podium in Super Regional III, but they may be hard-pressed to have a finalist at the national tournament. Their best chance at that will be Daniel Beemer (174), but his injury default leaves his status suspect in a brutal weight class. Depending on how the seeds go, anything less than 100% healthwise could make a finals run very unlikely. I know that Chance Esmont (157) went full beast mode in upsetting returning national champion James Wimer (Findlay) and rode that momentum to a championship. If he cannot capture that magic again, he will find himself in a bracket with 12 athletes who were ranked heading into the postseason. Missing multiple-time returning All-American Aidan Pasiuk (184) is probably going to cost them; they just seem to have guys that are in that low All-American (6-8)/Round of 12 areas. That will not be enough to fight for a team trophy and could make them a bubble top-10 team. But hey, I am setting them up with a chance to prove me wrong. Outlook: Pretender Augustana University Qualifiers: 8 Super Regional Champions: 2 The Vikings had one of the best Super Regionals by any team who did not win the title. Eight qualifiers were highlighted by two champions in Jack Huffman (133) and Cade Mueller (174). That is great and honestly, head coach Jason Reitmeier would have been my vote for Super Regional coach of the year. But at the national tournament, I am not sure they have the horsepower to score enough points to stay at the top for two days. Their team will be led by potential second seed, Cade Mueller at 174, who could be the first Augustana national finalist since 2019 in Cleveland. One finalist will not be enough. The lineup does have six potential All-Americans if the brackets play out and, if Mueller can win it all, they are going to have a big tournament. The most important wrestlers for them will be Jaxson Rohman (125) and Jack Huffman (133). If these two lightweights can spark the rest of the lineup, this team has a very high ceiling. They could also be the undoing of some of the other teams as they have shown that they are not intimidated in the least by tough competition. You do not go toe-to-toe with St. Cloud State and not find your confidence. I talked myself into it, Augustana University. Outlook: Contender Gannon University National Qualifiers: 8 Super Regional Champions: 2 Disclaimer: If Gannon had their returning national champion Alex Farenchak (165), they would immediately skyrocket to a contender. They, however, do not have their returning national champion Alex Farenchak. They do have eight athletes headed to the national tournament, as many as West Liberty, Central Oklahoma, and St Cloud State. I worry that the Knights could find themselves without a national finalist, which makes winning a team trophy a tall task. More than that, they are built similar to Ashland in that they seem to have low All-American/Round of 12 wrestlers. Dom Means (149) and Joel Leise (197) are going to have to shoulder the load to propel head coach Don Henry to a team title. Even if they can secure six All-American finishes, it will not be enough to finish in the top four. A wildcard for their team will be Cameron Page (184); a week ago, I did not think there was any way he qualified for the national tournament. Now headed to St Louis, he can cause all kinds of chaos at a weight where Kearney, Central Oklahoma, and West Liberty all have athletes looking for high finishes. Outlook: Pretender Newberry College National Qualifiers: 5 Super Regional Champions: 2 In 2019, I had the audacity to call the Wolves a bunch of pretenders and boy did I hear about it after their top-10 finish. I feel like a thank you was more in order after I provided them with such great motivation headed into the national tournament. In fact, I think it is only right I extend that same opportunity to new head coach Deral Brown. Listen, the Wolves brought the Super Regional crown back to Newberry and crowned two individual champions. That is great. They also have a likely finalist and a possible winner in Isiah Royal (149). The 2021 national champion at 141 pounds returned to the lineup in the second semester and has been perfect. He honestly has not been challenged and is my pick as the top seed at his weight. After him though, the Wolves have Caleb Spears (174) and Evan Carrigan (125). Two athletes who made the run to the Super Regional II finals will threaten All-American status. That is if Evan Carrigan is recovered from whatever injury kept him from the finals and Spears can duplicate the run that saw him defeat Billy Higgins (Kearney) and Josh Jones (McKendree). There are too many "ifs" for me to call the Wolves a contender this season. Outlook: Pretender St. Cloud State University National Qualifiers: 7 Super Regional Champions: 5 The St. Cloud State University Huskies have never had to rebuild under head coach Steve Costanzo. They just keep reloading the gun and firing at the Division II field. This season is no different, but they may find that there are teams in St. Louis who are going to be firing back. The Huskies are loaded for bear, though, with five athletes who find themselves seeded in the top four. They also have Garret Vos (133) and Nick Novak (149) as wrestlers who should be expected to be All-Americans. A best-case scenario sees them with finalists in Paxton Creese (125), Joey Bianchini (141), Anthony Herrera (157), Noah Ryan (197), and Kameron Teacher (Hwt). . Remember, they found a way to put five wrestlers into the finals a year ago and if they can do so again they could be on their way to extending their dominance. There is no team in the nation riding the same winning streak as the Huskies after Grand View University finished as the NAIA runner-up a season ago. Heavy is the head that wears the crown, but I am fairly certain that St. Cloud State has no desire to abdicate the throne. They will have to be usurped. Outlook: Contender West Liberty University National Qualifiers: 8 Super Regional Champions: 4 The meteoric rise of the West Liberty University Hilltoppers began after the conclusion of the 2019 season when Wheeling Jesuit University made one of the dumbest and most shortsighted athletic decisions in Division II wrestling history after the shuttering of Nebraska-Omaha's program. Their loss was West Liberty's gain as head coach Danny Irwin pulled up stakes and took nearly all of his best athletes with him. Now, three years later, the Hilltoppers are back again after finishing fourth in 2021. Led by returning national champion Cole Laya (125), two-time champion Tyler Warner (141), 2019 champion and 2021 finalist Connor Craig, and a heavyweight in Francesco Borsellino, who just keeps getting better, West Liberty can win it all. They are going to need some help, though; Tyler Warner has seemed human since moving up two 141 from 133, taking two losses in his limited action. They will need Ty McGeary (174) to finish high on the podium; he'll start as the fifth seed. Seeding at 174 is going to be key. At 197, four-time qualifier Logan Kemp will need to earn his first All-American finish for West Liberty to have a realistic shot at winning it all. He has been nothing but consistent when healthy for his program, but now in his final trip to the national tournament, they need him to be one of the nation's best. The real wildcard on this team is Francesco Borsellino; the big man has been on a tear this season, but St Louis will see him finally match up against the best Division II has to offer. He should not be overlooked, Irwin has a history of coaching very successful heavyweights. West Liberty is going to have a good tournament; how good could really depend on how much they believe that they are a… Outlook: Contender University of Central Oklahoma National Qualifiers: 8 Super Regional Champions: 6 What makes a national championship team in Division II? Add three parts national finalists, a dash of high-level All-Americans, a surprise run by an athlete who catches fire, and a coach who knows what he is doing. Guess what, sports fans, the University of Central Oklahoma has all of those things. The Broncs are one of the real contenders with a chance to end the run of St. Cloud State University. A team with very possible finalist/national champions at 133 (Tanner Cole), 149 (Brik Fililppo), 157 (Tyler Lucas), 184 (Heath Gray), and 197 (Dalton Abney). They also have high All-American chances at 125 (Paxton Rosen) and Shawn Streck (Hwt). If Alex Kaufman (174) plays the role of "spoiler" and finishes on the podium, they have the final ingredient in head coach Todd Steidley ready and waiting. This is a team that has spent time as the number one program this year and they backed it up at the Super Regional IV tournament. I was expecting them to get at least seven through and they managed eight. If they had managed to get Nate Keim (141) through, I would have listed them as the absolute favorites. Do not crown them just yet, but for sure they come is as… Outlook: Contender University of Indianapolis National Qualifiers: 7 Super Regional Champions: 2 The University of Indianapolis moved from Super Regional III to Super Regional IV in 2022, which is like moving from AAA to the majors. Super Regional IV may not produce the team champion, yet, but they consistently post the highest number of All-Americans. Iron sharpens iron and in Super Regional IV, there is a lot of that element. The Hounds kicked down the door and put eight wrestlers into the semifinals of the toughest Super Regional in the country. They kept their hot streak going and are sending seven wrestlers to the national tournament. This is the most national qualifiers for head coach Jason Warthan and the most for the program since 2014. They crowned champions at 165 in Jack Eiteljorge and 174 in Andrew Sams. They will also be sending the Bailey Bros (patent pending) after Breyden finished third at 133 and Logan was runner-up at 149. The Achilles heel of this team may end up being a lack of finalists. It is not unbelievable that Dawson Combest (157), Derek Blubaugh (197) or Andrew Sams make the finals, but it would take two or maybe even all of them to make Indianapolis real trophy threats. And they would need the Bailey Brothers and Eiteljorge to climb up the podium as well. There are just too many "ifs" in this lineup for them to be trophy contenders, but despite my outlook for them, I expect them to push as a top-five team. Outlook: Pretender University of Nebraska-Kearney National Qualifiers: 9 Super Regional Champions: 8 Let's start with the bad news for the Lopers, they will not have a point-scorer in the 157 weight class that in 2021 netted them an All-American finish. That is the end of the bad news. The good news is they are sending nine wrestlers to St. Louis, with eight of them bringing a Super Regional VI title along. That is twice as many champs as West Liberty, three more than St. Cloud State, and even two more than Central Oklahoma. Do not bet against head coach Dalton Jensen, he has been chasing that title for too long and he wants to bring it back to Kearney. I do want the writer for the Kearney wrestling team to start giving me credit for the term #SuperSenior, but we can talk about that later. I will give credit to a team that is entering the postseason on a heater worthy of a Caesars craps table. Wesley Dawkins (133) and Matt Malcom (165) are top-two seeds at their respective weights. Billy Higgins (184) could've been the number one, but checks in at three. This team may be better than the 2021 group that came up just one and a half points short. Realistically, they could have nine All-Americans and anything less than seven would be disappointing to me. If they are going to do it, though, this needs to be the year. They will be graduating a lot of firepower. Outlook: Contender University of North Carolina-Pembroke National Qualifiers: 6 Super Regional Champions: 2 In 2011, the first season with OT Johnson taking over, the Braves finished tied for eighth at the NCAA Division II Men's Wrestling Championship. It has been 11 years since UNC Pembroke has finished the tournament in the top-10. Could 2021 be the season? It will probably take 40 team points and with six national qualifiers, there is a chance. Nick Daggett (125) was a national finalist a year ago and if he can duplicate that run or even finish as an All-American once again, that could be the spark they need. He will need help from his teammates like Jake Piccirilli (149) and Zach Shaffer (Hwt). Jovaun Johnson (184) and Bryce Walker (197) each spent time in my rankings this season and have the potential to score points in St Louis. The person I think could be a real difference-maker for the Braves is Rashaan Vereen (165). He pushed Mitch Dean (Belmont Abbey) in the finals and at this weight, Dean is one of the best. If he joins Daggett on the podium, it could be the start of a big tournament for this program. A big tournament that unfortunately will not result in them challenging for a team trophy. Outlook: Pretender University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown National Qualifiers: 6 Super Regional Champions: 3 The dean of Division II wrestling Pat Pecora has done it again. His Mountaincats are once again Super Regional I champions and more than that, they are sending six wrestlers to the national tournament. After not wrestling in 2021 until the Super Regional tournament, his team took full advantage of the extended season and grew stronger. I am going to give you a sneak peek now, but Jacob Ealy (149) is my dark horse national champion at his weight. This team could put wrestlers on the podium at 141 (Caleb Morris) and 165 (Dillon Keane). Brock Biddle (174) is a multiple-time All-American himself and could be the key component of a UPJ run at a trophy. But much like Indianapolis and some of the other pretenders, I just worry they lack the firepower needed to compete with the real favorites. Sorry coach, I love our talks. Outlook: Pretender

3x NCAA All-American Chad Red Jr received an at-large berth to the 2022 NCAA Championships (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) These wrestlers will head to Detroit to compete at the 2022 NCAA DI Wrestling Championships, along with the ones who automatically qualified for the tournament over the weekend. 125 lbs Antonio Lorenzo (Cal Poly) Joe Manchio (Columbia) Caleb Smith (Appalachian State) Noah Surtin (Missouri) Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) 133 lbs Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin) Malyke Hines (Lehigh) Dom LaJoie (Cornell) Dom Zaccone (Campbell) 141 lbs Kizhan Clarke (North Carolina) Parker Filius (Purdue) Chad Red Jr (Nebraska) Dresden Simon (Central Michigan) Joe Zargo (Wisconsin) 149 lbs Jaden Abas (Stanford) Josh Edmond (Missouri) PJ Ogunsanya (Army West Point) Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) 157 lbs Michael Petite (Buffalo) Hunter Richard (Cornell) Chase Saldate (Michigan State) Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State) Jordan Slivka (Ohio) 165 lbs Caleb Fish (Michigan State) Will Formato (Appalachian State) Brian Meyer (Lehigh) Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) 174 lbs Chris Foca (Cornell) Gerrit Nijenhuis (Purdue) Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) Sal Perrine (Ohio) 184 lbs Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) Max Lyon (Purdue) Tate Samuelson (Wyoming) DJ Washington (Indiana) 197 lbs JT Brown (Army West Point) Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) Will Feldkamp (Clarion) Jaron Smith (Maryland) 285 lbs Matt Cover (Princeton) Tyrell Gordon (Northern Iowa) Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) Brandon Metz (North Dakota State) Michael Wolfgram (West Virginia)

2022 Big 12 champion Missouri Tigers (photo courtesy of Mark Lundy; LutteLens.com) After a long hiatus away from the Big 12 conference, Missouri has returned with a vengeance to take back their crown that they won the last time they were in the conference. The early rounds saw Oklahoma State with an edge as they piled up wins in their first-round bouts, along with a decent quarterfinal round that pushed six into the semifinals and included two head-to-head wins over Missouri. Then after the semifinals, where Oklahoma State pushed another four into the finals and won one first round consolation match, they still held the team point lead. But Missouri and Oklahoma went to work on the consolation side. Missouri won six first round consolation matches and four in the second round while Oklahoma State only won one first round match and didn't win any in the second round. Oklahoma quietly stormed back into the conversation as well, keeping all ten guys in the tournament and going 7-0 in both the first and second consolation rounds. This helped them surpass Oklahoma State and get within striking distance of Missouri heading into day two. To start the second day, Oklahoma needed a little help and had to wrestle nearly perfect on the consolation side to overtake Missouri. They wrestled solid, but so did Missouri and it ultimately just wasn't enough to get in contention. The Sooners grabbed one third place finish, a few fourths, a fifth, and sixth, which ultimately couldn't catch them up with Missouri, who got third place finishes from the Elam brothers and a few other medal match wins that locked in the team title for them going into the finals. The team race was already decided going into the finals, but there were still champions to be crowned. At 125 West Virginia got a champion as Killian Cardinale controlled Brody Teske to an 8-3 decision. Oklahoma State got a title at 133 Daton Fix won his third Big 12 championship with a 6-2 decision over Northern Iowa's Kyle Biscoglia. Andrew Alirez made history for Northern Colorado by winning the program's first-ever individual Big 12 title at 141. He beat Allan Hart 6-4. At 149, it was Bedlam as OSU's Kaden Gfeller and OU's Willie McDougald squared off. Gfeller managed to push a few stall calls on McDougald to get a 2-1 decision and his second Big 12 title. At 157 NCAA Champion David Carr dominated his way to another Big 12 title with an 8-2 win over North Dakota State's Jared Franek. At 165 Keegan O'Toole was tested a bit more than normal, but picked up a 13-7 decision over West Virginia's Peyton Hall. Dustin Plott used a late takedown and rideout to pick up his first Big 12 title and Parker Keckeisen had a dominant major decision win over Missouri's Jeremiah Kent. Stephen Buchanan won the toughest weight in the Big 12 with a 3-2 decision over South Dakota State's Tanner Sloan. Heavyweight got off to a wild start as Luke Surber took #1 seed Wyatt Hendrickson down early and put him on his back. Hendrickson recovered, escaped, took Surber down and put him on his back. It was all Hendrickson from there as he dominated his way to a major decision and the Air Force Academy's first Big 12 title. Final team scores 1) Missouri 131.5 2) Oklahoma 113 3) Iowa State 110 4) Oklahoma State 107.5 5) Northern Iowa 100 6) South Dakota State 66 7) North Dakota State 62 7) West Virginia 62 9) Wyoming 57.5 10) Air Force 45 11) Northern Colorado 35.5 12) Utah Valley 34 Championship Finals 125 - Killian Cardinale (West Virginia) dec Brody Teske (Northern Iowa) 8-3 133 - Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) dec Kyle Biscoglia (Northern Iowa) 6-2 141 - Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado) dec Allan Hart (Missouri) 6-4 149 - Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State) dec Willie McDougald (Oklahoma) 2-1 157 - David Carr (Iowa State) dec Jared Franek (North Dakota State) 8-2 165 - Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) dec Peyton Hall (West Virginia) 13-7 174 - Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) dec Peyton Mocco (Missouri) 4-3 184 - Peyton Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) maj Jeremiah Kent (Missouri) 13-3 197 - Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming) dec Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) 3-2 285 - Wyatt Hendrickson (Air Force) maj Luke Surber (Oklahoma State) 16-6 Third Place Bouts 125 - Trevor Mastrogiovanni (Oklahoma State) dec Joey Prata (Oklahoma) 4-1 133 - Ramazan Attasauov (Iowa State) dec Sidney Flores (Air Force) 8-5 141 - Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) dec Dylan Droegemueller (North Dakota State) 7-5 149 - Colin Realbuto (Northern Iowa) dec Jarrett Degen (Iowa State) 8-6 157 - Jacob Wright (Wyoming) dec Justin Thomas (Oklahoma) 6-5TB 165 - Austin Yant (Northern Iowa) dec Luke Weber (North Dakota State) 6-5 174 - Anthony Mantanona (Oklahoma) dec Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) 6-3 184 - Marcus Coleman (Iowa State) maj Keegan Moore (Oklahoma) 19-6 197 - Rocky Elam (Missouri) dec Jake Woodley (Oklahoma) 6-1 285 - Zach Elam (Missouri) dec Sam Schuyler (Iowa State) 6-1 Fifth Place Bouts 125 - Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley) maj Jace Koelzer (Northern Colorado) 19-6 133 - Haiden Drury (Utah Valley) dec Tony Madrigal (Oklahoma) 2-1 141 - Ian Parker (Iowa State) dec Jacob Butler (Oklahoma) 8-7 149 - Josh Edmond (Missouri) maj Dylan Martinez (Air Force) 17-8 157 - Jarrett Jacques (Missouri) dec Derek Holschlag (Northern Iowa) 3-1SV 165 - Joe Grello (Oklahoma) dec Isaac Judge (Iowa State) 6-2 174 - Hayden Hastings (Wyoming) MedFFT Lance Runyon (Northern Iowa) 184 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) dec DJ Parker (North Dakota State) 13-10 197 - Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) MedFFT Owen Pentz (North Dakota State) 285 - AJ Nevills (South Dakota State) dec Josh Heindselman (Oklahoma) 5-4TB Seventh Place Bouts 125 - Noah Surtin (Missouri) dec Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) 5-3SV 133 - Connor Brown (Missouri) fall Gabe Tagg (South Dakota State) 5:53 141 - Carter Young (Oklahoma State) dec Ty Smith (Utah Valley) 7-4 149 - Gaven Sax (North Dakota State) dec Jeffrey Boyd (West Virginia) 12-5 157 - Alex Hornfeck (West Virginia) dec Kenny O'Neill (South Dakota State) 8-2 165 - Tanner Cook (South Dakota State) fall Nick Knutson (Northern Colorado) 2:25 174 - Joel Devine (Iowa State) dec Dennis Robin (West Virginia) 6-0 184 - Tate Samuelson (Wyoming) fall Anthony Carman (West Virginia) 1:40 197 - Evan Bockman (Utah Valley) dec Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) 7-4 285 - Michael Wolfgram (West Virginia) dec Brandon Metz (North Dakota State) 3-1 Automatic Qualifiers by Team Air Force: (2) Sidney Flores (125); Wyatt Hendrickson (285) Iowa State: (8) Ramazan Attasaouv (133); Ian Parker (141); Jarrett Degen (149); David Carr (157); Joel Devine (174); Marcus Coleman (184); Yonger Bastida (197); Sam Schuyler (285) Missouri: (7) Allan Hart (141); Jarrett Jacques (157); Keegan O'Toole (165); Peyton Mocco (174); Jeremiah Kent (184); Rocky Elam (197); Zach Elam (285) North Dakota State: (4) Dylan Droegemueller (141); Jared Franek (157); Luke Weber (165); Owen Pentz (197) Northern Colorado: (2) Jace Koelzer (125); Andrew Alirez (141) Northern Iowa: (7) Brody Teske (125); Kyle Biscoglia (133); Colin Realbuto (149); Derek Holschlag (157); Austin Yant (165); Lance Runyon (174); Parker Keckeisen (184) Oklahoma: (9) Joey Prata (125); Tony Madrigal (133); Jacob Butler (141); Willie McDougald (149); Justin Thomas (157); Anthony Mantanona (174); Keegan Moore (184); Jake Woodley (197); Josh Heindselman (285) Oklahoma State: (6) Trevor Mastrogiovanni (125); Daton Fix (133); Carter Young (141); Kaden Gfeller (149); Dustin Plott (174); Luke Surber (285) South Dakota State: (4) Clay Carlson (141); Cade DeVos (174); Tanner Sloan (197); AJ Nevills (285) Utah Valley: (3) Taylor LaMont (125); Haiden Drury (133); Evan Bockman (197) West Virginia: (3) Killian Cardinale (125); Peyton Hall (165); Dennis Robin (174) Wyoming: (3) Jacob Wright (157); Hayden Hastings (174); Stephen Buchanan (197)

