InterMat Staff

Lehigh's Jordan Wood reached the semifinals at heavyweight (Photo/Juan Garcia) BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- The 2020 EIWA Championships were expected to feature a wide open team race. With nine place winners and seven semifinalists, two-time defending champion Lehigh holds a 14 point lead after Friday's marathon first day at Stabler Arena. The Mountain Hawks went 9-1 in Friday's morning session, with eight bonus wins and then went 10-3 in the evening with six more bonus wins. Lehigh finished day one with 87.5 points. Army West Point is second with 73.5, while Cornell is third with 68.5. All three teams placed nine wrestlers on the podium, but Lehigh has the most semifinalists. Navy sits in fourth with 61.5 points and Princeton is fifth with 56. The Mountain Hawks scored 22 points in the morning session including 13 bonus points. Lehigh closed out session one with four consecutive falls from senior Jordan Kutler at 174, and juniors Chris Weiler (184), Jake Jakobsen (197) and Jordan Wood (285). "We always know that the first session is tough, but it can pay dividends later," Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro said. "We'll see if it pays off tomorrow, but it was nice to open with all those bonus points." The evening session began with a surprising loss by fall for second-seeded junior Brandon Paetzell against Columbia's Joe Manchio at 125, but junior Nick Farro brought momentum back on the Mountain Hawks' side with a late fall against Army's Andrew Wert. Farro led 4-2 with riding time locked up late in the third period when he tossed Wert to his back and picked up the fall as time expired. The victory avenged a loss to Wert in the dual meet with Army in late January. Next up for Farro is second seeded Zack Trampe of Binghamton. "We lost that tough match at 125, however Nick got the crowd back into it," Santoro said. "Going into a tournament like this you're going to have different heroes and tonight it was Nick." After winning his opening bout via tiebreaker, senior Ryan Pomrinca pushed through to the semifinals, scoring a takedown with 16 seconds remaining and riding out to knock off No. 2 seed Doug Zapf of Penn 4-3. Pomrinca will next face No. 3 Matt Kazimir of Columbia in Saturday morning's semifinals. "I'm really happy for Ryan," Santoro said. "He's battling and fighting. He won in two barnburners. He has a kid tomorrow that he lost to earlier in the year, so he's going to look to get that one back." Sophomore Jimmy Hoffman became Lehigh's third semifinalist after a 2-1 decision over Army's P.J. Ogunsanya at 149. The wrestlers traded escapes in the second and third periods, but not before Hoffman built up riding time advantage in the third. Hoffman will now face Hunter Richard of Cornell in the semifinals. At 157, sophomore Josh Humphreys posted his second straight major decision, downing Harvard's Hunter Ladnier to return to the semifinals for the second straight year. The defending champion at 157, Humphreys will next face Markus Hartman of Army Saturday morning. Team Scores: 1. Lehigh 87.5 2. Army West Point 73.5 3. Cornell 68.5 4. Navy 61.5 5. Princeton 56.0 6. Binghamton 45.5 7. Bucknell 40.0 8t. Pennsylvania 39.0 8t. American 39.0 10. Hofstra 33.0 11. Drexel 32.5 12. Columbia 32.5 13. Harvard 31.5 14. Brown 10.5 15. Long Island U. 9.5 16. Franklin & Marshall 6.0 17. Sacred Heart 5.5

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In the matter of a week the global coronavirus (COVID-19) panic has not only come to the United States, but caused the deaths of at least 11 people in Washington state and California. Given the incubation period of the virus, varying degrees of severity, and ease of transmission it's certain that many, many more will die in the next few weeks and months. Other nations, namely Japan and Italy, have responded to the threat by shuddering schools, quarantining neighborhoods, and canceling all events with large gatherings. So far, the United States hasn't taken any of these actions. Self-quarantining should be a consideration taken by individuals, local governments, and large organizations. I'm currently not rolling jiu-jitsu out both of an abundance of caution and the realization disease spreads rapidly in both that setting and NYC. So what about the NCAA wrestling tournament and this weekend's conference championships? Obviously, it's too late to cancel or postpone the conference tournaments, but attendees -- especially those over the age of 50 or with compromised immune systems -- should take extra caution. Wrestling gyms are notably unclean with plenty of shoes also making their way from bathroom floors to the mats. And maybe there are more unwashed hands? I don't know, but please take extreme precaution. As for the NCAA tournament, I also think it's almost an impossible call for someone to cancel. However, if we were to separate our anticipation for the event there is something questionable about hosting the largest-ever collegiate wrestling tournament in American history in Minnesota, while the largest and scariest pandemic in 100 years spreads quickly in enclosed environments and the cold. That's to say nothing of the tournament goers average age being in the band of those most-vulnerable to serious complications caused by the virus. Most readers probably read the past few weeks that Kyrgyzstan and Morocco canceled their hosting obligations for the Asian and African/Oceania Olympic qualifying tournaments. They are going to be rescheduled, but it brings into focus just how important a decision it is to protect the public from a global pandemic. The idea of cancellation will not be popular, but we do need to discuss it and know that our leaders at the NCAA are entertaining the options and preparing for these massive crowds. To note, Japan has kept their sumo tournament in place, but have made them closed to the public to avoid any transmissions among the public. Maybe that's an idea that the NCAA could also entertain. Don't panic, don't be alarmist, but do keep in mind that this disease has infected 80,000-plus people and killed almost 4,000 -- and those numbers are very, very raw with likely infections and unattributed deaths much higher. Take it seriously and please -- really, please -- wash your hands, and don't attend if you are feeling ill. To your questions … Q: Which conference tournament are you most looking forward to this weekend? -- Mike C. Foley: The ACC, which is the most concentrated and competitive conference in the nation. The matchups are in some places going to inform who will be the top seed in Minnesota, and who has the best shot at placing in the team standings. That's a kind of a tongue-in-cheek statement, but it's true that this is the most competitive the ACC has ever been. Never has there been three teams ranked in the top ten -- a thought that would've been laughed out of your head 15 or 20 years ago. The conference has built on the new qualification systems and the individual school's ability to recruit top-level athletes to top-flight academic institutions with beautiful campuses (and weather). I don't see this trend subsiding, either. The ACC schools and the support they've acquired are trending well headed into the Roaring 20's. Is this the best season the conference will ever have? No. I think the best is still in front of many schools, my alma mater and Duke University included. Trent Hidlay enters the ACC Championships seeded No. 2 at 184 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Q: The ACC Championships has three of the top 184-pounders. Who do you think will win the weight class? -- Mike C. Foley: I'll take Trent Hidlay over Hunter Bolen in the finals. Hunter has the last win, 3-2, only a few weeks ago, but Trent is having a monster freshman season and if he can keep it trucking through the semifinals and get past Nino Bonaccorsi of Pitt I think he comes out on top in the finals. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME There has been a Frank sighting at the UFC event this weekend Not a bad Vlog Q: Yoel Romero fights for the title this weekend at UFC 248. Think he has a chance against the The Last Style Bender? -- Ben M. Foley: I do! How in the ever-loving hell is Israel Adesanya going to stay with Yoel as he wrestles him again and again and again. If anything is leveling the odds it's that Yoel is kinda slowing down and has a real knack for getting tired in the championship rounds. A ground and pound offensive for the ages early in the second period could do the job for Yoel. Otherwise he needs to keep his output low and save his energy for the fourth and fifth rounds where a better conditioned and younger Style Bender will be looking to inflict damage. If Yoel comes out of the third looking in good shape then he has a chance to win. If he's sucking wind then there is almost no chance of him escaping those final rounds. Q: It seems like we will finally get Gable Steveson vs. Mason Parris this weekend. What is your prediction if the match goes down? -- Mike C. Foley: If the line is Parris +1.5 then I'll take Parris with the points. Heads up I have Steveson. Why don't we think the match will happen? Because they aren't meant to walk through their opponents, or because one of the coaches might protect a seed heading into the NCAA Championships? I don't know, but it's unfortunate that we are left to think about forfeits and NCAA wrestling in 2020.

Princeton's Quincy Monday is seeded No. 1 at 157 pounds (Photo/Beverly Schaefer, Princeton Athletics) The seeds for the 2020 EIWA Championships at Lehigh University have been decided. The top eight at each weight class are shown below. 125: 1 Patrick Glory Princeton 2 Brandon Paetzell Lehigh 3 Michael Colaiocco Penn 4 Trey Chalifoux Army West Point 5 Gage Curry American 6 Logan Treaster Navy 7 Joe Manchio Columbia 8 Nolan Hellickson Harvard 133: 1 Chas Tucker Cornell 2 Zack Trampe Binghamton 3 Nick Farro Lehigh 4 Casey Cobb Navy 5 Darren Miller Bucknell 6 Andrew Wert Army West Point 7 Carmen Ferrante Penn 8 Angelo Rini Columbia 41: 1 Sal Profaci American 2 Doug Zapf Penn 3 Matt Kazimir Columbia 4 Cody Trybus Navy 5 Noah Baughman Cornell 6 Wil Gil F&M 7 Ryan Pomrinca Lehigh 8 Anthony Sparacio Binghamton 149: 1 Kizhan Clarke American 2 Jimmy Hoffman Lehigh 3 Hunter Richard Cornell 4 Matt Kolodzik Princeton 5 Jared Prince Navy 6 Matthew Kolonia Bucknell 7 PJ Ogunsanya Army West Point 8 Ricky Cabanillas Brown 157: 1 Quincy Monday Princeton 2 Markus Hartman Army West Point 3 Josh Humphreys Lehigh 4 Parker Kropman Drexel 5 Kyle Mosher Columbia 6 Hunter Ladnier Harvard 7 Jaden Fisher Bucknell 8 Cole Aaron F&M 165: 1 Tanner Skidgel Navy 2 Philip Conigliaro Harvard 3 Zach Hartman Bucknell 4 Cael McCormick Army West Point 5 Ebed Jarrell Drexel 6 Grant Cuomo Princeton 7 Ricky Stamm Hofstra 8 Brian Meyer Lehigh 174: 1 Jordan Kutler Lehigh 2 Spencer Carey Navy 3 Ben Harvey Army West Point 4 Brandon Womack Cornell 5 Michael O'Malley Drexel 6 Sage Heller Hofstra 7 Kevin Parker Princeton 8 Mitch Hartman Bucknell 184: 1 Lou DePrez Binghamton 2 Chris Weiler Lehigh 3 Noah Stewart Army West Point 4 Tanner Harvey American 5 Jonathan Loew Cornell 6 Travis Stefanik Princeton 7 Kyle Davis Sacred Heart 8 Joe Franzese Columbia 197: 1 Patrick Brucki Princeton 2 Ben Darmstadt Cornell 3 John Jakobsen Lehigh 4 Jake Koser Navy 5 Drew Phipps Bucknell 6 JT Brown Army West Point 7 Cole Urbas Penn 8 Bryan McLaughlin Drexel 285: 1 Yaraslau Slavikouski Harvard 2 Ben Sullivan Army West Point 3 Jordan Wood Lehigh 4 Zachary Knighton-Ward Hofstra 5 Joe Doyle Binghamton 6 Ben Goldin Penn 7 Brendan Furman Cornell 8 Sean O'Malley Drexel The seeds will remain preliminary until locked in at weigh-ins on Friday morning.

Campbell's Josh Heil is seeded No. 1 at 141 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Related: Brackets SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Seeding for the 2020 Southern Conference Wrestling Championship has been released, the league office announced Tuesday. The tournament will take place Sunday at the Holmes Convention Center in Boone, North Carolina, with the SoCon title and 14 NCAA allocations on the line. Campbell will look to defend its tournament title from 2019 after taking this year's regular-season title, with Appalachian State finishing as a close second. Six of last year's SoCon individual champions will be back in the field this year, attempting to defend titles in their respective weight classes. Campbell's Korbin Meink (125), Josh Heil (149) and Chris Kober (184) all return after titles last year, with Heil dropping down to 141 pounds this year. Appalachian State's Codi Russell (133) and Cary Miller (HWT) are back for another year, while VMI's Neal Richards (174) attempts to defend his title. The SoCon was allocated 14 spots in the NCAA Championships, one for each weight class except for the 149, 174, 184 and 285-pound weight classes, which were awarded two each. Campbell's Meink, the defending 125-pound champion, will face stiff competition for his title as he enters as the third seed, with Chattanooga's Fabian Gutierrez and Appalachian State's Sean Carter seeded first and second, respectively. All three wrestlers were ranked in the latest NCAA coaches' panel, with Gutierrez ranked No. 24, Carter No. 28 and Meink coming in at No. 31. Campbell's Noah Gonser is aiming for his first title at 133 pounds after finishing as the runner-up last year. Ranked seventh in the latest NCAA coaches' panel, Gonser will have competition from Gardner-Webb's Trevon Majette and the reigning champion Russell, who enter the tournament as the second and third seed, respectively. Russell came in at No. 30 in the latest NCAA coaches' panel. Campbell's Heil will attempt to win a second SoCon title in a different weight class after taking the 149-pound title last season. Heil comes in as the top-seeded 141-pound wrestler and was No. 10 in the latest NCAA coaches' panel. Heil will have to fend off second-seeded Bradley Irwin of Appalachian State. Third-seeded Mason Wallace of Chattanooga and fourth-seeded Reid Stewart of Presbyterian will also look to challenge Heil in the weight class. The 149-pound weight class will see a new champion this year, with Appalachian State's Jonathan Millner entering as the favorite and the first seed. Millner was ranked No. 21 with second-seeded Tanner Smith of Chattanooga not far behind at No. 23. Campbell's Jason Kraisser enters as the third seed after leading the league with 11 pins this season. Appalachian State's Matt Zovistoski returns in a new weight class after finishing third at 149 pounds last season. The senior bumped up to the 157-pound weight class and earned the top seed and a No. 25 ranking in the latest NCAA coaches' panel. Campbell's Matthew Dallara is the second seed, with Presbyterian's Zachary Phillips and VMI's Will Lawrence seeded third and fourth, respectively. Campbell's Quentin Perez is the top seed at 165 pounds after taking a redshirt year last season. Perez won the 165-pound title during the 2016-17 season and was listed at No. 15 in the latest NCAA coaches' panel. The second and third seeds are occupied by Gardner-Webb's RJ Mosely and Appalachian State's Will Formato, respectively. The Citadel's Dazon Casto comes in as the fourth seed and was ranked No. 33 in the NCAA coaches' panel. Reigning champion Richards of VMI will have to settle for the second seed after Appalachian State's Thomas Flitz was awarded the top seed at 174 pounds after scoring a 12-11 decision over Richards in the final match of the regular season. Both wrestlers were included in the NCAA coaches' panel with Richards coming in at No. 16 and Flitz trailing him at No. 28. Campbell's Andrew Morgan made the jump to the 184-pound weight class and enters as the favorite and top seed for the tournament after an impressive regular season. Morgan was ranked No. 8 in the latest NCAA coaches' panel, as was the second-seed Matthew Waddell of Chattanooga at No. 22. Appalachian State's Julian Gorring and Presbyterian's Austin Stith rounding out the top half of the bracket as the third and fourth seeds, respectively. Chattanooga's Rodney Jones headlines the 197-weight class as the top-seeded wrestler with Campbell's Kober, last year's 184-pound champion, right behind as the second seed. Appalachian State's Demazio Samuel comes in as the third seed and VMI's Zach Brown enters as the fourth seed. The final weight class is headlined by two of the top heavyweights in the country in Campbell's Jere Heino and Appalachian State's Miller, the reigning conference champion in the weight class. Heino, the 2017-18 heavyweight champion, took the top seed while Miller comes in as the second seed. Both wrestlers were included in the NCAA coaches' panel with Heino at No. 13 and Miller at No. 24. The Citadel's Michael McAleavey and VMI's Chris Beck enter as the third and fourth seeds, respectively. Tickets for Sunday's action, which begins at 10 a.m., will be single-session with doors opening at 9 a.m. Prices are $15 for adults, $10 for youth (6-12). Students from Southern Conference schools, including wrestling associate member schools, can pick up a ticket free of charge simply by showing their school IDs. Seeds 125 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Fabian Gutierrez, Chattanooga 2. Sean Carter, Appalachian State 3. Korbin Meink, Campbell 4. Cian Fischer, Davidson 5. Jacob Brasseur, Presbyterian 6. Jordie White, The Citadel 7. Will Edmiston, Gardner-Webb 8. John McGarry, VMI 133 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Noah Gosner, Campbell 2. Trevon Majette, Gardner-Webb 3. Codi Russell, Appalachian State 4. Wade Cummings, Chattanooga 5. Kyle Gorant, Davidson 6. Cliff Conway, VMI 7. Nathan Orosco, The Citadel 8. Khalid Brinkley, Presbyterian 141 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Josh Heil, Campbell 2. Bradley Irwin, Appalachian State 3. Mason Wallace, Chattanooga 4. Reid Stewart, Presbyterian 5. Jacob Dado, The Citadel 6. Brandon Bright, Gardner-Webb 7. Noah Roulo, VMI 8. David Loniewski, Davidson 149 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Jonathan Millner, Appalachian State 2. Tanner Smith, Chattanooga 3. Jason Kraisser, Campbell 4. Selwyn Porter, The Citadel 5. Job Chishko, VMI 6. Will Baldwin, Davidson 7. Bryton Goering, Presbyterian 8. Anthony Schiess, Gardner-Webb 157 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Matt Zovistoski, Appalachian State 2. Matthew Dallara, Campbell 3. Zachary Phillips, Presbyterian 4. Will Lawrence, VMI 5. Douglas Gudenburr, The Citadel 6. Hunter Costa, Davidson 7. Tyler Shilson, Chattanooga 8. Christian Trimble, Gardner-Webb 165 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Quentin Perez, Campbell 2. RJ Mosely, Gardner-Webb 3. Will Formato, Appalachian State 4. Dazjon Casto, The Citadel 5. Drew Nicholson, Chattanooga 6. Noah Satterfield, Davidson 7. Jon Hoover, VMI 8. Parker Corwin, Presbyterian 174 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Thomas Flitz, Appalachian State 2. Neal Richards, VMI 3. Austin Kraisser, Campbell 4. Hunter Fortner, Chattanooga 5. Evan Schenk, Gardner-Webb 6. Steven Newell, Davidson 7. Kyle Kretzer, The Citadel 184 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Andrew Morgan, Campbell 2. Matthew Waddell, Chattanooga 3. Julian Gorring, Appalachian State 4. Austin Stith, Presbyterian 5. Samuel Mora, Gardner-Webb 6. Gavin Henry, Davidson 7. Max Gallahan, VMI 8. Cooper Youngblood, The Citadel 197 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Rodney Jones, Chattanooga 2. Chris Kober, Campbell 3. Demazio Samuel, Appalachian State 4. Zach Brown, VMI 5. Martin Duane, The Citadel 6. Roderick Davis, Gardner-Webb 285 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Jere Heino, Campbell 2. Cary Miller, Appalachian State 3. Michael McAleavey, The Citadel 4. Chris Beck, VMI 5. Grayson Walthall, Chattanooga 6. Mitchell Trigg, Davidson 7. Imani Heslop, Presbyterian 8. Gabriel Pickett, Gardner-Webb

