InterMat Staff

Campbell won its third straight title at the SoCon Championships (Photo/Campbell Athletics) Results: Brackets BOONE, N.C. -- Campbell held off a late Appalachian State surge to claim its third consecutive Southern Conference Wrestling Championship on Sunday at the Holmes Convocation Center. With eight Camels making finals appearances, Campbell held an 83-70 advantage heading into the consolation finals before the Mountaineers took an 87-86 lead, winning five individual titles at 125, 133, 141, 149 and 157. Four of those included head to head matchups between the Camels and Mountaineers (125, 141, 149 and 157). Austin Murphy gave Campbell the go-ahead title clinching points at 174 pounds, earning first period back points and hanging on for a 9-3 decision over App State's Thomas Flitz. Chris Kober added to CU's lead at 197 pounds, defeating Chattanooga's Logan Andrew 3-1, securing a third individual Campbell champion. Campbell finished with 92 team points, staving off Appalachian State's 87. Chattanooga took third with 64 points, followed by Gardner-Webb (50), The Citadel (43.5), VMI (18) and Presbyterian (6.5). Five Camels secured NCAA berths on the day, with three tournament champions, including Murphy, Kober and Caleb Hopkins at 184 pounds. Two Camels also took true place wins, with Josh Heil at 149 pounds and Taye Ghadiali at heavyweight earning NCAA berths. The SoCon was awarded two NCAA berths at three weight classes, including 149 pounds, 184 and heavyweight. Heil becomes Campbell's first four-time NCAA qualifier, while Kober picked up his second NCAA appearance, joined by first time qualifiers Murphy, Hopkins and Ghadiali. Eight Camels finished on the podium, with five runner-ups to go along with their three individual champions. Campbell's head coach Scotti Sentes was named the SoCon Coach of the Year, sweeping the league's regular season and tournament championships in his first season at the helm. Hopkins also earned the 2021 SoCon Pinnacle Award, given to the student-athlete with the highest GPA on the championship winning team. Chattanooga's Andrew Nicholson, meanwhile, was named the Tournament Most Outstanding Wrestler, winning the 165 title as the No. 3 seed. Top-seeded Murphy, a junior from Cincinnati, Ohio, reached the finals with a 6-1 decision over Chattanooga's Carial Tarter after earning a first round bye. Another one of Campbell's four No. 1 seeds, Kober locked in a first period fall over GWU's Sam Mora (1:17) to reach the finals. After going unbeaten in SoCon matches at 7-0 during the regular season, Hopkins clinched his first NCAA Championships berth with a 5-2 decision over Chattanooga's Matthew Waddell at 184 pounds. The Palmer, Alaska native also blanked VMI's Zach Brown 4-0 in the semifinals after receiving a first round bye. Making his fourth SoCon finals appearance, Heil, a three-time conference champion, suffered his first ever defeat at the hands of a SoCon opponent, with App State's Jonathan Millner taking the 2-1 decision in the title bout. Heil clinched a spot in the finals with a pair of bonus wins, pinning PC's Reid Stewart (2:07) and registered an 11-3 major decision over Gardner-Webb's Brandon Bright, officially earning his ticket to the NCAA Championships with a 4-3 true place decision over The Citadel's Selwyn Porter. Ghadiali also gained an automatic berth to the NCAA Championships, taking runner-up at heavyweight in a 5-3 decision against The Citadel's Michael McAleavey. The redshirt freshman, seeded third in the tournament, opened the day with a 20-5 tech fall over Presbyterian's Airin Spell, and topped Anthony Perrine of Gardner-Webb 3-1 in extra time. Seeded third at 125, Zurich Storm made his first SoCon finals appearance, topping No. 2 seed Fabian Gutierrez from UTC, 8-6 in overtime before falling 11-4 to App State's Codi Russell in the title round. Storm opened the day with a pin over GWU's Aedyn Concepcion (2:03). Making the final at 141 pounds, Hanna, seeded fourth, opened the tournament with a 20-5 tech fall over PC's Jacob Brasseur before taking down top-seeded Franco Valdes from Chattanooga, 4-2 in extra time. He fell to App State's Anthony Brito, 7-3, in the finals. Making his second SoCon finals appearance after earning the conference title in 2019, Barton took App State's Cody Bond to overtime, but fell 10-5, placing second. Barton defeated VMI's Blake Showers with an 18-7 major decision in the 157 semifinals. Campbell, also winners of three-straight SoCon regular season championships, has now claimed four of the last five SoCon tournament titles. The NCAA Championships are set for March 18-20 in St. Louis, Missouri. Team Standings: 1. Campbell - 92.0 2. Appalachian State - 87.0 3. Chattanooga - 64.0 4. Gardner-Webb - 50.0 5. The Citadel - 43.5 6. VMI - 18.0 7. Presbyterian - 6.5

NC State won its third straight title at the ACC Championships (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) Results: Brackets RALEIGH, N.C. -- It has been an unusual year for college wrestling, but one thing remained unchanged on Sunday night. NC State continues to sit atop the Atlantic Coast Conference. Buoyed by Trent Hidlay's overtime sudden victory over top-ranked Hunter Bolen of Virginia Tech at 184 pounds, plus dominating efforts by four-time ACC champion Hayden Hidlay at 157 and Tariq Wilson at 141, the nationally seventh-ranked Wolfpack captured its 18th ACC team title in convincing fashion Sunday night at Reynolds Coliseum. With Daniel Bullard (174 pounds) and Deonte Wilson (285) adding overtime wins of their own, NC State led the team scoring with 89.5 points. Virginia Tech held second place 24 points back at 65.5, followed by North Carolina (63), Virginia (55), Pitt (45) and Duke (7.5). Virginia Tech 133-pound senior Korbin Myers, who continued his streak of wins over ranked opponents with a 3-1 victory over two-time champion Micky Phillippi at 133 pounds, was selected the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler in a vote of the head coaches. The ACC title is Wolfpack's fourth under the watch of ninth-year head coach Pat Popolizio, and NC State's 18 total ACC titles are the most among current conference programs. "It's a credit to all the guys on our staff who work around the clock, and it's a tribute to our (wrestlers), because I know all that goes into it with their training and lifestyle they gotta live. And to the support we get here at NC State right now," Popolizio said. "It puts us one step closer to our ultimate goal of winning the national title." NC State became the first school to claim three consecutive ACC wrestling championships since North Carolina won four in a row from 1997-20. "It's not an easy thing to do," Popolozio said. "I don't know of any sport you're in - whether you're an individual or a team - getting three wins in a row in a conference is not an easy task. I am really proud of what the guys did today, stepping up to meet the challenge against some of the best teams in the country." The first match of the championship round saw Virginia Tech's Myers - ranked seventh nationally - scored his decision over Pitt's Phillippi. The No. 4-ranked Phillippi had won 20 consecutive matches and was 8-0 this season, but Myers entered this year's ACC Championship with impressive credentials of his own after defeating three straight fellow ranked conference opponents by major decision. But after Myers gave the Hokies some hope of coming from behind, NC State closed the door by winning five of the six championship matches in which it had wrestlers competing. NC State's Tariq Wilson avenged last year's ACC Championship loss to North Carolina's Zach Sherman at 141 pounds, defeating his Tar Heel counterpart by a 10-1 major decision. The win gave Wilson a sweep of the season series following his 9-6 win when the pair faced off at UNC on Jan. 29. North Carolina's top-ranked Austin O'Connor successfully defended his ACC title at 149 pounds by defeating Virginia Tech's Bryce Andonian for the second consecutive year, but it didn't come easy for the Tar Heel junior. O'Connor spotted Andonian 6-0 lead in the opening period before scrapping back to claim a 10-8 decision. O'Connor upped his career record to 66-7. The finals of the 157-pound bracket produced a historic win for Hayden Hidlay. With his 12-3 major decision over Virginia's Justin McCoy, the NC State senior became the 10th four-time ACC champion and the first since Virginia Tech's Devin Carter (at 141 pounds in 2011-12 and at 141 pounds in 2014-15). Hidlay is the sixth four-time ACC champion in a single weight class and the first since North Carolina's Matt Kenny (heavyweight) in 1999-02. The Lewistown, Pennsylvania, senior holds a 29-0 career mark versus ACC opponents. Pitt's 165-pound Jake Wentzel opened the 2021 season by earning National Wrestler of the Week honors, and the junior hasn't let up in the eight weeks since. Wentzel successfully defended his ACC title Sunday night, blanking Virginia's Jake Keating, 4-0. For the second consecutive year, NC State's Bullard and North Carolina's Clay Lautt waged a competitive battle at 174 pounds. Lautt claimed a one-point win in last year's meeting in Pittsburgh, but Bullard turned the tables with a takedown for a 4-2 sudden victory win on Sunday night. After coming excruciatingly close versus Virginia Tech's Bolen in last year's ACC final and in this year's regular-season match, the Wolfpack's third-ranked Trent Hidlay finally broke through on Sunday night. Hidlay's takedown in the first extra session netted a 3-1 victory following 2-1 losses in each of the two previous meetings. Pitt's Nino Bonaccorsi, who moved up a weight class this season to wrestle at 197 pounds, downed defending Jay Aiello of Virginia by a 10-4 Bolen entered the match ranked as the No. 1 184-pound wrestler in the country in each of the InterMat, FloWrestling and TrackWrestling rankings. He has also been the No. 1 choice in both NCAA Coaches Rankings. The final two matches of evening featured more overtime wrestling. Heavyweight Deonte Wilson outlasted Virginia Tech's Hunter Catka, 2-1, and the Hokies' Sam Latona edged NC State's Jakob Camacho by the same score. The Latona-Camacho bout was a rematch of their regular-season meeting, which Latona won 7-4 with a late takedown to help Virginia Tech claim the ACC dual team championship. Sunday night's finals featured all nine defending champions from 2020. Fourteen of the 20 wrestlers in this year's final championship round also reached the finals last season, and four of this year's title matches - at 141, 149, 174 and 184 - were rematches from last season. In addition to determining league champions, this year's ACC Wrestling Championship filled the conference's 33 automatic NCAA berths. The ACC is hopeful of landing additional at-large berths for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, which are set for March 18-20 in St. Louis. The conference earned 38 total NCAA spots in the 2020 NCAA Championships, which were ultimately canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ACC sent a league record 41 wrestlers to the NCAAs in both 2018 and 2019. Please see below for the results of Sunday night's championship matches. The winner and runner-up in each weight class earns 2021 All-ACC honors. Finals Results: 125: Sam Latona (VT) def. Jakob Camacho (NCS), TB 1; 2-1 133: Korbin Myers (VT) dec. Micky Phillippi (UP), 3-1 141: Tariq Wilson (NCS) major dec. Zach Sherman (UNC), 10-1 149: Austin O'Connor (UNC) dec. Bryce Andonian (VT), 10-8 157: Hayden Hidlay (NCS) major dec. Justin McCoy (UVA), 12-3 165: Jake Wentzel (UP) dec. Jake Keating (UVA), 4-0 174: Daniel Bullard (NCS) dec Clay Lautt (UNC), SV-1; 4-2 184: Trent Hidlay (NCS) dec.Hunter Bolen (VT) , SV-1; 3-1 197: Nino Bonaccorsi (UP) vs. Jay Aiello (UVA), 10-4 285: Deonte Wilson (NCS) dec. Hunter Catka (VT), TB-1; 2-1 Final Team Standings: 1. NC State 89.5 2. Virginia Tech 65.5 3. North Carolina 63 4. Virginia 55 5. Pitt 45 6. Duke 7.5