2022 EIWA champion Vito Arujau (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 2022 EIWA Championships Team Scores 1) Cornell 153 2) Penn 143 3) Princeton 120.5 4) Lehigh 111 5) Columbia 84.5 6) Binghamton 79.5 7) Navy 63.5 8) Army West Point 57 9) Harvard 49 10) Drexel 47 11) Bucknell 39.5 12) Hofstra 36 13) Franklin & Marshall 29 14) Brown 26.5 15) American 25.5 16) Sacred Heart 5 17) Long Island 3 Championship Finals 125 - Vito Aruaju (Cornell) maj Patrick Glory (Princeton) 19-6 133 - Michael Colaiocco (Penn) dec Josh Koderhandt (Navy) 8-4 141 - Matt Kazimir (Columbia) dec CJ Composto (Penn) 6-4 149 - Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) maj Anthony Artalona (Penn) 11-2 157 - Quincy Monday (Princeton) dec Andrew Cerniglia (Navy) 9-4 165 - Phil Conigliaro (Harvard) dec Josh Ogunsanya (Columbia) 8-3 174 - Mickey O'Malley (Drexel) dec Nico Incontera (Penn) 1-1RTTB 184 - Jonathan Loew (Cornell) dec Travis Stefanik (Princeton) 12-5 197 - Louie DePrez (Binghamton) dec Luke Stout (Princeton) 10-4 285 - Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) 2-0 Third Place Bouts 125 - Ryan Miller (Penn) maj Joe Manchio (Columbia) 10-2 133 - Dom Lajoie (Cornell) dec Jack Maida (American) 4-0 141 - Wil Gil (Franklin & Marshall) dec Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) 10-5 149 - Max Brignola (Lehigh) dec Marshall Keller (Princeton) 5-3 157 - Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) maj Markus Hartman (Army West Point) 10-0 165 - Zach Hartman (Bucknell) maj Julian Ramirez (Cornell) 16-3 174 - Ben Pasiuk (Army West Point) dec Jacob Nolan (Binghamton) 3-1SV 184 - AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) dec Charles Small (Hofstra) 3-2 197 - Jake Koser (Navy) maj Cole Urbas (Penn) 9-0 285 - Joe Doyle (Binghamton) dec Ben Goldin (Penn) 4-0 Fifth Place Bouts 125 - Beau Bayless (Harvard) MedFFT Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh) 133 - Richard Treanor (Army West Point) dec Nick Kayal (Princeton) 9-8 141 - Darren Miller (Bucknell) dec Ryan Anderson (Binghamton) 2-1TB 149 - Danny Fongaro (Columbia) MedFF PJ Ogunsanya (Army West Point) 157 - Doug Zapf (Penn) dec Hunter Richard (Cornell) 5-3 165 - Brevin Cassella (Binghamton) dec Lucas Revano (Penn) 3-2 174 - Jake Logan (Lehigh) MedFFT Chris Foca (Cornell) 184 - Neil Antrassian (Penn) dec Bryan McLaughlin (Drexel) 13-8 197 - Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) dec JT Davis (Lehigh) 4-1 285 - Matt Cover (Princeton) dec Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) 3-1 Seventh Place Bouts 125 - Brandon Seidman (Bucknell) dec Reese Fry (Brown) 9-4 133 - Jaxon Maroney (Drexel) dec Nicky Cabanillas (Brown) 7-5SV 141 - Danny Coles (Princeton) dec Justin Hoyle (Hofstra) 11-5 149 - Lukus Stricker (Harvard) dec Nick Lombard (Binghamton) 8-2 157 - Nick Delp (Bucknell) dec Trevor Tarsi (Harvard) 3-1 165 - Evan Barczak (Drexel) dec Val Park (Navy) 5-0 174 - Nick Fine (Columbia) fall Nate Dugan (Princeton) 6:24 184 - Brian Bonino (Columbia) dec Cory Day (Binghamton) 3-2 197 - JT Brown (Army West Point) dec Sam Wustefeld (Columbia) 4-1 285 - Cenzo Pelusi (Franklin & Marshall) dec Dan Conley (Columbia) 3-1SV Automatic Qualifiers by Team Army West Point: (2) Markus Hartman (157); Ben Pasiuk (174) Binghamton: (4) Brevin Cassella (165); Jacob Nolan (174); Louie DePrez (197); Joe Doyle (285) Bucknell: (1) Zach Hartman (165) Columbia: (2) Matt Kazimir (141); Josh Ogunsanya (165) Cornell: (6) Vito Arujau (125); Yianni Diakomihalis (149); Julian Ramirez (165); Jonathan Loew (184); Jacob Cardenas (197); Lewis Fernandes (285) Drexel: (2) Evan Barczak (165); Mickey O'Malley (174) Franklin & Marshall: (1) Wil Gil (141) Harvard: (1) Phil Conigliaro (165) Lehigh: (5) Connor McGonagle (141); Max Brignola (149); Josh Humphreys (157); AJ Burkhart (184); Jordan Wood (285) Navy: (3) Josh Koderhandt (133); Andrew Cerniglia (157), Jake Koser (197) Penn: (9) Ryan Miller (125); Michael Colaiocco (133); CJ Composto (141); Anthony Artalona (149); Doug Zapf (157); Lucas Revano (165); Nick Incontrera (174) Cole Urbas (197); Ben Goldin (285) Princeton: (5) Patrick Glory (125); Marshall Keller (149) Quincy Monday (157); Travis Stefanik (184); Luke Stout (197)

2022 Pac-12 champion Michael McGee (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 2022 Pac-12 Championships Team Scores 1) Arizona State 115 2) Oregon State 114.5 3) Stanford 97 4) Cal Poly 88.5 5) CSU Bakersfield 83 6) Little Rock 71 Championship Finals 125 - Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) dec Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State) 5-3 133 - Michael McGee (Arizona State) dec Chance Rich (CSU Bakersfield) 7-2 141 - Real Woods (Stanford) maj Grant Willits (Oregon State) 8-0 149 - Kyle Parco (Arizona State) dec Legend Lamer (Cal Poly) 11-5 157 - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) dec Hunter Willits (Oregon State) 3-1SV 165 - Evan Wick (Cal Poly) dec Shane Griffith (Stanford) 8-7 174 - Tyler Eischens (Stanford) dec Adam Kemp (Cal Poly) 4-3 184 - Trey Munoz (Oregon State) fall Bernie Truax (Cal Poly) 1:14 197 - Kordell Norfleet (Arizona State) maj Ryan Reyes (Oregon State) 14-6 285 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) dec Gary Traub (Oregon State) 2-1 Third Place Matches 125 - Logan Ashton (Stanford) dec Jayden Carson (Little Rock) 3-1 133 - Devan Turner (Oregon State) dec Jackson DiSario (Stanford) 6-1 141 - Mykey Ramos (Arizona State) dec Angelo Martinoni (CSU Bakersfield) 5-4 149 - Cory Crooks (Arizona State) fall Jaden Abas (Stanford) 6:23 157 - Charlie Darracott (Stanford) dec Brock Rogers (CSU Bakersfield) 6-2 165 - Matt Olguin (Oregon State) dec Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) 6-4SV 174 - Triston Wills (Little Rock) dec Albert Urias (CSU Bakersfield) 8-1 184 - Jacob Hansen (CSU Bakersfield) maj Josh Nummer (Arizona State) 13-4 197 - Josh Loomer (CSU Bakersfield) fall Nick Stemmet (Stanford) 2:12 285 - Jacob Sieder (CSU Bakersfield) maj Josiah Hill (Little Rock) 12-2 Fifth Place Matches 125 - Antonio Lorenzo (Cal Poly) dec Eddie Flores (CSU Bakersfield) 8-2 133 - Jaylen Carson (Little Rock) dec Abe Hinrichsen (Cal Poly) 7-1 141 - Lawrence Saenz (Cal Poly) InjDef Conner Ward (Little Rock) 149 - Joey Bianchi (Little Rock) MedFFT Josh Brown (CSU Bakersfield) 157 - Brawley Lamer (Cal Poly) dec Chase Tebbets (Little Rock) 7-2 165 - Tyler Brennan (Little Rock) fall Augustine Garcia (CSU Bakersfield) 2:29 174 - Aaron Olmos (Oregon State) dec Ryan Rochford (Arizona State) 13-7 184 - Tanner Mendoza (Little Rock) dec Nick Addison (Stanford) 5-4 197 - Trent Tracy (CSU Bakersfield) tech Brooks Sacharczyk (Little Rock) 16-0 285 - Peter Ming (Stanford) MedFFT Sam Aguilar (Cal Poly) Automatic Qualifiers by Team Arizona State: (6) Brandon Courtney (125); Michael McGee (133); Kyle Parco (149); Jacori Teemer (157), Kordell Norfleet (197), Cohlton Schultz (285) Cal Poly: (4) Legend Lamer (149), Evan Wick (165); Adam Kemp (174); Bernie Truax (184) CSU Bakersfield: (1) Chance Rich (133) Oregon State: (8) Brandon Kaylor (125); Devan Turner (133); Grant Willits (141); Cory Crooks (149); Hunter Willits (157); Matt Olguin (165); Trey Munoz (184); Gary Traub (285) Stanford: (4) Logan Ashton (125); Real Woods (141); Shane Griffith (165); Tyler Eischens (174)

2022 ACC champion Trent Hidlay (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 2022 ACC Championships Team Scores 1) NC State 98.5 2) Virginia Tech 76 3) Pittsburgh 51 4) North Carolina 48 5) Virginia 39.5 6) Duke 11 Championship Finals 125 - Jakob Camacho (NC State) dec Sam Latona (Virginia Tech) 3-1 133 - Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech) dec Micky Phillippi (Pittsburgh) 4-2 141 - Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh) dec Ryan Jack (NC State) 3-2 149 - Tariq Wilson (NC State) dec Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) 10-4 157 - Ed Scott (NC State) dec Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) 3-2 165 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) dec Justin McCoy (Virginia) 7-0 174 - Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) dec Clay Lautt (North Carolina) 4-2 184 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) maj Gavin Kane (North Carolina) 11-0 197 - Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) dec Isaac Trumble (NC State) 5-2 285 - Nathan Traxler (Virginia Tech) dec Tyrie Houghton (NC State) 9-6 Third Place Bouts 125 - Patrick McCormick (Virginia) dec Spencer Moore (North Carolina) 2-1 133 - Kai Orine (NC State) dec Joe Heilmann (North Carolina) 5-3 141 - Dylan Cedeno (Virginia) dec Collin Gerardi (Virginia Tech) 7-5 149 - Zach Sherman (North Carolina) MedFFT Josh Finesilver (Duke) 157 - Jake Keating (Virginia) dec Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) 6-1 165 - Thomas Bullard (NC State) dec Clayton Ulrey (Virginia Tech) 1-0 174 - Hayden Hidlay (NC State) dec Matt Finesilver (Duke) 7-6 184 - Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech) fall Gregg Harvey (Pittsburgh) 1:42 197 - Jay Aiello (Virginia) maj Max Shaw (North Carolina) 8-0 285 - Quinn Miller (Virginia) dec Brandon Whitman (North Carolina) 4-1 Fifth Place Bouts 133 - Brian Courtney (Virginia) tech Drake Doolittle (Duke) 15-0 157 - Elijah Cleary (Pittsburgh) dec Wade Ungar (Duke) 5-3 184 - Michael Battista (Virginia) dec Vincent Baker (Duke) 12-6 Automatic Qualifiers by Team Duke: (2) Josh Finesilver (149); Matt Finesilver (174) NC State: (10) Jakob Camacho (125); Kai Orine (133); Ryan Jack (141); Tariq Wilson (149); Ed Scott (157); Thomas Bullard (165); Hayden Hidlay (174); Trent Hidlay (184); Isaac Trumble (197); Tyrie Houghton (285) North Carolina: (5) Joe Heilmann (133); Zach Sherman (149); Austin O'Connor (157); Clay Lautt (174); Gavin Kane (184) Pittsburgh: (6) Micky Phillippi (133); Cole Matthews (141); Elijah Cleary (157); Jake Wentzel (165); Gregg Harvey (184); Nino Bonaccorsi (197) Virginia: (8) Patrick McCormick (125); Brian Courtney (133), Dylan Cedeno (141); Jake Keating (157); Justin McCoy (165); Michael Battista (184); Jay Aiello (197); Quinn Miller (285) Virginia Tech: (8) Sam Latona (125): Korbin Myers (133), Collin Gerardi (141); Bryce Andonian (149); Connor Brady (157); Mekhi Lewis (174); Hunter Bolen (184); Nathan Traxler (285)

2022 Big Ten champion Michigan Wolverines (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 2022 Big Ten Championships Final Results Team Scores 1) Michigan 143 2) Penn State 141.5 3) Iowa 129.5 4) Ohio State 91.5 5) Northwestern 90.5 6) Minnesota 78.5 7) Nebraska 75.5 8) Wisconsin 68 9) Rutgers 41 10) Purdue 36.5 11) Illinois 34.5 12) Michigan State 33 13) Maryland 15.5 14) Indiana 4 Championship Finals 125 - Nick Suriano (Michigan) maj Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) 12-4 133 - Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) dec Austin DeSanto (Iowa) 3-1 141 - Nick Lee (Penn State) MedFFT Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) 149 - Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) dec Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) 8-5 157 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) dec Will Lewan (Michigan) 7-2 165 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) dec Cameron Amine (Michigan) 2-1 174 - Carter Starocci (Penn State) dec Logan Massa (Michigan) 5-1 184 - Myles Amine (Michigan) dec Aaron Brooks (Penn State) 6-4SV 197 - Max Dean (Penn State) dec Eric Schultz (Nebraska) 4-2 285 - Gable Steveson (Minnesota) MedFFT Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) Third Place Bouts 125 - Patrick McKee (Minnesota) dec MIchael DeAugustino (Northwestern) 3-1 133 - Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) dec Lucas Byrd (Illinois) 3-1SV 141 - Jakob Bergeland (Minnesota) dec Stevan Micic (Michigan) 4-0 149 - Max Murin (Iowa) MedFFT Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) 157 - Brady Berge (Penn State) dec Kaleb Young (Iowa) 3-1SV 165 - Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) dec Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) 4-2SV 174 - Ethan Smith (Ohio State) MedFFT Troy Fisher (Northwestern) 184 - Zac Braunagel (Illinois) dec Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) 3-1SV 197 - Patrick Brucki (Michigan) dec Jacob Warner (Iowa) 3-1 285 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) dec Mason Parris (Michigan) 5-3 Fifth Place Bouts 125 - Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) MedFFT Devin Schroder (Purdue) 133 - Chris Cannon (Northwestern) MedFFT Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) 141 - Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio State) MedFFT Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) 149 - Michael Blockhus (Minnesota) MedFFT Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) 157 - Peyton Robb (Nebraska) maj Kendall Coleman (Purdue) 8-0 165 - David Ferrante (Northwestern) MedFFT Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) 174 - Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) MedFFT Michael Kemerer (Iowa) 184 - Taylor Venz (Nebraska) dec Kyle Cochran (Maryland) 6-3 197 - Thomas Penola (Purdue) dec Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) 3-2 285 - Lucas Davison (Northwestern) dec Luke Luffman (Illinois) 3-1 Seventh Place Bouts 125 - Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) MedFFT Drake Ayala (Iowa) 133 - Matt Ramos (Purdue) dec Jake Gliva (Minnesota) 3-2 141 - Frankie Tal-Shahar (Northwestern) dec Parker Filius (Purdue) 11-6 149 - Beau Bartlett (Penn State) dec Kanen Storr (Michigan) 3-1 157 - Garrett Model (Wisconsin) dec Chase Saldate (Michigan State) 7-0 165 - Cael Carlson (Minnesota) fall Caleb Fish (Michigan State) 2:41 174 - Dom Solis (Maryland) dec Connor O'Neill (Rutgers) 10-4 184 - Abe Assad (Iowa) MedFFT Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota) 197 - Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) dec Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) 6-1 285 - Christian Lance (Nebraska) dec Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) 3-2 Automatic Qualifiers by Team Illinois: (4) Justin Cardani (125); Lucas Byrd (133); Zac Braunagel (184); Luke Luffman (285) Indiana: (1) Brock Hudkins (133) Iowa: (10) Drake Ayala (125); Austin DeSanto (133); Jaydin Eierman (141); Max Murin (149); Kaleb Young (157); Alex Marinelli (165); Michael Kemerer (174); Abe Assad (184); Jacob Warner (197); Tony Cassioppi (285) Maryland: (2) Dom Solis (174); Kyle Cochran (184) Michigan: (9) Nick Suriano (125); Dylan Ragusin (133); Stevan Micic (141); Will Lewan (157); Cameron Amine (165); Logan Massa (174); Myles Amine (184); Patrick Brucki (197); Mason Parris (285) Michigan State: (3) Rayvon Foley (133); Layne Malczewski (184); Cameron Caffey (197) Minnesota: (8) Patrick McKee (125); Jake Gliva (133); Jakob Bergeland (141); Michael Blockhus (149); Cael Carlson (165); Isaiah Salazar (184); Michal Foy (197); Gable Steveson (285) Nebraska: (7) Ridge Lovett (149), Peyton Robb (157); Bubba Wilson (165); Mikey Labriola (174); Taylor Venz (184); Eric Schultz (197); Christian Lance (285) Northwestern: (9) Michael DeAugustino (125); Chris Cannon (133); Frankie Tal-Shahar (141), Ryan Deakin (157); David Ferrante (165); Troy Fisher (174); Jack Jessen (184); Andrew Davison (197); Lucas Davison (285) Ohio State: (8) Malik Heinselman (125); Dylan D'Emilio (141); Sammy Sasso (149); Carson Kharchla (165); Ethan Smith (174); Kaleb Romero (184); Gavin Hoffman (197); Tate Orndorff (285) Penn State: (9) Drew Hildebrandt (125); Roman Bravo-Young (133); Nick Lee (141); Beau Bartlett (149); Brady Berge (157); Carter Starocci (174); Aaron Brooks (184); Max Dean (197); Greg Kerkvliet (285) Purdue: (4) Devin Schroder (125); Matt Ramos (133); Kendall Coleman (157); Thomas Penola (197) Rutgers: (7) Dylan Shawver (125); Joey Olivieri (133), Sebastian Rivera (141); Mike Van Brill (149); Connor O'Neill (174); John Poznanski (184); Greg Bulsak (197) Wisconsin: (7) Eric Barnett (125); Austin Gomez (149); Garrett Model (157); Dean Hamiti (165); Chris Weiler (184); Braxton Amos (197); Trent Hillger (285)