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 2020 MAC Wrestling Championships coming March 7-8 and hosted by Northern Illinois University (NIU) in DeKalb, Ill. Listed below is the pre-seeding for the MAC Wrestling Championships following today's conference call with all 15 MAC head wrestling coaches. Each weight class will feature a 16-man bracket and feature full double-elimination. The MAC will release the final 2020 MAC Wrestling Championships bracket on Friday, March 6th. 125: 1. Drew Hildebrandt, Central Michigan, Junior 2. Luke Werner, Lock Haven, Junior 3. Killian Cardinale, Old Dominion, Sophomore 4. Cameron Valdiviez, Missouri, Sophomore 5. Bryce West, NIU, Sophomore 6. Jake Gromacki, Clarion, Senior 7. Logan Heil, Cleveland State, Freshman 8. Lucas Rodriguez, Edinboro, Sophomore *Jonathan Tropea, Rider, Junior *Tomas Gutierrez, Kent State, Junior *Christian Gannone, Bloomsburg, Freshman *Gage Datlovsky, SIUE, Senior *Trevor Giallonmbardo, Ohio, Junior *Jordan Reyes, Buffalo, Freshman *Talha Farooq, George Mason, Junior *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 133: 1. Tim Rooney, Kent State, Senior 2. Derek Spann, Buffalo, Junior 3. Allan Hart, Missouri, Sophomore 4. DJ Fehlman, Lock Haven, Senior 5. Josh Mason, Bloomsburg, Redshirt Freshman 6. Richie Koehler, Rider, Redshirt Freshman 7. Tye Varndell, Edinboro, Freshman 8. Justin Patrick, Cleveland State, Senior *Drew Marten, Central Michigan, Sophomore *Josh Jones, George Mason, Freshman *Caleb Brooks, NIU, Redshirt Freshman *Seth Koleno, Clarion, Sophomore *Giovanni DiSabato, Ohio, Redshirt Freshman *Shannon Hanna II, Old Dominion, Freshman *Jacob Blaha, SIUE, Sophomore *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 141: 1. Dresden Simon, Central Michigan, Junior 2. Evan Cheek, Cleveland State, Senior 3. Sa'Derian Perry, Old Dominion, Senior 4. Kyle Shoop, Lock Haven, Senior 5. Grant Leeth, Missouri, Junior 6. Shakur Laney, Ohio, Senior 7. Alex Madrigal, George Mason, Senior 8. Peter Lipari, Rider, Senior *Marcus Robinson, Buffalo, Redshirt Freshman *Anthony Gibson, NIU, Redshirt Freshman *Nate Hagan, Edinboro, Senior *Saul Ervin, SIUE, Redshirt Freshman *Cory Simpson, Kent State, Junior *Shawn Orem, Bloomsburg, Junior *Alexander Blake, Clarion, Freshman *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 149: 1. Brock Mauller, Missouri, Sophomore 2. Brock Zacherl, Clarion, Senior 3. Colston DiBlasi, George Mason, Senior 4. Tyshawn Williams, SIUE, Senior 5. Alec Hagan, Ohio, Sophomore 6. McCoy Kent, NIU, Senior 7. Kenan Carter, Old Dominion, Senior 8. Corbyn Munson, Central Michigan, Redshirt Freshman *Kody Komara, Kent State, Sophomore *Gino Fluri, Rider, Graduate *Tyler Vath, Edinboro, Senior *Aaron Coleman, Bloomsburg, Sophomore *Brock Port, Lock Haven, Sophomore *John Arceri, Buffalo, Senior *Gus Sutton, Cleveland State, Freshman *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 157: 1. Jesse Dellavecchia, Rider, Senior 2. Zac Carson, Ohio, Senior 3. Jarrett Jacques, Missouri, Sophomore 4. Justin Ruffin, SIUE, Sophomore 5. Larry Early, Old Dominion, Senior 6. Logan Parks, Central Michigan, Senior 7. Alex Klucker, Lock Haven, Senior 8. Michael Petite, Buffalo, Redshirt Freshman *Nico O'Dor, Cleveland State, Junior *Alex Carida, Bloomsburg, Sophomore *Kolby Ho, George Mason, Sophomore *Mason Kauffman, NIU, Sophomore *Taylor Ortz, Clarion, Junior *Brady Chrisman, Kent State, Redshirt Freshman *Peter Pappas, Edinboro, Sophomore *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 165: 1. Troy Keller, Buffalo, Senior 2. Peyton Mocco, Missouri, Redshirt Freshman 3. Izzak Olejnik, NIU, Redshirt Freshman 4. Cornelius Schuster, George Mason, Sophomore 5. Shane Jones, Old Dominion, Senior 6. Joe Terry, Ohio, Junior 7. Mike Bartolo, Clarion, Senior 8. Austin Bell, Lock Haven, Junior *Derek Ciavarro, Edinboro, Sophomore *Riley Smucker, Cleveland State, Redshirt Freshman *Chase Diehl, SIUE, Freshman *Tracy Hubbard, Central Michigan, Redshirt Freshman *Kade Byland, Kent State, Junior *Nate Newberry, Bloomsburg, Senior *Joe Casey, Rider, Redshirt Freshman *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 174: 1. Jacob Oliver, Edinboro, Sophomore 2. Dean Sherry, Rider, Senior 3. Andrew McNally, Kent State, Junior 4. Connor Flynn, Missouri, Senior 5. Jared Siegrist, Lock Haven, Senior 6. Kenny Moore, NIU, Senior 7. Anthony Lombardo, George Mason, Graduate 8. Logan Stanley, Ohio, Sophomore *Max Wohlabaugh, Clarion, Junior *Kevin Gschwendtner, SIUE, Junior *Alex Cramer, Old Dominion, Freshman *Jake Lowell, Central Michigan, Sophomore *Chase Archangelo, Cleveland State, Sophomore *Bryson Alsteen, Buffalo, Freshman *Anthony Vetrano, Bloomsburg, Senior *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 184: 1. Trevor Allard, Bloomsburg, Senior 2. Dylan Wisman, Missouri, Senior 3. George Walton, Rider, Sophomore 4. Brit Wilson, NIU, Sophomore 5. Corey Hazel, Lock Haven, Senior 6. Antonio Agee, Old Dominion, Senior 7. Pete Acciardi, Buffalo, Redshirt Freshman 8. Cody Mulligan, Edinboro, Redshirt Freshman *Ben Cushman, Central Michigan, Redshirt Freshman *Shane Mast, Kent State, Senior *Hunter Yeargan, Ohio, Senior *Luke Funck, Clarion, Junior *DeAndre Nassar, Cleveland State, Freshman *Austin Andres, SIUE, Redshirt Freshman *Paul Pierce, George Mason, Sophomore *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 197: 1. Greg Bulsak, Clarion, Junior 2. Ethan Laird, Rider, Junior 3. Wyatt Koelling, Missouri, Junior 4. Gage Braun, NIU, Redshirt Freshman 5. Ben Smith, Cleveland State, Sophomore 6. Landon Pelham, Central Michigan, Junior 7. Colin McCracken, Kent State, Sophomore 8. Sam Schuyler, Buffalo, Sophomore *Dylan Reynolds, Edinboro, Senior *Timothy Young, Old Dominion, Senior *Kyle Murphy, Bloomsburg, Senior *Jake Walker, Ohio, Junior *Parker McClellan, Lock Haven, Sophomore *Aric Bohn, SIUE, Redshirt Freshman *Ramses Montalvo, George Mason, Sophomore *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket. 285: 1. Matt Stencel, Central Michigan, Junior 2. Jon Spaulding, Edinboro, Junior 3. Jordan Earnest, Ohio, Redshirt Freshman 4. Colton McKiernan, SIUE, Sophomore 5. Ryan Cloud, Rider, Senior 6. Ty Bagoly, Clarion, Sophomore 7. Max Ihry, NIU, Junior 8. John Kelbly, Cleveland State, Sophomore *Jacob Bullock, Old Dominion, Freshman *Jake Bohlken, Missouri, Senior *Spencer Berthold, Kent State, Sophomore *Jarrett Walters, Bloomsburg, Sophomore *Nolan Terrance, Buffalo, Senior *Jake Slinger, George Mason, Freshman *Trey Hartsock, Lock Haven, Senior *After placement of seeds 1-8, these remaining wrestlers will be randomly drawn to fill spots on the 16-man bracket.

