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The NCAA conference tournaments are this weekend with 286 of the 330 NCAA qualifiers being allocated by the outcome of those tournaments. The remaining 44 will be divvied out next week based on the total number of allocations in each weight class to balance each out for a total of 33. The qualification system hasn't always been this neat. In the past 10-15 years the NCAA has implemented several changes, the first being a move away from what was known as "historical data" based on the previous 1, 2, and 5-year performances of each conference.The system was wildly unfair and limited the growth of smaller conferences who couldn't attract wrestlers (or coaches) based on the inability to directly control one's destiny. Not only that, but the conferences were allowed to choose wild cards based on who they believed would help them most at the NCAA tournament. That motivation led to a lot of backroom dealing and horse trading, none of which was transparent or healthy for the sport.Careers were lost to a very bad system. But there was change, which shows that as cumbersome an operation the NCAA leads, the push for improvements from the outside can sometimes come to pass. There is still no NCAA dual meet national championship, but there is a process and there is interest. The NCAA has the ability to make it happen. Good luck to all the athletes competing this weekend for a ticket to nationals and a chance to call themselves conference champion. Safe travels as well to the families, fans, coaches, and athletes who are trekking far and wide to see their favorite wrestlers step on the mat. To your questions … Q: Biggest upset you see at a conference tournament this weekend? I'm calling Shakur Rasheed over Myles Martin at the Big Ten Championships, although it's hard to call it a huge upset when Rasheed is ranked second in the nation and undefeated. -- Mike C. Foley: No way. Myles Martin won't be upset by Shakur Rasheed or anyone else. And good catch. It wouldn't really be a huge upset. Virginia's Louie Hayes is pre-seeded No. 5 at the ACC Championships at 133 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) I'm going with the 'Hoos. Louie Hayes to make the 133-pound finals at the ACC Championships and claim the gold medal. Q: When will tickets for the 2020 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Minneapolis go on sale? -- Tom G. Foley: They tend to go on sale before, or just following, the final session of the previous year's NCAA Championships. The event will be hosted at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, so I'm assuming more than 20K tickets will be available, but there will be somewhat less than the maximum capacity of 66K-plus. Wouldn't it be interesting if the NCAA and the stadium worked hard to try and set the Guinness Book of World Records for most fans to watch a (non-football/basketball) intercollegiate athletic event? Or, even just the record for wrestling? Q: How does the future of freestyle wrestling benefit from seeing elite guys take hard half shots and run guys off the mat? Casual sports fans recognize dominance when they see it. It's hard to get excited by pushing guys around. It's why sumo wrestling has never caught on worldwide. Do we need to see more creativity in the rules? Limited number of pushout points awarded? DQs for getting pushed out too much? OT if there are no TDs, nor turns in regulation? -- Jared H. Foley: I appreciate this aggressive hot take about freestyle wrestling and there being too many "hard half shots!" As you may know I watch a lot of freestyle wrestling, and it has never occurred to me that many of these athletes are simply pushing anyone around. Greco-Roman? Maybe. Freestyle? Too dynamic for a pushout-only system of success. To wit, when I have seen athletes push the action to the edge of the mat, it's often because their opponent is stalling and thus should lose a point or decide to fight back to the center. In many of the matches I watch, athletes who push too hard often get head snapped into short offense, head pinched for four, or put themselves at an equal risk for going out of bounds. Sorry! Love a hot take, but the numbers also don't support the sumo thesis. Offensive scoring is way up over the past few years and has continued to climb. Long explanation shortened for a busy mailbag: Freestyle rules won't change anytime in the foreseeable future and that's because they are David Hasselhoff types of rad. Also … sumo is INSANELY POPULAR in Japan and the fact you used it as an example means it did succeed in becoming a worldwide phenomenon! Q: Can you think of any reason not to move the NCAA wrestling season back a month? It would still fall in the spring semester and we could have our own stage rather than trying to compete with the NCAA basketball tournament. -- Matt B. Foley: No, I don't see any reason not to move the season. Make it a one-semester sport. Start in January and end in late April. Logical, profitable and better for the student-athletes. The