2022 MAC Champion Caleb Hopkins (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 2022 SoCon Championships Final Results Team Scores 1) Campbell 100.5 2) Appalachian State 95 3) Chattanooga 79 4) Gardner-Webb 51 5) The Citadel 38.5 6) Davidson 12.5 7) VMI 12 8) Presbyterian 6.5 Championship Finals 125 - Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga) dec Korbin Meink (Campbell) 3-1 133 - Codi Russell (Appalachian State) dec Brayden Palmer (Chattanooga) 7-4 141 - Shannon Hanna (Campbell) dec Heath Gonyer (Appalachian State) 10-4TB 149 - Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State) dec Josh Heil (Campbell) 5-4 157 - Dazjon Casto (The Citadel) dec Cody Bond (Appalachian State) 5-4 165 - Rodrick Mosley (Gardner-Webb) dec Drew Nicholson (Chattanooga) 4-3 174 - Thomas Flitz (Appalachian State) dec Austin Murphy (Campbell) 3-2TB 184 - Caleb Hopkins (Campbell) dec Jha'Quan Anderson (Gardner-Webb) 8-3 197 - Matthew Waddell (Chattanooga) dec Chris Kober (Campbell) 3-1 285 - Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) dec Michael McAleavey (The Citadel) 3-1SV Third Place Matches 125 - Caleb Smith (Appalachian State) dec Benny Gomez (Presbyterian) 8-1 133 - Dom Zaccone (Campbell) maj Todd Carter (Gardner-Webb) 11-3 141 - Franco Valdes (Chattanooga) fall Trevon Majette (Gardner-Webb) 4:51 149 - Noah Castillo (Chattanooga) dec Brandon Bright (Gardner-Webb) 4-1 157 - JoJo Aragona (Campbell) dec Taylor Parks (Gardner-Webb) 4-2 165 - Will Formato (Appalachian State) maj Troy Nation (Campbell) 11-1 174 - Ben Haubert (The Citadel) dec Carial Tarter (Chattanooga) 4-2 184 - Barrett Blakely (Appalachian State) dec Thomas Sell (Chattanooga) 6-4 197 - Anthony Perrine (Gardner-Webb) dec Tyler Mousaw (VMI) 5-1 285 - Michael Burchell (Appalachian State) maj Mitchell Trigg (Davidson) 16-6 True Second Place 133 - Brayden Palmer (Chattanooga) maj Dom Zaccone (Campbell) 17-6 165 - Drew Nicholson (Chattanooga) dec Will Formato (Appalachian State) 6-2 Automatic Qualifiers by Team Appalachian State (3) Codi Russell (133); Jonathan Millner (149); Thomas Flitz (174) Campbell (5) Korbin Meink (125); Shannon Hanna (141); Josh Heil (149); Caleb Hopkins (184); Taye Ghadiali (285) Chattanooga (4) Fabian Gutierrez (125); Brayden Palmer (133); Drew Nicholson (165); Matthew Waddell (197) Gardner-Webb (1) Rodrick Mosley (165) The Citadel (2) Dazjon Casto (157); Michael McAleavey (285)

Penn State 149 lber Beau Bartlett (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Win and you're in! Lose and pray for an at-large selection. In a separate piece, we'll outline all the former All Americans and top-ranked guys that are at the mercy of the selection committee (141 is particularly a mess). But here we're going to focus on what's on tap for Sunday morning. After Day I of wrestling at Big Ten's and Big 12's, there are tons of pivotal match ups and NCAA berths on the line, many of which are important for the country's top teams. Below are our favorite 'go-to' bouts in Lincoln and Tulsa, followed by a complete list. Big 12 141 - 7th Place Carter Young, Oklahoma State vs. Ty Smith, Utah Valley OK State has been devastated with injuries. They lost reigning NCAA Champ AJ Ferrari after a car accident and returning AA's Wyatt Sheets and Travis Wittlake failed to qualify on Saturday. They need Young, a true freshman, to keep another potential point earner in the lineup for Detroit. Oh yeah….the two met in the opening round and Smith won, 6-2. Big 12 149 - Consi Semi Jarrett Degen, Iowa State vs. Josh Edmond, Missouri Two traditional powers look to add a qualifier for Nationals. They are ranked #21 and #22 respectively, and Degen won the matchup 9-7 a month ago. Big 12 184 - Consi Semi Dakota Geer, Oklahoma St. vs. Keegan Moore, Oklahoma Whoa, Nellie! What a situation. Two guys, in their last go-round, from the Bedlam series, who used to be teammates. Moore utterly stunned Geer two weeks ago in the dual when he won handily, but Geer has been more productive (if inconsistent) over the course of their careers. Big Ten 149 - 7th Place Beau Bartlett, Penn State vs. Kanen Storr, Michigan Bartlett didn't qualify for NCAA's last year and is on the cusp again. He beat Michael Blockhus (who is in) but then lost to Austin Gomez and Mike Van Brill. Dealing with an injury almost all season, Storr was pinned by Van Brill in his opening round bout before beating Yahya Thomas. He then lost to Blockhus. It's an enormous match between the two teams currently leading the B1G team race. The Complete List of All Other "Win and You're In" Matches Big Ten 125: Drew Hildebrandt, PSU vs. Jacob Moran, Indiana Big Ten 125: Tristan Lujan, Michigan State vs. Justin Cardani, Illinois Big Ten 133: Brock Hudkins, Indiana vs. Kyle Burwick, Wisconsin Big Ten 133: Dom Serrano, Nebraska vs. Joey Olivieri, Rutgers Big Ten 141: Frankie Tal-Shahar, Northwestern vs. Parker Filius, Purdue Big Ten 149: Colin Realbuto, Northern Iowa vs. Dylan Martinez, Air Force Big Ten 157: Chase Saldate, Michigan State. vs. Garrett Model, Wisconsin Big Ten 165: Cael Carlson, Minnesota vs. Caleb Fish, Michigan State Big 12 165: Isaac Judge, Iowa State vs. Luke Weber, North Dakota State Big 12 165: Austin Yant, Northern Iowa vs. Joe Grello, Oklahoma Big 12 184: DJ Parker, North Dakota State vs. Marcus Coleman, Iowa State Big Ten 197: Braxton Amos, Wisconsin vs. Michial Foy, Minnesota Big Ten 197: Jaron Smith, Maryland vs. Andrew Davison, Northwestern Big 12 197: Evan Bockman, Utah Valley vs. Alan Clothier, Northern Colorado

2022 MAC Champion Anthony Noto (right) (photo courtesy of Lock Haven athletics) 2022 MAC Championships Final Results Team Scores 1) Lock Haven 123.5 2) Central Michigan 108 3) Northern Illinois 93 4) Buffalo 92.5 5) Clarion 79.5 6) Cleveland State 73.5 7) Kent State 71.5 8) Rider 68 9) Ohio 61.5 10) SIU Edwardsville 52 11) George Mason 47 12) Bloomsburg 42 13) Edinboro 30.5 Championship Finals 125 - Anthony Noto (Lock Haven) dec Joey Fischer (Clarion) 3-1SV 133 - Richie Koehler (Rider) dec Derek Spann (Buffalo) 4-1 141 - Quinn Kinner (Rider) dec Josh Mason (Bloomsburg) 4-1 149 - Kody Komara (Kent State) fall Marcus Robinson (Cleveland State) 4:02 157 - Ben Barton (Lock Haven) dec Johnny Lovett (Central Michigan) 2-1 165 - Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois) dec Ashton Eyler (Lock Haven) 7-5SV 174 - Mason Kauffman (Northern Illinois) dec Sal Perrine (Ohio) 7-5 184 - Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois) maj Colin McCracken (Kent State) 8-0 197 - Ben Smith (Cleveland State) fall Will Feldkamp (Clarion) 2:07 285 - Matt Stencel (Central Michigan) dec Isaac Reid (Lock Haven) 4-2 Third Place Matches 125 - Jake Ferri (Kent State) dec Brock Bergelin (Central Michigan) 7-5 133 - Gable Strickland (Lock Haven) dec Gio DiSabato (Ohio) 4-3 141 - Gabe Willochell (Edinboro) dec Jaivon Jones (Northern Illinois) 2-0 149 - Corbyn Munson (Central Michigan) dec John Arceri (Buffalo) 1-0 157 - Michael Petite (Buffalo) dec Jordan Slivka (Ohio) 4-3 165 - Riley Smucker (Cleveland State) dec Tracy Hubbard (Central Michigan) 2-1 174 - Jay Nivison (Buffalo) dec Logan Messer (George Mason) 4-3 184 - Kyle Davis (George Mason) dec DeAndre Nassar (Cleveland State) 3-1SV 197 - Aaron Bolo (Central Michigan) dec Ryan Yarnell (SIU Edwardsville) 9-3 285 - Tyler Bagoly (Clarion) dec Toby Cahill (Buffalo) 7-3 Fifth Place Matches 125 - Tristan Daugherty (Buffalo) dec Oscar Sanchez (Ohio) 4-3TB 133 - Cole Rhone (Bloomsburg) fall Aaron Schulist (SIU Edwardsville) :58 141 - Seth Koleno (Clarion) dec Saul Ervin (SIU Edwardsville) 5-2 149 - DaShawn Farber (Lock Haven) MedFFT Alex Madrigal (George Mason) 157 - Alex Carida (Bloomsburg) maj Anthony Gibson (Northern Illinois) 14-3 165 - Joe Casey (Rider) MedFFT Noah Grover (Buffalo) 174 - Bret Fedewa (Central Michigan) dec John Worthing (Clarion) 11-4 184 - Max Wohlbaugh (Clarion) dec Colin Fegley (Lock Haven) 3-2 197 - Tyler Bates (Kent State) dec Cody Mulligan (Edinboro) 3-2 285 - Colton McKiernan (SIU Edwardsville) dec David Szuba (Rider) 6-4 Seventh Place Matches 125 - Bryce West (Northern Illinois) dec Austin Macias (SIU Edwardsville) 8-5 133 - Jake Manley (Cleveland State) maj Vince Perez (Central Michigan) 12-3 141 - Louis Newell (Kent State) dec Kaden Cassidy (George Mason) 5-3 149 - Alec Hagan (Ohio) dec Caleb Tyus (SIU Edwardsville) 4-3 157 - Avery Bassett (George Mason) dec Cole McComas (Rider) 8-1 165 - Kolby Ho (Clarion) MedFFT Brady Chrisman (Kent State) 174 - Tyler Stoltzfus (Lock Haven) maj Anthony Rice (Cleveland State) 8-0 184 - Peter Acciardi (Buffalo) fall Sergio Villalobos (SIU Edwardsville) 7:56SV 197 - Parker McClellan (Lock Haven) FFT Carson Brewer (Ohio) 285 - Terrese Aaron (Northern Illinois) dec Max Millin (Edinboro) 3-1 True Second Place 174 - Jay Nivison (Buffalo) dec Sal Perrine (Ohio) 3-2 184 - Colin McCracken (Kent State) dec Kyle Davis (George Mason) 9-4 Automatic Qualifiers by Team Bloomsburg (1) Josh Mason (141) Buffalo (2) John Arceri (149); Jay Nivison (174) Central Michigan (3) Corbyn Munson (149); Johnny Lovett (157); Matt Stencel (285) Cleveland State (3) Marcus Robinson (149); Riley Smucker (165); Ben Smith (197) Edinboro (1) Gabe Willochell (133) Kent State (2) Kody Komara (149); Colin McCracken (184) Lock Haven (5) Anthony Noto (125); DaShawn Farber (149); Ben Barton (157); Ashton Eyler (165); Isaac Reid (285) Northern Illinois (3) Izzak Olejnik (165); Mason Kauffman (174); Brit Wilson (285) Rider (2) Richie Koehler (133); Quinn Kinner (141)

174 lb Big Ten Semifinals with Logan Massa and Mikey Labriola (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Most pundits thought that the 2022 Big Ten Championships would be a two-horse race between top-ranked Penn State and #2 Iowa. Unfortunately, no one told #3 Michigan. After one day of action, the Wolverines lead the top-two teams in the nation and have five wrestlers in the finals. Michigan holds a 5.5 point lead over Penn State, who is just 2.5 points ahead of Iowa. Penn State also has five finalists, while Iowa has four. Michigan's finals run started with Nick Suriano in the opening bout of tonight's semifinals. Suriano pinned two-time conference finalist Devin Schroder (Purdue) to move into his second Big Ten final. He previously won the tournament in 2019, while at Rutgers, during his NCAA title-winning season. Suriano will take on the third seed, Eric Barnett (Wisconsin), who dispatched Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern), 3-0. Will Lewan, at 157 lbs, was Michigan's second finalist. He and Brady Berge (Penn State) engaged in a tactical affair with few committed attempts. It wasn't until sudden victory where Lewan was able to penetrate Berge's defense for the winning takedown, 3-1. Lewan's opponent will be Ryan Deakin (Northwestern), who is seeking his third Big Ten championship. The only weight where a number one seed failed to make the finals occurred at 165 lbs, when top-seeded Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) was clipped in sudden victory, 3-1, by Cam Amine (Michigan). A match later, the crowd at the Pinnacle Bank Arena was treated to perhaps the most entertaining bout of the day. Second-seeded Logan Massa (Michigan) and the third, Mikey Labriola (Nebraska), got into a shootout with plenty of offense, defense, scrambles, and everything in between. Massa was the last man standing in a 7-6 win. That sets the stage for a national #1 vs #2 match at 174 lbs, as Carter Starocci (Penn State) advanced to the finals after a medical forfeit by Michael Kemerer (Iowa). That is also the case at 184 lbs as #1 Aaron Brooks (Penn State) is slated to take on #2 Myles Amine (Michigan). The two met earlier this season in a hotly contested bout, won by Brooks, 3-1. Brooks handled longtime rival, Taylor Venz (Nebraska), while Amine got by a game Kaleb Romero (Ohio State). The other national #1 vs. #2 bout on tap for Sunday comes at 141 lbs with Nick Lee (Penn State) and Jaydin Eierman (Iowa). The two met in last year's final and Eierman prevailed; however, Lee turned the tables in the NCAA finals. Eierman was the recipient of a medical forfeit from Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers), while Lee turned in a technical fall against Jacob Bergeland (Minnesota). Penn State also has finalists at 133, with Roman Bravo-Young and Max Dean at 197. Bravo-Young also has a rematch of his 2021 Big Ten final with Austin DeSanto (Iowa). The mercurial Hawkeye survived a physical, back-and-forth affair with Lucas Byrd (Illinois) to advance. Dean gets the hometown favorite, Eric Schultz (Nebraska). The Cornhusker faithful saw three of their wrestlers fall in the semis, before Schultz broke through with a 3-2 win over Patrick Brucki (Michigan). This evening was a rare occasion where the fans stayed around to watch the big men and they were treated to a good one between Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) and Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State). Kerkvliet appeared to be in control with a 4-2 lead in the waning seconds. The Hawkeye initiated a scramble and managed to secure a reversal just a second before Kerkvliet would have locked up riding time. That sent the bout into sudden victory where Cassioppi took advantage and won, 6-4. Cassioppi will have his hands full in the title bout with Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson (Minnesota). Steveson faced his 2021 Big Ten and NCAA finals opponent, Mason Parris (Michigan), in the semis. The Gopher star kept his bonus point streak intact with a 14-6 major decision. The only championship bout that does not include the top-three teams occurs at 149 lbs, as Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) squares off with Austin Gomez (Wisconsin). Sasso used a third-period takedown to get by Max Murin (Iowa), 3-1. That was the opposite of Gomez's result. He silenced the home crowd by tossing Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) to his back in the opening seconds and locked up a fall with only :20 seconds elapsed. Team Scores 1) Michigan 116 2) Penn State 111.5 3) Iowa 109 4) Ohio State 72 5) Northwestern 70.5 6) Nebraska 65 7) Wisconsin 58.5 8) Minnesota 55.5 9) Rutgers 37 10) Purdue 34.5 11) Michigan State 33 12) Illinois 26.5 13) Maryland 14.5 14) Indiana 4 125 Semi - Nick Suriano (Michigan) fall Devin Schroder (Purdue) 2:40 125 Semi - Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) dec Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) 3-0 125 lb Big Ten Final - #1 Nick Suriano (Michigan) vs. #3 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) 133 Semi - Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) dec Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) 4-0 133 Semi - Austin DeSanto (Iowa) dec Lucas Byrd (Illinois) 4-3 133 lb Big Ten Final - #1 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) vs. #2 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) 141 Semi - Nick Lee (Penn State) tech Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) 16-1 141 Semi - Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) MedFFT Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern) 141 lbs Big Ten Final - #1 Nick Lee (Penn State) vs. #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) 149 Semi - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) dec Max Murin (Iowa) 3-1 149 Semi - Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) fall Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) :20 149 lbs Big Ten Final - #1 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) vs. #2 Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) 157 Semi - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) dec Peyton Robb (Nebraska) 5-3 157 Semi - Will Lewan (Michigan) dec Brady Berge (Penn State) 3-1SV 157 lbs Big Ten Final - #1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. #3 Will Lewan (Michigan) 165 Semi - Cameron Amine (Michigan) dec Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) 3-1 165 Semi - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) dec Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) 3-2 165 lbs Big Ten Final - #2 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) vs. #4 Cameron Amine (Michigan) 174 Semi - Carter Starocci (Penn State) MedFFT Michael Kemerer (Iowa) 174 Semi - Logan Massa (Michigan) dec Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) 6-5 174 lbs Big Ten Final - #1 Carter Starocci (Penn State) vs. #2 Logan Massa (Michigan) 184 Semi - Aaron Brooks (Penn State) dec Taylor Venz (Nebraska) 7-2 184 Semi - Myles Amine (Michigan) dec Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) 4-2 184 lbs Big Ten Final - #1 Aaron Brooks (Penn State) vs. #2 Myles Amine (Michigan) 197 Semi - Max Dean (Penn State) dec Cam Caffey (Michigan State) 7-2 197 Semi - Eric Schultz (Nebraska) dec Patrick Brucki (Michigan) 3-2 197 lbs Big Ten Final - #1 Eric Schultz (Nebraska) vs. #2 Max Dean (Penn State) 285 semi - Gable Steveson (Minnesota) maj Mason Parris (Michigan) 14-6 285 semi - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) dec Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) 6-4SV 285 lbs Big Ten Final - #1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. #2 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa)