Iowa's Pat Lugo and Ohio State's Sammy Sasso met on Jan. 24, with the Buckeye freshman getting the win (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Conference tournament weekend is almost here, and this year's tournament field promises to bring a variety of interesting matches. The bouts could have a major impact on the seeding for the NCAA tournament, and conference bragging rights will be on the line. The following is a preview of the best potential match in every Division I conference tournament. Big Ten at 149: No. 1 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) vs. No. 2 Pat Lugo (Iowa) The Big Ten tournament could have as many as six matches between the No. 1 and No. 2 wrestlers in the InterMat rankings. However, the most intriguing potential bout might be the rematch between Sasso and Lugo at 149 pounds. The two met in a dual meet back in January, and Sasso handed the Iowa wrestler his only loss of the season. Sasso's signature defense was on full display as he was able to fend off multiple deep takedown attempts from Lugo before ultimately winning in tie breaker period. Since defeating Lugo, Sasso has risen to the No. 1 ranking and won five more matches including avenging a previous defeat against No. 7 Brayton Lee (Minnesota). He has continued to play it close at times and needed overtime to defeat No. 14 Jarod Verklreeren (Penn State). On the other hand Lugo has bounced back with a five-match winning streak. It had been a run of decisions until he scored a surprising first-period fall over No. 6 Boo Lewallen (Oklahoma State) in his last match before the tournament. It will be interesting to see how this match plays out in neutral territory. The crowd was certainly behind Lugo during their first match, and he was the more aggressive wrestler. Despite getting close on several takedown attempts, Sasso was able to escape each time. If that defense holds up, the Ohio State wrestler should be able to win another close match due to his edge on riding ability. However, a few slight tactical adjustments could make the difference and help Lugo enter the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed. Prediction: Lugo (Iowa) decision over Sasso (Ohio State) ACC at 184: No. 1 Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech) vs. No. 2 Trent Hidlay (North Carolina State) The apparent absence of multiple-time NCAA champion Zahid Valencia (Arizona State) has created a void at the top of 184 pounds. So far it looks like that void will be filled by a pair of wrestlers from the ACC. Bolen and Hidlay enter the conference tournament with a combined 44-5 record and a history. The two recently faced off on Valentine's Day with Bolen knocking off the freshman phenom from NC State. It was a close match, but Bolen escaped with a 3-1. It appeared as if the Virginia Tech senior was putting everything together at the right time, but he then suffered an upset against another ACC opponent No. 5 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh). Bonaccorsi may end up playing spoiler yet again and preventing this bout between the top wrestlers at this weight. Hidlay got back on track with a second-period technical fall over Kai Blake (Duke) after his loss to Bolen, so he will enter the conference tournament with some momentum. The redshirt freshman is 22-3 and holds wins over Ben Darmstadt (Cornell), No. 4 Louie DePrez (Binghamton) and No. 3 Taylor Lujan (Northern Iowa). Even though it was close, Bolen showed enough in their first meeting to be considered the favorite in this potential match. The ACC tournament in general should be interesting at this weight since three of the top five ranked wrestlers will be in the bracket. Prediction: Bolen (Virginia Tech) decision over Hidlay (North Carolina State) Big 12 at 197: No. 2 Noah Adams (West Virginia) vs. No. 10 Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) Adams has been one of the revelations of this season. After going 19-15 last season and failing to become an All-American, Adams has gone 29-0 and currently sits second in the InterMat rankings at 197. He will enter the Big 12 tournament as the prohibitive favorite at the weight. His biggest challenge will likely come from Sloan. The redshirt freshman has gone 18-5 for his first season in the lineup. He did not meet Adams during the regular season, but he did pick up victories over No. 16 Jake Woodley (Oklahoma) and Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming). Sloan's ability to score from the top position makes him a prime candidate to pull off an upset. With that being said, Adams should be up for the challenge. He has been able to turn on the scoring when needed this season, and he should be able to survive on the bottom against Sloan. Look for Adams to get out to an early lead and hold on for a decision victory. Prediction: Adams (West Virginia) decision over Sloan (South Dakota State) EIWA at 149: No. 4 Matt Kolodzik (Princeton) vs. Jared Prince (Navy) The plan for Kolodzik appeared to be an Olympic redshirt this season. However, he returned to the starting lineup in February. He has won all 10 of his matches since returning including three technical falls and a fall over Gerard Angelo (Rutgers) in his last match. Kolodzik will be one of the favorites at the EIWA tournament, but he may need to get past an old rival to win the tournament title. Last year Kolodzik appeared ready to run through the EIWA field, but instead he ran into Prince and dropped a 5-4 upset. Prince has been extremely limited this season, and he has only competed in four matches. Despite the limited schedule, he has already knocked off respected veterans Larry Early (Old Dominion) and P.J. Ogunsanya (Army). Kolodzik should be the favorite in this match, but this could easily be considered a tossup. Neither wrestler has been overly active, and Prince does hold a previous upset. With that being said, they have wrestled twice before that upset, and the Princeton wrestler won both via decision. Prediction: Kolodzik (Princeton) decision over Prince (Navy) MAC at 157: No. 5 Jesse Dellavecchia (Rider) vs. No. 12 Larry Early (Old Dominion) The EWL teams joining the MAC has created a very interesting conference tournament. Rider brings a variety of strong competitors to the school's first MAC tournament. Leading the way is Dellavecchia, who has been a strong performer at 157 pounds all year. He has gone 26-2 on the year. Dellavecchia's list of signature wins includes wins over Quincy Monday (Princeton), Markus Hartman (Army) and Mike Van Brill (Rutgers). Early is now a two-time NCAA qualifier, and he became an All-American for the first time last season. He has hit a few speed bumps, but he has still registered a 17-5 record on the year. These two met in late January, and the match was about as close as it can get. In the end, Dellavecchia won a 1-0 decision. If this bout ends up taking place at the MAC tournament, it might just be as close as their last meeting. Prediction: Dellavecchia (Rider) decision over Early (Old Dominion) Pac-12 at 197: No. 9 Kordell Norfleet (Arizona State) vs. No. 11 Nathan Traxler (Stanford) There is a bit of a dark cloud over the Arizona State program after Valencia's suspension. Nothing would raise that more than a conference title an All-American run for Norfleet. In order to get that started, he will need to get past Traxler. Norfleet has gone 12-3 on the year, and two of those three losses were close decisions against No. 1 Kollin Moore (Ohio State). Outside of that, he has picked up wins over Kyle Conel (Penn State), No. 13 Greg Bulsak (Clarion), No. 12 Thomas Lane (Cal Poly). Traxler is a two-time NCAA qualifier who is still looking to become an All-American for the first time. He has gone 19-4 on the season, but momentum might not be on his side entering the Pac-12 tournament. Traxler is only 3-2 in his last five matches and dropped a decision against Sloan in his last outing. The other other loss that Traxler lost during the stretch came against Norfleet, but it was a close match. In the end, the Arizona State wrestler ended up taking a 6-4 decision in sudden victory. A similar result here should be an upset, but Traxler is an above average wrestler who could easily go on a run this time of year. Prediction: Norfleet (Arizona State) decision over Traxler (Stanford) SoCon at 184: No. 9 Andrew Morgan (Campbell) vs. Matthew Waddell (Chattanooga) It is entirely possible that both of these wrestlers end up qualifying for the NCAA tournament since the SoCon was allocated two spots at 184 pounds. Morgan has been one of the top wrestlers in the conference this year, and one of the many highlights for the rising Campbell program. The senior has gone 26-6 and is currently riding an eight-match winning streak. During the streak, Morgan has dominated the competition and scored a technical fall and three falls. His only decision during the stretch came against Waddell. Even though Waddell dropped a 5-0 decision against Morgan, he still built a 20-8 record on the year. Since the Southern Scuffle, he has gone 8-2 with six wins coming via fall. Morgan has two wins over Waddell on the season, but at the same time this should be an interesting match. Waddell has given some top wrestlers tough matches this season, and this might just headline the SoCon tournament. Prediction: Morgan (Campbell) decision over Waddell (Chattanooga)

Iowa State's David Carr is pre-seeded No. 1 at 157 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Link: Brackets The Big 12 Conference has released the pre-seeds ahead of the Big 12 Wrestling Championship set for March 7-8 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Oklahoma State led the Conference with three No. 1 seeds, followed by two from Northern Iowa, while Iowa State, Oklahoma, Utah Valley, West Virginia and Wyoming had one each. The pre-seeds were voted into their positions by the league's 12 head coaches and are subject to change. Final seeds will be confirmed at Friday's pre-championship coaches meeting. The Cowboys' Nick Piccininni (125), Boo Lewallen (149) and Travis Wittlake (165) earned top seeds. Northern Iowa's Bryce Steiert (174) and Taylor Lujan (184) will be in the top spot in their respective weight class, while Wyoming's Montorie Bridges (133), Oklahoma's Dom Demas (141), Iowa State's David Carr (157), West Virginia's Noah Adams (197) and Utah Valley's Tate Orndorff (HWT) round out the top seeds. Tickets for the 2020 Big 12 Wrestling Championship can be purchased online through TicketMaster. This is the fifth consecutive year for the Big 12 Championship to be held at a neutral site as the league is the only Division I conference to host its wrestling championship away from a campus venue. Fans can follow the first three sessions on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ while the championship session will be broadcasted by Fox Sports Regional Networks.

Andrew Cerniglia gets his hand raised after a win in the Walsh Jesuit Ironman semifinals (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) As the second-to-last weekend of the high school regular season approaches, there are going to be some big-time grinder state championship weight brackets to keep an eye on. Six weight brackets feature three or more nationally ranked wrestlers competing together, while there is another weight that could see a showdown between wrestlers ranked in the top four nationally. Champ vs. champ: PA 2A 160: No. 3 Thayne Lawrence vs. No. 4 Andrew Cerniglia Two-time state champion Lawrence (Frazier) missed five-plus weeks of the season after sustaining an injury at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman in mid-December. In nine contested matches this postseason, Lawrence has five pins, three technical falls, and one 9-0 major decision victory. The Lehigh signee was runner-up at the Super 32 Challenge this fall. Returning state champion Cerniglia, who will be attending the Naval Academy next year, has tournament titles at the Beast of the East, My House Trojan Wars, and Escape the Rock on the season; his lone loss came 4-3 to No. 2 Padraic Gallagher in the Walsh Ironman finals. During the postseason, Cerniglia has five pins and two technical falls in seven bouts. In terms of their path to a champ-champ showdown, Lawrence could face returning state medalist Gavin Garcia (Southern Columbia) in the quarterfinal round; while Cerniglia is looking at a likely semifinal against either returning state placer Keegan Rothrock (St. Joseph's Catholic) or now two-time state qualifier Nolan Lear (Benton), who beat Garcia in the regional final this past weekend. A light foursome: New Jersey 106 pounds Two sets of neighboring rivals make up the four nationally ranked New Jersey state tournament competitors at 106 pounds, though all four were champions of different regions due to the realignment that is now in its second cycle. However, based on application of the NJSIAA seeding process, the top seed is Nico Calello (Watchung Hills); he advanced to the round of 12 last year in this weight class and has two losses on the season: one to 113-pound state participant Clayton Utter, and the other is a split against 14-seed Angelo Pellicci (St. Peter's Prep). As a result, the 4 vs. 5 match is No. 11 Evan Mougalian (Kinnelon) against No. 14 Tyler Vazquez (Delbaton). Mougalian is undefeated on the season including a 5-4 win over the freshman Vazquez in the Morris County finals; he missed state last year due to regional losses against a pair of state medalists (1-0 in overtime to Joseph Manno and 9-6 to Kelly Dunigan). The freshman Vazquez upset national No. 2 Marc-Anthony McGowan in the Beast of the East semifinal. In the other half of the bracket, the likely semifinal features Shore Conference rivals No. 4 Anthony Santaniello (Brick Memorial) and No. 5 Evan Tallmadge (Brick Township); those wrestlers are the second and third seeds respectively. The freshman Santaniello is undefeated on the season with a 1-0 win over Cadet National freestyle champion Tallmadge; for returning state qualifier Tallmadge, this is his lone loss of the season. Middleweight meatgrinder: Pennsylvania 3A 132 pounds Another state tournament bracket with four nationally ranked wrestlers is in Pennsylvania Class 3A, which is perennially the deepest and most rigorous state tournament in the country. This weekend two weights in this classification feature four nationally ranked wrestlers, including the 132-pound field where all four of the ranked wrestlers sit in the top 12 nationally. A pair of ranked wrestlers each qualified through the Northeast Regional and the WPIAL. No. 6 Kenny Herrmann (Bethlehem Catholic) and No. 12 Patrick Noonan (Stroudsburg) have split matches the last two weeks, Herrmann winning 7-5 in overtime at the District XI final, while Noonan won 1-0 in the Northeast Regional final. No. 10 Alejandro Herrera (Seneca Valley) beat No. 12 Gabe Willochell (Greater Latrobe) 4-2 in the WPIAL final this past weekend to avenge a 2-0 ultimate tiebreaker loss in the Powerade final. Two-time state champion Herrera is the top ranked of the five regional champions in the bracket, while 2018 state placers Matt Sarbo (Altoona) and Bryce Brennan (Red Land) are ranked second and third. As a result, now three-time state qualifier Noonan is the fourth ranked regional champion, which puts him in the same half as Herrera and in the champ/champ quarter with Zac Martin (Neshaminy). Even with Herrera looking at a possible quarterfinal against returning state placer Trenton Donahue (DuBois) and Noonan in the champ/champ quarter, it would be a shock if those two aren't in the semifinal. Down in the lower half-bracket, Willochell is looking at a quarterfinal match against Brennan, while Herrman is looking at a quarterfinal match with Sarbo, presuming Sarbo can clear returning state placer Cole Homet (Waynesburg) in the round of 16. Triple-A quad-pack at 170 (PA 3A) The other weight class across the country that features four nationally ranked wrestlers is in Pennsylvania 3A at 170 pounds, where No. 2 Trey Kibe (Mifflin County) seeks to earn a second state title as just a junior. However, he will face a difficult path to accomplish it. Two of the three other nationally ranked wrestlers are the regional champions in the opposite half of the draw, No. 8 Leonard Pinto (Stroudsburg) and No. 16 Dylan Reinert (Gettysburg). Those two wrestlers should meet in the semifinals. On the other hand, Kibe is looking at possibly having to beat two returning state medalists just to advance to the semifinal: Nick Delp (Kiski Area) in the round of 16, then No. 17 Angel Garcia (Mariana Bracetti Academy) in the quarterfinal. Garcia lost 12-6 to Pinto in the Northeast regional final this past week. In the champ/champ quarter of Kibe's half, Cadet national freestyle runner-up Mac Stout (Mount Lebanon) is most likely to clear to the semifinal; while regional champion Matt Romanelli (Downingtown East) faces returning state medalist Dominic Falcone (Easton) in the round of 16. Replica of last year? New Jersey 120 pounds The top four place-finishers at 113 pounds from last year's state tournament anchor this year's 120-pound weight class bracket. The top three place finishers are all nationally ranked in order of their state placing finish: No. 3 Dean Peterson (St. John Vianney), No. 8 Nick Babin (Emerson-Park Ridge), and No. 15 Vincent Santaniello (Brick Memorial). Three-time state placer Nick Kayal (Bergen Catholic) finished fourth. Peterson and Babin are the top two seeds, which makes sense. Somehow Santaniello dropped to the six-seed despite his only loss being 5-3 to Peterson in the Shore Conference final. Kayal is the fifth seed, as he has an in-season loss to the four-seed Joseph Davi (Delbarton). The third seed here is Matt DeStefanis (Randolph), who beat Davi in the regional final. The result is possibly quarterfinal matches placing DeStefanis vs. Santaniello and Davi vs. Kayal. Peterson is looking at a possibly quarterfinal match against either returning state medalist Shane Percelay (Pope John XXIII) or now multi-time state qualifier George Mazzeo (Paulsboro), who took Santaniello to the brink in a 3-2 ultimate tiebreaker loss in the regional final. Babin is looking at a possible quarterfinal against returning state placer Jack Maida (Shore Regional). Three in the top 10: Pennsylvania 2A 113 pounds A pair of state tournament weight brackets across the country this weekend feature three wrestlers ranked within the top ten nationally. The first of those is in Pennsylvania Class 2A at 113 pounds. 2018 state champion Gary Steen (Reynolds), who placed third at state last year, is the top ranked of the four regional champions; he is also ranked No. 6 nationally. The next two ranked regional champions are returning state placers No. 8 Joey Fischer (South Park) and Gavin Bradley (Athens), while the fourth ranked regional champion is No. 5 Brett Ungar (Notre Dame); Ungar was state champion last year as a junior for Hunterdon Central (N.J.), which yields less "ranking" points than an in-state state medalist. On the season, Ungar has split matches against Steen (loss at Ironman, win at state duals) with his other loss coming to national No. 2 Stevo Poulin in the East of the East final. The loss to Ungar at state duals was the lone loss of the season for Steen, who has titles at both Ironman and Powerade on the season. Ungar also has the toughest path of anyone in the field with a likely quarterfinal coming against returning state medalist Kai Burkett (Chestnut Ridge) in order to clear to the semifinal round. Three in the top 10: New Jersey 126 pounds The other weight class featuring three top ten wrestlers is in the Garden State at 126 pounds. Three-time state placer Eddie Ventresca (Pope John XXIII) is a Virginia Tech signee, a returning state champion, and ranked No. 3 nationally; three-time state finalist Robert Howard (Bergen Catholic) was state champion in 2018, and the Penn State signee is ranked No. 9 nationally; while two-time state placer Nico Nardone (Delbarton) is ranked No. 8 nationally, and a Class of 2021 commit to Penn. Mericfully the seeding outcome for the weight class actually makes sense, Ventresca is the top seed with Nardone the two and Howard the three; Nardone beat Howard 5-4 in a dual team state playoff bout. The fourth seed is two-time state placer McKenzie Bell (Kingsway Regional, N.J.) with the bracket's other returning state placer Alex Almeyda (St. Joseph Montvale) the sixth seed. Ventresca is looking at a likely quarterfinal against one of two now three-time state qualifiers, Logan Hoerle (Westfield) or Logan Mazzeo (Emerson-Park Ridge). In the other quarter of the top half, the likely match would place Bell against fifth-seed Sean Rendeiro (St. Peter's Prep), who had an in-season victory over two-time Super 32 placer Almeyda. Within the lower half-bracket, Howard is looking at a potential quarterfinal match against Almeyda. It should be noted that Howard's loss in last year's state final came against Sammy Alvarez, who also wrestled for St. Joseph Montvale. Nardone is looking at a potential quarterfinal against now three-time state qualifier Nico Messina (Freehold Boro).