Link: Results A Twitter List by InterMat

Link: Results A Twitter List by InterMat

Link: Results A Twitter List by InterMat

Missouri claimed its ninth consecutive MAC title and broke the tournament scoring record Links: Brackets | Team Scores TRENTON, N.J. -- The No. 5 Missouri Tigers won their ninth consecutive Mid-American Conference Wrestling Championship with a MAC record 188.5 total team points today at the Cure Insurance Arena in Trenton, N.J. A total of eight Missouri wrestlers competed in the final, with four of them coming away as champions. Missouri's Matt Schmitt (133 lbs.), Brock Mauller (149 lbs.), Keegan O'Toole (165 lbs.) and Rocky Elam (197 lbs.) all secured individual MAC titles. Central Michigan's Matt Stencel became the ninth wrestler in Mid-American Conference history to win four individual league titles when he defeated Rider's Ethan Laird, 7-2, in the final at 285 pounds. CMU's Drew Hildebrandt (125) and Dresden Simon (141) repeated as champions in their respective weight classes, joining Stencel in leading CMU to a runner-up finish behind fifth-ranked Missouri. Final Team Results 1. Missouri -- 188.5 (MAC RECORD) 2. Central Michigan -- 129 3. Rider -- 120.5 4. Northern Illinois -- 90 5. Edinboro -- 80 6. Cleveland State -- 68 7. Clarion -- 57.5 8. Kent State -- 54 9. Buffalo -- 44 10. SIU Edwardsville -- 43.5 11. George Mason -- 35 12. Ohio -- 34 12. Bloomsburg -- 28.5 13. Lock Haven -- 15 Championship Matches: 125: No. 1 seed Drew Hildebrandt (Central Michigan) def. No. 4 Noah Surtin (Missouri), 6-1 133: No. 1 seed Matthew Schmitt (Missouri) def. Unseeded Richie Koehler (Rider), 9-6 141: No. 2 seed Dresden Simon (Central Michigan) def. No. 5 seed McKenzie Bell (Rider), 12-5 149: No. 1 Brock Mauller (Missouri) def. No. 6 Marcus Robinson (Cleveland State), 6-0 157: No. 1 Jesse Dellavecchia (Rider) def. No. 2 Jarrett Jacques (Missouri), 3-2 165: No. 1 Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) def. No. 2 Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois), 6-2 174: No. 1 Andrew McNally (Kent State) def. No. 2 Peyton Mocco (Missouri), 8-7 184: No. 1 Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois) def. No. 2 Jeremiah Kent (Missouri), Fall (4:33) 197: No. 2 Rocky Elam (Missouri) def. No. 4 Ben Smith (Cleveland State), 10-4 285: No. 1 Matt Stencel (Central Michigan) def. No. 2 Ethan Laird (Rider), 8-2

Lehigh claimed the EIWA championship (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) MANHEIM, Pa. -- Lehigh crowned four individual champions, but it was a total team effort that carried the Mountain Hawks to their fourth consecutive EIWA team title Friday at Spooky Nook Sports Complex. All 10 Lehigh entrants placed in the top five of their respective weight classes and all 10 qualified for the NCAA Championships as the Mountain Hawks scored 158.5 points to pull away from Navy and Army West Point. The four individual champions for Lehigh were junior Jaret Lane (125), freshman Malyke Hines (133), senior Jake Jakobsen (197) and senior Jordan Wood (285). Wood becomes just the fifth four-time EIWA Champion in Lehigh history and the first EIWA heavyweight to win four titles. Lehigh's four champs outscored their opponents 18-2 in those four finals bouts. The Mountain Hawks had five total finalists with nine of their 10 entrants placing in the top four. As a team, Lehigh went 27-8 on the day with 13 bonus point wins. Nine of Lehigh's 10 entrants had at least one bonus win. "We had a really good training cycle, we just didn't know if it was going to pay off," said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro, who was named EIWA Coach of the Year for the second straight year and sixth time overall. "There's that mental part. We knew they were ready but they hadn't shown it. "Having 10 guys place is a great thing," Santoro continued. "Having nine in the top four is a great thing. Having four champions is great. It was the whole team and it was consistent. Having 10 guys wrestle at the same level is really hard to do in a tournament. Everybody's happy with the way they wrestled." Navy finished second with 129 points, while Army West Point was third with 119.5. Lane won his first career title and punched his first ticket to NCAAs by outscoring his three opponents 24-1 to improve to 8-0 on the season. After opening with a 13-1 major decision over Army's Ryan Chauvin, Lane blanked Binghamton's Micah Roes 6-0. In the finals, he beat Navy's Logan Treaster 5-0 behind a second period reversal, third period takedown and 2:17 of riding time. Hines followed suit with a 4-2 decision over Navy's Jacob Allen in the finals, giving Lehigh head-to-head wins over the Mids in the first two weights. Hines scored a first period takedown off a double leg shot and added a pair of third period escapes. Earlier Friday he cradled Sacred Heart's Kyle Randall for a fall in a mere 31 seconds then posted an 8-0 major decision over Navy's Jacob Allen. In addition to his first title, Jakobsen won the Sheridan Award for most falls in the championship bracket, pinning his first two opponents in 9:34. In the finals, he defeated Army's JT Brown for the second time this season, this season by a 3-0 final. After a scoreless first period Jakobsen scored a takedown in the second and added a third period escape. Wood's fourth title began with a second period pin of Sacred Heart's Dante DelBonis before blanking Zachary Knighton-Ward of Hofstra 2-0 in the semifinals. Wood met Bobby Heald of Army in the finals and posted a 6-0 decision, scoring takedowns in the second and third periods plus a second period escape and riding time. He is the first four-time EIWA Champion for Lehigh since Darryl Burley accomplished the feat in 1983. Wood captured the Fletcher Trophy for most career team points scored at the EIWA Tournament. "Jordan was wrestling freestyle all summer but you could see him getting more comfortable each week," Santoro said. "He was grinding. Working hard on top. That's where he has always been strong but you could see it coming back. The last two weeks he was getting better and better. He's a smart wrestler and wrestles with intensity. Now he just has to tighten some things up for the NCAA Tournament." Junior Jimmy Hoffman was Lehigh's fifth finalist. He won each of his first two bouts by 16-0 technical fall but came up on the short end of an 8-3 decision against Army's PJ Ogunsanya. Hoffman qualified for NCAAs for the second straight year. The Mountain Hawks had two third-place finishers in freshman Connor McGonagle (141) and sophomore Brian Meyer (165). McGonagle rebounded from a 2-1 semifinal loss to eventual champion Cody Trybus of Navy, beating LIU's Drew Witham 11-2 to qualify for NCAAs and then beating Julian Flores of Drexel for the second time Friday in the third place match. Meyer scored a late takedown and two point near fall to knock off third-seeded Ricky Stamm of Hofstra 5-1 in the quarterfinals. After a semifinal loss to Tanner Skidgel of Navy, Meyer came back to win his next two bouts, including a major decision in the consolation semifinals to clinch the NCAA tournament berth. Freshmen Luca Frinzi (157) and Jake Logan (174) both qualified with fourth place finishes. Frinzi's top moment came in the consolation semifinals against Bucknell's Jaden Fisher. Trailing 3-2 with under 10 seconds remaining, Frinzi cradled Fisher and took him to his back for the fall at 6:58, securing a NCAA berth in the process. Logan rebounded from a heartbreaking tiebreaker loss in the semifinals to punch his ticket with a 4-0 decision over Vincent Andreano of Bucknell. He medically forfeited to fourth place. Wrestling his first bouts of the season, senior Dylan Ammerman secured qualification with a fifth place finish at 184. He went 3-2 on the day, staying alive with a fall in the pigtail consolations and then securing his place at NCAAs with a 9-7 win over Drexel's Josh Stillings. "The three weeks of training leading up to this tournament made a huge difference," Santoro said. "Before this we hadn't had more than two weeks. The guys won all the tight matches today. They were winning third periods. That's typically what we've done but we hadn't done it all year. They really wrestled well. I'm really proud of them." Lehigh's NCAA tournament qualifiers will move on to the NCAA Championships, March 18-20 at Enterprise Center in St. Louis. The NCAA will announce the at-large qualifiers and complete field of 330 on Tuesday, March 9 and will then unveil the seeds and brackets the following day at 6 p.m. The Mountain Hawks will be sending a full team to NCAAs for the first time since 2018. Team Scores 1. Lehigh 158.5 2. Navy 129 3. Army West Point 119.5 4. Hofstra 106.5 5. Drexel 89.5 6. Bucknell 84.5 7. Binghamton 75.5 8. Sacred Heart 39 9. American 30.5 10. LIU 24.5

Keegan O'Toole was one of eight Mizzou Tigers to advance to the finals (Photo/Missouri Athletics) TRENTON, N.J. -- Mizzou Wrestling leads the MAC Wrestling Championships after the first day with 161.5 points. The Tigers lead second-place Central Michigan by 65.5 points. Eight Tigers have qualified for the finals in their respective weight classes, with two other Tigers competing in third place matches. Seven Tigers have already secured their spots at the NCAA Championships, while the other three can all secure their spots with wins tomorrow. Below are the Tigers in the finals: Sophomore Noah Surtin - 125 Pounds Redshirt junior Matt Schmitt - 133 Pounds Junior Brock Mauller - 149 Pounds Junior Jarrett Jacques - 157 Pounds Freshman Keegan O'Toole - 165 Pounds Redshirt sophomore Peyton Mocco - 174 Pounds Redshirt sophomore Jeremiah Kent - 184 Pounds Freshman Rocky Elam - 197 Pounds Below are the Tigers in third-place matches: Junior Allan Hart - 141 Pounds Redshirt sophomore Zach Elam - 285 Pounds TEAM STANDINGS 1. Mizzou ­- 161.5 2. Central Michigan - 96.5 3. Rider - 96.0 4. Cleveland State - 56.5 5. Northern Illinois - 54.0 6. Edinboro - 49.0 7. Kent State - 43.0 8. Clarion - 37.0 9. SIU-Edwardsville - 31.0 10. George Mason - 30.5 11. Ohio - 26.5 12. Buffalo - 25.5 13. Bloomsburg - 22.0 14. Lock Haven - 9.5

ASU's Kordell Norfleet is seeded No. 1 at 174 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) SAN FRANCISCO -- The Pac-12 has finalized its championship bracket for the 2021 Pac-12 Wrestling Championships on Sunday, February 28. Each of the 10 weight classes features six wrestlers, one from each of the conference's wrestling programs. The top two seeds in each class will receive byes, while first round matches will feature the No. 6 against the No. 3 seed, and the No. 5 seed against the No. 4. This year's field includes a number of high-profile names, including the No. 1 wrestler in the 174 weight class, Stanford's Shane Griffith. The No. 4 wrestler in that same class, Arizona State's Anthony Valencia, enters this weekend as a No. 2 seed, potentially setting up one of the top matchups in the nation in the finals. The full bracket can be viewed here. The No. 1 seeds for each weight class are as follows: Arizona State's Brandon Courtney (125), Arizona State's Michael McGee (133), Oregon State's Grant Willits (141), Cal Poly's Legend Lamer (149), Oregon State's Hunter Willits (157), Stanford's Shane Griffith (165), Cal Poly's Bernie Truax (174), Oregon State's Ryan Reyes (184), Arizona State's Kordell Norfleet (197) and Arizona State's Cohlton Schultz (285). First round matchups begin at 11:30 am PT / 12:30 pm MT from Oregon State's Gill Coliseum, while second round matchups are scheduled for 4:30 pm PT / 5:30 pm MT. Both rounds will be available via livestream on Oregon State's live stream platform and on pac-12.com. Championship finals will be broadcasted on Pac-12 Network and the Pac-12 Now App, with coverage beginning at 6:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm PT. For more information, click here.