The 2022 EIWA Championships (photos courtesy of EIWA) 125: (3 AQ's) The weight class was thrown out of whack because the tournament started! 4th seed Lane of Lehigh was a late scratch. This forced Sheldon Seymour of Lehigh to step in Lane's place. Due to EIWA rules, he automatically was the last-seeded wrestler (even though he would have been the 4th or 5th seed – based on the formula). Glory ended up winning over Seymour in the round of 16 by an 8-2 decision. Diaz of F&M had a solid win over the 7th seed Leete of American. Manchio (4th seed) had a tight overtime win over Seidman (#5) of Bucknell. Seymour is still making a run on the back side, as he defeated returning NCAA qualifier at 133lb from Navy, and 7th seed, Allen. All seeds held in the winner's bracket. Semifinal matchups tomorrow morning: Glory (#1) - Princeton vs. Manchio (#4) - Columbia Arujau (#2) - Cornell vs. Miller (#3) - Penn 133: (2 AQ's) Lehigh's Malyke Hines (3rd seed) took an injury default in both matches. His injury has been lingering, and he'll be hoping for an at-large bid. Cabanillas of Brown moved onto the quarters as a 14th seed as a result. Maroney of Drexel came out on top of an entertaining barnburner with Sobotker of Binghamton in the first round. The big upset of the first round went to 11th seed Treanor of Army, knocking off Rini (#6) of Columbia by a 12-10 score. Koderhandt (#1) of Navy used a riding time point to secure to 2-0 win over Maroney (#8) of Drexel. LaJoie of Cornell came in as the 4th seed and earned a last period takedown and rideout for a 2-1 win over 5th seed Phipps of Bicknell. Treanor of Army is the highest seeded wrestler in the semis. Semifinal matchups tomorrow morning: Koderhandt (#1) - Navy vs. LaJoie (#4) - Cornell Colaiocco (#2) - Penn vs. Treanoer (#11) - Army 141: (4 AQ's) No surprises in the round of 16 at this weight. Again, all seeds held after the quarterfinals. Overall, the matches were competitive. We saw Kazimir (#1) of Columbia defeat Hunt (#9) from Navy 6-0. Miller (#4) of Bucknell squeaked out a 4-2 win over McGonagle (#5) of Lehigh. In the bottom half, 3rd seeded Anderson of Binghamton advanced with a 4-2 win over Deck of Army. Composto (#2) of Penn advanced with a three-point victory over Gil (#7) of Franklin & Marshall. Honestly, not much to report here as there were no upsets yet. The semifinalists each need one more win to secure an automatic bid to NCAAs. Semi-final matchups tomorrow morning: Kazimir (#1) - Columbia vs. Miller (#4) - Bucknell Composto (#2) - Penn vs. Anderson (#3) - Binghamton 149: (4 AQ's) Again, there were no surprises in the round of 16 at this weight. After the quarters, Diakomihalis has a tech fall and a major. Lehigh's Brignola (#3) overcame a 6-0 deficit to win 11-7 over 6th seed Nichter of Drexel. We will see the top 4 in the semifinals tomorrow. Just like the previous weight, all semi-finalists will need one more win to punch their ticket to Detroit. Semi-final matchups tomorrow morning: Diakomihalis (#1) – Cornell vs. (#4) Ogunsanya – Army Artalona (#2) – Penn vs. Brignola (#3) – Lehigh 157: (5 AQ's) The round of 16 went pretty much per seed. Tarsi of Harvard looked very impressive over Kropman of Drexel, winning 10-3. Top-seeded Humpheys of Lehigh dominated with a fall then a technical fall. Monday (#2) of Princeton did not struggle much either in his first two bouts. The closest quarterfinal matches were won by (#4) Cerniglia of Navy via 4-2 decision over Army's Hartman (#5). 3rd seed Zapf of Penn won by two-points over Richard (#6) of Cornell. In the wrestlebacks we saw two returning NCAA qualifiers square off. Hartman (#5) of Army defeated Palumbo (#10) of Sacred Heart to advance to tomorrow's round. This is a deep weight, with many talented wrestlers still alive. Semifinal matchups tomorrow morning: Humphreys (#1) - Lehigh vs. Cerniglia (#4) - Navy Monday (#2) - Princeton vs. Zapf (#3) - Penn 165: (7 AQ's) The deepest weight in the tournament did not disappoint. We had three tight matches in the round of 16. Cassella (8th seed) took down Harkins (9th) by a 3-2 score. Fifth seed Meyer of Lehigh won 5-3 over 12th seed Bergey of Princeton. Drexel's Barczak (7th seed) win in overtime against Navy's 10th seed Park. Then, the quarterfinal bouts were worth the price of admission. Ramirez (#1) of Cornell snuck by 8th seed Cassella 5-3. 4th seed Ogunsanya earned three takedowns to defeat Meyer (#5) of Lehigh. Conigliaro (#3) of Harvard won 7-4 over Revano (#6) of Penn. Bucknell's returning All-American Hartman (#2) defeated Barczak (#7) of Drexel. All semifinalists punched their ticket to NCAA's already. In the bloodround, we saw Park of Navy outplace his 10th seed to make tomorrow's top 8 action with a win over Meyer of Lehigh. Semifinal matchups tomorrow morning: Ramirez (#1) - Cornell vs. Ogunsanya (#4) - Columbia Hartman (#2) - Bucknell vs. Conigliaro (#3) - Harvard 174: (4 AQ's) There were some close R16 rounds. Logan (5th seed) of Lehigh beat 12th seed of LIU Ryan Ferro by a 5-3 score. Fine of Columbia (#4) snuck by Crawford of F&M by a 3-2 decision. Finally, Dugan of Princeton was the 10th seed, and took out 7th seeded Kim of Harvard. In the quarters, Logan (#5) beat Fine (#4) of Columbia in a marathon match by a 4-2 score. Penn's Incontrera (#3) had a big fall in overtime over Pasiuk (#6) of Army. Top-seed O'Malley of Drexel won each match by decision while 2nd seed Foca of Cornell came away victorious by major decision in each match. Semifinal matchups tomorrow morning: O'Malley (#1) - Drexel vs. Logan (#5) - Lehigh Foca (#2) - Cornell vs. Incontrera (#3) - Penn 184: (3 AQ's) We saw some good matches in the first round. Bonino won a close 2-1 decision over Day of Binghamton in a classic 8 vs 9 seeded battle, respectively. 4th seeded Key of Navy held off an upset by Araneo of Brown (13th seed). Army's Laughlin was seeded 6th, earning a tight 3-2 win over Deacetis of Bucknell. One the matches I was looking forward to between Lehigh's Burkhart (7th) and McLaughlin of Drexel (10th) turned into a literal bloody battle. Burkhart won 9-7 with a takedown late in the third period. In the quarters, Antrassian of Penn (#5) used a third period turn to defeat fourth-seed Key of Navy. Small (#3) of Hofstra won 2-1 over Laughlin (#6) of Army. In the first round of wrestle backs, we saw returning NCAA qualifier, McLaughlin of Drexel, defeat another returning qualifier in Accousti of Sacred Heart. The next round McLaughlin took on another returning qualifier in Key of Navy. The match was won by 10th seed McLaughlin of Drexel. Semi-final matchups tomorrow morning: Loew (#1) - Cornell vs. Antrassian (#5) - Penn Stefanik (#2) - Princeton vs. Small (#3) - Hofstra 197: (5 AQ's) In the round of 16, we saw Cole Urbas of Penn (8th seed) survive a last minute challenge by Lehigh to hang on and win 3-2 over 9th seeded Davis. McCready of Bucknell was the 10th seed, beating LIU's 7th seed Crowley. This weight class was another where the top 4 seeds made the semifinals. Koser (#4) of Navy beat his rival from Army, Brown (#5), by a 4-2 score in the quarters. Stout (#3) of Princeton and DePrez (#1) of Binghamton each won handily. Cardenas (#2) of Cornell had a first period fall in the quarters, after a tech in the round of 16. Semi-final matchups tomorrow morning: DePrez (#1) - Binghamton vs. Koser (#4) - Navy Cardenas (#2) - Cornell vs. Stout (#3) - Princeton 285: (4 AQ's) The biggest R16 upset came from American's Rigther. The 11th seed was in a tight match with Navy's 6th seeded Catka, until he earned the pin late in the match. Pelusi of F&M moved on as the 9th seed with a 3-2 win over Cover (#8) of Princeton. In the quarters, the only close match was won by 4th seed Goldin of Penn when he defeated Doyle (#5) of Binghamton, using a last period takedown and ride. Wood earned a fall then major en route to his fifth career semi-final appearance, looking to win his unprecedented FIFTH conference title. Semi-final matchups tomorrow morning: Wood (#1) - Lehigh vs. Goldin (#4) - Penn Fernandes (#2) - Cornell vs. Knighton-Ward (#3) - Hofstra Team Race: After day 1, the team race is tight. Penn will have all ten wrestlers on the podium. Cornell will only place nine wrestlers, but are currently in the lead thanks to bonus points. These two squads have looked incredible, and they ar separating themselves from the rest of the field. 1st place – Cornell (94.5 points with 8 in the semi-finals, 1 in the wrestlebacks) 2nd place – Penn (86.5 points with 8 in the semi-finals, 2 in the wrestlebacks) 3rd place – Princeton (69 points with 4 in the semi-finals, 5 in the wrestlebacks) 4th place – Lehigh (62.5 points with 4 in the semi-finals, 4 in the wrestlebacks) Day 2 action starts at 10AM with a round of semifinals and a consi round. Finals are at 3PM. All of the action is live on FloWrestling.

3x national champion Sydnee Kimber of McKendree (photos courtesy of McKendree athletics) Final results for the 2022 NCWWC Women's National Championships Final Team Scores 1) McKendree 188 2) King 166 3) Simon Fraser 145.5 4) North Central 128 5) Colorado Mesa 89 6) Augsburg 82 7) Tiffin 75.5 8) Adrian 42.5 9) Emmanuel 38.5 9) Gannon 38.5 101 lbs 1st - Olivia Shore (Tiffin) tech Angelina Gomez (Emmanuel) 11-0 3rd - Lizette Rodriguez (McKendree) over Jaclyn McNichols (King) 4-1 5th - Samantha Miller (Presbyterian) fall Maddie McKenzie (Simon Fraser) 7th - Brooke Thurber (Wisconsin-Stevens Point) over Katerina Pendergrass (Gannon) 8-7 109 lbs 1st - Emily Shilson (Augsburg) tech Sydney Petzinger (North Central) 11-0 3rd - Samara Chavez (King) over Natalie Reyna (McKendree) 11-6 5th - Danielle Garcia (King) fall Alexia Seal (Simon Fraser) 5:26 7th - Julianne Moccia (Gannon) fall Angelina Graff (North Central) 3:49 116 lbs 1st - Karla Godinez-Gonzalez (Simon Fraser) over Felicity Taylor (McKendree) 3-1 3rd - Sage Mortimer (King) fall Jaslynn Gallegos (Presbyterian) 2:41 5th - Gabriela Ramos Diaz (Limestone) tech Kendra Ryan (North Central) 12-2 7th - Mateah Roehl (North Central) tech Ainslie Lane (Presbyterian) 11-1 123 lbs 1st - Alex Hedrick (Simon Fraser) fall Cheyenne Sisenstein (King) 5:29 3rd - Marissa Gallegos (Colorado Mesa) fall Cayden Condit (Lindenwood) 1:25 5th - Amani Jones (North Central) over Melanie Mendoza (King) 7-6 7th - Asia Nguyen-Smith (North Central) over Gabby Skidmore (Augsburg) 10-6 130 lbs 1st - Cameron Guerin (McKendree) tech Niya Gaines (North Central) 10-0 3rd - Lauren Mason (Simon Fraser) tech Mia Macaluso (East Stroudsburg) 10-0 5th - Solana Mottola (Tiffin) over Claire DiCugno (Colorado Mesa) 4-2 7th - Montana Delawder (King) over Anya Knappenberger (Gannon) 13-4 136 lbs 1st - Zoe Nowicki (Adrian) over Nina Makem (Augsburg) 4-0 3rd - Ana Luciano (King) over Skye Realin (McKendree) 9-4 5th - Emmily Patneaud (McKendree) over Holly Beaudoin (Colorado Mesa) 8-4 7th - Sara Sulejmani (North Central) fall Lana Perez (Gannon) 4:26 143 lbs 1st - Ashlynn Ortega (King) over Alara Boyd (McKendree) 3-0 3rd - Madison Sandquist (Sacred Heart) fall Kaylee Lacy (Colorado Mesa) 5:19 5th - Avia Bibeau (East Stroudsburg) fall Riley Aamold (North Central) :23 7th - Kim Nunez (North Central) over Khadijah Sanusi (Sacred Heart) 3-1 155 lbs 1st - Alyiva Fiske (Simon Fraser) over Kayla Marano (McKendree) 3-2 3rd - Marlynne Deede (Augsburg) tech Nyla Burgess (Adrian) 10-0 5th - Tiera Jimerson (North Central) over Taylor Hites (Tiffin) 8-0 7th - Tiffany Baublitz (King) fall Skylah Chakouian (Elmira) 1;06 170 lbs 1st - Yelena Makoyed (North Central) tech Joye Levendusky (McKendree) 11-0 3rd - Emily Cue (Simon Fraser) over Grace Kristoff (McKendree) 4-1 5th - Cheyenne Bowman (King) over Jade Herzer (Wisconsin-Stevens Point) 3-0 7th - Tatum Heikkila (Colorado Mesa) over Jacklyn Smith (Sacred Heart) 9-3 191 lbs 1st - Sydnee Kimber (McKendree) fall Jaycee Foeller (McKendree) 1:18 3rd - Jayleen Sakona (Colorado Mesa) fall Nia Crosdale (King) 4-1 5th - Cristina Santoyo (Emmanuel) fall Katja Osteen (Simon Fraser) 3:59 7th - Sandra Guerrero (New Jersey City) fall Journey Land (Limestone) 1:07

(photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Session I Team Scores 1) Michigan 68.5 2) Penn State 67.5 3) Iowa 55 4) Nebraska 47.5 5) Wisconsin 36.5 6) Ohio State 33 7) Northwestern 27.5 8) Minnesota 21.5 9) Rutgers 18.5 10) Michigan State 17 11) Purdue 13 12) Illinois 12 13) Maryland 5.5 14) Indiana 4 Big Ten Quarterfinal Results 125 - Nick Suriano (Michigan) maj Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) 18-6 125 - Devin Schroder (Purdue) dec Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) 3-1 125 - Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) dec Drake Ayala (Iowa) 4-3 125 - Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) dec Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State) 5-3 133 - Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) maj Matt Ramos (Purdue) 11-3 133 - Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) dec Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) 3-1 133 - Lucas Byrd (Illinois) maj Brock Hudkins (Indiana) 10-2 133 - Austin DeSanto (Iowa) dec Chris Cannon (Northwestern) 7-3 141 - Nick Lee (Penn State) tech Joe Zargo (Wisconsin) 16-0 141 - Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) dec Cayden Rooks (Indiana) 8-3 141 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) maj Parker Filius (Purdue) 15-5 141 - Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) dec Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio State) 10-3 149 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) dec Graham Rooks (Indiana) 6-3 149 - Max Murin (Iowa) dec Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) 6-5 149 - Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) dec Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) 2-0 149 - Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) maj Beau Bartlett (Penn State) 12-4 157 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) fall Bryce Hepner (Ohio State) 4:14 157 - Peyton Robb (Nebraska) dec Kendall Coleman (Purdue) 6-4SV 157 - Will Lewan (Michigan) dec Chase Saldate (Michigan State) 3-1 157 - Brady Berge (Penn State) dec Kaleb Young (Iowa) 5-3 165 - Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) dec Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) 7-2 165 - Cameron Amine (Michigan) dec Caleb Fish (Michigan State) 11-1 165 - Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) tech David Ferrante (Northwestern) 18-3 165 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) dec Creighton Edsell (Penn State) 8-2 174 - Carter Starocci (Penn State) fall Dom Solis (Maryland) 2:18 174 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) dec Ethan Smith (Ohio State) 5-4 174 - Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) injdef Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) 174 - Logan Massa (Michigan) dec Troy Fisher (Northwestern) 8-3 184 - Aaron Brooks (Penn State) fall Kyle Cochran (Maryland) 1:41 184 - Taylor Venz (Nebraska) dec Abe Assad (Iowa) 4-2 184 - Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) maj Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) 10-1 184 - Myles Amine (Michigan) dec Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota) 9-3 197 - Eric Schultz (Nebraska) dec Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) 3-1 197 - Patrick Brucki (Michigan) dec Jacob Warner (Iowa) 3-1 197 - Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) dec Thomas Penola (Purdue) 4-2 197 - Max Dean (Penn State) dec Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) 6-2 285 - Gable Steveson (Minnesota) tech Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) 20-5 285 - Mason Parris (Michigan) dec Lucas Davison (Northwestern) 7-2 285 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) dec Christian Lance (Nebraska) 7-1 285 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) dec Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) 9-3