Chad Dennis sits down with college buddy and wrestling junkie Jason Laflin as the two host a Facebook Live discussing the upcoming Big Ten Championships at Rutgers. Chad and Jason go weight-by-weight on Episode 48 of The MatBoss Podcast. About MatBoss: Created by coaches for coaches, MatBoss for iPad® integrates wrestling stats directly into the video you record for each match, completely replacing the need for labor-intensive pencil and paper scoring systems. It's the wrestling stats app our sport has been waiting for. Focus on coaching, not busy work Improve through video analysis Make data an advantage Eliminate scoring errors Increase exposure Become a digital coach For more information, visit MatBossApp.com. Follow MatBoss on Twitter and subscribe to the show @MatBossApp | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Spreaker | Google Podcasts | RSS

Virginia Tech's Hunter Bolen, ranked No. 1 nationally, is seeded No. 1 at 184 pounds (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Atlantic Coast Conference has announced seeding and brackets for the 2020 ACC Wrestling Championship, which will be held this Sunday (March 8) at Pitt's Petersen Events Center. The host Panthers lead with three wrestlers seeded No. 1 in their respective weight class brackets. Defending champion NC State, North Carolina and Virginia each earned two No. 1 seeds, and Virginia Tech has one. Seeds were determined by a vote of the league's six head coaches. Each weight class champion and runner-up at the 2020 ACC Championship will earn All-ACC recognition. In addition to ACC honors, student-athletes will be vying for berths and seeding in the 2020 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will be held March 19-21 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. The ACC has been awarded 35 automatic berths - the second-highest total in league history - and is hopeful of earning several more at-large selections. The ACC ended the regular season with a league-record four teams ranked among the nation's top nine, tying for the most among all conferences. No. 3 NC State, which posted an unbeaten dual meet record for the first time in the program's 91-year history, was followed by No. 7 North Carolina, No. 8 Pitt and No. 9 Virginia Tech. Twenty-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 12 among the top 10. Virginia Tech sophomore Hunter Bolen holds the highest ranking at No. 1 in a strong 184-pound weight class that also features No. 2 Trent Hidlay of NC State and No. 5 Nino Bonaccorsi of Pitt. Other nationally top-five ranked wrestlers from the ACC include Virginia senior Jack Mueller (No. 2 at 125), North Carolina's Austin O'Connor (No. 3 at 149) and NC State's Hayden Hidlay (No. 2 at 157). In addition to Mueller and Hayden Hidlay, returning ACC champions from 2019 expected to compete on Sunday include 133-pound Micky Phillippi of Pitt (last year's ACC Championship Most Outstanding Wrestler and currently No. 6 nationally), 165-pound David McFadden of Virginia Tech (ACC champion at 174 last season, ranked 10th in his current weight class) and Pitt heavyweight Demetrius Thomas (currently ranked eighth). Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youth (18 and under). Group tickets (15 people or more) are priced at $3 each. All seating for the tournament is General Admission. The doors to the Petersen Events Center will open at 10 a.m. on Sunday, with first-round action kicking 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. 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 early and consolations rounds, with the 7 p.m. finals set for live linear broadcast on ACC Network. Seeds for the 2020 ACC Wrestling Championship are listed below. Brackets for each weight class may be viewed here. Entries are subject to change until noon on Saturday. 125: 1. Jack Mueller, Virginia 2. Jakob Camacho, NC State 3. Joseph Melendez, North Carolina 4. Joey Prata, Virginia Tech 5. Louis Newell, Pitt 133: 1. Micky Phillippi, Pitt 2. Jaime Hernandez, North Carolina 3. Jarrett Trombley, NC State 4. Louie Hayes, Virginia 5. Collin Gerardi, Virginia Tech 6. Harrison Campbell, Duke 141: 1. Tariq Wilson, NC State 2. Zach Sherman, North Carolina 3. Mitch Moore, Virginia Tech 4. Cole Matthews, Pitt 5. Brian Courtney, Virginia 149: 1. Austin O'Connor, North Carolina 2. Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech 3. AJ Leitten, NC State 4. Denton Spencer, Virginia 5. Dallas Bulsak, Pitt 6. Wade Unger, Duke 157: 1. Hayden Hidlay, NC State 2. A.C. Headlee, North Carolina 3. Taleb Rahmani, Pitt 4. BC LaPrade, Virginia Tech 5. Justin McCoy, Virginia 6. Eric Carter, Duke 165: 1. Kennedy Monday, North Carolina 2. Thomas Bullard, NC State 3. David McFadden, Virginia Tech 4. Jake Wentzel, Pitt 5. Ben Anderson, Duke 6. Cam Coy, Virginia 197: 1. Gregg Harvey, Pitt 2. Daniel Bullard, NC State 3. Mason Eaglin, Duke 4. Clay Lautt, North Carolina 5. Cody Hughes, Virginia Tech 6. Vic Marcelli, Virginia 184: 1. Hunter Bolen, Virginia Tech 2. Trent Hidlay, NC State 3. Nino Bonaccorsi, Pitt 4. Michael Battista, Virginia 5. Joseph Mazzara, North Carolina 6. Kai Blake, Duke 197: 1. Jay Aiello, Virginia 2. Kellan Stout, Pitt 3. Brandon Whitman, North Carolina 4. Stan Smeltzer, Virginia Tech 5. Vincent Baker, Duke 6. Tyrie Houghton, NC State 285: 1. Demetrius Thomas, Pitt 2. Deonte Wilson, NC State 3. Quinn Miller, Virginia 4. John Borst, Virginia Tech 5. Andrew Gunning, North Carolina 6. Jonah Niesenbaum, Duke

PSU's Roman Bravo-Young defeated Iowa's Austin DeSanto earlier this season (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) The Big Ten has crowned the last 13 NCAA team champions in wrestling. And there is no reason to think that trend will change in 2020. The Big Ten is as strong as it has ever been and it's reflected in the national rankings. The Iowa Hawkeyes are ranked No. 1 in the country and all 10 of their wrestlers are top three pre-seeds at this weekend's Big Ten tournament at Rutgers. The power-packed tournament is sold out and expect another outstanding event as the Division I postseason kicks off. In addition to Iowa, Penn State is ranked second nationally followed by No. 3 Ohio State, No. 4 Nebraska, No. 6 Wisconsin, No. 7 Minnesota, No. 9 Purdue and No. 11 Northwestern. It's a loaded tournament with so many great matches expected as we move closer to the NCAA tournament later this month in Minneapolis. Here are my predictions for the Big Ten tournament: 125 Iowa's Spencer Lee has won two national titles, but he hasn't won a Big Ten title. That is expected to change as Lee is heavily favored to win in one of the conference's weaker weight classes. Lee has taken his game to another level and look for him to pile up a ton of bonus points this weekend. He even won the U.S. Nationals in freestyle midway through the season and is expected to contend for a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team this year. The 125 field also includes ranked wrestlers Devin Schroder of Purdue, Patrick McKee of Minnesota and Michael DeAugustino of Northwestern. But Lee should roll through this class at Big Tens. Finals prediction: Lee over Schroder 133 This weight class alone will be the worth the price of admission this weekend. There are some studs in the 133-pound bracket. 2018 NCAA champion Seth Gross of Wisconsin has had an outstanding run after transferring to Madison for his final college season. Gross will face his share of strong challengers. Gross split matches with third-ranked Austin DeSanto of Iowa this season, defeated No. 2 Roman Bravo-Young of Penn State by one point and won an epic battle against No. 5 Sebastian Rivera of Northwestern at the Midlands Championships. DeSanto was forced to injury default when he faced Bravo-Young in a dual meet at Iowa. Keep an eye on Rivera. He won Big Tens last year at 125, and he is a tough matchup for anyone. This deep class also includes No. 7 Travis Piotrowski of Illinois, No. 9 Sammy Alvarez of Rutgers and No. 13 Ridge Lovett of Nebraska. Finals prediction: Gross over DeSanto 141 One of the most anticipated matches of the season came when Penn State's Nick Lee and Ohio State's Luke Pletcher battled in a dual meet. Pletcher struck for the first takedown before Lee rallied to earn an impressive win in front of his home fans. Lee and Pletcher are ranked 1-2 in the country after both had outstanding regular seasons. They are tough, hard-nosed wrestlers who get after it. Let's hope they battle two more times in the postseason. The rest of the 141 class is very strong. It also includes No. 5 Max Murin of Iowa, No. 7 Chad Red of Nebraska, No. 8 Mitch McKee of Minnesota and No. 11 Tristan Moran of Wisconsin. Murin has had an excellent sophomore season for the Hawkeyes and is wrestling at a high level. Red is a two-time All-American who has the potential to beat anybody. McKee was an All-American last year who will finish his career at home in Minnesota. Finals prediction: Pletcher over Lee 149 There are a number of wrestlers who could ascend to the top spot in a weight class that isn't overly strong in the Big Ten. Ohio State freshman Sammy Sasso has made a big splash in Columbus. He's ranked No. 1 nationally and he knocked off returning All-American Pat Lugo of Iowa this season. Lugo, a senior, has dropped to No. 2 in the national rankings. He's been solid and appears to be hitting his peak at the right time. Minnesota freshman Brayton Lee is another wrestler to watch along with Kanen Storr of Michigan. Both are ranked in the top 10 in the country. Finals prediction: Lugo over Sasso 157 Northwestern's Ryan Deakin has emerged as the favorite in this class. Deakin is ranked No. 1 nationally. The junior has also become a top freestyle wrestler on the Senior level. Deakin's top challenger may be No. 2 Big Ten pre-seed Kaleb Young of Iowa. Young beat Deakin twice in the 2019 NCAA tournament -- in the quarterfinals and the fifth-place match. Both bouts went to overtime. The 157 class also includes No. 7 Kendall Coleman of Purdue, No. 8 Will Lewan of Michigan, No. 17 Jake Tucker of Michigan State and No. 18 Peyton Robb of Nebraska. Finals prediction: Deakin over Young 165 Penn State senior Vincenzo Joseph is hitting his peak in his final college campaign. The two-time national champion has been impressive, scoring big wins over No. 2 Alex Marinelli of Iowa and No. 4 Evan Wick of Wisconsin this season. Joseph is ranked No. 1 nationally. Fifth-ranked Isaiah White of Nebraska also is in the stacked 165-pound division. Marinelli and Wick are two-time All-Americans and White is an All-American. Marinelli defeated Joseph in the Big Ten finals last year en route to being named co-Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament. Finals prediction: Joseph over Marinelli 174 Penn State senior Mark Hall has had a tremendous career. He is a past national champion who is seeking his third straight Big Ten title. But two-time All-American Michael Kemerer of Iowa is the favorite here after knocking off Hall this season. Kemerer has come on strong to earn the No. 1 national ranking after missing last season with an injury. He bumped up two weight classes this season. Hall, a three-time NCAA finalist, will be looking to bounce back if he faces the Iowa junior again. Hall is ranked No. 2 in the country. This deep weight class also includes No. 4 Dylan Lydy of Purdue, No. 6 Devin Skatzka of Minnesota, No. 7 Mikey Labriola of Nebraska and No. 8 Kaleb Romero of Ohio State. Finals prediction: Hall over Kemerer 184 Penn State freshman Aaron Brooks, an age-group world champion, has continued to ascend in the rankings. Penn State's decision to pull the talented Brooks out of his redshirt may pay off in the postseason. Brooks has climbed to No. 6 in the national rankings. He's the highest ranked Big Ten wrestler at 184. This weight also includes No. 7 Cameron Caffey of Michigan State, No. 8 Abe Assad of Iowa and No. 10 Taylor Venz of Nebraska. Venz has had an up-and-down season, but he finished fourth at the 2018 NCAA tournament before reaching the round of 12 last year. Finals prediction: Brooks over Caffey 197 Ohio State's Kollin Moore had had a dominant senior season. An NCAA runner-up last year to Hodge Trophy winner Bo Nickal of Penn State, Moore is on course to capture his first national championship. Nebraska junior Eric Schultz has had a superb season and has moved up to No. 3 in the national rankings. Schultz is capable of making a run at the Big Ten finals. Iowa sophomore Jacob Warner is a returning All-American who is ranked fourth in the country. Warner has been solid, but he was an elite recruit who could be on the verge of a breakthrough. Purdue's Christian Brunner is another guy to keep an eye on. He's ranked No. 7 in the country. Finals prediction: Moore over Warner 285 Minnesota's top-ranked Gable Steveson missed the first half of the season, but he's looked very good since he's come back. The talented Steveson is the total package, a strong and explosive wrestler with technical skills to match. He will be tough to beat if he stays aggressive and doesn't let his opponents hang around. One wrestler capable to challenging Steveson is Michigan's second-ranked Mason Parris, who continues to make gains with his wrestling. He has had an excellent season. The Junior world champion has a huge motor and likes to push the pace in his matches. Iowa freshman Tony Cassioppi has been a welcome addition to an already loaded Hawkeye lineup. Cassioppi wrestles with the poise of an older wrestler. He is ranked third in the nation. Wisconsin's sixth-ranked Trent Hillger, a returning All-American, is another excellent wrestler in this weight class. Finals prediction: Steveson over Parris Team Iowa's lineup is loaded from top to bottom. The Hawkeyes are favored to win a strong tournament that includes a talented Penn State team. Iowa would really need to stumble to not win this. Ohio State, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Minnesota also are teams that could jump into the mix. Don't be surprised if the Huskers sneak into the top three. Top 3 teams: Iowa, Penn State, Nebraska Craig Sesker has written about wrestling for more than three decades. He's covered three Olympic Games and is a two-time national wrestling writer of the year.