Link: Results A Twitter List by InterMat

Link: Results A Twitter List by InterMat

PSU coaches Cody Sanderson and Cody Sanderson talk to Nick Lee during a dual vs. Michigan (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) The conference tournaments start this weekend with the EIWA, MAC, ACC, Pac-12 and SoCon all taking place. The athletes have been through a tremendous season unlike any in the last 70 years and while there is tremendous frustration with the allocations and the number of matches everyone was able to wrestle, it's incredible that the sport has made it this far in 2021. I had my doubts. Here and in private conversations I saw no way for the NCAA to allow football, much less wrestling, to compete in this school year. Part of that doubt was naivete about the NCAA's drive to see a financial return on their investment, and at least some part was not recognizing that fewer deaths was not seen as universally a good thing. No matter the circumstances on how the season got its push to start, it was always on the athletes to follow the regulations to make sure that they could continue to compete. These young men were seeing friends, taking classes remotely, eating alone, training in pods, wearing masks everywhere, and in general being asked to sacrifice more than any other class before them. And they succeeded. There is plenty of on-the-mat action to consume this weekend and next, but before the first whistle blows take a moment and recognize just how sizable an accomplishment it was for these athletes to make it from the searing center of a plague to the mat at their conference tournament. Bravo to them, their families, their coaches and their universities. To your questions … Q: With Penn State now adding Greg Kerkvliet, Beau Bartlett and Robbie Howard to the lineup, do you think the Nittany Lions can challenge Iowa? -- Mike C. Foley: Greg Kerkvliet re-emerged this weekend in a Penn State stomping of Big Ten foe Maryland. The heavyweight had an expectedly great performance and gave rise to the thought that Penn State would have enough horsepower to challenge top-ranked Iowa. The addition of Kerkvliet is certainly a positive for the Nittany Lions, as are Bartlett and Howard, both of whom seem like top All-American candidates in 2021. If you look at the updated points as predicted by the InterMat rankings there is a 71-point difference in their expected outcomes. That might get chipped away with some top-level performances by the above trio, and maybe further whittled down by some bonus points. However, a 10-touchdown difference is extremely difficult to overcome. The Big Ten weekend will be the test of each team's strengths and weaknesses, but from a higher perspective it would seem you should always favor the experienced winners over the newcomers. There are plenty of ways in which I can and probably will be proven wrong, but if you're putting money on the outcome of the NCAAs I think it's foolish to discount the Hawkeyes. Q: Which college match that has not happened yet are most looking forward to this postseason? -- Mike C. Foley: Richard Mann wrote a great article this week on that topic. Check it out. For me it'll be anytime there is a direct matchup between Penn State and Iowa, but also Daton Fix vs. RBY MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Trailer for the Pellicone! Q: What are you most looking forward to seeing at the Matteo Pellicone? -- Mike C. Foley: The Matteo Pellicone is the first Ranking Series tournament of the 2021 season. The outcome of the tournament won't impact the 2021 seeds or points, but it will influence the seeds at the world championships and who will end up winning the Ranking Series at the end of the season. The Belgrade Individual World Cup last December has proven to be a success with few issues arising from the health protocols and efforts to create a bubble resulting in a safe environment. Now, with vaccines being rolled out around the world and in-airport testing becoming more prevalent, a number of the top wrestlers in the world are expected to compete in next week's competition. More importantly, I'm finally being released to start covering events in person again and am looking forward to seeing the action on the mats and maybe tipping back a few glasses of Barolo. The tournament itself is built around 74 kilograms and the expected matchup between Jordan Burroughs and Italy's own favorite adopted son, Frank Chamizo. The duo has met a number of times and each episode of their saga tells us something new about their outlook and techniques. While I think that Burroughs is the favorite, what is most compelling to me is his eagerness to travel so close to the Olympic Trials. That will certainly mean it'll be a more cautious Burroughs on the mat, though he's certain to be as competitive as ever. The weight class also features Franklin Gomez (Puerto Rico) and world bronze medalist Daniyar Kaisanov (Kazakhstan). All eyes will be on 74 kilograms. Q: The Capitol Cup this weekend will feature a women's Greco-Roman exhibition match between Xochitl Mota-Pettis and Koral Sugiyama. What do you think about this? Do you think women's Greco could have a future in the wrestling landscape? -- Mike C. Foley: I'm interested in seeing the response to the match. The Canadians had a program for some time, but didn't see a lot of excess interest in the sport. In Europe its essentially a non-starter for most federations as they think Greco-Roman is far too brutal for women to undertake. You might agree or disagree with that perspective, but the buy-in of the European and Asian nations is necessary for the sport to be undertaken in any meaningful manner. The IOC is serious about sports accomplishing gender equity, and soon, equality. The 2022 YOG in Senegal were meant to be the first gender equal games. They are now postponed, but that is the direction the sporting landscape has taken into the future. For wrestling, the pressure to be gender equal will almost certainly result in even more investment in beach wrestling. The sport is consumer friendly and can be practiced anywhere at any time. There is no necessary equipment and nations that might otherwise be disadvantaged in Olympic style might find growth and success in beach wrestling. To me, beach wrestling has always been the answer. Greco-Roman on the men's side has faced issues for the better part of 40 years so I think it would be unwise for the sport to point in the direction of the past, rather than the future.

Following a change of venue from Penn State University, USA Wrestling is truly thankful to have secured Dickies Arena, a brand-new world-class arena in Fort Worth, Texas, to host of the 2020 Olympic Team Trials - Wrestling on April 2-3. The first priority of USA Wrestling has always been to hold the safest competition possible for the participants, while complying with all of the local and state health requirements, and utilizing the event safety protocols established by USA Wrestling and other sports organizations during the pandemic. The proposed event plan for Fort Worth, which must be approved by the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, will include a safety "bubble" that will be provided for athletes, coaches and tournament staff, and mandated testing protocols. Another major priority is to provide the athletes with the atmosphere for which this event is known for and celebrated, and to include spectators - with athlete families being prioritized - as permitted. USA Wrestling is happy to share that it will be able to accommodate spectators at a reduced level and in coordination with Dickies Arena and local health officials, is providing a spectator solution that allows for physical distancing and the ability to keep small groups of ticket-holders safely apart during the event. The total number of tickets available, based upon the arena capabilities and safety procedures is 4,900. For comparison, there were 12,000 tickets sold for the Olympic Trials at Penn State before the pandemic began. In order to ensure that tickets were available to the athletes and their families and those who were most impacted by the postponement and the change of venue, a plan for pre-sales of tickets has been established. A limit has been set upon specific groups who were offered the pre-sale opportunity. The athletes who have qualified to compete at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, as well as the coaches for these athletes, were given a pre-sale opportunity to purchase a limited number of tickets. In addition, tickets are also being held to be offered to athletes who qualify to compete at the Olympic Trials in Fort Worth from the four remaining qualifying events (NCWWC Nationals, NAIA Women's National Invitational, NCAA Div. I Championships, Last Chance Qualifier). A small group of sponsors and donors, staff, USA Wrestling volunteer leaders (Board members and state chairpersons) and alumni athletes were also given a pre-sale opportunity, with a limit on the number of seats and a short time frame. Finally, original ticket holders who purchased their tickets directly from Penn State to attend the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials will have a pre-sale opportunity for the event in Fort Worth, again with a limit on tickets as well as a short time frame to act. This phased pre-sale runs from Feb. 22-26. If the arena is not sold-out after the pre-sale ends, remaining tickets will be available to the general public on a first-come, first-served basis, starting Saturday, Feb. 27 at 10:00 a.m. CT here. We wish we could accommodate the high demand for tickets for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, but the current realities of the pandemic make it impossible. We know that the families of the athletes have been provided the opportunity to be there, and that there will be a fitting atmosphere provided for the athletes to compete. As has been the position of USA Wrestling since the pandemic began, the health and safety of the participants and all involved in the event remains the most important priority.

MANHEIM, Pa. -- On Thursday, the National Wrestling Coaches Association announced the creation of the NWCA Division III Coaches Association National Wrestling Championships presented by ARMS Software, FloWrestling, and Reese's. The Xtream Arena (Coralville, IA) will play host on March 12-13 and will be allowing spectators. Tickets will go on-sale this Friday, February 26th at 10:00am through the Xtream Arena Box Office. Tickets may be purchased by visiting xtreamarena.com. All-session and single-day tickets will be available for $41 and $24, respectively. Fans not able to attend will be able to watch each match live on FloWrestling. On February 3, the NCAA announced the cancellation of the Division III winter championships for wrestling as well as basketball, indoor track and field, swimming and diving, and ice hockey. Following the NCAA's announcement, the NWCA Division III Leadership Group, led by Chairman Lonnie Morris, Head Coach at Johnson & Wales, began working to provide a championship experience for athletes who had just had their championship tournament canceled for the second year in a row. Morris shared, "It is an honor to be part of the leadership group that helped create this opportunity for our student-athletes." USA Wrestling, the national governing body for wrestling in the United States, announced on February 5 that it would host a tournament for Div. III wrestlers. With the assurance from the NWCA that this event will be held, USA Wrestling will help publicize the NWCA Division III Coaches Association National Wrestling Championships. The most important thing for the wrestling community is that these Div. III student-athletes have one season-ending event. The championships will place the top eight wrestlers, and each will earn NWCA All-America honors. There will be no team points kept and no team awards given. Athletes competing must be on their school's official roster and entered into the OPC, the NCAA's weight management program. Those interested in helping offset the estimated $100,000 cost of hosting the event may donate to the crowdfunding page set up by the NWCA by clicking here. All donations received will be put into a restricted NWCA Division III Wrestling Coaches Association account (administered by the NWCA) and used to defray costs associated with this championship. "The Division III Coaches Association stepped up tremendously and is providing their student-athletes an exciting season-ending opportunity when less than a month ago none existed. This group of highly dedicated coaches has spent long hours to make this event a possibility," said NWCA Executive Director Mike Moyer. "We couldn't have put all the pieces together without so many stakeholders pitching in and joining forces. Our Presenting sponsors, ARMS Software, FloWrestling, and Reese's a division The Hershey Company, have been rock stars and have committed much-needed resources. I would be remiss if I didn't extend a heartfelt thanks to USA Wrestling, especially Executive Director Rich Bender, for all the support during the planning stages." This event will be conducted following the requirements of the state and local health authorities. The local organizing committee is in regular communication with its partners at Johnson County public health and University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. Masks are required to be worn at all times throughout this event and guests are asked to please adhere to all health and safety guidelines while inside Xtream Arena. EVENT DETAILS Date: March 12-13 Starting Times: Friday - 12 pm | Saturday - 10 am Location: Coralville, IA Venue: Xtream Arena Tickets: $41 All Sessions | $24 Single Day - Link How to Watch: FloWrestling - Link Presenting Sponsors: ARMS Software, FloWrestling, and Reese's Event Sponsors: USA Wrestling, Defense Soap, AAU Wrestling, and Resilite ABOUT THE NWCA The National Wrestling Coaches Association, established in 1928, is a non-profit organization for the advancement of all levels of the sport of wrestling with a primary emphasis on developing coaches who work in academic environments. The three core competencies of the NWCA are: Coaching Development, Student-Athlete Welfare, and the Promotion of Wrestling.