Virginia Tech assistant coach Jared Frayer and Bryce Andonian (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The ACC has been improving as a conference year after year and there were high expectations coming into this season. The teams challenged themselves with tough out-of-conference schedules to prepare for the conference battles at the end of the year. We end the year with four of six teams in the top-25 and two teams in the top-10. There are several wrestlers that are in the thick of the national champion discussion and the conference is in a position to have the most All-Americans in ACC history this year. We are seeing a conference on the rise and it is only up from here. The tournament in Charlottesville this weekend will be top-notch from the first whistle and the team battle may come down to the end of the finals. We are in for a treat on Sunday. With that in mind, I wanted to give a little regular season wrap-up and some awards for what we've seen before the ACC Tournament. Duke entered the season with a young lineup anchored by the experience of the Finesilver brothers. The Blue Devils had not won a dual since beating Penn on January 6, 2019, but this year they showed an incredible turnaround ending the season 7-10 after a 6-4 start to the year. They had a dual-heavy schedule, designed to get experience for their young lineup. The team was led by the success of the Finesilver brothers; Josh finished the regular season at 24-5 and ranked 14th at 149, while Matt finished at 25-5 and ranked 16th at 174. Another highlight for this season was the breakthrough of Jonah Neisenbaum. After his first two years as a starter at 285, he had a combined record of 4-26; this season he quadrupled his win total to end the regular season at 16-9 with several big wins for the Blue Devils. There was a lot of growth on the team this year and they are positioned to continue their improvement in the years to come. North Carolina had one of the toughest schedules in the nation to open the season. Even though their record wasn't as stellar as the past few years, the experience gained through those duals has put them in a great position going into the postseason. The Tar Heel lineup is a solid mix of veteran experience and young starters with great potential. They end the regular season with four wrestlers in the top-10. Kizhan Clarke is ranked 6th at 141 and is 17-1 with his lone loss a 3-2 decision to #5 Cole Matthews of Pittsburgh; Clarke has had a phenomenal season and is one of the best transfer signings in the country. Austin O'Connor continues to impress up a weight class from his NCAA title last season; he ended the regular season ranked 4th at 157 with a 16-1 record-his lone loss was an early-season decision to #11 Peyton Robb of Nebraska. The two biggest "surprises" for the Tar Heels this year were Clay Lautt and Gavin Kane; both came into the year with high expectations and have surpassed many of them. Lautt is ranked 8th at 174 with a 14-4 record; he had a slower start to the season, but ended the year on a wild run that included a pin of #5 Hayden Hidlay. Gavin Kane holds the 11th spot with a 15-3 record; he started the year at 174 and since moving up, he is 11-1 at 184 with his only loss to #3 Trent Hidlay. The Tar Heels will be a very dangerous team in the postseason and have a lot of momentum coming into Charlottesville. North Carolina State wrapped up the ACC dual championship last week with a decisive win over Virginia Tech to finish undefeated in conference. The team finished the regular season ranked 4th nationally and nearly knocked off then #1 Iowa at the Collegiate Duals. The lineup is a great mashup of experienced starters and young talent that is already making noise. #3 Tariq Wilson and #3 Trent Hidlay both finished the season with unblemished records, while #5 Hayden Hidlay lost his undefeated streak in the final weekend of the season, getting pinned by #8 Clay Lautt. He capped off his weekend with a sudden victory win over #6 Mekhi Lewis. Second-year starter #7 Ed Scott blasted into 157 this year after a .500 season last year at 149. He comes into the tournament at 19-1 with his only loss an 11-10 decision to #24 Jake Keating, who got the winning takedown with about 10 seconds left in the match. #21 Kai Orine, #21 Ryan Jack and #15 Isaac Trumble have all had great seasons in their first full years in the starting lineup and have had key wins for the Wolfpack in duals throughout the year. This is an excellent lineup from top to bottom and they have the potential to be high on the team podium in Detroit. Pittsburgh entered the season with high hopes returning two NCAA finalists in Jake Wentzel and Nino Bonaccorsi. They finished the season above .500, including a big dual win over top-10 Arizona State. The Panthers continued to get consistent wins from #10 Micky Phillippi (13-5), #14 Jake Wentzel (14-5) and #9 Nino Bonaccorsi (13-3) to pace the team. They also got big wins from transfers #30 Gage Curry (14-8) and #18 Elijah Cleary (12-6). The biggest jump in production for the Panthers was from #5 Cole Matthews at 141. Matthews was 27-16 in his previous two seasons and is a two-time NCAA qualifier, but this year he broke through big time. He finished the season at 15-2; he had two close early-season losses and then went on an 11 match winning streak to end the season. He had two top-10 wins handing #15 Stevan Micic and #6 Kizhan Clarke, both their first loss of the year. They have a well-balanced and sneaky good team that can make a big postseason run. Virginia came into the year with a very experienced lineup and were ready to make the jump up the ACC ladder. Unfortunately, they dealt with a spate of injuries throughout the year and were hit hard by COVID restrictions that impacted the consistency of their lineup. Thankfully, they seem to have settled in with the majority of their starters back for the ACC season and postseason run and could still make a lot of noise at the ACC and NCAA tournaments. They were led by sixth-year #16 Jay Aiello, who won a Bronze medal at the U23 World Championships, before returning to NCAA action; he is 10-2 on the year. #22 Justin McCoy comes into the tournament at 15-1 with his lone loss a decision to #20 Thomas Bullard. #24 Jake Keating (13-4), #19 Brian Courtney (12-4) and #31 Quinn Miller (16-6) also had strong seasons for the Hoos and are positioned to make a deep run in the postseason. Virginia Tech had another stellar season with a tough schedule and ended in the top-10 again this year. The Hokies have a relatively young lineup eligibility-wise, with only two wrestlers in their final year of eligibility in Korbin Myers and Nathan Traxler. #3 Myers had another strong season finishing with undefeated in the ACC and a 16-1 record on the year-his only loss was to #4 Michael McGee. #14 Traxler was a huge transfer pickup for the Hokies and was an anchor at the top of the lineup. He finished with a 16-2 overall record and was 3-1 in conference with a loss to #31 Quinn Miller. #6 Mekhi Lewis moved up a weight to 174 and looked incredible all season; his lone loss was in sudden victory to #5 Hayden Hidlay. #18 Sam Latona and #14 Hunter Bolen also ended with strong seasons and in position for big postseason runs again this year. The Hokies and Wolfpack will likely be battling for the top spot on the podium on Sunday and it will be a great show for everyone watching. Now to some awards: Best Hair: The answer here is Nathan Traxler and I will not accept any discussion. Others considered: Micky Phillippi, Denton Spencer, Bryce Andonian, Clayton Ulrey, Clay Lautt. Best Singlet This is an area that the ACC has excelled with nationally. We have some of the best-outfitted teams and sharpest looking singlets in the country. I had a really hard time nailing this one down, so I left it with my top 3--I'll run a Twitter poll to get the final answer. First option: Virginia Tech Black singlet with Hokie stone VT and accents. I'm a sucker for the Hokie stone look, and if you've ever been on campus in Blacksburg, you know how prominent it is. Second option: Pittsburgh gray singlet with Panther logo. The Panthers do a great job incorporating Pittsburgh-centric elements into the gear. They have several options that incorporate the steel city theme and this one is my favorite. Third option: North Carolina singlet with white bottom and Carolina Blue upper body. UNC has a wide range of singlets as well and this one really pops to me. They used it in a lot of their promotional materials this year and it looks great in pictures and on the mat. UNC 141 lber Kizhan Clarke (photo courtesy of Blake Clifton) Newcomer of the Year: Kizhan Clarke is 17-1 on the year and his only loss is a 3-2 decision to Cole Matthews. We knew that Clarke was going to be a great addition to the UNC lineup, but expected him at 149 going into the season. He settled in at 141 early and was dominant all season. Important to note that he did all this while being a second-year law school student. Best MustacheThe mustache battle was settled in the Virginia-North Carolina dual at heavyweight. Quinn Miller beat Brandon Whitman in the dual by decision and in the mustache battle by major decision. Jared Frayer (photos courtesy of Ethan Aguigui) Best Dressed Coach: The coaches in the ACC are a well-dressed bunch. Glen Lanham is always rolling with a nice button-down for the business casual look. Steve Garland has a large sweater collection to choose from. Keith Gavin always looks sharp in Pitt gear. Pat Pop and crew have the suit tailors in Raleigh working overtime--especially with Adam Hall splitting seams in his tight pants… Coleman Scott and Tony Ramos make the most of the Jordan branding and always have fresh shoes. But the award this year is going to the Associate Head Coach for Virginia Tech. Anyone who saw the dapper look of Jared Frayer rocking the VT sweater and impressive mustache knows this award was well deserved. Most Improved: Ed Scott 21-1 this season. Scott was 6-6 as a true freshman starting at 149. He made a phenomenal run this year and had some highlight pins with his "Ed-lock." His lone loss was to Jake Keating in a very close match. photo courtesy of Blake Clifton Best Headgear: Most programs had team-specific headgear and utilized school logos and mascots. There were a few that stood out individually--Mekhi Lewis with the War Gobbler and Hunter Bolen with a personal tribute on his headgear. But as a team, North Carolina had a fleet of slick-looking headgear options. They utilized the argyle, team name and alternate logos incredibly well. Outstanding Wrestler: Trent Hidlay. Hoagie Boy is 15-0 on the year and has notable wins over Hunter Bolen, Gavin Kane, Abe Assad, Caleb Hopkins, Travis Stefanik and Michael Battista. He is clearly one of the emotional leaders of the Wolfpack and is a huge presence both on the mat and on the bench. Best Warmup: Pitt White Pullover. This is just a great clean look for the warmups and really pops with the Pitt blue. NC State also has some great options for warmups with the script Wolfpack. Best Pin: Bryce Andonian over Josh Finesilver in 21 seconds. Andonian is "can't miss" wrestling every time he is on the mat. In the dual against Duke, he turned a Finesilver shot into a bonkers ankle trap roll-through to a pin. It was so fast that ESPN didn't even show it! Bonus Machine:Trent Hidlay 87%--another crazy stat for Hidlay. He has four pins, three tech falls and six major decisions on the year. He is always a bonus point threat. Best Celebration:Dakota Howard celebrating with the crowd in Cassell. Howard has an undeniable energy about him that is infectious. After a big win against Duke, he celebrated with the Cassell crowd with a lot of screaming and flexing--it was excellent. The other option here is Tariq Wilson hitting the Griddy and dancing off the mat after his controlling win over Bryce Andonian. I liked it because it was simple, the crowd enjoyed it, and to me, it signaled the return of "Postseason Tariq." Super Senior: I wanted to highlight one of the sixth-year wrestlers that returned to leave their mark on their program this season. Jay Aiello was an in-state recruit for Coach Garland that has made the most of his time in Charlottesville. He is a five-year starter that went from 13-15 in his first year as a starter to being 47-10 in the past three seasons. Aiello is a four-time NCAA qualifier and an ACC Champion and a three-time ACC finalist. On top of his NCAA achievements, Aiello won a bronze medal at the U23 World Championships last fall before the start of the season. More importantly than his on the mat achievements, Jay is a phenomenal person and a great leader in the UVA program; he will leave big shoes to fill. I appreciate the opportunity to cover the ACC for Intermat; it has been a fun year. A special thanks to all of the teams and coaches for letting me in and allowing me to be part of your matches and practices this year. We are lucky to have the coaches that we do in the ACC; not only are they creating a great product with their programs on the mat, they are preparing these young men to be successful after graduation. Looking forward to a great day in Charlottesville on Sunday.

Air Force heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The Air Force Academy joined the Big 12 conference in 2015, when the Big 12 absorbed the Western Wrestling Conference schools as affiliates. Since then, the school has taken some lumps at the conference tournament. They've finished last or second to last in every single conference tournament. But sophomore heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson seems on a mission this season to change the perception of their program. Hendrickson has already tied for the highest finish at the Big 12 tournament for the Falcons. He finished third last year matching a program best set by Alex Mossing in 2019. The program has only had two wrestlers finish in the top four of the Big 12 Tournament so far with Mossing and Hendrickson. This year he's 19-0 on the year and heads into the conference tournament as the #1 seed. Hendrickson has had thirteen falls this season and bonus point wins in all, but two matches, the entire year! This dominant season for Hendrickson came with two tournament wins at the Southern Scuffle and David Lehman Open and bonus point wins over the #3 and #6 seeds in the Big 12 Tournament bracket this weekend. Hendrickson has quietly elevated himself into being one of the top heavyweights in the country, but can he sustain it? This tournament is always an interesting one. If Hendrickson can maintain the momentum he's carried all season, he'll have a chance to have Air Force Wrestling on prime time Sunday Night ESPN and potentially give them their first ever conference tournament champion.

2021 NCAA champion Austin O'Connor (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 2022 ACC Championships Preview 39 total allocations/33 total allocations in 2021 If you've talked to me about wrestling long enough, you've probably heard me say how my favorite conference tournament is the ACC. While I'd prefer the entire conference supported wrestling, having a small, six-team tournament can be pretty wild. One upset can swing the whole balance of the team score and there's a ton of movement among the leaders from round to round. It also helps that the ACC is full of schools that have made investments into their programs within the last decade and are reaping the rewards on the mat. Half of the league is currently in the top-15 and four teams are in the top-25. While we've come to expect the unexpected at this tournament, there's a good chance that the team race comes down to NC State and Virginia Tech. As evidenced by their dual(s) this year, the fanbases and teams are very fond of each other. That makes for great theater as wrestlers from these schools are competing with a conference title on the line and locked in a tight team race. If you focus too much on NC State/Virginia Tech, you'll miss out on the rest of the conference as North Carolina and Pittsburgh are in the national rankings and combined to send three wrestlers to the NCAA finals last season. Virginia has a very balanced team that can make noise. Duke has some gaps, but is well-coached and has produced some excellent wrestlers. Below is our weight-by-weight preview of the action, along with predictions for top-four finishers at all ten weights, and a team race projection. Wrestlers bolded are ones that we have pegged to receive the automatic qualifying bids available in their respective weight class. When: March 6th, 2022 Where: Charlottesville, Virginia How to Watch: ACC Network Extra Mat 1 Mat 2 125 lbs 3 allocations Both 2021 ACC finalists are back and ready to write another chapter in their growing rivalry. As of now, it's technically not a rivalry since the results have favored Virginia Tech's returning All-American #18 Sam Latona. That isn't to say that his matchups with #19 Jakob Camacho (NC State) haven't been fun. Late year's dual meet ended up being one of the best matches of the year and elevated announcer Rock Harrison to cult hero status. In this year's dual, the two got heated and spilled off the mat in the closing seconds of the match. With the depth of the 125 lb weight class, a win by either could lead to an NCAA seed around ten, while a loss probably keeps them around 20. The inside track to the third allocation belongs to #30 Gage Curry (Pittsburgh), a graduate-transfer from American, who qualified for NCAA's four times, while in an Eagle singlet. In tournament action, Curry finished seventh at the MatMen Open in December. He was undefeated against ACC wrestlers, not-named Latona or Camacho. The other returning national qualifier at this weight is Patrick McCormick (Virginia). McCormick was third in the conference last year and currently sports an 11-10 record. Right on his and Curry's heels is true freshman Spencer Moore (North Carolina). While his ACC record is unsightly, at 1-4, Moore lost in sudden victory to both Curry and McCormick. Could he be a freshman that starts to figure things out and turns those close losses into wins. Coming in at the sixth seed is Duke's Logan Agin, who is 10-10, but 0-3 in the ACC, with bonus points in all three losses. Predictions 1st) Sam Latona (Virginia Tech) 2nd) Jakob Camacho (NC State) 3rd) Spencer Moore (North Carolina) 4th) Gage Curry (Pittsburgh) 133 lbs 5 allocations What a weight class for the ACC with five wrestlers ranked in the top-21 and all earned allocations for the conference. Returning All-American #5 Korbin Myers ran the table and finished unbeaten in ACC duals for a second straight season. He's only lost to fellow All-American #4 Michael McGee (Arizona State) this year and is riding an eight-match winning streak. Myers' 2021 ACC finals opponent Micky Phillippi (Pittsburgh) is back. Phillipi has a pair of ACC titles to his credit already; however, he is looking to figure out Myers. The Hokie has won both of their meetings, though the margin of their 2021-22 dual was 2-1. Because of a loss to #20 Joe Heilmann (North Carolina), Phillippi will start as the three seed. After the returning finalists is a three-man round-robin of quality competitors who have all beaten each other this year. Heilmann is the second seed and #21 Kai Orine (NC State) is the fourth seed, ahead of #19 Brian Courtney (Virginia). Courtney and Orine hit in round one, with the winner taking on Myers. Orine took the dual meeting, 10-5. Heilmann also has a win over Orine, but fell to Courtney in sudden victory. Duke's representative is Drake Doolittle, who is 4-19 on the year with bonus-point losses in three of his four ACC contests. He'll assume the sixth slot. Predictions 1st) Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech) 2nd) Micky Phillippi (Pittsburgh) 3rd) Joe Heilmann (North Carolina) 4th) Kai Orine (NC State) 5th) Brian Courtney (Virginia) 141 lbs 4 allocations One of the biggest breakout seasons in the country happened in the ACC as #5 Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh) rapidly shot up the rankings. An ACC third-place finisher in 2021, Matthews has been on a tear after suffering a loss to #14 CJ Composto (Penn) at the MatMen Open. Matthews rebounded to finish third and 11 straight wins. Fans started to take notice in early-January as Matthews handed Micic a loss in a one-sided, 11-5 affair. Maybe the most crucial match of this streak was when he edged #6 Kizhan Clarke (North Carolina) 3-2 and handed the Tar Heel his first (and only) loss of the year. Clarke was a graduate transfer from American University that was an EIWA fourth-place finisher and the #15 seed at the 2020 National Tournament. His best win thus far is a decision in sudden victory over three-time NCAA All-American #10 Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska). #21 Ryan Jack (NC State) and #23 Collin Gerardi (Virginia Tech) are the other two at this weight that earned allocations for the conference. Jack hung tight with both Matthews and Clarke. His bout with Gerardi, in their schools much-anticipated dual, was considered a toss-up, but Jack generally controlled the entire contest and won 4-3. Gerardi's best win over the year was a 3-2 decision over #24 Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) in Virginia Tech's demolition of UNI. Virginia's Dylan Cedeno is the fifth seed and could be capable of breaking into the top four. He only saw action in eight bouts this year; however, Cedeno was able to hang tough against some good competition. The sixth seed belongs to Patrick Rowland (Duke), who is 5-19 and has lost by major decision in all of his ACC bouts. Predictions 1st) Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh) 2nd) Kizhan Clarke (North Carolina) 3rd) Ryan Jack (NC State) 4th) Collin Gerardi (Virginia Tech) 149 lbs 4 allocations One of the most anticipated ACC matches of the year came in the NC State/Virginia Tech dual meet at 149 lbs when #3 Tariq Wilson (NC State) remained perfect against #8 Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech). Wilson never let Andonian get into favorable positions and generally cruised to a 9-3 win. The two-time NCAA third-place finisher is now 13-0 on the year and 27-1 over the past two seasons. The last time that Wilson lost to an ACC opponent? It was in the 2020 conference finals to #18 Zach Sherman (North Carolina). Well, those two could meet again in the semifinals, provided Sherman gets by a tough #31 Jarod Verkleeren (Virginia) in the semifinals. Sherman has wrestled an incredibly difficult schedule (7 of 8 losses came to top-ten opponents) this year, which is partly responsible for his 5-8 record. He'll need to place in the top-four or he'd be ineligible for an at-large berth due to his match total. Verkleeren is a graduate transfer from Penn State who is looking to snap a four-match losing streak. Prior to that skid, he had won 10 of his last 11. Andonian will be on the bottom half of the bracket as the two seed, alongside #14 Josh Finesilver (Duke), the three seed and sixth-seeded Dan Mancini (Pittsburgh). The last time Finesilver and Andonian met, the Hokie dispatched Finesilver in only :21 seconds. Finesilver has had plenty of success at bracketed tournaments this year with a runner-up finish at the Keystone Classic, along with titles at the Battle at The Citadel and the Southern Scuffle. Though Mancini struggled in ACC competition, he did finish the regular season with a winning record, at 13-12. Predictions 1st) Tariq Wilson (NC State) 2nd) Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) 3rd) Zach Sherman (North Carolina) 4th) Josh Finesilver (Duke) 157 lbs 5 allocations Sometimes we'll get upset about missing out on a marquee matchup during the dual season. That was the case when a bout between #4 Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) and #7 Ed Scott (NC State) didn't materialize. But now, the upside is anticipation has built towards this meeting and there's general uncertainty as to how this match would play out. O'Connor is stout defensively and is great with reshots and go-behinds. Scott will throw the kitchen sink at you. Something's got to give! The 2021 NCAA champion at 149 lbs, O'Connor, has had a successful move up to 157. He lost to #11 Peyton Robb (Nebraska) in mid-November, but has only won since. Scott had a breakout performance at the Collegiate Duals, defeating #21 Jarrett Jacques (Missouri) and pinning #9 Kaleb Young (Iowa), before downing #8 Quincy Monday (Princeton) a few weeks later. These two did meet last season at 149 lbs and O'Connor prevailed by major decision; however, Scott was a true freshman and has drastically improved. There's no doubt this will be much closer. Before an O'Connor/Scott matchup, the NC State star will have to get by second-seeded Jake Keating (Virginia). Keating handed Scott his first official loss of the year in an 11-10 shootout. He was an ACC finalist last year at 165 lbs. You also can't just pencil O'Connor in to the finals. He'll likely have to deal with #18 Elijah Cleary (Pittsburgh) in the semis. The Ohio State transfer has really shined for the Panthers this year. He captured a title at the MatMen Open and pushed O'Connor to the brink in a 2-1 loss. The rest of the bracket featured Wade Ungar (Duke) in the fifth slot and Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) as the sixth seed. Ungar's 11-15 record is a little deceiving as he was in a bunch of close matches and eventually broke through with his win over Brady. The Hokie is looking to snap out of a funk that's seen him go "0-for" in conference duals. Predictions 1st) Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) 2nd) Ed Scott (NC State) 3rd) Jake Keating (Virginia) 4th) Elijah Cleary (Pittsburgh) 5th) Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) 165 lbs 3 allocations You may not realize it, but Pittsburgh's #14 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) is quietly headed towards his third ACC Championship. But as we've seen, time and time again, nothing is given. Wentzel's well aware of this as he was an NCAA finalist last season, but has been challenged early and often and has a 14-5 record. While most of his losses have come against high-caliber opposition, that number seems high for a returning finalist. Another number Wentzel has is a zero in the loss column against ACC competition. The closest Wentzel came to losing in conference action was to #20 Thomas Bullard (NC State), who took the Panther star into sudden victory, before falling. Bullard being a thorn in Wentzel's side has been a reoccurring theme, as he was the only opponent to defeat the Panther prior to the NCAA finals. Bullard's defensive style is enough to give most opponents fits. Before another Wentzel/Bullard rematch, the NC State 165 lber will have to get by Virginia's #22 Justin McCoy. Earlier this season, McCoy lost to Bullard 4-1. It remains the only loss on the docket for McCoy this year. Could he avenge it and get his first shot at Wentzel? With only three automatic bids available Clayton Ulrey (Virginia Tech), Sonny Santiago (North Carolina), and Gabe Dinette (Duke), will look to crash the party. Dinette was winless against the ACC field, while Santiago's only victory was against Dinette. Now Santiago missed all of February as Isaias Estrada got the nod for the Tar Heels. Ulrey beat Dinette and Estrada, plus he has some quality wins outside of the conference. Predictions 1st) Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) 2nd) Justin McCoy (Virginia) 3rd) Thomas Bullard (NC State) 4th) Clayton Ulrey (Virginia Tech) 174 lbs 4 allocations This is the weight class they're all talking about. Normally, it would be because there are a pair of past NCAA runner's-up in the bracket, along with two other high-caliber wrestlers, ranked in the top-16 nationally. But what everyone's discussing is precisely where "in the bracket," the top-three wrestlers fall. On Tuesday, the brackets revealed #9 Clay Lautt (North Carolina) as the one seed, #5 Hayden Hidlay (NC State) as the two seed and #6 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) the three seed. That means Hidlay and Lewis will clash in the semifinals, rather than the finals. The three have exchanged wins over each other, so any combination of the seeds were bound to upset a fanbase or two. Lautt's fall over Hidlay helps him get the one seed. The rationale is understandable, especially when you are focused on ACC results, but the optics are strange and most fans probably expected and anticipated a Hidlay/Lewis final. With all the talk about the bracket and one-three seeds, #16 Matt Finesilver (Duke) has been overlooked, a bit. The two-time national qualifier started the season with 17 consecutive victories, before an off performance at the Southern Scuffle. That "off" tournament still netted him a fifth-place finish. Finesilver currently has a 2-3 ACC record, which is understandable given the loaded weight class. He needs to be accounted for before looking ahead to a Lautt vs Hidlay/Lewis final. Justin Phillips (Virginia) and Hunter Kernan (Pittsburgh) round out the weight class. Neither picked up a win against conference competition; however, Kernan majored Phillips' teammate Victor Marcelli in an "Extra Countable Match." Predictions 1st) Hayden Hidlay (NC State) 2nd) Clay Lautt (North Carolina) 3rd) Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) 4th) Matt Finesilver (Duke) 184 lbs 5 allocations Here's another weight where five of the six competitors will punch their tickets to Detroit on Sunday. #3 Trent Hidlay (NC State) comes in with a perfect 15-0 record and is the returning champion. Hidlay amassed bonus points in all but two bouts this year. The most recent was a 2-1 win over long-time rival #14 Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech). The pair have met five times collegiately, including once in last year's ACC final. Bolen won the first three in their series, but Hidlay has reversed course and taken the two most recent meetings. The deciding factor in this year's dual was a point for the Wolfpack All-American for an illegal cutback on Bolen. Before we see round six of Hidlay/Bolen, the Hokie star will have to get through a promising freshman for the Tar Heels, #11 Gavin Kane. Kane stunned Bolen with a 3-1 win in sudden victory during their dual. He also racked up a boatload of points in major decisions over #25 Michael Battista (Virginia) and Gregg Harvey (Pittsburgh). Battista is someone who's shown flashes in the past, but seemingly put it all together this year for Virginia. He got his hand raised in 12 of his first 13 matches and finished the regular season with a 14-4 mark. One of his wins was of the 9-5 variety over the 2021 national qualifier, Harvey. Harvey is kind of a "hard-luck" 8-8. Actually, 8-7 since one loss came against Mark Hall at the MatMen Open. Six of those seven losses came against top-24 opponents. The final piece of this weight class is Duke's Vincent Baker. Baker comes in with a 10-17 record and is looking to snap a seven-match losing streak. Predictions 1st) Trent Hidlay (NC State) 2nd) Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech) 3rd) Gavin Kane (North Carolina) 4th) Michael Battista (Virginia) 5th) Gregg Harvey (Pittsburgh) 197 lbs 3 allocations This looks like an opportunity for the ACC to potentially pick up an at-large berth or two as there are five conference wrestlers currently in the national rankings and only three allocations in play. The top seed is #15 Isaac Trumble (NC State), who is unbeaten against ACC foes and comes in with a seven-match winning streak. Trumble's smothering top game has manifested itself in shutouts in each of his last three outings. One of those came against #9 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh), the returning NCAA finalist at this weight. Bonaccorsi is more dangerous on his feet, so these matches with Trumble are always an interesting style-contrast. Even last year, when Trumble didn't get the postseason nod for NC State, he still defeated Bonaccorsi, 6-1. That proved to be Bonaccorsi's only loss prior to the NCAA finals. In order for Bonaccorsi to get another shot at Trumble, he'll need to get by #16 Jay Aiello (Virginia). The 2020 ACC champion, Aiello, has yet to slow down Bonaccorsi's offense. In all four of the Panther's wins over Aiello, Bonaccorsi has put up at least seven points. Aiello's had a solid year highlighted by a 6-1 win over All-American and 2021 NCAA semifinalist Jake Woodley (Oklahoma). #27 Max Shaw (North Carolina) and #31 Dakota Howard (Virginia Tech) are the two ranked wrestlers in the conference that weren't able to acquire conference allocations. Both finished third in the ACC last year and earned a trip to St. Louis. Howard was at 174 lbs, while Shaw was here. The two did not tangle in the regular season as Mark Chaid got the call for North Carolina in the dual. Since we can't assume that the ACC will get two bids here, the first-round matchup between Shaw/Howard is huge for a possible at-large. The loser would meet the loser of Bonaccorsi/Aiello and likely go 0-2, without placing. The sixth seed is Kaden Russell (Duke), who comes into the tournament with a .500 record. While he had some ugly conference losses, Russell managed to keep Trumble to a 2-1 decision. He's definitely someone who could shake the bracket up. Predictions 1st) Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) 2nd) Isaac Trumble (NC State) 3rd) Jay Aiello (Virginia) 4th) Dakota Howard (Virginia Tech) 285 lbs 3 allocations The final weight class is led by #14 Nathan Traxler (Virginia Tech), who came to the Hokies as a grad transfer from Stanford. Traxler has been as good as advertised with a 17-2 record and seven pins thus far. Traxler gets the top seed, but he does so without a flawless conference mark. One the last weekend of the regular season, #31 Quinn Miller (Virginia) knocked off Traxler 4-3. Two days later, he rebounded against NC State's Owen Trephan. It looks like Tyrie Houghton gets the call for NC State in a weight with two other highly capable competitors. Houghton won all three of his ACC duals and sports a 21-8 record. The rest of the field at 285lbs features four wrestlers that scored wins over each other with Miller, Jake Slinger (Pittsburgh), Jonah Niesenbaum (Duke), and Brandon Whitman (North Carolina) have traded wins with each other and are all capable of coming away with a third-place finish on Sunday night. Predictions 1st) Nathan Traxler (Virginia Tech) 2nd) Tyrie Houghton (NC State) 3rd) Quinn Miller (Virginia) 4th) Jake Slinger (Pittsburgh) Team Race 1st) NC State 2nd) Virginia Tech 3rd) North Carolina 4th) Pittsburgh