When it comes to a news story, there's often "more to the story" that goes beyond the headlines. At a hearing of the Civil Justice Committee of the Ohio House of Representatives in mid-February, the testimony of Adam DiSabato -- an Ohio State wrestler from 1988 through 1993 who served as team captain, and was assaulted by Richard Strauss, Ohio State physician -- made headlines in countless news reports across the nation for his comments on Jim Jordan, who, prior to becoming a Republican Congressman from Ohio, was an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State while DiSabato was a Buckeye mat star. Adam DiSabato: Testimony that went beyond the headlines During the committee hearing at the Ohio State House last month, Adam DiSabato revealed that Jordan had called him repeatedly on Independence Day in 2018, after media outlets had quoted Adam's brother, Michael DiSabato, who said that Strauss' sexual abuse was common knowledge to those within the Buckeye wrestling program, including Jordan. "Jim Jordan called me crying -- crying, groveling on the Fourth of July, begging me to go against my brother. Begging me. Crying for a half hour -- that's the kind of cover up that's going on there." That statement made by Adam DiSabato became essentially THE headline from his testimony at the Ohio House hearing. Adam DiSabatoJordan, an assistant coach for the wrestling team at OSU from 1987 to 1995, has denied knowledge of lewd behavior at university facilities. Adam DiSabato is among the former OSU wrestlers who have filed lawsuits against the school alleging it ignored Strauss' abuse. Since the allegations against Ohio State doctor Richard Strauss first came to light in April 2018, some of the Buckeye wrestlers who have said they were sexual assault victims have claimed that they told their coaches -- head coach Russ Hellickson, and assistant coach Jim Jordan -- of Strauss' crimes ... or have said that, in essence, there was no way the coaches would NOT have been aware of Strauss' behavior. "I went to Russ Hellickson. I went to Jim Jordan," Adam DiSabato told the Civil Justice Committee of the Ohio House in February. "I went to them as a captain, begging them to do something. They did nothing. They told me they went to their superiors. Their superiors told them to be happy where they're at and keep their mouths shut. That was Archie Griffin, two-time Heisman winner who a lot of us idolized. He was our AD at the time ..." (A Columbus native, Griffith played fullback for Ohio State, winning the Heisman Trophy -- the top honor in college football -- in 1974 and 1975 ... before becoming athletic director at his college alma mater.) When asked by a committee member about Jim Jordan, Adam DiSabato responded, "He's thrown us under the bus as a coach. He's not a leader. I would never abandon my team. He abandoned us. Our head coach abandoned us." Towards the end of his testimony, Adam DiSabato told the committee, "I was inducted into the Ohio State Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006. I earned it. I fought for the University. It's not fighting for me. It's your job to fight for me now. That's all I have to say." The harrowing written testimony of John Doe 32 Not all the testimony presented to the Ohio House Civil Justice Committee was delivered verbally by those who suffered sexual assault at the hands of Dr. Strauss. One particularly disturbing example was read by Sonia Walker, who had been asked by one of the victims -- identified as John Doe 32 -- to read his wife's victim impact statement on behalf of her husband, in support of Ohio House Bill 249, which seeks to allow victims to sue Ohio State for monetary damages without any statute of limitations. John Doe 32, who wrestled and also participated in a second sport at Ohio State, had lost his mother while away at college ... and fell into ill health. He decided it was time to visit the training room at Larkins Hall, Ohio State's multi-purpose building that housed intramural sports as well as a number of varsity sports such as wrestling, to get help from Dr. Strauss. Richard Strauss"Dr. Strauss made me sit and wait to see him. It seemed like forever. He made me wait until everyone else in the training room was gone. He then approached me and gave me what he said was pain medication, as he walked me from the training room to the locker room. By the time Dr. Strauss began to examine me, I was groggy and felt like I was going to pass out. What happened next, though, was so disturbing that it is impossible to forget. "Dr. Strauss instructed me to pull my pants down. Then he pulled up a chair and sat with his face directly in my groin. He began to poke around my lower stomach and genitals, and seemed especially focused on my genitals. Then he began to pull on my penis repeatedly. That's when he asked, "Does this hurt?" I kept asking -- louder and more persistent each time -- "What are you doing?" Finally he stopped. And then I passed out. "I'm not sure how long I was out, but I eventually woke up face down on the ground because of unbearable rectal pain. As I came to, I realized the pain was because Dr. Strauss was lying behind me, raping me. Then in a creepy, high-pitched voice, Dr. Strauss asked, "Are you okay?" John Doe 32 then went on to say that both he and Strauss were covered in blood. "The next day I told my head wrestling coach what happened. He accused me of lying and we had a very loud argument about it. He demeaned me, argued with me, and only because of my insistence finally said that he would 'take care of it.' What happened, instead, was that he blacklisted me ..." Later in the written testimony, the wife of John Doe 32 concluded her presentation where she had shared what had happened to her husband. "I look into my husband's once strong eyes and I see a lost soul and devastation, my heart is hurting for him. My emotions are racing faster than any time in my life. Our difficulty in our marriage in the last year and a half makes complete sense now. Ever since he shared his story with OSU's investigative group, he has been completely distant and an emotional wreck. My husband bravely reported his horrific experience with Dr. Strauss at the time it happened. Because of OSU's lack of response, he has alone shouldered this burden and shame for years. I will stand by him and help him recover, I'm not sure what the future will bring but, we will get through this." Dan Ritchie: "I am here to speak for those who continue to suffer in silence" Dan Ritchie, who had wrestled for Ohio State until withdrawing from the program after being repeatedly sexually assaulted by Strauss, provided written testimony which was presented to the Ohio House Civil Justice Committee in mid-February. "It took me a long time to step out from the safety of anonymity. But more voices needed to be heard firsthand. I am here to speak for those who continue to suffer in silence, who live with this every day, with the guilt and the shame and the embarrassment that was never supposed to be ours to carry," according to Ritchie. "This was not supposed to happen to us but now we have to live with this. And tragically now so do people who are closest to us, our wives, our children and our friends. "When this first came out over a year and a half ago, it was like a weight being lifted ... What I didn't realize the depth and scope of the abuse, and cover-up before I was recruited." More about the alleged victims of Dr. Strauss Just about all of the victims who have said they were sexually assaulted by Richard Strauss during his time as a sports and student health physician at Ohio State were male students at the Big Ten school in Columbus. Most of them were athletes in a number of varsity sports. However, some victims were students who had been examined by Strauss in his role as a student health physician. In addition, a college wrestling referee -- identified as John Doe 42 -- had stated in a lawsuit filed last fall that Strauss had approached him the shower room at St. John Arena at Ohio State after a Buckeye dual meet, standing close enough to touch the referee, and proceeded to start masturbating and make comments about the referee's physique. Furthermore, there have been reports that a ten-year-old male was raped by Strauss while attending a wrestling camp at Ohio State. Last year, a law firm conducted an in-depth investigation of the allegations against Strauss, interviewing approximately 500 individuals. Their report indicated that at least 177 students had been assaulted, including 48 wrestlers (the greatest number of athletes from a particular sport), as well as male athletes in a number of other varsity sports. More recent numbers indicate that just over 350 students were Strauss' victims. In total, Ohio State has stated there were nearly 1,500 instances of sexual abuse tied to the doctor. After Strauss retired from Ohio State in 1998, he moved to California. He died by suicide in 2005. What about Jim Jordan? What does he have to say about the Strauss situation? Adam DiSabato's testimony before an Ohio House committee which alleged that Jordan had been aware of the situation but did nothing about it, generated headlines across the nation. However, Jordan has steadfastly denied having any knowledge of Strauss' alleged behavior during the time Jordan was an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. (Jordan was on the coaching staff while he was earning a Master's in education at Ohio State, then a law degree from Capital University in Columbus.) Prior to joining the Buckeye wrestling coaching staff, Jim Jordan had been a successful wrestler -- as a four-time Ohio state champ for the nationally ranked Graham High in St. Paris, and as a two-time NCAA champ at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Jordan entered politics in 2001, first serving in the Ohio House as a Republican. He was then elected to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2006, and has represented the 4th Congressional District of Ohio to this day. Jordan and his office have steadfastly denied that the Congressman had any knowledge of any abuse of Ohio State students at the hands of Strauss. For example, in responding to Adam DiSabato's testimony to the Ohio House Civil Justice Committee last month, Ian Fury, a Jordan spokesman, issued a statement which called DiSabato's testimony "another lie." "Congressman Jordan never saw or heard of any abuse, and if he had he would have dealt with it," Fury said. Jordan's office has issued similar statements in response to others who have claimed that the Congressman had knowledge of the abuse. What's more, there is a website -- StandWithJimJordan.com -- which includes testimonials from a number of individuals, including wrestlers and coaches, some with ties to Ohio State ... all supporting the Congressman. What is being done to seek justice for victims? Action is being taken on a number of fronts to attempt to find justice for victims of Dr. Strauss. In addition to the nearly dozen lawsuits filed by Strauss' victims, there is legislation pending in the Ohio House -- House Bill 249 -- which would permit a victim to bring a civil action for damages against a land-grand university (in this case, Ohio State) for injury or loss to person or property which were caused by sexual misconduct committed by a physician who was a university employee ... with no statute of limitations. A possible solution which may result in an even faster form of justice for Strauss' victims made news this past week. Last Thursday, the Ohio State trustees passed a resolution authorizing the board chairman to approve a settlement with Strauss' victims. The resolution positions the university to expedite a settlement. Now, an apparently similar situation took place with athletes at University of Michigan ... In the past couple weeks, reports have emerged from the University of Michigan that Dr. Robert Anderson, a former director of the University Health Service at the Ann Arbor school, allegedly sexually assaulted a number of student-athletes during medical exams. Anderson had served as a top physician for various Wolverine intercollegiate sports teams -- including the wrestling program -- from 1968 until his retirement in 2003. (Anderson died in 2008.) Nearly a dozen men -- all former Michigan athletes -- have now come forward to say they were victimized by Anderson. At least three of them were once wrestlers: Tad Deluca, Thomas Evashevski, and Andy Hrovat. Deluca has said that, when he wrote a letter to his coach and the Michigan AD in 1975, the coach read the letter aloud to the entire team, then kicked him off the team, and stripped him of his scholarship. (The coach has no memory of any of that happening.) Hrovat, an NCAA All-American wrestler for the Wolverines two decades ago -- and member of the U.S. men's freestyle wrestling team who competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics -- made public his experiences with Anderson nearly two weeks ago. InterMat will continue to cover developments regarding past sexual abuse of student-athletes at both Ohio State and University of Michigan.

Seth Gross is pre-seeded No. 1 at 133 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) ROSEMONT, Ill. -- The Big Ten Conference announced the preliminary seeds for the 2020 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, which are set for March 7-8 at Rutgers. Six schools boast at least one top-seeded wrestler, with Penn State leading the way with three No. 1 seeds. The pre-seeds, as voted on by the conference's coaches, rank 14 starters in all 10 weight classes. Penn State boasts four top-seeded wrestlers, with 141-pounder Nick Lee, 165-pounder Vincenzo Joseph and 184-pounder Aaron Brooks. Iowa's Michael Kemerer (174) and Spencer Lee (125), Michigan's Mason Parris (285), Northwestern's Ryan Deakin (157), Ohio State's Kollin Moore (197) and Sammy Sasso (149), and Wisconsin's Seth Gross (133) round out the group of top-ranked grapplers. This year's field contains a combined six Big Ten individual championships (four wrestlers) and six NCAA individual championships (five wrestlers). For more information on the 2020 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, visit the Big Ten Championships Central page here. The complete list of Big Ten Championships pre-seeds can be found below. 125: 1. Spencer Lee, IOWA 2. Devin Schroder, PUR 3. Patrick McKee, MINN 4. Justin Cardani, ILL 5. Jack Medley, MICH 6. Michael DeAugustino, NU 7. Liam Cronin, IND 8. Nicolas Aguilar, RU 9. Eric Barnett, WIS 10. Alex Thomsen, NEB 11. Malik Heinselman, OSU 12. Logan Griffin, MSU 13. Brandon Cray, MD 14. Brandon Meredith, PSU 133: 1. Seth Gross, WIS 2. Roman Bravo-Young, PSU 3. Austin DeSanto, IOWA 4. Travis Piotrowski, ILL 5. Sebastian Rivera, NU 6. Ridge Lovett, NEB 7. Sammy Alvarez, RU 8. Joey Silva, MICH 9. Cayden Rooks, IND 10. Garrett Pepple, MSU 11. Boo Dryden, MINN 12. Travis Ford-Melton, PUR 13. King Sandoval, MD 14. Jordan Decatur, OSU 141: 1. Nick Lee, PSU 2. Luke Pletcher, OSU 3. Max Murin, IOWA 4. Chad Red, NEB 5. Tristan Moran, WIS 6. Mitch McKee, MINN 7. Dylan Duncan, ILL 8. Parker Filius, PUR 9. Cole Mattin, MICH 10. Alec McKenna, NU 11. JoJo Aragona, RU 12. Matt Santos, MSU 13. Eddie Bolivar, IND 14. Hunter Baxter, MD 149: 1. Sammy Sasso, OSU 2. Pat Lugo, IOWA 3. Brayton Lee, MINN 4. Kanen Storr, MICH 5. Graham Rooks, IND 6. Cole Martin, WIS 7. Collin Purinton, NEB 8. Jarod Verkleeren, PSU 9. Yahya Thomas, NU 10. Griffin Parriott, PUR 11. Gerard Angelo, RU 12. Alex Hrisopoulos, MSU 13. Mousa Jodeh, ILL 14. Ryan Garlitz, MD 157: 1. Ryan Deakin, NU 2. Kaleb Young, IOWA 3. Kendall Coleman, PUR 4. Will Lewan, MICH 5. Ryan Thomas, MINN 6. Jake Tucker, MSU 7. Peyton Robb, NEB 8. Eric Barone, ILL 9. Michael VanBrill, RU 10. Jahi Jones, MD 11. Elijah Cleary, OSU 12. Garrett Model, WIS 13. Bo Pipher, PSU 14. Fernie Silva, IND 165: 1. Vincenzo Joseph, PSU 2. Alex Marinelli, IOWA 3. Evan Wick, WIS 4. Isaiah White, NEB 5. Ethan Smith, OSU 6. Shayne Oster, NU 7. Danny Braunagel, ILL 8. Bailee O'Reilly, MINN 9. Drew Hughes, MSU 10. Kyle Cochran, MD 11. Brett Donner, RU 12. Tyler Meisinger, MICH 13. Tanner Webster, PUR 14. Diego Lemley, IND 174: 1. Michael Kemerer, IOWA 2. Mark Hall, PSU 3. Dylan Lydy, PUR 4. Devin Skatzka, MINN 5. Mikey Labriola, NEB 6. Kaleb Romero, OSU 7. Joey Gunther, ILL 8. Layne Malczewski, MSU 9. Tyler Morland, NU 10. Willie Scott , RU 11. Jared Krattiger, WIS 12. Philip Spadafora, MD 13. Max Maylor, MICH 14. NO ENTRY, IND 184: 1. Aaron Brooks, PSU 2. Cameron Caffey, MSU 3. Abe Assad, IOWA 4. Taylor Venz, NEB 5. Billy Janzer, RU 6. Rocky Jordan, OSU 7. Zac Braunagel, ILL 8. Owen Webster, MINN 9. Johnny Sebastian, WIS 10. Jelani Embree, MICH 11. Max Lyon, PUR 12. Jack Jessen, NU 13. Jake Hinz, IND 14. Kyle Jasenski, MD 197: 1. Kollin Moore, OSU 2. Eric Schultz, NEB 3. Jacob Warner, IOWA 4. Christian Brunner, PUR 5. Lucas Davison, NU 6. Shakur Rasheed, PSU 7. Jordan Pagano, RU 8. Jackson Striggow, MICH 9. Jaron Smith, MD 10. Hunter Ritter, MINN 11. Matt Wroblewski, ILL 12. Nick May, MSU 13. Taylor Watkins, WIS 14. Nick Willham, IND 285: 1. Mason Parris, MICH 2. Gable Steveson, MINN 3. Tony Cassioppi, IOWA 4. Trent Hillger, WIS 5. David Jensen, NEB 6. Gary Traub, OSU 7. Seth Nevillis, PSU 8. Thomas Penola, PUR 9. Luke Luffman, ILL 10. Alex Esposito, RU 11. Christian Rebottaro, MSU 12. Jake Kleimola, IND 13. Jack Heyob, NU 14. Parker Robinson, MD