Jake Wentzel defeated Mekhi Lewis on Feb. 12 (Photo/Virginia Tech Athletics) The shortened 2021 regular season is over, and now it is time for the conference tournaments to begin. Across all NCAA Division I tournaments, there will be a variety of top matches. The following is a preview of the top potential individual bouts from each conference tournament. EIWA (Friday) 165: No. 7 Zach Hartman (Bucknell) vs. No. 12 Tanner Skidgel (Navy) The EIWA took a big hit this season as all the teams from the Ivy League are not competing. However, there is still potential for a strong ranked match at 165 pounds. Hartman is a two-time NCAA qualifier. Last year, he went 27-8 and made the finals of the EIWA tournament. This year, the Bucknell wrestler has won all seven of his matches. In his last match, he scored a 15-0 technical fall over Owen Brown (Army). Skidgel won the EIWA tournament last year and returned as one of the top wrestlers in the conference. He lost his season opening match against No. 6 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh), but bounced back with nine-straight victories. Eight of those victories came with bonus points. Skidgel won his EIWA title over Hartman last year. Hartman upset Harvard's Phil Congilaro in the semifinals, while Skidgel was the No. 1 seed. It was a two-point match, and this one will likely be as close. Skidgel has looked very solid all season and should be in peak form. Prediction: Skidgel decision over Harman MAC (Friday/Saturday) No. 4 Matt Stencel (Central Michigan) vs. No. 8 Ethan Laird (Rider) Stencel is the returning MAC champion. For his senior season, he has won all seven of his matches. Stencel's toughest competition came early in the season, as he defeated No. 17 Zach Elam (Missouri) in his second match of the season. The Central Michigan wrestler then turned around and defeated Brian Andrews (Wyoming) on the same day. Laird moved up to heavyweight for his senior season after spending the first three seasons of his career at 197 pounds. He has won all six of his matches, including a signature 8-5 victory over All-American No. 9 Jordan Wood (Lehigh). All of his other wins were bonus-point victories. Stencel has held down the fourth spot in the rankings all season behind No. 1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota), No. 2 Mason Parris (Michigan) and No. 3 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) of the Big Ten. The veteran has proved to be one of the top heavyweights in the country even if the competition has not been the toughest at points during this season. Laird has been a revelation after making the move up in weight, but he will be up against it here. Prediction: Stencel decision over Laird ACC (Sunday) 165: No. 6 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) vs. No. 4 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) Lewis returned to the college mats after taking an Olympic redshirt during the 2020 season. During the 2019 season, he surprisingly won an NCAA title at 165 pounds as a redshirt freshman. When he returned this year, he assumed the No. 1 ranking based on a victory over No. 1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) in the semifinals of the 2019 national tournament. Lewis won his first eight matches of the year including victories over No. 13 Kennedy Monday (North Carolina) and No. 19 Thomas Bullard (North Carolina State). The Virginia Tech representative then ran into Wentzel earlier this month. Wentzel built a 3-0 lead and had the riding time locked before Lewis suffered an injury. Lewis has not returned to action since, but he was seeded and drawn into the bracket for the ACC tournament. Wentzel had a strong season overall. He finished the regular season with a 7-1 record that included victories over Monday and Tanner Skidgel (Navy). This should be an interesting match if it happens. Wentzel was rightly awarded the No. 1 seed for his victory over Lewis. However, the match between the fourth and fifth seed will feature a Monday and Bullard who are both ranked. Bullard holds a victory over Wentzel, so he should have a tough road to the finals. It is hard to imagine Lewis reversing the recent result with Wentzel. Even before the injury, the Pitt wrestler was in the driver's seat. Lewis excels defensively, but if he tries to make it a one-move match, he will leave himself very little room for error. Prediction: Wentzel decision over Lewis Pac-12 (Sunday) No. 2 Shane Griffith (Stanford) vs. No. 5 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) Prior to this season, it was announced that Stanford would discontinue wrestling after the 2021 season. Fans never want to see a program dropped, especially a program with a wrestler who has a legit shot at an NCAA title. Last year as a redshirt freshman, Griffith built an undefeated 28-0 record and won the Pac 12 championship. He never got the chance to face off against many of the top wrestlers since the NCAA tournament did not materialize. This year, he has returned and gone 5-0 with four of those victories coming with bonus points. Valencia has never really been able to duplicate his freestyle success on the folkstyle mats, and he will get one more chance as a senior. Last October, he finished second at the 2020 Senior Nationals with victories over the likes of No. 2 (157) Hayden Hidlay (NC State) and Evan Wick (Wisconsin). After going 22-6 last year, he has returned for his final season and put together an 8-0 record. In his last match, Valencia scored a second-period fall over Pat Schoenfelder (Northern Iowa). Griffith has been untouchable for two seasons in a row. Valencia is certainly dangerous, but it is hard to see him holding up for an entire seven-minute match against the pressure of Griffith. Prediction: Griffith decision over Valencia SoCon (Sunday) 149: No. 12 Josh Heil (Campbell) vs. No. 14 Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State) Heil will be looking for his third-straight SoCon championship. The Campbell wrestler won the tournament and qualified for the NCAA tournament at 141 pounds before moving up this year. He lost his first match of the season against Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech). However, since that match, Heil has gotten back on track with five-straight wins. In his last match, Heil scored a 4-0 decision over Aiden Murphy (Chattanooga). Millner went 31-4 last year and qualified for the NCAA tournament by winning the SoCon tournament. He has already wrestled 12 matches despite the shortened season and won 11 of those. His only loss came against Hunter Lewis (NC State). Since that loss, Millner won eight-straight matches, including a victory over Heil's teammate Jason Kraisser. This will be an interesting match between returning SoCon champions. Heil has been one of the best wrestlers in the conference this year, and that should lead him to a victory here. Millner may have the physical edge, but look for Heil to pull out the decision victory. Prediction: Heil decision over Millner Big Ten (March 6-7) 141: No. 1 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) vs. No. 2 Nick Lee (Penn State) The Big Ten tournament could feature four different matches between the No. 1 and No. 2 wrestlers. Some might prefer one of the other matches, but this one might have the most interesting backstory. These two met at the 2018 NCAA tournament. Lee had been upset in the first round of the tournament by Ryan Diehl of Maryland and wrestled his way all the way back to the consolation semifinals. Eierman, who at the time was wrestling for Missouri, had lost in sudden victory against Yianna Diakomihals (Cornell) in the semifinals and dropped into the wrestlebacks. On that day, Eierman scored a 12-4 major decision. That was their most recent meeting in folkstyle. However, they also collided at the 2019 Senior Nationals in freestyle. In that match, Lee had the advantage. He was able to get to legs, and he was able to score off Eierman's attacks. Lee also showed the ability to finish clean, which will be vital against Eierman in folkstyle. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbEHGJEJOtw&ab_channel=USAWrestling After transferring to Iowa and sitting out with an Olympic redshirt, Eierman made his Hawkeye debut this year. He has won all five of his matches. After scoring a decision over No. 7 Chad Red (Nebraska) in his season debut, Eierman broke off a run of four-straight bonus-point victories. In his last match, he scored a second-period fall over Anthony Echemendia (Ohio State). Lee went 20-1 last year and was one of the clear favorites to make the finals of the NCAA tournament that did not happen. This season, he has won all six of his matches with five coming with bonus points. The only wrestler to escape giving up bonus this year was Drew Mattin (Michigan). In his last match, Lee scored a 14-2 major decision over Danny Bertoni (Maryland). In order to knock off Eierman and claim No. 1 seed for the NCAA tournament, Lee will need to finish clean and not give up any points on the bottom. Eierman has worked hard to improve his neutral attacks, but Lee's pace might still be too much. Eierman has more paths to win, but Lee's pressure and tenacity might rule the day. Prediction: Lee decision over Eierman Big 12 (March 6-7) 149: No. 4 Boo Lewallen (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 5 Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado) Lewallen finished eighth as a sophomore in 2018 to become an All-American. He qualified through the Big 12 last year and finished with a 21-2 record. Lewallen returned to the Cowboys for his senior year, and he finished the regular season with a 12-1 record. He has picked up a pair of victories over No. 19 Mitch Moore (Oklahoma), and his only defeat came in ride outs against No. 3 Brock Mauller (Missouri). It will be interesting to see how Alirez performs at the Big 12 tournament. He has always had outstanding performances in freestyle, including a victory at the 2020 Senior Nationals this past October. In the event, he scored victories over veterans Mitch McKee, Joey McKenna and Evan Henderson. This season, on the folkstyle mats, Alirez has wrestled only four matches. He returned on Feb. 20 for the first time since Jan. 8 and picked up a first-period fall over James Emmer (Utah Valley). These two wrestled during the regular season last year. At the time, Alirez was on a bit of a roll, and his only loss was a one-point decision. Lewallen dominated the match and took an 11-4 victory. If Alirez can make this a takedown contest, he has a real shot to take it, but Lewallen will have too many chances to make him work on the mat and take the advantage. Prediction: Lewallen decision over Alirez