Austin DeSanto (left) and Roman Bravo-Young (photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) What will this weekend's Big Ten Championships really look like? Based solely on the pre-seeds, released earlier this week by the Big Ten Conference, we have an idea by simply doing some math. Here's the projected team points, based on the pre-seeds and corresponding advancement points (shoutout to the Wrestling Pirate for doing the quick math): 1. Iowa, 126.5 2. Penn State, 125 3. Michigan, 110.5 4. Nebraska, 89 5. Ohio State, 82 6. Wisconsin, 60 7. Northwestern, 53.5 8. Michigan State, 49 9. Minnesota, 42 10. Rutgers, 41 11. Purdue, 40 12. Illinois, 27 13. Indiana, 9.5 14. Maryland, 5 Of course, those scores are without the inevitable bonus points and chaos that normally shows up in these conference tournaments. Here's one example: at each of the last two Big Ten tournaments, a wrestler seeded second has gone 0-2 (Dan Braunagel in 2021, Kaleb Young in 2020). Here's another: last year, three wrestlers seeded sixth or lower made the finals - Purdue's Devin Schroder at 125 (7-seed), Nebraska's Ridge Lovett at 149 (7-seed) and Nebraska's Taylor Venz at 184 (6-seed). That's not counting Rutgers' Sebastian Rivera winning at 133 pounds in 2020 as the 5-seed, or Nebraska's Chad Red making the finals in 2019 as the 8-seed. He upset top-seeded Mikey Carr that year in the quarterfinals, and Carr stumbled to eighth. The point is, Pirate's math simply gives us a roadmap of what this weekend could look like. It's also a reference point from which to note when things go haywacky. The goals and paths to said goals are different for all 14 teams entering this weekend. Here, we look at each team's projected point total - starting with Iowa, ending with Maryland - and see where they're most likely to pick up additional points, and where they're most likely going to lose points. IOWA Projected pre-seed team points: 126.5 Where Iowa Can Score More: Look at 125 pounds, where young Drake Ayala has to like his potential path to the finals. He's the 6-seed, which means a first-round matchup against Michigan State's Tristan Lujan, then, if he wins, potentially Wisconsin's Eric Barnett in the quarterfinals and Penn State's Drew Hildebrandt in the semifinals. Otherwise, the Hawkeyes can pick up points by winning the swing matches. If all the seeds hold, check out these matchups: - 133 final: Austin DeSanto vs. Roman Bravo-Young - 141 final: Jaydin Eierman vs. Nick Lee - 157 final: Kaleb Young vs. Ryan Deakin - 165 final: Alex Marinelli vs. Carson Kharchla - 174 semifinal: Michael Kemerer vs. Carter Starocci - 184 quarterfinal: Abe Assad vs. Taylor Venz - 197 semifinal: Jacob Warner vs. Eric Schultz DeSanto, Eierman, Young, Kemerer, Assad and Warner have all won these matchups previously. Marinelli has only wrestled Kharchla once, but it's a matchup he can win if they meet again. Where Iowa Can Lose Points: There will be more intense matchups on the way to the ones listed above. Consider: - 133 semifinal: ADS vs. Lucas Byrd - 141 semifinal: Eierman vs. Sebastian Rivera - 149 quarterfinal: Max Murin vs. Yahya Thomas - 165 semifinal: Marinelli vs. Dean Hamiti - 197 quarterfinal: Warner vs. Pat Brucki - 285 semifinal: Tony Cassioppi vs. Greg Kerkvliet Those are all matchups that could potentially go the other way. ADS has never lost to Byrd, but the matches have been close and Byrd is fearless. Yahya is a returning All-American, and Murin will have to beat him after facing a dangerous Peyton Omania in the first round. Marinelli beat Hamiti, but Hamiti has proven to be a dangerous matchup for anybody. Brucki is also an All-American and if Kerkvliet doesn't go upper-body with Cassioppi, that could be a different match. PENN STATE Projected pre-seed team points: 125 Where Penn State Can Score More: Seven of Penn State's 10 starters are seeded third or better, so naturally, you look at the other three weights: 149, 157 and 165. Can Beau Bartlett make the semifinals by beating Michael Blockhus and Austin Gomez? Berge has beaten both Garrett Model and Young before. Can he do it again? Creighton Edsell at the 10-spot is tough, but what kind of magic can he pull off in the wrestlebacks? Additionally, can Max Dean hold serve and knock off Eric Schultz in the finals at 197? Can Kerkvliet top Cassioppi in a potential semifinal at 285? When you're at or near the top, like with Iowa, it's these smaller moves that'll help add to Penn State's total. Where Penn State Can Lose Points: Four Nittany Lion wrestlers are pre-seeded first. If any of them lose, that'll obviously cost team points. The big one to watch there is the potential semifinal between Starocci and Kemerer. But so could Hildebrandt if he falls in the semifinals at 125. So could Dean if he loses to Caffey in a potential semifinal, which is possible since Caffey beat Dean earlier this season. Kerkvliet is the three seed and could finish fourth. Any of these things are possible. MICHIGAN Projected pre-seed team points: 110.5 Where Michigan Can Score More: There are a few fun scenarios for Michigan to consider. Dylan Ragusin, the 5-seed at 133, could finish third. Stevan Micic, the 6-seed at 141, could regain his NCAA finalist form at his new weight and make the finals. Not much is expected of Kanen Storr, the 11-seed after an injury, so anything from him would be a bonus. What about Myles Amine beating Aaron Brooks? Or Logan Massa beating either Starocci or Kemerer? Or Brucki beating both Warner and Schultz to make the finals at 197? Parris is the 4-seed, so technically, he could take third and those are additional points. Where Michigan Can Lose Points: These are a few not-so-fun scenarios for Michigan. The potential Will Lewan-Chase Saldate quarterfinal at 157 has upset written all over it (Lewan is the 3-seed, Saldate the 6-seed). Same with the potential Cam Amine-Caleb Fish quarterfinal at 165. Massa has to beat Mikey Labriola again to reach the finals at 174. What if Romero beats Myles in the semifinals at 184? NEBRASKA Projected pre-seed team points: 89 Where Nebraska Can Score More: Nebraska's stellar Big Ten tournament performance a year ago was bolstered by Lovett and Venz both making the finals as the 7- and 6-seeds, respectively. Who could do that this year for the Huskers? Could Lovett get back to the finals? He's the 3-seed this year, and would have to potentially beat Gomez in the semifinals, but that'd be additional points. Robb could come out of the 5-spot and beat Kendall Coleman and Ryan Deakin. Labs could beat Massa. Lance is the 6-seed, so even fifth means extra points. Where Nebraska Can Lose Points: Schultz at 197 would have to beat Braxton Amos, either Brucki or Warner and then either Max Dean of Cam Caffey to win a Big Ten title. That's a pretty tall ask all in one weekend. But as the 1-seed, anything less than a title means the team loses out on the projected points. The Venz-Assad quarterfinal at 184 could also go Iowa's way. There's a world where both Labriola and Lovett finish fifth as 3-seeds (Labs losses to Massa and then Ethan Smith in the wrestlebacks; Lovett to Gomez then Yahya). Chad Red could also see Stevan Micic in the wrestlebacks, assuming all seeds hold. Not an easy task. OHIO STATE Projected pre-seed team points: 82 Where Ohio State Can Score More: We've talked about these swing matches already - Smith-Kemerer, Romero-Amine - but look closer. Tate Orndorff, an All-American, is the 8-seed. He can finish higher. Gavin Hoffman is the 9-seed. He could beat Amos first-round. Bryce Hepner is also a 9-seed. He could beat Robert Kanniard first-round. Little gains here and there will help the Buckeyes. Where Ohio State Can Lose Points: The potential quarterfinal at 125 between Malik Heinselman and Devin Schroder immediately jumps out, because Schroder is 4-0 all-time against Malik. But so does the potential 165 final between Kharchla and Marinelli. So does the potential 149 semifinal between Sammy Sasso and either Yahya or Murin (mostly because Murin nearly beat Sasso in the regular season). Dylan D'Emilio is the 7-seed at a stacked weight. The same reasons Hepner and Hoffman could win are conversely the same reasons they could also falter. WISCONSIN Projected pre-seed team points: 60 Where Wisconsin Can Score More: It's totally possible that Barnett, Gomez and Hamiti all make the finals and that Trent Hillger (7 at 285), Braxton Amos (8 at 197), Andrew McNally (11 at 174), Garrett Model (7 at 157) and Joey Zargo (8 at 141) all outperform their seeds. Where Wisconsin Can Lose Points: It's also totally possible that Barnett, Gomez and Hamiti all don't make the finals and that each of the previously listed guys wrestles below their seeds and it becomes a tough weekend for the Badgers. NORTHWESTERN Projected pre-seed team points: 53.5 Where Northwestern Can Score More: We aren't talking enough about the possibility that Michael DeAugustino and Chris Cannon could both stormed out of the 7-spots at 125 and 133 and finish in the top-four at their respective weights. That also jumps out. There are smaller gains, too, like Yahya Thomas, the 5-seed at 149, finishing in the top four, or Frankie Tal Shahar cracking the top eight as the 10-seed, or Jack Jessen winning a wrestleback match or two as the 14-seed, or Andrew Davison out-performing his 10-seed. But the MDA and CC draws are favorable and the possibility of them making runs would benefit Northwestern. Where Northwestern Can Lose Points: There's a world where Lucas Davison (5 at 285) finishes seventh or worse and Ryan Deakin loses before the finals at 157. It's a world Northwestern wasn't absolutely nothing to do with, but it's a world that exists. MICHIGAN STATE Projected pre-seed team points: 49 Where Michigan State Can Score More: Ready for this? Rayvon Foley takes third from the 4-spot at 133, Peyton Omania headlocks his way to the semifinals at 149, Chase Saldate and Caleb Fish both make the semifinals at 157 and 165, respectively, and Cam Caffey beats both Max Dean and Eric Schultz and wins 197. Not predictions, but all of those are entirely possible. Where Michigan State Can Lose Points: OK, ready for this? Caffey loses to Dean then Brucki and falls to the fifth-place match as the 3-seed, Layne Malczewski loses in the first-round to Chris Weiler, Fish and Saldate both go 2-2 and drop to the seventh-place matches, and Foley loses to Ragusin in the quarterfinals. Again, not predictions, but all of those are entirely possible. MINNESOTA Projected pre-seed team points: 42 Where Minnesota Can Score More: Patrick McKee, the returning third-place finisher at last year's NCAA Championships, is the 8-seed. It's hilarious to see it in writing and then to actually read it aloud, but welcome to the Big Ten Conference. McKee, Michael Blockhus, Cael Carlson and Michial Foy are all plenty capable of wrestling above their seeds. Even Sebas Swiggum can win a wrestleback match at 157. That's an extra half-point, at the very least. Where Minnesota Can Lose Points: Jakob Bergeland at the 5-seed, if that holds, would put him up against Chad Red in the quarterfinals, then potentially both Parker Filius and either Joey Zargo or Dylan Duncan in the wrestlebacks. This is a stacked weight class, so holding that fifth-place projection will not be easy. Bailee O'Reilly at the 6-seed at 174 could be a dangerous spot, too. Puts him up against Gerrit Nijenhuis in the wrestlebacks, if all the seeds hold. O'Reilly beat Nijenhuis in the regular season, but it's still a dangerous matchup. RUTGERS Projected pre-seed team points: 41 Where Rutgers Can Score More: If the seeds hold, Sebastian Rivera could see Jaydin Eierman in the semifinals at 141 (that also means Rivera beats Stevan Micic in the quarters). If Rivera-Eierman happens, the whole world will stop to watch. A win for Rivera, the 3-seed, is entirely possible, and means more points, of course. John Poznanski, a returning fourth-place finisher at last year's NCAA Championships, is the 7-seed at 184. That means, technically, he's supposed to go 2-2 and wrestle for, well, seventh. A third-place finish this weekend isn't an unreasonable thought. There's also a scenario where Mike Van Brill, the 6-seed at 149, makes a run through the wrestlebacks and finishes third or fourth. Also have a feeling Boone McDermott could be a landmine at 285. Where Rutgers Can Lose Points: There are three Rugers wrestlers in the 8-9 matchups. The losers of those matchups are, technically, projected to go 0-2. It would not be great for Rutgers if they went 0-3 in those matchups. PURDUE Projected pre-seed team points: 40 Where Purdue Can Score More: Devin Schroder is a two-time Big Ten finalist, yet is seeded fifth. Kendall Coleman has also previously been to the Big Ten finals, but is seeded fourth. Max Lyon went 2-2 at last year's NCAA Championships, but is seeded 13th. You see where we're going with this - those guys are all capable. Additionally, Matt Ramos, the 9-seed at 133, and Gerrit Nijenhuis, the 7-seed at 174, could both be landmines. Same with Parker Filius at 141. There's a path for him to reach the top six (but also a scenario where he goes 0-2, so stay tuned). Where Purdue Can Lose Points: If Schroder loses to Michigan's Nick Suriano in the semifinals, he could see any combination of Eric Barnett, Drake Ayala, Michael DeAugustino or Drew Hildebrandt in the wrestlebacks. Additionally, if he loses to Malik for the first time ever, he could see Pat McKee in the wrestlebacks. It's not unreasonable to think Kendall Coleman loses to Peyton Robb in the quarterfinals at 157 and maybe even falls to the seventh-place match, depending on who he sees in the wrestlebacks. That's a sneaky fun weight. ILLINOIS Projected pre-seed team points: 27 Where Illinois Can Score More: Technically speaking, Dylan Duncan at the 9-spot at 141 is Illinois playing with house money. If he beats Zargo in the first-round, he gets Nick Lee, which is tough, but even a loss there drops him to face either Tal Shahar or D'Emilio. Win there, boom, in the top eight. Points! If he loses to Zargo, he still likely gets either D'Emilio or Tal Shahar. Win there, boom, in the top eight. Points! Kanzler is in the same boat at 149. DJ Shannon has a first-round upset opportunity at 174. Could Zac Braunagel make a run through the wrestlebacks or even upset Abe Assad in the first-round at 184? What about Luke Luffman out-peforming his 9-seed at 285? There are some possibilities here. Where Illinois Can Lose Points: Let's say Lucas Byrd loses to Austin DeSanto in the semifinals. No big deal. But in the consolation semifinals, he could have either Ragusin or Foley. He's beaten Ragusin, but both guys will be tough matches. If he loses there, he drops to the fifth-place match as the 3-seed, which would be less-than-ideal. INDIANA Projected pre-seed team points: 9.5 Where Indiana Can Score More: Wouldn't be surprised to see Brock Hudkins, the 6-seed, wrestle his way into the third-place match at 133. If the seeds hold, he'd see Foley in the consolation semifinals, and he beat Foley already this year. Not sayin', but just sayin'. Graham Rooks, the 9-seed at 149, could beat Kanzler, the 8-seed. Kanzler won 4-3 in the regular-season. Same could be said for Donnell Washington, the 9-seed at 184, against Kyle Cochran, the 8-seed. Cochran only won 3-2 in the regular-season. Where Indiana Can Lose Points: Hudkins still has to beat Kyle Burwick in the first-round, and a potential loss to Chris Cannon in the wrestlebacks would send him to the seventh-place match. As the 6-seed, that would be less-than-ideal. MARYLAND Projected pre-seed team points: 5 Where Maryland Can Score More: What if King Sandoval throws a headlock and beats Lucas Byrd in the first-round at 133? Or Dom Solis beats Troy Fisher in the first-round at 174? Or Cochran puts his cape on and makes a run to the top-six as the 8-seed? Or Jaron Smith re-conjures some magic as the 11-seed and finishes fifth? What if? Where Maryland Can Lose Points: Pretty hard to lose 5 projected team points. Here's hoping they do not.