Two weeks ago, BJJ Fanatics announced a unique 2020 Leap Day event, featuring a wrestler vs. a submission grappler in two different matches featuring two different forms of combat -- freestyle wrestling ... and submission fighting. The results in this two-part main event on Saturday, Feb. 29.: the wrestler - Pat Downey III -- won the freestyle match conducted under freestyle rules ... while Gordon Ryan, ADCC Submission Fighting World Federation Champion, came out the winner in a Brazilian jiu jitsu match with no time limit, with winner to be determined by submission only. The submission fighting match took place first. Pat Downey, Steve Mocco and Gordon RyanHere's how Jiu Jitsu Times opened its coverage of the submission bout: "As the submission grappling match kicked off, the competitors spent a few minutes on their feet fighting for grips. Downey managed to get Ryan to his knees, but the athletes quickly sprung back to their feet, where they stayed for a few more minutes. Although there were a few attempts at arm drags and foot sweeps, it was still some time before Downey was able to force Ryan to his knees again. There was a quick scramble, but the grapplers ultimately returned to their feet. "Downey once again got Ryan to the ground, but this time, Ryan opted to stay down and play guard. The two combatants went out of bounds, so they returned to the competitive area. "Ryan managed to secure a triangle from the back," Jiu Jitsu Times continued. "Although he didn't have a submission locked in, Downey tapped out multiple times, grabbing his shoulder and arm as if in pain. Ryan was declared the winner of the match by submission." In the wrestling match, Downey's mat background -- as a former junior college champ, NCAA Division I All-American, and 2019 U.S. Open Champion and placer at the 2019 World Championships - served him well, as he earned a 11-0 technical fall over Ryan. "Downey wasted no time in getting Ryan to the floor," according to Jiu Jitsu Times. "After the two went out of bounds, they were reset, and Downey was able to get Ryan to the ground again and roll him over multiple times to quickly end the match by tech fall." After the evening's two bouts, Pat Downey posted this on his Instagram account:

Spencer Lee is 15-0 with bonus points in all 15 matches (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) It would not be considered a stretch to say that the Big Ten Conference is the premiere collegiate wrestling conference. This year multiple wrestlers from the 14 member schools will enter the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships with a good chance to win, but none will be as big of favorite as No. 1 Spencer Lee. The Iowa junior will be looking for his third straight NCAA title. For the season, he has been utterly dominant. The following looks at how he has statistically separated himself from the field heading into the Big Ten Conference tournament. Points per minute Lee currently ranks first in match points scored per minute among Big Ten starters. Including all matches, he has scored 3.64 points per minute. Not only does this scoring rate rank first in the Big Ten, but it also puts himself well ahead of the field. No. 6 Devin Schroder (Purdue) currently ranks second in points per minute with only 1.72. The average among Big Ten starters is 1.15. Points against per minute Lee allowed five points in his season-opening match against Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga). Through the rest of the regular season he surrendered only eight points total. Three of those points came last weekend in his major decision victory over No. 4 Nick Piccinnni (Oklahoma State). In between those two matches Lee pitched 10 shutouts. For the season Lee has allowed his opponents to only score 0.26 points per minute. Once again the Iowa wrestler outpaces the field as the average for a Big Ten starter is more than twice as high at 0.68. Point differential Since Lee is far ahead of the conference in terms of both points per minute and points against per minute, it should not come as a surprise that he also has the best point differential on the year (match points scored per minute minus points against per minute). His +3.38 differential is more than seven times the average for a Big Ten starter (+0.47). Interestingly enough his differential has actually been better when facing Big Ten opposition. Against Big Ten opponents, Lee has a +4.09 differential. When including matches only intra-conference matches, the average for a Big Ten starter falls to +0.32. Schroder is actually second in all three of the previous categories, and he has clearly cemented himself as the No. 2 seed at this weight class heading into the conference tournament. Lee and Schroder met earlier this year. Lee scored a 15-0 technical fall in the first period. Schroder surrendered only 71 match points during the season, which means that 21% of the points her allowed were scored by Lee in less than a period. Average match length (without forfeits) Lee has scored eight technical falls and three falls on the year. Only his three matches against Gutierrez, Piccininni and No. 17 Jack Medley (Michigan) have gone the full seven minutes. His quickest victory of the year came when he scored a 52-second fall over Christian Moody (Oklahoma) at the Midlands Championships. The average match for Lee has gone only 3:33. The next shortest average match time among starters is 5:45 (Schroder) and the average for a Big Ten starter is 6:10. Saved time (without forfeits) By terminating 11 of his matches early, Lee has saved himself a significant amount of time on the mat. If all of his matches had gone the full seven minutes, he would have wrestled an extra 48:19. The Big Ten Conference tournament will feature six wrestlers currently ranked by InterMat, and there will be eight qualification spots up for grabs. Upsets certainly happen, but it is hard to see how Lee does not work his way through the tournament and enter the NCAA bracket as the No. 1 seed. Last year he finished the regular season with only a +2.08 match point differential, and he went on to win the national title. Then again, Lee has never won a Big Ten tournament despite owning a pair of NCAA tournament titles.

'Beat the Streets returns to Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) NEW YORK -- One of the highlights on the annual amateur wrestling calendar returns for the 11th straight year as Beat the Streets Wrestling (BTS), the largest grassroots inner city wrestling program in the United States, and USA Wrestling today announced that the annual BTS benefit will be held on Thursday, May 28. The thrilling night of wrestling, dubbed "Grapple at the Garden," will again be held at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden after making a highly successful, sold-out debut there in 2019 following nearly a decade at various other iconic New York City venues. The bouts will again be followed by the annual Benefit Celebration, which recognizes not only the elite athletes who compete at the event but also the BTS standout youth wrestlers who epitomize the work that the not-for-profit organization does year-round. Expected to compete are BTS wrestlers along with a national high school All-Star match-up, NCAA Champions and international Olympic men and women, and potentially mixed martial arts athletes who began as wrestlers. Ticket information as well as the athletes, matchups, schedule and broadcast details will be announced at a later date. "We couldn't have been more pleased with the response to our first year at Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden," said Beat the Streets Executive Director Brendan Buckley. "The sold-out crowd brought a non-stop energy, fueled by world-class wrestling action from top to bottom. We expect it will be an even hotter ticket this year with the Tokyo Olympics on the horizon." "The Board of Beat the Streets is excited to present another outstanding competition as we raise funds for the youth of New York City," added BTS Chairman of the Board Ray Barczak. "The support we receive from donors, fans and others during our annual benefit allows us to achieve our mission. With more than 3,000 male and female student-athletes participating in more than 150 programs across the region, Beat the Streets is in its 14th year of changing lives and providing opportunities that truly make a difference." Beat the Streets Benefit competitions began in 2010 and have since become a major showcase of the best of international wrestling. This unique and electrifying annual event has helped BTS raise millions of dollars to support local youth wrestling programs which empower young people in New York City. The 2019 event raised $1.3 million for the organization. Appearances by Olympic champions Jordan Burroughs (2012, gold), Kyle Snyder (2016, gold) and J'den Cox (2016, bronze) and local favorites like Nick Suriano (Rutgers University/Paramus, N.J.), James Green (Willingboro, N.J.) and Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers/So. Plainfield, N.J.) were among the night's many crowd-pleasing highlights. The first Beat the Streets Benefit was held on the U.S.S. Intrepid, an aircraft carrier docked on the west side of Manhattan. Since then, the benefit has taken place at other notable New York City spots like Grand Central Terminal and Times Square. Team USA has faced off against teams from around the world including Japan, Cuba, Russia, Iran and Canada, as well as international all-star teams. In 2018, the competition was hosted at the new Pier 17 in the Seaport District and included the highly anticipated Burroughs vs. Frank Chamizo (Italy) match. New York City's Madison Square Garden is one of the most famous sporting and entertainment venues in the world. The Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden is an impressive venue with the capacity to seat over 5,000. The theater has hosted notable wrestling events including the 1998 Goodwill Games wrestling competition and the 2017 Grapple at the Garden college wrestling event. About Beat the Streets The mission of Beat the Streets is to develop the full potential of the urban youth and to strengthen the culture of New York City wrestling. BTS works directly with the New York City Department of Education in a public-private partnership to bring the life changing sport of wrestling to over 3,000 New York City student-athletes to help them achieve their personal and athletic goals. Through the operation of wrestling programs in middle and high schools in the five boroughs, BTS and the DOE provide a safe, positive atmosphere in which disadvantaged and at-risk youth can learn the essential life lessons of grit, personal responsibility and teamwork, physical fitness and nutrition, and life-long learning. The goal of fostering strong, well-rounded student-athletes is delivered through coaching, after-school programs, life skills workshops, and summer camps. More information can be found at www.btsny.org. About USA Wrestling USA Wrestling is the National Governing Body for the Sport of Wrestling in the United States and, as such, is its representative to the United States Olympic Committee and United World Wrestling, the international wrestling federation. Simply, USA Wrestling is the central organization that coordinates amateur wrestling programs in the nation and works to create interest and participation in these programs. It has over 250,000 members across the nation, boys and girls, men and women of all ages, representing all levels of the sport. Its president is Bruce Baumgartner, and its Executive Director is Rich Bender. More information can be found at TheMat.com

Princeton's Matthew Kolodzik will look to win his third EIWA title (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) The nation's oldest college wrestling tournament returns to familiar surroundings after consecutive years at first-time hosts. Lehigh University has hosted 24 times, more than any other school; this will be the twelfth time at Stabler Arena. Two years ago the Mountain Hawks broke Cornell's remarkable record of eleven consecutive team titles, then repeated as team champion at Binghamton. Lehigh hopes to defend on their home mats, while challenges may come from several avenues in a year where it's unlikely any team can run away with the title. The Princeton Tigers beat both Lehigh and Cornell (the winners of the last 18 tournaments) in dual meets this season, took down cross-state rival Rutgers for the first time in 30 years, and claimed the Ivy League title. Can the Orange and Black add an EIWA team title to their haul? Army West Point returns a veteran team that featured several spirited battles for starting positions. Navy moved into contention late in the season, with the return of two top starters to their lineup; they fell by the Dread Criterion C in their season-ending dual loss against Army. Nor can Cornell be ruled out; despite missing three All-Americans due to Olympic redshirt years, the Big Red may still have enough firepower to make a run. If Lehigh or Princeton falter, the competition will be right there to capitalize. In turn, those teams need to keep an eye in their rearview mirrors. The American Eagles, Bucknell Bison, Harvard Crimson, and Penn Quakers may not be able to grab the top prize, but they give out trophies down to third place and hardware always looks nice in the trophy case. Honors extend beyond the team and individual titles. Also to be decided are the outstanding wrestler (coaches' vote), most career points (Fletcher Award), and best pinner (Sheridan Award); the coaches select the top coach and the referees honor the most sportsmanlike team. The EIWA tournament received forty-four automatic qualifying bids for the NCAA Championships at Minneapolis in two weeks; at-large selections to be announced the week after conference tourneys will augment the contingent. The weight-by-weight preview: 125 NCAA bids: 7 Defending champion: Patrick Glory, Princeton A year after this class was led by freshmen the field is populated mostly by veterans. Leading the way is last year's champ, sophomore Patrick Glory, who added an NCAA sixth place to his accomplishments. Last year's runner-up, Cornell's Vitali Arujau, is taking an Olympic redshirt but there's no shortage of competition for Glory; Lehigh's Brandon Paetzell (down from third at 133) and Penn freshman Michael Colaiocco have been in the national top ten much of the year. Knocking on the door are Army senior Trey Chalifoux and American junior Gage Curry who have both placed third; they have five EIWA medals between them. Navy junior Logan Treaster has been ranked in his first year as a starter; Columbia soph Joe Manchio and Harvard senior Nolan Hellickson are past placewinners. Don't rule out soph Dylan Ryder of Hofstra, who's spent a season building a resume that's finally being noticed. 133 NCAA bids: 2 Defending champion: Chas Tucker, Cornell After missing his first two seasons due to injury Chas Tucker has made up for lost time, with two EIWA finals appearances (a title last year). This season he's ranked top 5, has a 28-0 record, and is looking for his second title and first All-American award. Binghamton soph Zack Trampe, fourth a year ago, missed two months but is wrestling again and might provide the best challenge for the top spot. Past placewinners are Navy junior Casey Cobb and Penn soph Carmen Ferrante, up from 125. Lehigh junior Nick Farro makes his first EIWA appearance as will freshmen Andrew Wert of Army, Darren Miller of Bucknell, Angelo Rini of Columbia, Michael Jaffe of Harvard, and Justin Hoyle of Hofstra. Any or all of them could stand on the platform on Saturday, as the EIWA welcomes a collection of freshmen who have quietly been flying under the radar so far. 141 NCAA bids: 5 Past champion: Yianni Diakomihalis, Cornell Two-time EIWA and NCAA champ Yianni is another Big Red wrestler focusing on the Olympics, so we'll have to make do. Not a problem, as no fewer than ten former placewinners return in a deep field. Penn sophomore Doug Zapf moves up from sixth at 133 and has been ranked all year. Moving into the field from a greater distance is American's Sal Profaci, a fifth-year transfer from Michigan; he's a Big 10 and NCAA tournament veteran and looks to challenge for a finals berth. Other finals candidates are Navy junior Cody Trybus, looking for his first EIWA trophy, and Cornell's Noah Baughman, hoping to earn his first trip to NCAAs after placing third and second at 125. Other likely medalists have won them in the past. That includes Army soph Corey Shie, fourth; Binghamton's Anthony Sparacio, third; Franklin & Marshall's Wil Gil, fifth and an NCAA alternate last year; Lehigh's Ryan Pomrinca, sixth; Princeton's Marshall Keller, eighth; Bucknell's David Campbell, eighth at 133 as a freshman in 2018; Hofstra junior Vinny Vespa, fifth at 133 three years ago; and Sacred Heart's Gerard Daley, seventh at 125 back in 2016. If you want to root for someone lacking a medal, try Brown senior Jimmy Pawelski or Harvard junior Lukus Stricker, both with wins over some former placers. Any way you cut it, the blood round will be brutal as some good wrestlers will leave empty-handed. 149 NCAA bids: 4 Past champion: Matt Kolodzik (2018, 149 in 2017) This was supposed to be a weight without a champion in the field. Then 2-time champ, 3-time All-American Matt Kolodzik pulled out of his Olympic redshirt and returned to Princeton's lineup and resumed winning. 10-0 now, he's the favorite to win his third title. But he didn't win last year, as Navy senior Jared Prince derailed him in the semi-finals. Prince also missed most of the season but is back and looking to claim his first title. Laying his own claim is American junior Kizhan Clarke; seventh at 157 a year ago, he's down at his natural weight, 32-5, and has been ranked top ten much of the season. Army soph PJ Ogunsanya, sixth last year, returns hoping to add to his collection of trophies. Juniors Hunter Richard of Cornell and Matt Kolonia of Bucknell, as well as soph Jimmy Hoffman of Lehigh, want to begin their collections. Then there are the freshmen, led at this weight by Ricky Cabanillas of Brown, Reece Heller of Hofstra, Rhise Royster of EIWA newcomer Long Island University, and Penn's Lucas Revano. You can match some names with faces on the medals stand come Saturday. 157 NCAA bids: 3 Defending champion: Josh Humphreys, Lehigh Returning champion: Anthony Artalona (149) Last year three excellent EIWA freshmen debuted in the middle weights. Penn's Anthony Artalona won at 149, Lehigh's Josh Humphreys won at 157, and Princeton's Quincy Monday placed third at 157 after high rankings much of the year. Who will be the top seed? Possibly none of the above, as Army soph Markus Hartman, who missed the fun a year ago, has come into his own and holds wins over Artalona and Monday. While we're discussing potential finalists let's not forget that there's another in this field: Harvard's Hunter Ladnier was second three years ago and has never looked better than he has recently, winning 10 of his last 11 duals. Past placewinner? Drexel's Parker Kropman was seventh three years ago at 149. Surprising freshmen? Columbia's Kyle Mosher dropped from 165 mid-year and has won 12 of 15 since; add in Bucknell's Jaden Fisher, who moved up from 149 early. Other medal contenders? Brown's Jack Bokina, Cornell's Adam Santoro, and Hofstra's Holden Heller can all win a few in a row. 165 NCAA bids: 6 Defending champion: Tanner Skidgel, Navy Wide open a year ago, this class saw neither top seed make it to the finals. Champ Tanner Skidgel of Navy and runner-up Cael McCormick of Army proved that their title matchup was no fluke; both have been ranked high all year. Skidgel missed time in the spring but returned to edge McCormick in the Star Dual. Seeking their own way to the finals are Bucknell's Zach Hartman, a freshman runnerup at 157 a year ago, and top Harvard freshman Philip Conigliaro, ranked behind only the Midshipman. Drexel senior Ebed Jarrell has placed twice (fourth last year) and wouldn't mind another trip to NCAAs. Hofstra junior Ricky Stamm was seventh last year at 174 and he'd like to see what the big show is like too. Next in line are Princeton's soph Grant Cuomo and two veterans, F&M's Emmett LiCastri and Sacred Heart's Brandon Levesque. Cornell's entry was undecided at press time; Lehigh hopes that freshman Brian Meyer gets a boost from the home mats. LIU enters Ohio State transfer Ryan Ferro. 174 NCAA bids: 4 Defending champion: Jordan Kutler, Lehigh Past champion: Brandon Womack, Cornell (165, 2017) Lehigh senior Jordan Kutler heads the first of two weights with two former champions and All-Americans. A two-time champ and All-American, he's ranked in the top three. Cornell's Brandon Womack, second and third the past two seasons, was the 165 champion and an All-American three years ago; he's missed two months but is back just in time. Three-time placewinner Ben Harvey, Army, would like to make the finals, as would Navy senior Spencer Carey, fourth last year in his first tournament. If that sounds familiar it's because it's essentially the same intro as last year when those four were the top seeds. Other past placewinners are senior Kevin Parker, Princeton, seventh last year at 184, and Sage Heller, Hofstra, eighth in 2018. Drexel freshman Michael O'Malley has recent wins over Carey and Parker. Columbia freshman Lennox Wolak also shows promise. Bucknell's Mitch Hartman and Sacred Heart's Joe Accousti have been winning their share and could challenge for spots on the podium. 184 NCAA bids: 4 Past champion: Max Dean, Cornell This is the third weight impacted by Olympic redshirts, as champ and NCAA runner-up Max Dean is MIA. Binghamton soph Lou DePrez, third last year, has been top five much of the year and has the inside track for one finals spot. Likely to head the opposite half of the bracket is Lehigh's Chris Weiler, sixth at 197 two years ago. Weiler has beaten DePrez and several others in the bracket. Those who could challenge for the finals are American junior Tanner Harvey, fourth last year, and Army senior Noah Stewart, sixth. Travis Stefanik of Princeton was sixth at 174 a year ago. He recently upset a 13th-ranked Rutgers rival. Cornell freshman Jonathan Loew has a win against Weiler. Sacred Heart's Kyle Davis has crafted a successful season. Columbia's Joe Franzese won his team's starting job and could challenge for a place. 197 NCAA bids: 6 Defending champion: Patrick Brucki, Princeton Past champion: Ben Darmstadt, Cornell (2018) Ben Darmstadt of Cornell and Princeton's Patrick Brucki head the second weight with two former champions and All-Americans. Darmstadt missed last season with a lower back injury but, if his 13 falls are any indication, his recovery was successful. Among his 11 wins at 197 was a decision over Brucki. Not to say that the Tiger has had a quiet season; both men are ranked in the top 5. Lehigh's John Jakobsen (fifth) and Bucknell's Drew Phipps (sixth, eighth) are the other past placewinners. Jakobsen has a win over Phipps; Penn's Cole Urbas has a default win over Jakobsen; Drexel's Bryan McLaughlin has a win over Urbas; Phipps has wins over Urbas, Brown, and McLaughlin; Navy's Jake Koser has wins over Jakobsen, Phipps, McLaughlin, and Brown (and somehow has struggled to be noticed for the rankings). Koser and Urbas are the freshmen in the group. If any of them falter look for Brown's Nino Bastianelli, Columbia's Sam Wustefeld, or Hofstra's Trey Rogers to challenge. This is another weight where the blood round will be cruel. 285 NCAA bids: 3 Defending champion: Jordan Wood, Lehigh Jordan Wood is the two-time defending champion and returning NCAA fourth, and may not draw the top seed. Harvard freshman (that word again) Yaraslau Slavikouski broke into the rankings in mid-November and just kept climbing. He ended the season with 12 straight wins and has more quality wins than Wood. The two haven't met, setting up a terrific finals clash if they can both make it that far. There's never been a 4-time EIWA heavyweight champion; Wood is halfway home but the final two could be the hardest. Which is not to say that the rest of the field is going to concede the finals. Army's Ben Sullivan, sixth last year, has been ranked all season and Joe Doyle of Binghamton took fifth place. Zachary Knighton-Ward of Hofstra, Ben Goldin of Penn, and Cornell's Brendan Furman have been in and out of rankings. Beyond them look for American's Niko Camacho, Sacred Heart's Connor Fredericks, F&M's Vincenzo Pelusi, and Drexel's Sean O'Malley to battle for spots on the final podium of the tournament. For those planning ahead, the 117th EIWA tournament will return to Newman Arena at Cornell University the weekend of March 5-7, 2021.