App State's Codi Russell is seeded No. 1 at 125 pounds (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- The Southern Conference has released the seeds for the 2021 SoCon Wrestling Championship, the league office announced Wednesday afternoon. The No. 1 seed in each weight class will receive a bye for the first match. The championship is set to take place Sunday, Feb. 28, at the Holmes Convocation Center in Boone, North Carolina. Seven squads will compete for the 2021 SoCon title with 13 NCAA allocations available for the NCAA Championships. Campbell seeks to defend its last two tournament titles under first-year head coach Scotti Sentes. The Camels won their third straight regular-season title, going undefeated in SoCon action this season. App State, the 2021 preseason favorite, finished second in the conference standings with its only loss to Campbell as the Mountaineers look to uphold the preseason prediction at home. A pair of last year's SoCon individual champions return to the mat this season for the chance to defend their 2020 titles, both competing in the same weight class at 149 pounds. Campbell's Joshua Heil took home the 141-pound title at last year's championship, returning to 149 pounds this season after taking home the weight class title in 2019. Heil is a three-time SoCon individual champion, and if he takes the title again this season, he will be one of only 16 wrestlers to become a four-time champion in SoCon wrestling history. App State's Jonathan Millner (149) returns to defend his 2020 title after defeating No. 2 seed Tanner Smith of Chattanooga in final last year. The SoCon earned two NCAA allocations each at 149 pounds, 184 pounds and heavyweight. The remaining weight classes earned one allocation each, which is the automatic qualifier for the conference tournament champion. App State's Codi Russell (125), Millner (149) and Will Formato (165) enter the championship all seeded No. 1 in their respective weight classes. The Mountaineers' remaining seeded wrestlers include Anthony Brito (141, No. 2), Cody Bond (157, No. 2), Thomas Flitz (174, No. 2), Julian Gorring (184, No. 5), Mason Fiscella (197, No. 4) and Michael Burchell (285, No. 4). Campbell holds a league-best four No. 1 seeds for this year's championship in Benjamin Barton (157), Austin Murphy (174), Caleb Hopkins (184) and Chris Kober (197). The Camels will see Zurich Storm seeded third at 125 pounds and Gabriel Hixenbaugh (133) and Shannon Hannah (144) both seeded fourth, while Heil will have to settle for the No. 2 seed at 149 behind App State's Millner. The Citadel's Michael McAleavey headlines the heavyweight class seeded at the top, followed by Gardner-Webb's Anthony Perrine and Campbell's Taye Ghadiali, seeded second and third, respectively. App State's Burchell, Chattanooga's Grayson Walthall, Presbyterian's Airin Spell and VMI's Giomar Ramos will have to compete against the top seeds for a chance to take the 2021 SoCon heavyweight title. Jake Rotunda, competing at 133 pounds for the Bulldogs, is also seeded first in his weight class, while the remaining Citadel wrestlers, Jordie White (125, No. 5), Tyler Seeley (141, No. 4), Selwyn Porter (149, No. 4), Grant Speer (157, No. 7), Dazjon Casto (165, No. 4), Cole Burke (174, No. 4) Kyle Kretzer (184, No. 6) and Ben Stemmet (197, No. 6), will take the mat Sunday with hopes to earn the championship crown. Chattanooga's Franco Valdes (141) will enter the championship seeded first after going undefeated in SoCon action this season. Fabian Gutierrez (125) went 7-1 in conference duals and will arrive in Boone as the No. 2 seed in his weight class. Colton Landers (133), Weston Wichman (157), Drew Nicholson (165), Matthew Waddell (184) and Logan Andrew (197) all enter the tournament as the No. 3 seed in their respective weight classes. The Mocs' Austin Murphy (149) and Carial Tartar (174) sit as the No. 5 seeds for their matches. Gardner-Webb's RJ Mosley (165) sits behind App State's Formato seeded second, along with redshirt freshman Jha'Quan Anderson (184), who is also seeded second in his weight class. Teammates Trevon Majette (141) and Evan Schenk (174) are the No. 3 seeds in their individual weight classes. Presbyterian will compete in its second conference championship, as the squad finished its second season as a member of the SoCon. Seven Blue Hose wrestlers are set to take the mat Sunday to compete for their individual conference titles. VMI's Job Chisko (149) will face tough competition seeded third behind the two returning SoCon individual champions, Millner and Heil. Teammate Tyler Mousaw sits as the No. 2 seed at 197 pounds, while Zach Brown is seeded fourth at 184 pounds. Davidson, which has paused team activities due to positive COVID-19 test results among Tier 1 personnel, and first-year SoCon member Bellarmine, which is transitioning from NCAA Division II, will not compete in this year's championship. Due to COVID-19 protocols and adherence with local and state guidelines, there will be no general ticket sales at the SoCon Wrestling Championship. In addition to the teams, essential staff, workers and administrative personnel on site, a maximum of 13 student-athletes and three coaches per team are permitted to request two non-transferrable tickets each for immediate family members. A clear-bag policy will be in effect at the Holmes Convocation Center. The championship will be streamed in its entirety on ESPN+. 125 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Codi Russell, Appalachian State 2. Fabian Gutierrez, Chattanooga 3. Zurich Storm, Campbell 4. B. Gomez, Presbyterian 5. Jordie White, The Citadel 6. Aedyn Concepcion, Gardner- Webb 7. Cliff Conway, VMI 133 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Jake Rotunda, The Citadel 2. Sean Carter, Appalachian State 3. Colton Landers, Chattanooga 4. Gabriel Hixenbaugh, Campbell 5. Dominic Chavez, Presbyterian 6. Todd Carter, Gardner-Webb 7. Cameron Chicella, VMI 141 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Franco Valdes, Chattanooga 2. Anthony Brito, Appalachian State 3. Trevon Majette, Gardner-Webb 4. Shannon Hanna, Campbell 5. Jacob Brasseur, Presbyterian 6. Tyler Seeley, The Citadel 7. Freddy Junko, VMI 149 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Jonathan Milner, Appalachian State 2. Josh Heil, Campbell 3. Job Chishko, VMI 4. Selwyn Porter, The Citadel 5. Austin Murphy, Chattanooga 6. Brandon Bright, Gardner-Webb 7. Reid Stewart, Presbyterian 157 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Benjamin Barton, Campbell 2. Cody Bond, Appalachian State 3. Weston Wichman, Chattanooga 4. Taylor Parks, Gardner-Webb 5. Blake Showers, VMI 6. Zachary Phillips, Presbyterian 7. Grant Speer, The Citadel 165 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Will Formato, Appalachian State 2. RJ Mosley, Gardner-Webb 3. Drew Nicholson, Chattanooga 4. Dazjon Casto, The Citadel 5. Austin Kraisser, Campbell 6. Jon Hoover, VMI No Entry for Presbyterian 174 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Austin Murphy, Campbell 2. Thomas Flitz, Appalachian State 3. Evan Schenk, Gardner-Webb 4. Cole Burke, The Citadel 5. Carial Tarter, Chattanooga 6. Joel Diaz, VMI 7. Victor Tello, Presbyterian 184 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Caleb Hopkins, Campbell 2. Jha'Quan Anderson, Gardner-Webb 3. Matthew Waddell, Chattanooga 4. Zach Brown, VMI 5. Julian Gorring, Appalachian State 6. Kyle Kretzer, The Citadel No Entry for Presbyterian 197 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Chris Kober, Campbell 2. Tyler Mousaw, VMI 3. Logan Andrew, Chattanooga 4. Mason Fiscella, Appalachian State 5. Samuel Mora, Gardner-Webb 6. Ben Stemmet, The Citadel No Entry for Presbyterian 285. (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Michael McAleavey, The Citadel 2. Anthony Perrrine, Gardner-Webb 3. Taye Ghadiali, Campbell 4. Michael Burchell, Appalachian State 5. Grayson Walthall, Chattanooga 6. Airin Spell, Presbyterian 7. Giomar Ramos, VMI

Stevan Micic gets his hand raised after winning in the semifinals of the European Games (Photo/Gabor Martin, United World Wrestling) Three-time All-American Stevan Micic of Michigan will not compete in NCAA wrestling this season. The University of Michigan's wrestling Twitter account posted an update on Micic Wednesday afternoon, citing injuries and timing, as to why he won't be in the Wolverine lineup. Micic, who competes internationally for Serbia, qualified for the Tokyo Olympic Games at 57 kilograms.

CLEVELAND -- On Feb. 22, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced a plan to allow limited spectators at professional and collegiate athletic contests. Since that time, the Mid-American Conference and Rider University (host of the 2021 MAC Wrestling Championships) have evaluated the feasibility of allowing limited spectators, primarily the parents and guardians of the competitors, to attend the 2021 MAC Wrestling Championships that will take place at the Cure Insurance Arena in Trenton, NJ on February 26 and 27. Although the Mid-American Conference and Rider University would like to be able to provide this opportunity for spectators, maintaining a secure competition environment to ensure the health and safety of all participating teams, student-athletes, and the residents of the State of New Jersey remains our first priority. As such, extensive safety measures have been put into place to adhere to state and local COVID-19 social distancing and contract tracing guidelines. These safety measures have eliminated most usable public spaces inside the Cure Insurance Arena, including the concourse which will be utilized as team warmup spaces, therefore no spectators will be permitted to attend. Additionally, New Jersey has not removed its seven-day quarantine recommendation for persons entering from certain states. With the MAC's wrestling membership representing multiple states, the timing of Governor Murphy's announcement regarding spectators does not allow for travel to New Jersey and adherence to the recommended seven-day quarantine period prior to start of the 2021 MAC Wrestling Championships on Friday. Adding further complications, a separate part of the Arena is currently being utilized as a COVID-19 vaccination site. The priority of the Mid-American Conference and Rider University is to ensure that we provide a safe environment for our student-athletes that affords them the greatest opportunity to compete for a MAC Championship and an NCAA Championship bid. While it is unfortunate that our safety efforts will not permit spectators to attend this year's championships, we are proud to be offering fans the opportunity to watch most of the championship matches via digital stream through the Rider Athletics website gobroncs.com and ESPN+. For the complete broadcast schedule, please visit gobroncs.com or getsomemaction.com. We appreciate your support and understanding and look forward to crowning MAC Champions this weekend.