Top seeded 174 lber Austin Murphy (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 2022 SoCon Championships Preview 15 total allocations/13 total allocations in 2021 What if I told you the best team race of the weekend may not take place in the Big Ten or the Big 12? Since it isn't in the midwest, maybe at the University of Virginia with the ACC? Nope, correct right, but wrong tournament. Try the Southern Conference, otherwise known as the SoCon. In what has become one of the best rivalries in college wrestling, Appalachian State and Campbell will duke it out for conference supremacy. The Mountaineers got the best of the Camels this year in dual action, but Campbell has won the last three straight SoCon tournaments. With so much talk about Campbell and Appalachian State, we might be overlooking traditional power, Chattanooga. The Mocs have a team that will fare well in the tournament and likely crown multiple champions. If they can pull an upset or two, Chattanooga could be in the mix and not "just" play spoiler. Below is our weight-by-weight preview of the action, along with predictions for top-four finishers at all ten weights, and a team race projection. Wrestlers bolded are ones that we have pegged to receive the automatic qualifying bids available in their respective weight class. When: March 5th, 2022 Where: Boone, North Carolina How to Watch: ESPN+ 125 2 allocations Right off that bat, we've got an interesting weight class here and one that we need to monitor over the weekend. With three ranked wrestlers, two of whom have prior NCAA experience, and only two automatic qualifying spots, something has to give. A perfect mark in the SoCon and a #24 ranking nationally has Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga) as the top seed and in the driver's seat towards claiming a trip to Detroit. Gutierrez has a pair of wins over the second-seed #25 Caleb Smith (Appalachian State). One came in dual meet competition and the other where Gutierrez finished sixth (and Smith fifth due to a medical forfeit) at the Southern Scuffle. In his first year as a starter for the Mountaineers, Smith seized the job early with a title at the Keystone Classic. There he defeated Penn's #23 Ryan Miller, which was one of his best quality victories of the year. The most significant win for Smith came against #29 Korbin Meink (Campbell) in the final bout of Appalachian State's dual with the Camels. A takedown in sudden victory clinched the win for his team. A rematch with Meink in the semis is looming. Meink is a two-time SoCon champion looking to add a third title to his collection. While he fell in their 2021-22 dual meet, Meink's 2020 title came at Gutierrez's expense. There's a clear drop-off between the top-three and the rest of the field. Aeyden Concepcion (Gardner-Webb) gets the fourth seed and has a pair of conference wins under his belt. The same can be said for fifth-seeded Malik Hardy (The Citadel), though he is one of Concepcion's victims. Hopefully, nothing too crazy happens at the other qualifiers and an at-large berth is handed out here. Predictions 1st) Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga) 2nd) Korbin Meink (Campbell) 3rd) Caleb Smith (Appalachian State) 4th) Aedyn Concepcion (Gardner-Webb) 133 lbs 2 allocations Tennessee native #18 Brayden Palmer spent his first two years of college at Clarion, but has returned home to Chattanooga and flourished for the Mocs in 2021-22. Palmer sports a 22-6 record and turned heads by grabbing third place at the Southern Scuffle. At the Scuffle, Palmer downed three wrestlers with prior NCAA experience. Since then, he's gone 10-2 with wins over three ranked opponents. Now, Palmer doesn't have a perfect conference record, as he was defeated the second week of the year by Kyle Gorant (Davidson); however, that was before he gained much-needed confidence at the Scuffle. One of Palmers, opponents at the Scuffle and in dual action, was #30 Codi Russell (Appalachian State), a two-time SoCon champion (once at 125 and once at 133). During their last meeting, Russell managed to close the gap, a bit, losing by a mere point, after falling by five at the Scuffle. Next in line is Todd Carter (Gardner-Webb), who has beaten everyone in the league, not named Palmer or Russell. Carter is one of GWU's more improved wrestlers, as he was 6-13 as a true freshman last year and is currently 11-8. He comes into the postseason riding a four-match winning streak. An 8-3 win over Gorant gives Carter the third seed. Gorant has five conference wins in his favor this year, including one over Dom Zaccone (Campbell). That leaves Zaccone as the fifth seed and likely sets the stage for a rematch. Predictions 1st) Brayden Palmer (Chattanooga) 2nd) Codi Russell (Appalachian State) 3rd) Dom Zaccone (Campbell) 4th) Todd Carter (Gardner-Webb) 141 lbs 1 allocation With only one allocation available at 141 lbs, expect the action to be intense here as there are a couple of wrestlers that are worthy of a trip to nationals. Since there are limited (by their standards) bids available in the Big Ten at this weight, that might negatively impact the wrestlers here. The top seed is #29 Shannon Hanna (Campbell), who was perfect in SoCon action this year. Beyond that, his win over Danny Moran (Lehigh) was instrumental in Campbell's dual victory over the Mountain Hawks in week one. Hanna is looking to build upon his runner-up finish in the conference in 2021. He'll face a stiff challenge from Heath Gonyer (Appalachian State). The two met in the school's heated dual and Hanna prevailed in sudden victory. Gonyer has stepped into the starting role and flourished after an injury to 2021 conference champ Anthony Brito. His loss in extra time to Hanna was his only post-Scuffle. Also rolling into the postseason is Trevon Majette (Gardner-Webb), who is riding a six-match winning streak. Like Hanna, Majette is a former Old Dominion wrestler, though they were not teammates. Majette gets the three seed over Franco Valdes (Chattanooga), likely due to a better regular-season record, as the pair did not meet this season. Last year they met and Valdes prevailed via major decision. Typically, App State tends to have a surprise champion or two at this event, so I think Gonyer reversed the dual result in the final against Hanna. Predictions 1st) Heath Gonyer (Appalachian State) 2nd) Shannon Hanna (Campbell) 3rd) Franco Valdes (Chattanooga) 4th) Trevon Majette (Gardner-Webb) 149 lbs 2 allocations The headline weight class in the SoCon is 149 lbs which features a pair of top-ten wrestlers in #4 Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State) and #9 Josh Heil (Campbell). Millner is the highest-ranked SoCon wrestler at any weight and is the lone, returning NCAA All-American in the conference. In his first appearance of the year, Millner fell to a returning AA (Kyle Parco - Arizona State), but since has reeled off 14 consecutive wins. That streak spanned a title at the Keystone Classic and a 6-0 win over MAC favorite, #23 Alex Madrigal (George Mason). Millner is looking to continue his dominance over the conference, as he hasn't lost to a SoCon foe since the 2018-19 season. Heil is looking to get on the NCAA podium for the first time after qualifying four times and being named an NWCA First-Team All-American in 2020. His best performance this year came at the MatMen Open, capturing a title with a win over #5 Austin Gomez (Wisconsin). Heil will try to get in the win column over Millner as he's currently 0-2 against the Mountaineer. Behind the big two at 149 is freshman Noah Castillo (Chattanooga), who may be more talking about, in terms of receiving an at-large berth, if we were in a more "normal" year without sixth-year seniors. Castillo has acquitted himself well against Millner/Heil and has generally dominated the rest of the league. He comes in fresh off a win over Indiana's national qualifier Graham Rooks in the season finale. Another solid, under-the-radar season at this weight has been turned in by Gavin Damasco (Davidson). Damasco picked up a win in the Campbell dual (over Chris Rivera) and has only lost to Millner in SoCon action. He did prevail in a nail-biter over the #7 seed Ethan Willis (The Citadel), so there could be plenty of competition for that fourth spot, along with Brandon Bright (Gardner-Webb) and Reid Stewart (Presbyterian). Predictions 1st) Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State) 2nd) Josh Heil (Campbell) 3rd) Noah Castillo (Chattanooga) 4th) Gavin Damasco (Davidson) 157 lbs 1 allocation Even though there are a pair of SoCon wrestlers in the national rankings with #27 Dazjon Casto (The Citadel) and #28 Cody Bond (Appalachian State), only Casto locked up an allocation for the conference. Casto had a big out-of-conference win over #14 Justin Thomas (Oklahoma) at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and has a 16-6 record overall. Both he and Bond are unbeaten in SoCon competition this year, as they did not hit in dual action. At the Scuffle, Bond pinned Casto's teammate, Aidan Lenz. The 2021 SoCon champion, Bond, has been dominant against the rest of the league. None of his SoCon opponents held him to less than a major decision. A wild card here is JoJo Aragona (Campbell), less than three years removed from being considered one of the top-ten recruits in the country. Aragona transferred from Rutgers mid-year and only saw action in two duals, one a win over Bryce Sanderlin (Davidson) and the other a major decision loss to Bond. With more time in the Campbell room, Aragona may make Bond's life difficult in the semis. After Aragona is a pair of wrestlers with winning records in Lincoln Heck (Chattanooga) and Sanderlin. Heck was only limited to 14 matches this year, but posted a couple of good results, defeating Wade Unger (Duke) and Derek Gilcher (Indiana). Sanderlin has been very consistent for the Wildcats and owns a win over the Mocs previous starter Weston Wichman. Predictions 1st) Cody Bond (Appalachian State) 2nd) Dazjon Casto (The Citadel) 3rd) Lincoln Heck (Chattanooga) 4th) JoJo Aragona (Campbell) 165 lbs 2 allocations There's a bit of a problem at 165 lbs since there are four past NCAA qualifiers vying for two automatic bids. Drew Nicholson (Chattanooga) is the returning conference champion at this weight and is undefeated in conference competition. Nicholson did not earn an allocation for the conference and is outside of the national rankings based on a few out-of-conference losses, but his best win over the year came against #19 Will Formato (Appalachian State). Last year, Formato was unbeaten in the conference (with a win over Nicholson), but needed to get an at-large berth for nationals. This season, Formato is 19-5 with a pair of wins over Thomas Bullard (NC State). He'll want to get that win back. After the top two seeds are Rodrick Mosley (Gardner-Webb) and Selwyn Porter (The Citadel). Both have qualified for nationals in the past. Mosley has a pair of agonizingly close losses to both of the top two seeds this year, both in tiebreakers. Against Porter, he was able to get by with a win in sudden victory. Porter was a Navy Classic finalist this year and had bonus point wins versus the rest of the conference. If there's anyone that could break into the top-four, it could be sixth-seeded Troy Nation (Campbell). His record isn't flashy, at 6-4, but he's wrestled a strong schedule and owns a win over Lehigh's national qualifier Brian Meyer (Lehigh). Predictions 1st) Will Formato (Appalachian State) 2nd) Drew Nicholson (Chattanooga) 3rd) Rodrick Mosley (Gardner-Webb) 4th) Selwyn Porter (The Citadel) 174 lbs 1 allocation Here is another problematic weight class as #24 Austin Murphy (Campbell) and #28 Thomas Flitz (Appalachian State) are nationally ranked, but neither earned an allocation for the conference. There is just one automatic/champions bid available. Murphy is the defending SoCon champion at 174 lbs and defeated Flitz in the finals. Like this year, there was only one automatic spot available for the conference; however, Flitz was given an at-large berth. In their recent dual, Flitz turned the tables and pulled out a 2-1 win over Murphy, which allows for him to receive the top-seed here. Earlier this week, as ACC seeds were revealed, most revisited Flitz's dual victory over the tournament's top-seed #8 Clay Lautt (North Carolina). Next in line is Carial Tarter (Chattanooga), the third seed. Tarter has losses to the two top seeds, but a clean conference resume, otherwise. In fact, he hung close with Murphy, losing 3-1, and likely will have another shot in the semifinals. The fourth and fifth seeds belong to Evan Schenk (Gardner-Webb) and Jon Hoover (VMI), respectively. Hoover actually has a head-to-head win over Schenk, but the Running Bulldog has a slightly better overall body of work. Predictions 1st) Austin Murphy (Campbell) 2nd) Thomas Flitz (Appalachian State) 3rd) Carial Tarter (Chattanooga) 4th) Jon Hoover (VMI) 184 lbs 1 allocation The 184 lb SoCon champ from a year ago, #26 Caleb Hopkins (Campbell), is back and the favorite to repeat. In his first national tournament, Hopkins went 1-2 with a win over the Big Ten's Zac Braunagel (Illinois). He comes in with a perfect 5-0 record against SoCon opponents and was 14-4 overall. All four of those losses came to quality competition from the ACC. Now Hopkins did get pushed in the Camels dual with App State by Barrett Blakely, who will be the fourth seed here. That could make for an interesting semifinal and a match that could be extremely important in the team race. The second seed belongs to Thomas Sell (Chattanooga), who pulled out a win in sudden victory over Blakely and pinned 2021 NCAA qualifier Jha'Quan Anderson (Gardner-Webb). That was one of six falls on the year for Sell. Anderson did not see Murphy this year, but has a 5-3 win over Blakely. Another entrant that could do some damage here is Gavin Henry (Davidson). Henry did not meet Blakely, but did grab a win against his teammate Brett Mordecai. Predictions 1st) Caleb Hopkins (Campbell) 2nd) Thomas Sell (Chattanooga) 3rd) Jha'Quan Anderson (Gardner-Webb) 4th) Gavin Henry (Davidson) 197 lbs 1 allocation Once again, we have two past national qualifiers in a weight where only one NCAA allocation is up for grabs. The top seed belongs to two-time SoCon champion Chris Kober (Campbell). Kober split time with Levi Hopkins for the bulk of the year, but has emerged as the man for head coach Scotti Sentes' team. In fact, Kober defeated Hopkins 7-1 for seventh place at the MatMen Open. In the massive dual with Appalachian State, Kober was pushed to extra time by Wyatt Miller, before prevailing 3-1. Miller is the sixth seed, so it's unlikely the two meet again. Seeded second is two-time national qualifier Matthew Waddell (Chattanooga). Waddell spent the first four-plus years of his career at 184 lbs, before moving up in mid-January. That change ended up being productive as Waddell went 7-1 at the higher weight. He had struggled to a 7-9 record at 184. Waddell lost a close one to Hopkins, but was generally dominant against the rest of the league. In order to get a rematch with Hopkins, he'd have to go through the third seed Tyler Mousaw (VMI). While Waddell was able to pin Mousaw, it's the Mousaw who typically does the pinning. Since arriving at VMI, Mousaw has eight falls in his 23 wins. Kober also has Anthony Perrine (Gardner-Webb) and Finlay Holston (Davidson) on his side as the fourth and fifth seeds. Both have winning records and neither is an easy out. Predictions 1st) Matthew Waddell (Chattanooga) 2nd) Chris Kober (Campbell) 3rd) Tyler Mousaw (VMI) 4th) Anthony Perrine (Gardner-Webb) 285 lbs 2 allocations We finish with a pair of allocations available for the big men, although three may be an optimal number. A SoCon runner-up in 2021, #25 Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) has built off of that momentum and more this season. He only has a pair of losses, both to top-15 opponents, and a handful of quality wins. Ghadiali has wins over two of NC State's triumvirate of talented heavys, with Tyrie Houghton and 2021 ACC champ, Deonte Wilson. Ghadiali also has a decisive victory over the opponent that defeated him for the conference title in 2021, #29 Michael McAleavey (The Citadel). McAleavey had an excellent year, himself, placing top-eight at both the CKLV Invitational and the Scuffle. At the Scuffle, he split matches with the "other" NC State 285 lber, Owen Trephan. There are some quality heavyweight here after the two ranked wrestlers with third-seeded Michael Burchell (Appalachian State) and Mitchell Trigg (Davidson), the fourth seed. Burchell was 17-9 this year, but didn't get to match up with McAleavey. He did face Trigg and prevailed via fall. Trigg wrestled McAleavey to a one-point bout and shutout Campbell's Luke Davis, 6-0, in dual meet competition. Predictions 1st) Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) 2nd) Michael McAleavey (The Citadel) 3rd) Michael Burchell (Appalachian State) 4th) Mitchell Trigg (Davidson) Team Race 1) Campbell 2) Appalachian State 3) Chattanooga 4) Gardner-Webb 5) The Citadel