Cornell's Chas Tucker is pre-seeded No. 1 at 133 pounds (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) The pre-seeds for the 2020 EIWA Championships at Lehigh University are shown below, subject to change by coaches' vote prior to the tournament. 125: 1. Patrick Glory (Princeton) 2. Michael Colaiocco (Penn) 3. Brandon Paetzell (Lehigh) 4. Trey Chalifoux (Army West Point) 5. Gage Curry (American) 6. Logan Treaster (Navy) 7. Joe Manchio (Columbia) 8. Nolan Hellickson (Harvard) 133: 1. Chas Tucker (Cornell) 2. Zack Trampe (Binghamton) 3. Nick Farro (Lehigh) 4. Casey Cobb (Navy) 5. Darren Miller (Bucknell) 6. Andrew Wert (Army West Point) 7. Carmen Ferrante (Penn) 8. Angelo Rini (Columbia) 141: 1. Sal Profaci (American) 2. Doug Zapf (Penn) 3. Matt Kazimir (Columbia) 4. Cody Trybus (Navy) 5. Noah Baughman (Cornell) 6. Wil Gil (F&M) 7. Ryan Pomrinca (Lehigh) 8. Anthony Sparacio (Binghamton) 149: 1. Kizhan Clarke (American) 2. Jimmy Hoffman (Lehigh) 3. Hunter Richard (Cornell) 4. Matt Kolodzik (Princeton) 5. Matthew Kolonia (Bucknell) 6. PJ Ogunsanya (Army West Point) 7. Ricky Cabanillas (Brown) 8. Lucas Revano (Penn) 157: 1. Markus Hartman (Army West Point) 2. Quincy Monday (Princeton) 3. Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) 4. Anthony Artalona (Penn) 5. Hunter Ladnier (Harvard) 6. Kyle Mosher (Columbia) 7. Jaden Fisher (Bucknell) 8. Holden Heller (Hofstra) 165: 1. Tanner Skidgel (Navy) 2. Philip Conigliaro (Harvard) 3. Zach Hartman (Bucknell) 4. Cael McCormick (Army West Point) 5. Ebed Jarrell (Drexel) 6. Grant Cuomo (Princeton) 7. Ricky Stamm (Hofstra) 8. Brian Meyer (Lehigh) 174: 1. Jordan Kutler (Lehigh) 2. Spencer Carey (Navy) 3. Ben Harvey (Army West Point) 4. Brandon Womack (Cornell) 5. Michael O'Malley (Drexel) 6. Sage Heller (Hofstra) 7. Kevin Parker (Princeton) 8. Mitch Hartman (Bucknell) 184: 1. Lou DePrez (Binghamton) 2. Chris Weiler (Lehigh) 3. Noah Stewart (Army West Point) 4. Tanner Harvey (American) 5. Jonathan Loew (Cornell) 6. Travis Stefanik (Princeton) 7. Kyle Davis (Sacred Heart) 8. Joe Franzese (Columbia) 197: 1. Patrick Brucki (Princeton) 2. Jake Koser (Navy) 3. John Jakobsen (Lehigh) 4. Ben Darmstadt (Cornell) 5. Drew Phipps (Bucknell) 6. Cole Urbas (Penn) 7. Bryan McLaughlin (Drexel) 8. JT (Brown) (Army West Point) 285: 1. Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard) 2. Jordan Wood (Lehigh) 3. Ben Sullivan (Army West Point) 4. Brendan Furman (Cornell) 5. Ben Goldin (Penn) 6. Joe Doyle (Binghamton) 7. Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) 8. Connor Fredericks (Sacred Heart) The coaches will meet Thursday afternoon at Lehigh to review the pre-seeds and make adjustments. The seeds will remain preliminary until locked in at weigh-ins on Friday morning.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The NCAA Northeast Regional trophy will stay in Providence. Thanks to six wrestlers advancing to the NCAA Championships, the eighth-ranked Johnson & Wales University wrestling team won an unprecedented fourth-straight regional title on Sunday at Rhode Island College. Johnson & Wales took the team title with 168 points. Coast Guard Academy was second with 122.5 points and NYU posted 122 points. Representing the Wildcats at the NCAA Championship will be Hayden Brown (133 pounds), Jordan Robinson (141 pounds), Da'mani Burns (149 pounds), Darius Joyce (157 pounds), Tommy Wrzesien (197 pounds) and Michael DiNardo (285 pounds). Also earning All-Region honors were Justin Lopez at 125 pounds (fourth place), 184-pounder Giovanni Santiago (fifth place) and Tim Higginson at 165 pounds (seventh place). The NCAA Championships are set for March 13-14 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Looking to break the JWU record for wins and pins, DiNardo only needed 1:46 to pin Springfield's Joe Fusco and earn his third trip to the national championships. He captured the regional title by pinning third-ranked Patrick Irwin off Coast Guard in 5:41. DiNardo won the Gorriaran winner for the most pins in the shortest amount of time. The top seed at 133 pounds, Brown earned his spot with a 5-1 win over Tristan Stetson from Wesleyan. He received a medical forfeit in the finals to claim the regional title. Seeded first at 141 pounds, Robinson used a second-period takedown to beat RIC's Nathan Lackman, 3-1. A pair of third-period takedowns against Williams' Joseph Rossetti earned him his first regional championship. After twice losing to Tyler Gazaway from Roger Williams in the regular season, Burns got his revenge in the semifinals. He got out to a 6-0 lead in the first period on his way to the 6-2 defeat. It's his second-straight trip to the NCAA Championships. He won the regional title by holding on to beat #8 Evan Fidelibus of New England College, 10-9. Seeded seventh at the start of the tournament, Joyce dominated Wesleyan's Aaron Goldman, 8-5, to earn his first trip. He fell to third-ranked Sean Lyons of NYU, 16-0, in the championship bout. A takedown just 33 seconds into the third period helped Wrzesien beat the number one seed, Castleton's Mitchell LaFlam, 3-2. Wrzesien came through with a reversal in the third period, but seventh-ranked Jon Wagner from Coast Guard got a late escape to take the regional title, 5-4. Lopez needed two overtimes to beat New England College's Diego Santiago, 4-1, in the consolation quarterfinals. He topped NYU's Tyler Crew with an 11-3 major decision to reach the third-place match. Unfortunately, he lost to Springfield's Joey Manginelli based on riding time. Santiago came up just short of making the trip to nationals. He received a medical forfeit in his consolation quarterfinals match, but lost 7-0 in the consolation semis to defeating national champion John Boyle from Western New England. He earned fifth-place by pinning Anthony Malfitano of Rodger Williams in 2:21. Higginson lost a close 5-2 decision to Castleton's Michael Angers in the consolation quarters. He bounced back to pin Zach Ford from Rhode Island College and secure the team title.

DUBUQUE, Iowa -- After a regular season to remember, the No. 1 Loras College wrestling team engineered a historic performance at the NCAA Division III Lower Midwest regional, qualifying eight wrestlers for the national tournament and securing the program's first ever regional team title, finishing ahead of American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) foe No. 5 Coe College by 15 points. The regional performance was a historic one for the Duhawks. A school-record eight qualifiers and a team title highlighted a strong team performance for Head Coach TJ Miller. For the second year in a row, Miller and Assistant Coach Trevor Kittleson were voted Lower Midwest Regional Tournament Head Coach and Assistant Coach of the Year. "The process of the season led to this performance. It's the toughest regional in the nation hands down. You have to place top-three to qualify. I'm really proud of our guys to get eight through to nationals" said Miller. "We're going to enjoy this, rest up and peak at the right time for the national tournament". Building on a successful regular season, senior and two-time All-American No. 4/6 Clint Lembeck qualified for the National Tournament with a third-place finish at 141 lbs. Recording a pin and a technical fall on day one, Lembeck suffered a setback in the semifinals but rebounded right away by pinning No. 6/4 Brady Fritz of A-R-C rival No. 2 Wartburg College in overtime. Lembeck secured a place at nationals in dominant fashion, scoring a major decision over No. 10 Dan Radcliffe of Central College to grab third place. In his regional debut for the Duhawks, Daniel Ruiz strung together two bonus point victories on day one to reach the semifinals at 149 lbs. In the semifinal bout against No. 7 Sean Sax of Westminster College, Ruiz collected a 13-6 major decision, locking up a national tournament berth for the Duhawks. Squaring off against North Central's honorable mention Anthony Rink in the championship match, Ruiz battled hard but dropped a 4-1 decision to capture second place. Senior All-American No. 4/2 Brandon Murray constructed a dominant performance at 157 lbs. Murray totaled two falls and a technical fall to reach the championship match against Wartburg's No. 10 Martine Sandoval. In the penultimate bout of the bracket, Murray outscored Sandoval 7-3 to earn a first place finish and a ticket to nationals. Senior All-American No. 4/2 Eddie Smith, wrestling in his last regional for the Duhawks, earned a third-place finish and a spot at nationals for the Duhawks at 165 lbs. Smith reached the third-place bout by putting together an 8-4 decision over Central's Collin Groleau. In a rematch of Saturday's quarterfinal bout, Smith defeated University of Dubuque's Zarik Anderson for a second time by way of 12-3 major decision. The victory scored Smith a ticket to the national tournament for a second time in as many years. Returning All-American Jacob Krakow continued his strong season with a second place finish at 174 lbs. Krakow clinched his berth at nationals by reaching the championship match with a technical fall over No. 9 Tristin Westphal of Coe College. In the first place bout, Krakow dropped a hard-fought 3-4 decision to place second. Freshman phenom No. 8/7 Shane Liegel forged together an impressive regional debut, placing third and qualifying for his first-ever national tournament. Winning a hard fought 8-2 decision to reach the third-place match, Liegel came out on top against Coe's Josh Edel 8-5, scoring a late takedown to clinch the victory in a back-and-forth battle. At 197 lbs., three-time All-American No. 1 Guy Patron Jr. compiled a technical fall and two pins to collect his fourth national tournament berth. After pinning Millikin's Logan Hagerbaumer in the semifinals, Patron Jr. finished the day in second place by medical default. Rounding out the qualifiers for the Duhawks, honorable mention Wyatt Wriedt used a fall and major decision to reach the semifinal bout against number one seed No. 2 Jerhett Lee. An 11-4 upset victory over Lee sent Wriedt to the championship match and clinched his spot at nationals. In the final match of the day, Wriedt dropped a 5-6 decision to snatch second place. Rounding out the Loras placers were senior Matt Randone at 125 lbs. and Mason McMillen at 133 lbs. Both captured fifth place for the Duhawks. After collecting the first regional championship in team history, the Duhawks will take a two week break before sending eight grapplers to compete in the NCAA Division III Championships at Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Session I will begin from the US Cellular Center on Friday, March 13th and conclude on Saturday, march 14th.