As the 2021 NCAA Division I wrestling regular season winds down, wrestlers, coaches and fans alike prepare for postseason action. Part of that preparation includes understanding the qualifier allocations for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. However, comprehending the NCAA's rationale for the qualifier allocations during this COVID-19-condensed college season isn't so simple. Not only did the NCAA have to use a different formula to come up with these allocations, but the NCAA got them wrong. In 2021, the college wrestling season was different and drastically shortened. With that, the typical method for determining the qualifiers had to be adjusted accordingly. Per the NCAA's Feb. 11 release, the weight class conference champion in each qualifying tournament will earn an automatic berth to the NCAAs. Each conference was awarded additional pre-allocations based on the five-year average (2016-20) of pre-allocations earned by the conference in each weight class. In recent years, pre-allocations have been determined by a formula measuring Division I winning percentage, ratings percentage index and coaches' ranking. A decrease in overall matches, and in particular non-conference matches, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, led the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee to transition to using the five-year historical average to determine pre-allocations for 2021. For any adjustments in conference alignment over the last five years, historical pre-allocations stayed with the conference where they were earned. The competition status of schools for 2021 also did not impact the calculation of pre-allocations. "The committee knew that there wasn't going to be enough regular-season competition to utilize the existing process where wrestlers earned pre-allocations for their conference based on regular season performance," said Karen Langston, senior associate athletics director at California State University, Bakersfield and chair of the wrestling committee in the release. "The option to utilize the five-year historical average was an equitable alternative, and the way it worked out has opened more at-large spots this year for deserving wrestlers who don't qualify through their conference tournament." I acknowledge that there is no perfect solution to this pre-allocation conundrum, but few can deny that the chosen option for 2021 is deeply flawed. Here's why: Three main problems 1. These allocations did not factor in (or factor out I should say) teams that did not compete at all during the 2021 season. 2. These allocations did not adequately adjust for teams that may have switched conferences at some point during that five-year window between 2016 and 2020. 3. The five-year historical window used to get these averages is entirely too large. What these problems mean 1. Last year, the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) got 44 allocations automatic bids prior to the conference tournament. This year though, the EIWA received 45 spots despite the conference's top teams -- those in the Ivy League -- are not competing in 2021. This is because, in November, the Ivy League decided to cancel competition for all of its winter sports programs. So, in summary, the EIWA has seven of their 17 teams (six Ivies, plus fellow conference affiliate Franklin & Marshall) not on the mat in 2021, yet, as a conference, it received one more allocation spot than last year when every EIWA team competed. This simply isn't right. Furthermore, according to the NCAA Division I Wrestling Coaches Rank -- through Feb. 7 matches -- there are 35 ranked EIWA wrestlers listed. So, the EIWA could possibly be bringing roughly a dozen unranked wrestlers. 2. With respect to problem No. 2, it is interesting to me that in situations where a school may have switched conference affiliations during the five-year window from 2016 to 2020, the bids allocated during that window are awarded to the conference they were earned in, rather than the conference where the school now belongs. In other words, all of UNI and Fresno State's numbers don't necessarily benefit their new conference, the Big 12, rather they benefit the Mid-American Conference. For comparison sake, last year the Big 12 had 54 pre-allocations. In 2021 the Big 12 was awarded 45. One could argue that the Big 12 is a stronger conference this year than it was last year. Additionally, the MAC, which absorbed seven Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) schools (Bloomsburg, Clarion, Edinboro, Lock Haven, Rider, George Mason and Cleveland State) gets absolutely zero benefit from the pre-allocations of the various EWL schools that were earned prior to the merger in 2019-20. Wyoming's Mark Branch, Oklahoma State's John Smith, and Clarion's Keith Ferraro were just a few of the college wrestling coaches to categorically dislike the way in which the 2021 conference pre-allocations were awarded. Some called for these pre-allocations to be further readjusted. Smith also told Jason Elmquist of Stillwater News Press that he was not happy, saying, "There's not very many people happy -- and that's all I'm going to say, because I have absolutely nothing good to say about it," Smith said Wednesday, Feb. 17. "Hopefully, they'll revisit it. I think it needs to be revisited." With respect to problem No. 3, one might also argue that the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) -- along with the Big 12 -- was another conference that was under-allocated by this new pre-allocation method. This is because the data being used from four and five years ago isn't reflective of the top-to-bottom strength that the conference now has in 2021. This year, The ACC has consistently had five of its six schools ranked in the NWCA Coaches Poll during the regular season. During that five-year window, from 2016-2020, the ACC wasn't as talented conference-wide. Thus, its allocation numbers during those sessions were lower than they have been recently. As far as the ACC is concerned the data utilized to arrive at the 33 pre-allocations that the ACC earned isn't indicative of the conference's strength in recent years, 2021 in particular. How to fix these conference pre-allocation issues As was mentioned before, 2021 has been a challenging season. The NCAA was given a fairly small sample size of matches to work with during the regular season. For this reason, trying to determine the appropriate conference pre-allocations for the national tournament in St. Louis next month is an unenviable task. However, at the very least, the NCAA must do the following to rectify the currently inaccurate pre-allocations: 1. Produce an entirely new set of conference pre-allocations. 2. In creating this new set of pre-allocations using historical averages, do not include data from teams that are not competing during the 2021 season. 3. Base the historical averages on the last two or three seasons as opposed to the last five seasons. This will help increase the accuracy and validity of these averages. While the three "fixes" referenced above do not create the "perfect" solution, they would be a step in the right direction. Under the current pre-allocation structure, there will be some very talented and deserving competitors left at home. Simply put, the current system does not ensure that the nation's best 330 NCAA Division I wrestlers are all competing in the pinnacle event of the season. This is an unfortunate injustice that the NCAA must rectify to the best of its ability.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Preparation for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wrestling was business No. 1, as a number of the nation's best Olympic-style wrestlers got in some important matches during the Nittany Lion WC 5 card on Tuesday evening at C3 Sports. There were 17 Senior-level bouts on the main card, featuring both men's and women's freestyle wrestling. What made this card so interesting was the fact that a number of the wrestlers agreed to compete in more than one match as a way to get valuable match experience only a few weeks prior to the Trials in Fort Worth, Texas. 2016 Olympic champion and two-time world champion Kyle Snyder won all three of his matches on the card. Read complete story on TheMat.com. Results Main Card: Kyle Snyder dec. Nate Jackson, 6-1 Zach Sanders pinned Thomas Gilman, 1:47 Vito Arujau tech. Sean Russell, 14-3 Jason Nolf tech. Jevon Balfour, 10-0 Kyle Dake tech. Vincenzo Joseph, 10-0 Mallory Velte dec. Jen Page, 6-1 Ale Bonilla dec. Kendall Bostelman, 8-0 Max Dean dec. Nate Jackson, 5-5 Kyle Snyder tech. Scottie Boykin, 11-0 Gabe Dean dec. Bo Nickal, 3-2 Vito Arujau dec. Zach Sanders, 6-0 Thomas Gilman tech. Sean Russell, 11-0 Jane Valencia tech, fall Ronna Heaton, 12-2 Vincenzo Joseph dec. Jevon Balfour, 8-2 Zain Retherford dec. Evan Henderson, 6-2 Kyle Snyder tech. Gabe Dean, 13-2 Kyle Dake dec. Jason Nolf, 5-0 Junior Card: Jim Mullen pinned Chase Horne, 2:08 Sage Mortimer pinned Rianne Murphy, 3:37 Cole Rees dec. TJ Stewart, 12-7 Tyler Lillard dec. Erik Gibson, 12-9 Grace Stem dec. Elleni Johnson, 7-4 Dalton Perry tech. Kai Owen, 13-0 Gabe Arnold dec. Aaron Ayzerov, 12-4 Nic Bouzakis tech. Nico Nardone, 10-0 Shayne Van Ness tech. Josh Saunders, 15-4

CMU's Drew Hildebrandt is pre-seeded No. 1 at 125 pounds (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Mid-American Conference (MAC) announced today the pre-seeding for the upcoming 2021 MAC Wrestling Championships (Feb. 26 & 27), hosted by Rider University at Cure Insurance Arena in Trenton, N.J. Listed below is the pre-seeding for the MAC Wrestling Championships following today's conference call with all 14 MAC head wrestling coaches. The MAC will release the final 2021 MAC Wrestling Championships bracket later this week. For more information, including live streaming and live results, can be found on the 2021 MAC Wrestling Championship Central page. 125: 1. Drew Hildebrandt, Central Michigan, Senior 2. Connor Brown, Missouri, Junior 3. Jake Ferri, Kent State, Junior 4. Luke Werner, Lock Haven, Senior 5. Jonathon Tropea, Rider, Senior 6. Josh Jones, George Mason, Sophomore 7. Lucas Rodriguez, Edinboro, Junior 8. Tristan Daugherty, Buffalo, Freshman 133: 1. Matthew Schmitt, Missouri, Junior 2. Brendon Fenton, Kent State, Sophomore 3. Drew Marten, Central Michigan, Junior 4. Tye Varndell, Edinboro, Sophomore 5. Mario Guillen, Ohio, Senior 6. Bryce West, Northern Illinois, Junior 7. Justin Patrick, Cleveland State, Senior 8. Aaron Schulist, SIUE, Sophomore 141: 1. Allan Hart, Missouri, Junior 2. Dresden Simon, Central Michigan, Senior 3. Saul Ervin, SIUE, Sophomore 4. Derek Spann, Buffalo, Senior 5. McKenzie Bell, Rider, Freshman 6. Caleb Brooks, Northern Illinois, Sophomore 7. Kyle Schickel, Clarion, Freshman 8. Josh Mason Bloomsburg, Sophomore 149: 1. Brock Mauller, Missouri, Junior 2. Anthony Cheloni, Northern Illinois, Junior 3. Tyler Vath, Edinboro, Senior 4. Kody Komara, Kent State, Junior 5. Ben Freeman, Buffalo, Junior 6. Marcus Robinson, Cleveland State, Sophomore 7. Corbyn Munson, Central Michigan, Sophomore 8. Seth Koleno, Clarion, Junior 157: 1. Jesse Dellavecchia, Rider, Senior 2. Jarrett Jacques, Missouri, Junior 3. Justin Ruffin, SIUE, Junior 4. Alex Carida, Bloomsburg, Junior 5. Jordan Slivka, Ohio, Freshman 6. Johnny Lovett, Central Michigan, Freshman 7. Anthony Gibson, Northern Illinois, Sophomore 8. Michael Petite, Buffalo, Sophomore 165: 1. Keegan O'Toole, Missouri, Freshman 2. Izzak Olejnik, Northern Illinois, Sophomore 3. Colt Yinger, Ohio, Sophomore 4. Jake Silverstein, Rider, Sophomore 5. Alex Cramer , Central Michigan, Sophomore 6. Riley Smucker, Cleveland State, Sophomore 7. Kolby Ho, Clarion, Junior 8. Cornelius Schuster, George Mason, Junior 174: 1. Andrew McNally, Kent State, Senior 2. Peyton Mocco, Missouri, Sophomore 3. Mason Kauffman, Northern Illinois, Junior 4. Angel Garcia, Rider, Freshman 5. Paul Pierce, George Mason, Junior 6. Jacob Oliver, Edinboro, Junior 7. Anthony Rice, Cleveland State, Freshman 8. Austin Bell, Lock Haven, Senior 184: 1. Brit Wilson , Northern Illinois, Junior 2. Jeremiah Kent, Missouri, Sophomore 3. George Walton, Rider, Junior 4. Deandre Nassar, Cleveland State, Sophomore 5. Max Wohlabaugh, Clarion, Senior 6. Kyle Davis, George Mason, Junior 7. Tyler Bates, Kent State, Sophomore 8. Ryan Yarnell, SIUE, Junior 197: 1. Greg Bulsak, Clarion, Senior 2. Rocky Elam, Missouri, Freshman 3. Colin McCracken, Kent State, Junior 4. Ben Smith, Cleveland State, Junior 5. Landon Pelham, Central Michigan, Senior 6. Austin Stith, George Mason, Sophomore 7. Cody Mulligan, Edinboro, Sophomore 8. Gage Braun, Northern Illinois, Sophomore 285: 1. Matt Stencel, Central Michigan, Senior 2. Ethan Laird, Rider, Senior 3. Zach Elam, Missouri, Sophomore 4. Sam Schuyler, Buffalo, Junior 5. Jon Spaulding, Edinboro, Senior 6. Colton McKiernan, SIUE, Junior 7. Max Ihry, Northern Illinois, Senior 8. Tyler Bagoly, Clarion, Junior

NC State's Hayden Hidlay is seeded No. 1 at 157 pounds (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Atlantic Coast Conference has announced pre-seeds and brackets for the 2021 ACC Wrestling Championship, which will be held this Sunday (Feb. 28) at NC State's Reynolds Coliseum. Link: Brackets The host and two-time defending champions Wolfpack leads with four wrestlers seeded No. 1 in their respective weight class brackets. Pitt follows with three No. 1 seeds, while regular-season dual champion Virginia Tech earned two and North Carolina one. Seeds were determined by a vote of the league's six head coaches. Each weight class champion and runner-up at the 2021 ACC Championship will earn All-ACC recognition. In addition to ACC honors, student-athletes will be vying for berths and seeding in the 2021 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will be held March 18-20 at Enterprise Center in St. Louis. The ACC has been awarded 33 automatic berths and is hopeful of earning several more at-large selections. The ACC placed five teams among the top 20 of last week's NWCA national rankings, including Virginia Tech at No. 3 and NC State at No. 7. Thirty-two Atlantic Coast Conference student-athletes are listed among the top 20 of their individual weight classes in the most recent InterMat national rankings, including 17 among the top 10 and seven among the top five. North Carolina junior Austin O'Connor still holds the nation's No. 1 ranking at 149 pound, and Virginia Tech junior Hunter Bolen took over the top spot this week at 184. NC State senior Hayden Hidlay (157 pounds) continues to hold steady at No. 2 in his weight class. Hidlay, unbeaten for his career against ACC opposition, is again the ACC Championship's No. 1 seed at 157 pounds. In addition to Hidlay, O'Connor and Bolen, returning ACC champions from 2021 expected to compete on Sunday include 125-pound Jakob Camacho of NC State (2020 ACC Championship Most Outstanding Wrestler), two-time champion 133-pound Micky Phillippi of Pitt (2019 ACC Championship Most Outstanding Wrestler), UNC's Zach Sherman (141), Pitt's Jake Wentzel (165), UNC's Clay Lautt (174) and Virginia's Jay Aiello (197). Due to restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic, there is no public sale of tickets for this year's event. However, ACC Network and ACC Network Extra plan nearly 10 hours of live coverage from 11 a.m. through 9 p.m. ACC Network Extra will stream the early and consolations rounds from both Mat 1 and Mat 2, with the 7 p.m. finals set for live linear broadcast on ACC Network. Watch links for all rounds will be posted at theACC.com when they become available. First-round action kicks off the event at 11 a.m. Semifinals are set for 1 p.m., followed by the consolation semifinals at 3:30 p.m. and the consolation finals at 5 p.m. Championship matches begin at 7 p.m., followed by the awards presentation. Pre-seeds for the 2021 ACC Wrestling Championship are listed below. Entries are subject to change until noon on Saturday. 125: 1. Sam Latona, Virginia Tech 2. Jakob Camacho, NC State 3. Colton Camacho, Pitt 4. Patrick McCormick, Virginia 5. Will Guida, North Carolina 6. Login Agin, Duke 133: 1. Micky Phillippi, Pitt 2. Korbin Myers, Virginia Tech 3. Joe Heilmann, North Carolina 4. Louie Hayes, Virginia 5. Jarrett Trombley, NC State 6. Drake Doolittle, Duke 141: 1. Tariq Wilson, NC State 2. Zach Sherman, North Carolina 3. Brian Courtney, Virginia 4. Cole Matthews, Pitt 5. Sam Hillegas, Virginia Tech 6. Patrick Rowland, Duke 149: 1. Austin O'Connor, North Carolina 2. Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech 3. Ed Scott, NC State 4. Josh Finesilver, Duke 5. Denton Spencer, Virginia 6. Mick Burnett, Pitt 157: 1. Hayden Hidlay, NC State 2. Justin McCoy, Virginia 3. Connor Brady, Virginia Tech 4. Josh McClure, North Carolina 5. Brandon LaRue, Duke 6. Tyler Badgett, Pitt 165: 1. Jake Wentzel, Pitt 2. Mekhi Lewis, Virginia Tech 3. Jake Keating, Virginia 4. Kennedy Monday, North Carolina 5. Thomas Bullard, NC State 6. Eric Carter, Duke 174: 1. Daniel Bullard, NC State 2. Clay Lautt, North Carolina 3. Victor Marcelli, Virginia 4. Dakota Howard, Virginia Tech 5. Jared McGill, Pitt 6. Conor Becker, Duke 184: 1. Hunter Bolen, Virginia Tech 2. Trent Hidlay, NC State 3. Devin Kane, North Carolina 4. Michael Battista, Virginia 5. Gregg Harvey, Pitt 6. Vincent Baker, Duke 197: 1. Nino Bonaccorsi, Pitt 2. Jay Aiello, Virginia 3. Max Shaw, North Carolina 4. Nick Reenan, NC State 5. Stan Smeltzer, Virginia Tech 6. Kaden Russell, Duke 285: 1. Deonte Wilson, NC State 2. Quinn Miller, Virginia 3. John Borst, Virginia Tech 4. Andrew Gunning, North Carolina 5. Austin Cooley, Pitt 6. Jonah Niesenbaum, Duke