Top seeded 125 lber Nick Suriano of Michigan (photos courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) 2022 Big Ten Championships Preview 88 total allocations/76 total allocations While six other conferences will be in action this weekend, none can match the overall star power and depth of the Big Ten. Eight of the top-20 tournament teams in the country reside in the Big Ten and will do battle in Lincoln, Nebraska. Seven of the ten number-one ranked wrestlers compete in the Big Ten. 88 automatic berths to the 2022 NCAA Championships in Detroit, Michigan, will be on the line, easily the most of any conference in the country. Two-time defending conference champions Iowa will attempt to three-peat. Even with two-time Hodge Trophy winner, Spencer Lee, Iowa still has a decent chance to win the conference. With a smaller field than nationals, it's more likely that a balanced team can edge a more star-studded lineup like Penn State. Speaking of the Nittany Lions, the top-ranked squad boasts three #1 seeded wrestlers and should be in a dogfight with the Hawkeyes for first place. Third-ranked Michigan has an outside shot at winning it all; however, all the cards would have to fall in their favor. Homestanding Nebraska, also has a strong, veteran team capable of cracking the top-three. Below is our weight-by-weight preview of the action, along with predictions for top-eight finishers at all ten weights, and a team race projection. Wrestlers bolded are ones that we have pegged to receive the automatic qualifying bids available in their respective weight class. When: March 5th/6th, 2022 Where: Lincoln, Nebraska How to Watch: Big Ten Network/B1G+ 125 lbs 10 allocations I'm sure none of us thought that the 125 lb bracket would look like this back in September. No Spencer Lee for Iowa, Nick Suriano as the one seed for Michigan and Drew Hildebrandt for Penn State, but here we are! Suriano joined the team in the second half of the year and has won all eight of his contests while wearing the Maize and Blue. He's responsible for Hildebrandt's only loss in a Penn State singlet. It's easy to figure that those two past All-Americans should get the top seeds at this weight; the rest of the weight class, that's a different story. This bracket will feature four past NCAA All-Americans with Suriano and Hildebrandt. Joining them are the third seed Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) and eighth-seed Patrick McKee (Minnesota). Also of note, Devin Schroder (Purdue) is a two-time Big Ten finalist. He and Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) were named NWCA first-team All-Americans after the 2020 season. 8 of the top-13 wrestlers in the nation at 125 lbs hail from the Big Ten. This weight class could have plenty of upsets if you're just looking at seeds. #6 Drake Ayala (Iowa) is one of the top true freshmen in the nation and is dangerous on the bottom half of the bracket, if healthy. #7 DeAugustino has defeated many of the key players here at one time or another in his career. #8 McKee finished third in the nation last season after entering NCAA's as the #15 seed. Projected Quarterfinals #1 Nick Suriano (Michigan) vs. #8 Patrick McKee (Minnesota) #5 Devin Schroder (Purdue) vs. #4 Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) #3 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) vs. #6 Drake Ayala (Iowa) #7 Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) vs. #2 Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State) Projected Semifinals #1 Nick Suriano (Michigan) vs. #5 Devin Schroder (Purdue) #6 Drake Ayala (Iowa) vs. #2 Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State) Predictions 1st) Nick Suriano (Michigan) 2nd) Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State) 3rd) Devin Schroder (Purdue) 4th) Drake Ayala (Iowa) 5th) Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) 6th) Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) 7th) Patrick McKee (Minnesota) 8th) Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) Final AQ's: Justin Cardani (Illinois) and Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) 133 lbs 10 allocations 133 lbs in the Big Ten is always fun and this year is no different. 2021 NCAA Champion Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) is undefeated and is looking ready to claim a second national title, along with his second Big Ten crown. Standing in his way is the only active wrestler at this weight class with a career win over him in Austin DeSanto (Iowa). The Hawkeye All-American had two wins over Bravo-Young in the 2018-19 season, but hasn't beaten him since. This year's dual appearance marked the fourth consecutive win for RBY; however, it was by a slim 3-2 margin. This bracket will feature five past NCAA All-Americans. Rayvon Foley (Michigan State), Lucas Byrd (Illinois) and Chris Cannon (Northwestern) join Bravo-Young and DeSanto. Bravo-Young has appeared in two Big Ten finals, winning one, while DeSanto's runner-up finish last year was his first. 8 of the top-15 wrestlers in the nation at 133 lbs hail from the Big Ten. #6 seed Brock Hudkins (Indiana) is responsible for one of Foley's two losses on the year. He just hasn't been able to compete often. The 8/9 matchup between Joey Olivieri (Rutgers) and Matt Ramos (Purdue), features a pair of wrestlers that could make a run through the consolations and outperform their seeds. #13 King Sandoval (Maryland) has 13 pins on the year and his Greco background makes for some highlight-reel throws. His opponents should be ready at all times. Projected Quarterfinals #1 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) vs. #9 Matt Ramos (Purdue) #5 Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) vs. #4 Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) #3 Lucas Byrd (Illinois) vs. #6 Brock Hudkins (Indiana) #7 Chris Cannon (Northwestern) vs. #2 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) Projected Semifinals #1 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) vs. #4 Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) #3 Lucas Byrd (Illinois) vs. #2 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) Predictions 1st) Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) 2nd) Austin DeSanto (Iowa) 3rd) Lucas Byrd (Illinois) 4th) Chris Cannon (Northwestern) 5th) Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) 6th) Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) 7th) Joey Oliveri (Rutgers) 8th) Matt Ramos (Purdue) Final AQ's: Jake Gliva (Minnesota), Brock Hudkins (Indiana) 141 lbs 7 allocations From the moment that automatic qualifiers were released, I knew that 141 in the Big Ten was going to present problems for the rest of the country and gobble up some of the precious at-large berths (five). If other conference's 141 lb brackets feature an upset or two, it's very likely we could have some high-quality wrestlers at this weight staying home. This is a weight class that features 10 of the top 33 wrestlers in the nation, but only seven AQ's are guaranteed. The battle for a title should be a great one here. We have the possibility of a Big Ten and NCAA finals rematch with the top-two seeds, #1 Nick Lee (Penn State) and #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa). Last year, Eierman was victorious before Lee turned the tables at nationals. The Nittany Lion great is undefeated, while Eierman's only loss of the year came to Lee. Oh and lurking at the #3 spot is undefeated, two-time Big Ten champion Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers). There have been some whispers surrounding his health, but hopefully, we'll get to see the best possible version of Rivera. If so, there could be some classic matches along the way. This bracket will feature six past NCAA All-Americans. Along with Lee and Eierman are, Rivera, Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska), Dylan Duncan (Illinois) and Stevan Micic (Michigan). Five of the six All-Americans (all but Duncan) have stood on the NCAA podium at least three times. Lee, Eierman, and Micic have all appeared in an NCAA final. Eierman, Micic, and Rivera (2x) have all won Big Ten titles. Lee (x2) and Red Jr. have made Big Ten the Big Ten finals. 8 of the top-18 wrestlers in the nation at 141 lbs hail from the Big Ten. It's scary to imagine a tournament where Micic comes in as the sixth seed. Last year, Duncan finished fifth in the nation; however, he's the ninth seed here and looking for an AQ, after only appearing in five regular-season bouts. He'll face Joe Zargo (Wisconsin) in the opening round, one of the wrestlers who have defeated him this year. The 11th seed at this weight, Parker Filius (Purdue), is a two-time national qualifier and was the 18th seed at nationals in 2021. Projected Quarterfinals #1 Nick Lee (Penn State) vs. #9 Dylan Duncan (Illinois) #5 Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) vs. #4 Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) #3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) vs. #6 Stevan Micic (Michigan) #7 Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio State) vs. #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) Projected Semifinals #1 Nick Lee (Penn State) vs. #4 Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) #3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) vs. #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) Predictions 1st) Nick Lee (Penn State) 2nd) Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) 3rd) Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) 4th) Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) 5th) Stevan Micic (Michigan) 6th) Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) 7th) Joe Zargo (Wisconsin) 8th) Dylan Duncan (Illinois) 149 lbs 7 allocations Fun fact, 149 lbs is the only weight this year in the Big Ten without a wrestler from either Iowa or Penn State amongst the top-three seeds. But, without immediate team race implications in play, there's plenty of fun to be had in this bracket. The top-three seeds, while all unique, have parts to their game that make them some of the most fun to watch for fans. A possible 2021 Big Ten finals rematch is in play with returning champion Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) as the top seed and Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) the third seed. Last year, it was a bit of a surprise as Lovett made the finals as the seventh seed. With a 17-2 record this year, he isn't sneaking up on anyone! This bracket will feature two past NCAA All-Americans in Sasso and Yahya Thomas (Northwestern). Additionally, Max Murin (Iowa) was named an NWCA First-Team All-American in 2020, while Kanen Storr (Michigan) made the second team. Sasso and Lovett are the only two past Big Ten finalists at this weight. 7 of the top-17 wrestlers in the nation at 149 lbs hail from the Big Ten. In 2021, we saw Thomas storm through St. Louis and claim third place at nationals despite needing an at-large berth to qualify and being saddled with the #25 seed. This weekend, Thomas is the fifth seed and needs to avenge a close loss to Murin to make the semis. Waiting there is expected to Sasso, who generally has difficulty with Thomas. Another lower seed, who could potentially make a run? How about Mike Van Brill (Rutgers)? He hasn't hit many of the main players at 149 lbs, but boasts a 17-2 record. Projected Quarterfinals #1 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) vs. #8 Christian Kanzler (Illinois) #5 Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) vs. #4 Max Murin (Iowa) #3 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) vs. #6 Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) #7 Beau Bartlett (Penn State) vs. #2 Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) Projected Semifinals #1 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) vs. #5 Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) #3 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) vs. #2 Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) Predictions 1st) Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) 2nd) Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) 3rd) Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) 4th) Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) 5th) Max Murin (Iowa) 6th) Beau Bartlett (Penn State) 7th) Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) 8th) Christian Kanzler (Illinois) 157 lbs 7 allocations This weight class took a hit a few weeks ago when then-#4 Brayton Lee (Minnesota) was lost for the year. Lee was perhaps the biggest challenger for Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) and he had the inside track to a second seed. Deakin is seeking to win his third Big Ten championship, which would put him into rarified air for Northwestern wrestling. He'd be only the third Wildcat wrestler to achieve the feat and the first since Jake Herbert graduated in 2009. On the bottom half of the bracket is a familiar face, second-seeded Kaleb Young (Iowa), the wrestler he defeated in the 2021 finals. In order to make the finals, Deakin could face Kendall Coleman (Purdue), his 2020 finals opponent. This bracket will feature two past NCAA All-Americans in Deakin and Young. Will Lewan (Michigan) and Coleman were both honored as All-Americans by the NWCA in 2020. Coleman was a first-teamer and Lewan made the second-team. We've already outlined the past Big Ten finalists at this weight. Deakin is a two-time champion, while Coleman and Young both have made a final. 7 of the top-16 wrestlers in the nation at 157 lbs hail from the Big Ten. The biggest x-factor at this weight is Brady Berge (Penn State) in the tenth seed. Berge made a midseason return to competing and initially started at 165 lbs, before descending down to 157. If he's anywhere near top-form, Berge could make the finals. However, that may be too much to expect with Garrett Model (Wisconsin) right away and Kaleb Young (Iowa) in the quarters. Last season, Berge majored Model and edged Young at NCAA's. He also defeated the third seed Will Lewan (Michigan), in 2021. Projected Quarterfinals #1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. #9 Bryce Hepner (Ohio State) #5 Peyton Robb (Nebraska) vs. #4 Kendall Coleman (Purdue) #3 Will Lewan (Michigan) vs. #6 Chase Saldate (Michigan State) #10 Brady Berge (Penn State) vs. #2 Kaleb Young (Iowa) Projected Semifinals #1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. #5 Peyton Robb (Nebraska) #3 Will Lewan (Michigan) vs. #2 Kaleb Young (Iowa) Predictions 1st) Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) 2nd) Will Lewan (Michigan) 3rd) Kaleb Young (Iowa) 4th) Peyton Robb (Nebraska) 5th) Kendall Coleman (Purdue) 6th) Chase Saldate (Michigan State) 7th) Brady Berge (Penn State) 8th) Garrett Model (Wisconsin) 165 lbs 7 allocations This weight class has the potential to be lots of fun. An established veteran (Alex Marinelli - Iowa) is looking to claim another Big Ten title against a couple young bucks (Dean Hamiti - Wisconsin and Carson Kharchla - Ohio State). Marinelli split with the two, holding off Hamiti after suffering an upset to Kharchla. The Hawkeye is currently riding a nine-match winning streak at the Big Ten Championships. Hamiti's only loss on the year is to Marinelli, while he has racked up seven falls as a true freshman. Kharchla and Hamiti haven't met, but the Buckeye was third at the CKLV Invitational early in the season. This bracket will feature two past NCAA All-Americans with Marinelli and Cameron Amine (Michigan). Marinelli is the only past Big Ten finalist at this weight. He's won the tournament the past three years. 4 of the top-10 wrestlers in the nation at 165 lbs hail from the Big Ten. There are plenty of wrestlers at this weight that could emerge as darkhorses and upset candidates. One, in particular, is #8 Bubba Wilson (Nebraska). Wilson has wins over the #4 seed (Amine) and the #7 seed (Hayden Lohrey - Purdue). Projected Quarterfinals #1 Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) vs. #8 Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) #5 Caleb Fish (Michigan State) vs. #4 Cameron Amine (Michigan) #3 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) vs. #6 Danny Braunagel (Illinois) #10 Creighton Edsell (Penn State) vs. #2 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) Projected Semifinals #1 Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) vs. #4 Cameron Amine (Michigan) #3 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) vs. #2 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) Predictions 1st) Alex Marinelli (Iowa) 2nd) Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) 3rd) Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) 4th) Cameron Amine (Michigan) 5th) Danny Braunagel (Illinois) 6th) Caleb Fish (Michigan State) 7th) Hayden Lohrey (Purdue) 8th) Creighton Edsell (Penn State) 174 lbs 8 allocations We'll likely get to see another chapter in the Carter Starocci (Penn State)/Michael Kemerer (Iowa) rivalry in Nebraska. The two split last year, with the Hawkeye winning at Big Ten's and Starocci prevailing at nationals. Starocci won by the narrowest of margins during their heated dual at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Now it's time for round four, except it's happening in the semifinals! That is unreal! On the last Sunday of the regular season, Kemerer fell to Mikey Labriola (Nebraska), which ended up being his second conference loss of the year. Both Labriola and second-seeded Logan Massa (Michigan) only have one. Both semifinals here will be must-watch! Of course, our returning national finalists are both All-Americans; there are five total at this weight with Massa, Labriola and the fifth-seed Ethan Smith (Ohio State). Of this decorated group, only Kemerer is a past Big Ten champion. He's already appeared in three finals. Massa and Smith are also past finalists. 5 of the top-7 wrestlers in the nation at 174 lbs hail from the Big Ten. Way down at the 11th seed is an NCAA Round of 12 finisher from a year ago, in Andrew McNally (Wisconsin). Last year, McNally competed for Kent State; however, he's since moved on as a grad transfer. He enters the postseason with a record of 8-8 and only has wins over two wrestlers in this field. Even with his struggles, you wouldn't want to see a wrestler of McNally's caliber in the consolations with a trip to nationals hanging in the balance. Projected Quarterfinals #1 Carter Starocci (Penn State) vs. #8 Troy Fisher (Northwestern) #5 Ethan Smith (Ohio State) vs. #4 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) #3 Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) vs. #6 Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) #7 Gerrit Nijenhuis (Purdue) vs. #2 Logan Massa (Michigan) Projected Semifinals #1 Carter Starocci (Penn State) vs. #4 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) #3 Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) vs. #2 Logan Massa (Michigan) Predictions 1st) Carter Starocci (Penn State) 2nd) Logan Massa (Michigan) 3rd) Michael Kemerer (Iowa) 4th) Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) 5th) Ethan Smith (Ohio State) 6th) Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) 7th) Gerrit Nijenhuis (Purdue) 8th) Troy Fisher (Northwestern) 184 lbs 12 allocations It's remarkable just seeing the number "12" next to conference allocations. What's even scarier is that the fifth seed, Abe Assad (Iowa), didn't earn one of them. It's probably easy for most to fill out their brackets with the top seeds, Aaron Brooks (Penn State) and Myles Amine (Michigan), advancing, but after that…it's anyone's guess. Most of the other members of this weight class have beaten each other at one point or another. Focusing on the top-two seeds, a rematch would pit the two highest-ranked wrestlers in the nation against one another in a battle of returning Big Ten champions. Brooks is the returning conference champ, while Amine won his crown up at 197 lbs, but has moved down for his final go 'round in college. This bracket will feature four NCAA All-Americans. Brooks and Amine, along with Taylor Venz (Nebraska) and John Poznanski (Rutgers). Additionally, Abe Assad was named a second-time All-American by the NWCA in 2020. Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) was named a first-teamer at 174 lbs. The top-ten seeds have combined to appear in five Big Ten finals, with Brooks winning two and Amine one. The only other one with prior Big Ten finals experience is Venz, who fell to Brooks in last year's final. 9 of the top-20 wrestlers in the nation at 184 lbs hail from the Big Ten. Projected Quarterfinals #1 Aaron Brooks (Penn State) vs. #8 Kyle Cochran (Maryland) #5 Abe Assad (Iowa) vs. #4 Taylor Venz (Nebraska) #3 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) vs. #6 Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) #7 John Poznanski (Rutgers) vs. #2 Myles Amine (Michigan) Projected Semifinals #1 Aaron Brooks (Penn State) vs. #5 Abe Assad (Iowa) #6 Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) vs. #2 Myles Amine (Michigan) Predictions 1st) Aaron Brooks (Penn State) 2nd) Myles Amine (Michigan) 3rd) John Poznanski (Rutgers) 4th) Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) 5th) Abe Assad (Iowa) 6th) Kyle Cochran (Maryland) 7th) Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) 8th) Taylor Venz (Nebraska) Final AQ's: DJ Washington (Indiana), Zac Braunagel (Illinois), Chris Weiler (Wisconsin), Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota) 197 lbs 11 allocations All year 197 lbs has been hard to figure out. It makes sense that it appears to be the most wide-open weight in the conference. If ever there were to be a darkhorse champion, it would be at this weight class. Even the top-two seeds, Eric Schultz (Nebraska) and Max Dean (Penn State), wrestle a ton of close matches and often seem vulnerable to an upset. That seems unreal to think about two wrestlers ranked in the top-three nationally, but it's a strange weight class. Even though it was reality turbulent, the Big Ten wrestlers in the bracket took care of business and snapped up 11 automatic qualifying slots. That is extremely important here since there could be some unforeseen results. There are three past NCAA All-Americans competing at this weight with Dean, Jacob Warner (Iowa), and Patrick Brucki (Princeton). Also, Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) and Schultz were named NWCA first-team All-Americans in 2020. This weight class features a pair of past Big Ten runner's-up in Schultz (2x) and Caffey. Brucki and Dean are both transfers that captured EIWA titles for their former schools. 8 of the top-20 wrestlers in the nation at 197 lbs hail from the Big Ten. With 11 bids available, it's hard to really call anyone here an underdog. The 11th seed, Jaron Smith (Maryland), has proven he can take out one of the big dogs, with his upset victory over Brucki. There's a realistic scenario where these two could meet in the consolations again. Smith also should present a tough matchup for his first-round opponent, #6 Thomas Penola (Purdue). Projected Quarterfinals #1 Eric Schultz (Nebraska) vs. #9 Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) #5 Patrick Brucki (Michigan) vs. #4 Jacob Warner (Iowa) #3 Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) vs. #6 Thomas Penola (Purdue) #7 Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) vs. #2 Max Dean (Penn State) Projected Semifinals #1 Eric Schultz (Nebraska) vs. #4 Jacob Warner (Iowa) #3 Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) vs. #2 Max Dean (Penn State) Predictions 1st) Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) 2nd) Jacob Warner (Iowa) 3rd) Eric Schultz (Nebraska) 4th) Max Dean (Penn State) 5th) Thomas Penola (Purdue) 6th) Patrick Brucki (Michigan) 7th) Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) 8th) Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) Final AQ's: Braxton Amos (Wisconsin), Jaron Smith (Maryland), Andrew Davison (Northwestern) 285 lbs 9 allocations Sadly for the rest of the 13 competitors at this weight, the champion pick was much easier than any other weight in this bracket. It hasn't been quite that easy for 2020 Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson (Minnesota) this year; it just looked that way. Steveson has been able to rack up bonus points in all of his appearances this season. And he's done so by cherry-picking the best possible opponents on the Gopher's schedule. Four of his ten wins have come against returning All-Americans and nine of his ten opponents are currently ranked in the top-33. Before chasing his second national title, Gable will attempt to win his third Big Ten title. Pay close attention to the potential semifinal bout between Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) and Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State). This bout could have huge team race implications, as well as a significant impact on NCAA seeding. Six returning All-Americans will duke it out in this excellent weight class. Steveson, along with Cassioppi, Kerkvliet, Mason Parris, Trent Hillger (Wisconsin), and Tate Orndorff (Ohio State). We have an opportunity to see a rematch of the 2021 Big Ten and NCAA finals in the semis, between Steveson and Parris. Oh yeah, they also met in the 2020 conference finals. 8 of the top-13 wrestlers in the nation at 285 lbs hail from the Big Ten. Watch for the ever-so-slight upset in the 8/9 spot with #8 Orndorff and #9 Luke Luffman (Illinois). The two did not meet this year, but split bouts last season. Luffman won an early dual, while Orndorff evened the score in sudden victory at Big Ten's. In 2021, Luffman also picked up a win over this year's #6 seed, Christian Lance (Nebraska). Projected Quarterfinals #1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. #8 Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) #5 Lucas Davison (Northwestern) vs. #4 Mason Parris (Michigan) #3 Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) vs. #6 Christian Lance (Nebraska) #7 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) vs. #2 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) Projected Semifinals #1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. #4 Mason Parris (Michigan) #3 Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) vs. #2 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) Predictions 1st) Gable Steveson (Minnesota) 2nd) Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) 3rd) Mason Parris (Michigan) 4th) Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) 5th) Lucas Davison (Northwestern) 6th) Christian Lance (Nebraska) 7th) Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) 8th) Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) Final AQ's: Luke Luffman (Illinois) Team Race 1st) Penn State 2nd) Iowa 3rd) Michigan 4th) Nebraska 5th) Ohio State 6th) Northwestern 7th) Michigan State 8th) Wisconsin