GRANTHAM, Pa. -- Four student-athletes won individual titles to lead the Stevens Institute of Technology wrestling team to the Southeast Regional title Saturday at Hitchcock Arena. Freshman Kyle Slendorn, senior Troy Stanich, junior Brett Kaliner and sophomore Michael Dooley each won the gold medal in their respective weight classes. Graduate student Thomas Poklikuha, senior Dylan Van Sickell and sophomore Akhil Vega finished in the top-three in their respective weight classes as a program-record seven Ducks advanced to the national championship tournament. As a team, the Ducks finished first among the 20 competing teams, totaling 163.5 points to win the regional title over Washington and Lee University by 33.5 points. Hosting Messiah College placed third with 123.5 points, while Washington & Jefferson College (80.5) and Ferrum College (78) rounded out the top-five. The regional championship is the second in program history. Head Coach Joe Favia was named the Southeast Region Coach of the Year prior to the tournament, while assistant coach Anthony Bonaventura was named the region's top assistant coach. Kaliner was named the regional's Most Outstanding Wrestler. "It was a strong finish on day two," Favia said. "Everyone who competed this weekend contributed to our team's ability to distance ourselves from the pack. This morning, we set the tone, putting six into the finals and the guys never looked back." "Bruce showed no quit, wrestling hard for sixth," Favia continued. "Tom and Dylan dropped their matches in the finals, but put forth the effort necessary to build on going into the NCAA's. The four champions left no doubt as to why they are the best in their class and Akhil showed a level and desire that I've been waiting for him to unleash for two years. Akhil is a true student of the sport and when he puts that fight into his skill set, it's a deadly combination. All in all, we have put ourselves in the position we needed going into the championships. We'll take the weekend to recover then make our final push towards Cedar Rapids." Slendorn captured his first regional championship at 133 pounds. The Howell, New Jersey native began his day with a third-period pin of Ferrum's Levi Englman. Slendorn was ahead 4-2 through two periods before scoring an escape and a takedown in the first 25 seconds of the third period. The takedown led to a four-point nearfall just prior to the pin. Slendorn closed out afternoon with a hard-fought 6-4 victory over Delaware Valley's nationally-ranked Kordell Rush in the championship bout. Rush scored the first points of the bout with a takedown in the opening minute, only for Slendorn to escape. Slendorn scored a reversal to account for the only scoring in the second period, before each side scored two points in the third. Slendorn added the riding time point to account for the final margin of victory. Stanich scored a major decision and a pin to capture his third regional title. Stanich began his day with a 17-2 major over Washington & Lee's Bryce Crew to advance to the championship. The Ducks' 141-pounder accumulated 15 of his 17 points over the final two periods. In the championship bout, Stanich scored a takedown of Greesboro's Hai Slu in the final minute of the opening period, before scoring the pin six seconds later. Kaliner captured his third regional title with a pair of dominating technical falls. The West Chester, Pennsylvania native scored a 26-7 victory over Lycoming's Joe Santomarco when the bout was stopped in the final period. Kaliner was even more impressive in the 149-pound championship, building a 20-2 lead over Washington & Jefferson's Michael Heinl at the time of the second-period stoppage. Each of Kaliner's 26 wins have come with bonus points. After capturing silver in his first season on Castle Point, Dooley advanced to his second straight national tournament after topping the field at 197. The Phillipsburg, New Jersey native began his day with his third straight major decision with a 10-0 shutout of Washington & Jefferson's Alex Donahue. Dooley captured the championship with a first-period pin of Alvernia's Tonee Ellis. Dooley allowed just five points over his four matches Van Sickell advanced to the 157-pound championship with a first-period pin of Lycoming's Trevor Corl. The Little Silver, New Jersey native scored a takedown in the opening seconds of the match and then turned Corl just over 90 seconds in, scoring a four-point nearfall just prior to the pin. In the championship, Washington & Lee's Ryan Luth scored a four-point nearfall in the final minute of the opening period to take a 6-0 lead. An aggressive Van Sickell scored three takedowns in the final period, but Luth totaled four escapes to prevent Van Sickell from scoring additional points en route to a 15-8 decision victory. Van Sickell placed second to reach his third national championship. Poklikuha advanced to the national championship tournament by beginning his day with a 15-1 major decision over Washington & Lee's Shane Connors. The West Creek, New Jersey native compiled a 10-0 lead through two periods before Connors scored an escape in the final minute of the third period. His run to a regional title ended in the championship bout with a 10-2 setback to Johns Hopkins' Dominick Reyes. Poklikuha advances to his third NCAA championship. Needing to win three matches to reach his first national championship tournament, Vega posted a pair of decision victories and a technical fall to qualify for nationals. Vega began his day with an 8-6 victory over Ferrum's J.D. McMillin, accumulating five points in the opening period to claim the victory. The Cupertino, California native posted his second tech fall with a 23-4 victory over Washington & Jefferson's Emmanuel Dovshek; Vega was leading 23-4 at the time of the second-period stoppage. Vega closed out his remarkable run through the consolation bracket with a 9-5 decision over York's Jared Kuhns. Vega used a pair of two-point nearfalls to take a 6-1 lead after the first period. Parola opened his day against the 184-pound bracket's top seed, Rexx Hallyburton of Washington & Lee and fell via a hard-fought 5-3 decision. A takedown in the first minute of the third period proved to be the difference in the match. The Moscow, Pennsylvania native dropped a pair of decisions to finish in sixth. Up Next: Wrestling opens the NCAA Division III Championship on March 13.

A former University of Michigan wrestler has claimed that he was dismissed from the team 45 years ago for alerting the then-head wrestling coach of his being sexually abused by a university doctor at the time. Tad Deluca was one of three former Wolverine wrestlers who spoke at a press conference Thursday hosted by a Denver-based law firm in suburban Detroit. At the press conference, Deluca disclosed that, after writing a nine-page letter which revealed repeated sexual assaults by Dr. Robert Anderson during medical exams, that the Wolverines' head wrestling coach had him booted from the team. Deluca said that he had told his coach, Bill Johannesen, and then-athletics director Don Canham, that "something is wrong with Dr. Anderson ... Regardless of what you go in there for, he always makes you drop your drawers." During these exams, Deluca said Anderson had routinely fondled him and given him unnecessary rectal exams. Deluca went on to say that coach Johannesen humiliated him for speaking out about Anderson by reading his letter out loud to the rest of the team in 1975 ... then, according to NBC News, informing the wrestler that he was no longer on the team and had lost his full-ride scholarship. At this week's press conference, the former Wolverine wrestler then read part of a second letter to the university -- written in 2018 -- where he quoted his former coach as saying, "Mr. Deluca, you will not return to my wrestling room whether your scholarship is in effect. You will not be known as an athlete." "Those few minutes in front of my friends and teammates, the coach stripped away everything I had ever been," Deluca told reporters at the press conference. In an interview with the Ann Arbor News on Tuesday, Feb. 25, Johannesen said he didn't recall any letter about Anderson and has never taken away a full-ride scholarship from anyone. He said the only wrestler he remembers kicking off the team during that time frame was removed for missing practice. Johannesen also said that he had personally seen Anderson for treatment and there was "never any kind of impropriety." "I personally heard nothing in my four years as an athlete there ... and then as a coach ... never any accusations," Johannesen told the newspaper Tuesday. At this week's press conference in Southfield, Mich., Deluca said he was moved by the #MeToo movement to write a letter in 2018 to current Athletic Director Warde Manuel. "I spoke up by letter in July 1975 and was ignored and denigrated by the University of Michigan," Deluca said. "I spoke up again by letter in 2018 ... I'm here today to speak up again to let the University of Michigan know that I will not be ignored again. "Everyone who was abused by this doctor -- the doctor everyone knew was abusing athletes and students -- should speak up and let everyone know they will not be ignored. It has to stop." Police in Washtenaw County -- home to the University of Michigan and the city of Ann Arbor -- launched an investigation into Anderson in 2018 based on Deluca's second letter. But Steven Hiller, the county's assistant chief prosecuting attorney, said no charges could be filed because Anderson died in 2008 and none of the alleged offenses were within the state's six-year statute of limitations. That said, the police investigation noted that University of Michigan employees were "aware of rumors and allegations of misconduct" by Anderson. And last week, University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel issued an apology on behalf of the university to anyone harmed by Anderson, saying, "As a physician, scientist, father and university president, I condemn all sexual misconduct, especially instances that occur under the purview of our public mission. This type of conduct is reprehensible, and whether it takes place now or in the past, it is unacceptable ..." Deluca is one of nearly a dozen other male former Michigan student-athletes who have now come forward to say they too were victimized by Anderson. At least three of them were once wrestlers: Deluca, Thomas Evashevski, and Andy Hrovat, an NCAA All-American wrestler and member of the U.S. men's freestyle wrestling team who competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics, who disclosed his experiences with Anderson last week. Parker Stinar, attorney with the Denver law firm of Wahlberg, Woodruff, Nimmo & Sloane -- which is representing Deluca and several other former Michigan athletes -- said they have not yet filed a lawsuit but has scheduled a meeting with the university's general counsel that will happen "in the near future." Meanwhile, the university has encouraged anyone who may have been affected by Anderson to call the hotline at 866-990-0111 or the Steptoe & Johnson law firm at 202-419-5162 or UofM@steptoe.com. Steptoe & Johnson was retained not to defend the university, but to conduct an independent, external investigation, according to University of Michigan spokesman Mark Fitzgerald.

INDIANAPOLIS -- As familiar as it has become, winning the Regional Tournament is still a great feeling for Notre Dame College wrestling. The Falcons came away with the team victory, scoring 127.5 points on Saturday, while six wrestlers qualified for the NCAA Division II Tournament. Notre Dame has now won four consecutive Regional Tournament team titles and they have taken home the biggest trophy in seven of the eight Regional Tournaments since joining the NCAA Division II in the 2012-13 season. The wrestlers who placed in the top-3 in each of the weight classes qualified for the NCAA DII Tournament. The Falcons had six qualifiers with Hunter Bray (133 lbs.), Kelan McKenna (141), Taylor Misuna (157), Jordon Tague (165), Tony Vezzetti (184) and Jared Campbell (285). Hunter Bray is ranked No. 1 at 133 lbs. and he continues to add to his accolades this season. Bray went up against Ashland's Lawrance Dudgeon in the First Place Match. Not only was Bray going for the win, but Ashland University was also approaching NDC in team points. The Falcons' grappler and Dudgeon were tied at zero after the first period. Bray earned one for an escape in the second period before Dudgeon earned one in third. Bray won the match with a takedown late in the third period. Kelan McKenna entered the day fifth in the nation at 141. He cruised through the first three matches, winning them all by major decisions, including a 12-4 victory over No. 11 Chandler Minnard, of Ashland. Against Branson Proudlock (Findlay) in the First Place Match, McKenna had two takedowns in the first period, totaling four points. He added on and won by a score of 7-2. At 157, No. 6 Taylor Misuna received a bye and then won the next round by decision. His toughest battle came in the semifinal when he went up against No. 9 Dawson Combest, of Indianapolis. In that bout, Misuna was trailing 4-2 after two periods. With less than 10 seconds left, he put two points on the scoreboard with a takedown of Combest. He would win in Sudden Victory-1, with another takedown. Misuna then won the First Place Match against Trey Grine, of Tiffin. Jared Campbell also took home the top spot at 285. The No. 2 ranked wrestler defeated Jeremy Splix (Indianapolis) with a 13-0 major decision before pinning West Liberty's Chase Logan, 35-seconds into the match. He would take the trophy via forfeit. At 184, No. 6 Tony Vezzetti did not receive a bye, but he won by tech fall (17-1), major decision (14-3) and decision (8-5) to get to the First Place Match. He faced No. 5 Aidan Pasiuk, from Ashland. Vezzetti fell behind 4-3 after two periods, and took second place in the region. Jordon Tague is also heading to the National Tournament after he placed third at 165. He went 3-1 on the day and faced Christian Price (Ashland) in the Third Place Match. The two were scoreless after one and then Tague had two takedowns in the second period. He won by a score of 8-3. Alonzo Turner took fourth place at 174 while Sandro Ramirez (149) and Michael Viramontes (197) both earned Fifth Place. "I'm happy for the wrestlers, coaches, parents and fans today for their support and effort," Head Coach Sonny Marchette said. "Everyone of them did what it took to bring home the Regional Championship. The coaches were in sync and the guys did what they came to do. I'm very happy with where the program is heading as a whole and we look forward to seeing what we can do at the National Tournament." Notre Dame heads to the NCAA Division II National Tournament on March 13-14. The tournament will be held in Sioux Falls, S.D. Team Scores 1 Notre Dame 127.5 2 Tiffin 122 3 Ashland 121.5 4 Indianapolis 115.5 5 Lake Erie 87.5

PEMBROKE -- Nick Daggett (125 pounds), Logan Seliga (133) and Nick Kee (197) all posted unblemished runs through their respective tournaments, while three of their teammates registered runner-up finishes, to lead a dominating performance for the UNC Pembroke wrestling team that helped the Braves capture the NCAA Super Region II title on Saturday at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court. Tyler Makosy (149), Kaleb Warner (165) and Brandon Sloop (184) all fell on the wrong end of close matches in their respective bracket's championship bout, but their performances will still give the Black & Gold six representatives at next month's NCAA Division II Championships in Sioux Falls, S.D. It is the fourth-straight year that UNCP has sent multiple qualifiers to the sport's biggest stage, and the second-most qualifiers under head coach Othello "O.T." Johnson. UNCP's 10 entries in Saturday's event combined to register 18 bonus-point victories – a dominating performance that helped the Black & Gold amass 142 team points across the three sessions. Belmont Abbey claimed the runner-up spot with 95 points, while Limestone was third with 93-1/2 points. The Braves sent nine of its 10 entries to the podium following the event, included in which were fourth-place tallies by Jonathan Miller (141), Sammy Peticos (157) and Ryan Monk (285). The top-3 finishers from each weight class punched their ticket to the NCAA Championships. The 2020 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships will be held in the Denny Sanford Premier Center, March 13-14, in Sioux Falls. Championship pairings will be announced next week.