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Under current state guidance, spectators will not be permitted to attend the 2021 Big Ten Wrestling Championships at Penn State set for Saturday and Sunday, March 6-7. The Big Ten Network recently announced an increase of its linear coverage of the event, giving fans around the country the chance to see the nation's best wrestlers throughout the weekend. The network will air whip-around coverage of all four mats during session one on Saturday and air Saturday night's Big Ten semifinals. All four individual mats for both Saturday sessions will have mat cams available on the Big Ten Network+. Sunday afternoon's Big Ten Championship finals will also air live on the Big Ten Network. Big Ten Network+ will feature the consolation action occurring before the finals, as well as placing bouts during the title tilts.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The 17th-ranked Purdue wrestling team put together a historic victory in Holloway Gymnasium, dominating Indiana 38-3 as they won nine of the 10 matches in the dual. The win is the 11th straight for the Boilermakers in the series, marking the longest streak for either side since 1928, and is the largest margin of victory between the two sides since 1920. The Boilermakers won six of the 10 bouts with bonus points, including a pair of falls, and score the programs' highest Big Ten dual point total since a 41-point effort at Wisconsin in 2012. Senior Griffin Parriott and freshman Gerrit Nijenhuis came up with Purdue's two falls on the night, putting up six team points at 149 and 165 pounds, respectively. Senior Devin Schroder got the dual started with a 9-1 major decision over Indiana's Jacob Moran at 125 pounds. Schroder scored a takedown in all three periods and added a reversal in the third to notch his fourth bonus-point win of the season. Freshman Jacob Rundell added his second straight Big Ten dual win at 133 pounds, scoring nine points in the first period on his way to an 11-5 decision over Kyle Luigs. Rundell went big at the end of the first, taking the Hoosier to his back and nearly sticking him, but settling for six points. He added another takedown in the third, improving to 3-4 on the season. The momentum continued at 141 pounds as junior Parker Filius put together a 12-2 major decision over Cayden Rooks. After leading just 2-1 after the first period Filius got things going in the second, posting seven points on an escape, a takedown and four nearfall points and stretching his lead out. The bonus-point win is the second straight for Filius as he improved to 3-5 on the year. Parriott nearly took the roof off Holloway, avenging a 2020 loss to No. 15 Graham Rooks with a 24-second fall. Parriott hit a cement mixer in the first 10 seconds and then settled in for the fall, his first of the year and seventh of his career. Sophomore Kendall Coleman finished his dual schedule at 8-1 on the year, rolling out six takedowns on his way to a 14-5 major decision over Jonathan Kervin. Nijenhuis followed up with a signature win for his rookie year, taking out No. 20 Nick South with a second-period fall. After neither wrestler scored in the first, the Purdue freshman chose bottom in the second and used his team-best sixth reversal of the year and put South on his back for his second fall of the season. IU's lone win of the night came at 174 pounds as No. 6 Donnell Washington edged Emil Soehnlen 5-1. After giving up an early takedown Soehnlen battled back, pushing the tempo, nearly getting a turn in the second and trying to run down Washington down the stretch. Washington got another takedown at the buzzer as Soehnlen kept trying to score until the end. Senior Max Lyon put together a dominant 17-2 technical fall over Santos Cantu at 184 pounds, using all seven minutes to put together his 33rd bonus-point win of his career. Sophomore Thomas Penola added a 4-2 decision at 197 and junior Jared Florell put the cap on the evening with a 6-2 decision at heavyweight, his first win of the season and first at 285 pounds. The Boilermakers finish the dual season at 4-5 in the Big Ten, while Indiana fell to 2-6 on the year. Both sides head into the post season on March 6, heading to Penn State for the 2021 Big Ten Championships. The Big Ten Network will air the championships in their entirety for the first time in history. Results: 125: No. 12 Devin Schroder (PUR) def. Jacob Moran (IU), MD 9-1 133: Jacob Rundell (PUR) def. Kyle Luigs (IU), D 11-5 141: No. 27 Parker Filius (PUR) def. Cayden Rooks (IU), MD 12-2 149: No. 11 Griffin Parriott (PUR) def. No. 15 Graham Rooks (IU), Fall 0:24 157: No. 7 Kendall Coleman (PUR) def. Jonathan Kervin (IU), MD 14-5 165: Gerrit Nijenhuis (PUR) def. No. 20 Nick South (IU), Fall 3:52 174: No. 6 Donnell Washington (IU) def. Emil Soehnlen (PUR), D 5-1 184: No. 13 Max Lyon (PUR) def. Santos Cantu III (IU), TF 17-2 (7:00) 197: No. 22 Thomas Penola (PUR) def. Nick Willham (IU), D 4-2 285: Jared Florell (PUR) def. Rudy Streck (IU), D 6-2 Extra Matches: 285: Jairus Perry (PUR) def. Andrew Irick (IU), SV 3-1 141: Asa Garcia (IU) def. Michael Leveille (PUR), MD 14-0 149: Luke Baughman (IU) def. Trey Kruse (PUR), D, 15-9 165: Hayden Lohrey (PUR) def. Sammy Cokeley (IU), D 4-3 174: Robert Deters (IU) def. Tanner Webster (PUR), D 5-2 285: Jamarcus Grant (PUR) def. Andrew Irick (IU), D 10-4

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lions (6-0, 6-0 B1G), ranked No. 3 in the latest InterMat Tournament Power Index, shut out visiting Maryland (0-8, 0-8 B1G) in the team's lone home dual of the season. Penn State won all ten bouts to roll to a 44-0 victory and finished the regular season with a 6-0 dual meet record, all in the Big Ten. All team and individual rankings listed are InterMat (2/16/21). Penn State won eight of the ten bouts for bonus points. The young Nittany Lions featured a line-up that included six freshmen and a sophomore, seven underclassmen. The dual began at 285. Freshman Greg Kerkvliet (Grove Heights, Minn.) made his season and Penn State debut at 285 and made short work of his Terrapin opponent. Kerkvliet picked up two takedowns on Garrett Kappes in the first :30 to lead 4-1 early. He then locked up a cradle and ended his Lion debut early with a fall at the 1:12 mark. True freshman Robert Howard (Cranford, N.J.) made his Rec Hall debut at 125 and followed suit. Howard opened up a big early lead and then pinned Maryland's Zach Spence in the second period, getting the fall at the 3:38 mark. Junior Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.), ranked No. 3 at 133, kept Penn State rolling by majoring Jackson Cockrell 24-13. Bravo-Young tallied 10 takedowns in the bout and gave Penn State a 16-0 lead. Senior Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.), ranked No. 2 at 141, made it four straight bonus wins for the Lions with a strong 14-2 major decision over Maryland's Danny Bertoni. Lee built up 4:18 in riding time in the win. True freshman Beau Bartlett (Tempe, Ariz.) made his Rec Hall dual debut up at 149 and rolled to a 9-3 win for Penn State's fifth straight win out of the gates. The Nittany Lions led 23-0 at halftime. Being Senior Night, senior Luke Gardner (Pottsville, Pa.) took to the mat at 157 and junior Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.), ranked No. 8 at 157, got the night off. Gardner used a takedown and four back points in the third period to post an 8-2 victory. Freshman Joe Lee (Evansville, Ind.), ranked No. 14 at 165, dominated the action as well, building up a big lead over Jonathan Spadafora before pinning him at the 5:56 mark in the third period. Freshman Carter Starocci (Erie, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 174, continued his sizzling wrestling, rolling to a 15-6 major with 2:22 in riding time. Starocci's win put Penn State up 36-0. Sophomore Aaron Brooks (Hagerstown, Md.), ranked No. 2 at 184, remained unbeaten on the year as well. Brooks dominated Phillip Spadafora in a 17-5 major decision with 1:57 in riding time. Freshman Michael Beard (Pottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 16 at 197, finished off the perfect night with a strong 13-3 major decision over Maryland's Jaron Smith. Beard's win closed out Penn State's 44-0 shutout victory. The Nittany Lions gave up only two takedowns in the dual, posting a 47-2 margin over Maryland. The Lions gave up only five during their two final duals (Ohio State only had three on Friday). Penn State's last shutout victory was the season opener last year, a 45-0 win over Navy on Nov. 10, 2019, here in Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions posted their fifth unbeaten dual meet season under Cael Sanderson. Four extra matches were conducted during the dual meet on a separate mat. This year, with condensed schedules, these extra matches, while not counting towards dual meet scores, are official varsity bouts and count towards NCAA competition minimums. Starters Bartlett and Kerkvliet each got extra matches. Bartlett began the extra bouts by posting a 15-7 major over Lucas Cordio at 149. Senior Bo Pipher (Paonia, Colo.) followed that up by pinning Garrett Fisk at the 3:35 mark. Freshman Donovon Ball (New Cumberland, Pa.) used a last second takedown in extra time to post a 7-5 (sv) win over Kevin Makosy at 197. Kerkvliet closed out extra bouts and the night with a second first period cradle, this time pinning Brian Bowes at the 1:18 mark. Penn State finishes its dual meet schedule with a perfect 6-0 mark, 6-0 in the Big Ten. Maryland falls to 0-8, 0-8 B1G. The Nittany Lions will host the 2021 Big Ten Wrestling Championship on Saturday and Sunday, March 6-7, in the Bryce Jordan Center. While no public tickets will be made available for the event due to virus mitigation restrictions, the Big Ten Network will air action on Saturday, Saturday night's semifinals and Sunday's finals live nationally and the Big Ten Network+ will live stream every mat. Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at @pennstateWREST, on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here. Results: 285: Greg Kerkvliet PSU pinned Garrett Kappes MD, WBF (1:12) 6-0 125: Robert Howard PSU pinned Zach Spence MD, WBF (3:38) 12-0 133: #3 Roman Bravo-Young PSU maj. dec. Jackson Cockrell MD, 24-13 16-0 141: #2 Nick Lee PSU maj. dec. Danny Bertoni MD, 14-2 20-0 149: Beau Bartlett PSU dec. Hunter Baxter MD, 9-3 23-0 157: Luke Gardner PSU dec. Michael Doetsch MD, 8-2 26-0 165: #14 Joe Lee PSU pinned Jonathan Spadafora MD, WBF (5:56) 32-0 174: #5 Carter Starocci PSU maj. dec. Phillip Spadafora MD, 15-6 36-0 184: #2 Aaron Brooks PSU maj. dec. Kyle Cochran MD, 17-5 40-0 197: #16 Michael Beard PSU maj. dec. Jaron Smith MD, 13-3 44-0 Records: Penn State (6-0, 6-0 B1G); Maryland (0-8, 0-8 B1G) Up Next for Penn State: hosts Big Ten Championships, March 6-7, 2021 Extra Matches: 149: Beau Bartlett PSU maj. dec. Lucas Cordio MD, 15-7 157: Bo Pipher PSU pinned Garrett Fisk MD, WBF (3:35) 197: Donovon Ball PSU dec. Kevin Makosy MD, 7-5 (sv) 285: Greg Kerkvliet PSU pinned Brian Bowes MD, WBF (1:18) BOUT-BY-BOUT: 285: Greg Kerkvliet (Grove Heights, Minn.) made his season and Penn State dual debut at 285. The Minnesota-native took on Garrett Kappes. Kerkvliet worked the center circle, scored two takedowns in the opening :25 and led 4-2 just :30 into the match. The Lion freshman added a third takedown, then worked his way into control of the Terrapin and locked up a cradle. He finished off the pin at the 1:12 mark for a fast fall in his Lion debut. 125: True freshman Robert Howard (Cranford, N.J.) took on Maryland's Zach Spence. Howard worked the middle of the mat and picked up his first pin just over a minute into the bout. He then turned Spence for four back points and added four near fall points to lead 6-0 with 1:22 on the clock. Howard reset, turned Maryland wrestler for four more points and led 10-0 at the 1:00 mark. Howard cut Spence loose with :35 on the clock and quickly took the Terrapin down for another takedown and a 12-1 lead after the opening period. Spence chose down to start the second period and Howard went to work on offense. The Terrapin ad 133: Junior Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.), ranked No. 3 at 133, faced off against Jackson Cockrell. The Lion junior locked Cockrell up high on the whistle and took him down for a takedown just :15 into the bout. He cut Cockrell loose and took him down again to lead 4-2. Cockrell notched Maryland's first takedown to tie the bout at 4-4 with 1:54 on the clock. Bravo-Young quickly escaped to a 5-4 lead, fought off a Cockrell shot and countered for another takedown and a 7-4 lead. The Lion All-American added three more takedowns in the final :45 of the period to lead 13-8 after one period. Bravo-Young chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 14-8 lead. He tacked on two more takedowns in the next :20 to lead 18-9 with 1:10 on the clock. Bravo-Young led 19-10 after two periods thanks to a penalty point on cautions. Cockrell chose down to start the third period and Bravo-Young clinched the riding time point with a strong ride. Cockrell escaped to a 19-11 score but Bravo-Young used two more takedowns to roll to the 24-13 major with 2:55 in riding time. 141: Senior Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.), ranked No. 2 at 141, met Danny Bertoni. Lee scored quickly, taking Bertoni down for a 2-0 lead right out of the gates. He built up over 1:00 in riding time while trying to turn the Terrapin for back points. Lee picked up a four-point turn with 1:22 on the clock to up his lead to 6-0. The Lion All-American worked to pull Bertoni into the center circle but the Terrapin worked the outside well enough to keep from giving up another turn. Lee led 6-0 with 2:26 in time after one period. Lee chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 7-0 lead. He worked to fight off a solid Bertoni shot with 1:30 on the clock and returned to his feet to go on attack. Lee scrambled his way for another takedown with :42 left in the period to up his lead to 9-0. Trailing 9-0, Bertoni chose down to start the third period. Lee cut him loose and took an 11-1 lead with another takedown. Lee countered a Bertoni shot for takedown and a 13-2 lead. He finished the period on top and posted the 14-2 major with 4:18 in riding time. 149: True freshman Beau Bartlett, making his Penn State dual debut up at 149, battled Hunter Baxter. Bartlett fought off a slight Baxter shot in the opening seconds then went to work on offense. The Lion freshman worked the middle of the mat for the next minute, looking for a scoring opportunity. The Lion's pressure paid off with a first takedown with 1:00 on the clock. Bartlett cut Baxter loose and used a high double for a quick second takedown to lead 4-1 in the opening period's minute. Leading 4-1, Bartlett chose neutral to start the second period. Bartlett used a fast low single to take Baxter down in the middle of the mat with 1:10 on the clock. He allowed an escape and went back to work in neutral. Bartlett forced Baxter into a stall warning as the period ended and led 6-2 with 1:00 in time after two periods. Trailing 6-2, Baxter chose top to start the third period. Bartlett deftly rolled through Baxter's offense and reversed him to move out to an 8-2 lead. He spent the next minute plus trying to turn Baxter then cut him to an 8-3 score with :25 left. Bartlett scrambled for a late takedown to get bonus points but Baxter fought him off and Bartlett posted the 9-3 win with 2:23 in time. 157: Being senior night, senior Luke Gardner (Pottsville, Pa.) got the call at 157 and junior Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.), ranked No. 8 at 157, got the evening off. Gardner took on Maryland's Michael Doetsch. Gardner worked the middle of the mat for the opening minute, forcing Doetsch's head to the mat while trying to scramble around for a takedown. Doetsch was able to force a stalemate for a reset with 1:40 on the clock. Gardner took a low shot that Doetsch countered, forcing a scramble as the clock moved to :40. The Lion senior finished off the takedown for two points and a 2-1 lead after the opening period. Gardner chose down to start the second period but Doetsch was able to control the Lion for the entire period. Trailing by one but with nearly 2:00 riding time, Doetsch chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 2-2 tie. Gardner took a high shot, locked up a cradle and, after securing the takedown, rolled Doetsch for four back points. He finished with the cradle locked and posted an 8-2 win. 165: Freshman Joe Lee (Evansville, Ind.), ranked No. 14 at 165, met Jonathan Spadafora. Lee scored quickly, taking a 2-0 lead off the opening whistle. He built up :26 in riding time before cutting Spadafora loose to a 2-1 score. He countered a slight Maryland shot for a second takedown and a 4-1 lead. Lee dominated the action from the top position, building up over 1:00 in time before turning Spadafora for four back points and an 8-1 lead. He added another two-point turn to move out to a 10-1 margin before Spadafora scrambled for an escape. Lee finished off the period with another takedown and led 12-2 with over 2:00 in riding time after the opening period. Spadafora chose down to start the second period and Lee clinched his riding time point before Spadafora escaped to a 12-3 score. Lee got in on a high single, gained control of Spadafora's other leg and rolled through for a takedown and a 14-3 margin with :40 on the clock. Lee finished the period on top and carried that lead with nearly 4:00 in time into the third stanza. Lee chose neutral to start the third period. Lee countered a Spadafora shot, rolled around the Terrapin, and took a 16-3 lead with 1:15 left. He faked a cut, quickly locked up a cradle and turned Spadafora for a fall at the 5:56 mark. 174: Freshman Carter Starocci (Erie, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 174, faced off against Phillip Spadafora. Starocci fell behind early, with Spadafora notching the bout's first takedown at the 2:35 mark. The Lion freshman quickly escaped to a 2-1 score, then turned in on a low double and rolled through for a takedown and a 3-2 lead with 1:45 on the clock. Starocci controlled the action on offense for the next :30 before cutting Spadafora loose to a 3-3 score. The Lion freshman used a strong high double to open up a 5-3 lead at the :55 mark and worked his riding time edge up to near one minute. Starocci finished the period on top to lead 5-3 with 1:18 in time. Spadafora chose down to start the second period. Starocci broke the Terrapin down for :30 before Spadafora escaped to a 5-4 score. Starocci took a 7-4 lead off another high shot, allowed the escape, and moved in on attack again. Spadafora was able to move out of bounds to keep the bout close but picked up a stall warning in the process. Starocci finished the period off with a takedown on the edge of the mat and led 9-5 with over 2:00 in time after two periods. Starocci chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 10-5 lead with 1:36 left to wrestle. Spadafora took a high shot that Starocci quickly countered for another takedown and a 12-5 lead. He finished off the bout with another takedown with :30 left and finished on top. Starocci's ended the bout with 2:22 in riding time and rolled to the 15-6 major. 184: Sophomore Aaron Brooks (Hagerstown, Md.), ranked No. 2 at 184, met Kyle Cochran. Brooks took a 2-0 lead with a takedown early in the opening period and then added a second midway through the first to lead 4-1 with 1:12 on the clock. Cochran escaped to a 4-2 score as the clock moved to the final minute and Brooks went to work in neutral. The Lion All-American forced a stall warning, connected on a single leg and picked up a third takedown with :20 left to lead 6-2 with :48 in riding time after one. Cochran chose down to start the second period and escaped to a 6-3 score. Brooks continued to set a fast tempo, working the middle of the mat and forcing Cochran backwards. He moved out to an 8-3 lead with a strong high shot through Cochran's waist with 1:00 left in the period. Brooks picked up another takedown and a stall point to lead 9-4 with :28 left in the middle stanza. Brooks ended the period with another takedown and led 11-4 with 1:33 in time after two. Brooks chose neutral to start the third period. He upped his lead to 13-4 with a scrambling takedown. Brooks picked up another stall point and finished with at takedown to post a 17-5 major with 1:58 in riding time. 197: Freshman Michael Beard (Pottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 16 at 197, took on Jaron Smith. Beard scored quickly, connecting on a fast shot off the whistle and working Smith to the mat for a takedown and a 2-0 lead. Smith scrambled his way to a reversal and a 2-2 tie with 2:30 left. Beard scrambled his way to an escaped and 3-2 lead with 1:40 left in the period and action resumed in neutral. Beard shot low off the reset and forced a scramble in the middle of the mat. He steadily worked his way into control and led 5-2 with :50 left in the opening period. The Lion finished the period on top and led 5-2 after the opening period. Beard chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 6-2 lead. The freshman countered a Smith shot and rolled his way around the Terrapin for another takedown and an 8-2 lead with 1:10 left on the clock. Beard put together a strong ride, working offensive control as the clock moved below the :30 mark. He finished the period in control and led 8-2 with 1:11 in riding time after two periods. Smith chose neutral to start the third period. Beard upped his lead to 10-2 with a takedown at the 1:10 mark, cut Smith loose and went back to work on offense. He took a low shot that forced a scramble and a stalemate with :25 left. Beard ended the period with a final takedown and posted the strong 13-3 major with 1:42 in riding time.