only reason it won't be slotted that way is there are still too many stakeholders who profit from the current calendar and don't want to risk the change. Same for why there is no NCAA-sanctioned dual meet national championship. Q: With the conference championships set to start soon, and the NCAAs right behind them, who are your all-time individual greats, at each individual weight, 125 pounds through heavyweight? I know some weight classes aren't around anymore, so please use your artistic creativity for the likes of Dan Gable and company in slotting them if necessary. Thanks. I'm looking forward to seeing what roster you come up, with of all-time greats at each weight class. Semper Fi! -- Rick B. Foley: 125: Stephen Abas (Fresno State) 133: Eric Guerrero (Oklahoma State) 141: Logan Stieber (Ohio State) 149: Zain Retherford (Penn State) 157: Pat Smith (Oklahoma State) 165: Joe Williams (Iowa) 174: Chris Pendleton (Oklahoma State) 184: Cael Sanderson (Iowa State) 197: J'den Cox (Missouri) 285: Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) DH: Kyle Dake (Cornell) MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Here are some of the first videos coming from our recent production in India. Hope you enjoy and find them informative! Sakshi Malik is a massive star in India. Find out why! Hanuman is considered the god most closely associated with wrestling. Check out this short piece on Lord Hanuman and Bajrang Punia. All the action from the Dan Kolov is right here. Q: That stoppage in the Robbie-Lawler Ben Askren fight was bullshit. Hard not to like Lawler. Did you see his reaction after the fight was stopped? Do you think there will be a rematch? If not, where does each go from here? -- Mike C. Foley: I remember rolling with a very average (maybe below average) blue belt just after I received my purple belt in 2013 (or so). This kid was a total spaz and I was trying to play nice, but at some point I went in on a shot and turned the corner, but instead of sprawling or whizzering he put me in a schoolyard headlock like what you saw last Saturday from Ben Askren. I reacted the wrong way and there it was, I was being Bulldog choked to death. I'd never seen the move, much less felt it applied, and I'd certainly never learned the counter. Askren had a tight grip and from what I could see of the angle and pressure, there really wasn't a solid out for Lawler, except maybe getting his left shoulder back in front of Ben's belly and turning his chin in. To do that I think Lawler would have to his feet to the cage and/or closer to Ben's. Either way he was stuck and in a lot of pain. I don't believe he was out, but I also saw that arm go limpish for a second so I see both sides. Super-dumb position to end up in, but that's what Ben does, he puts you into positions that he knows and he knows you don't know. No rematch. They'll move Ben onto Darren Till, who is just as heavy a striker as Lawler, but has questionable wrestling. We'll see! Q: What do you make of the recent rise in showboating/dance celebration after winning? Chandler Rogers' dance after Iowa I thought was a joke. Another I saw from Wisconsin. They don't allow this in football. There is a difference between being fired up for a big win, and that. Did you see the video of Wisconsin after the Ben Askren win that was posted on their RTC twitter page? I was absolutely shocked that someone, sounds like a kid who taped it, would post a video where "f$&k yeah" is clearly screamed (by my count) four times. And post it on the RTC page. Some college administrators have taken control of the social media pages if the schools name is attached, and after seeing this, who can blame them? I guess it all comes down to the coach in the end. My dad had a saying, "What you permit, you promote." -- John G. Foley: First, this question is basically The Simpsons' "OLD MAN YELLS AT CLOUD" GIF. However, I agree that the dancing should be moderated to maybe not include the crotch thrusting and chopping towards the groin. I don't like singlets as it is and sexualizing the sport, or your dance while in a singlet, seems crude. The Badger RTC coach is Ben Askren so I can see why these guys were so excited. You probably went to college and remember what it was like to be in a room during some type of large scale celebration. Everyone tries to make more noise than the other guy, or look funnier. Just part of the game. Few curse words don't really get to me all that much. Man, you are bah-humbuggin' Wisconsin. Can't oblige that much hate. Also, little known fact, Milwaukee is the city of my birth. Overall, let the kids dance as they wish so long as it's not in the face of their opponent. The sport should be fun, but it should also remain respectful. That line is always shifting, which leaves it up to interpretation by each fan, coach and athlete, but in general "be cool, man." Q: This weekend in Virginia: NCAA Division III Championships, ACC Championships, EWL Championships and MAC Championships. If champions in each of those events formed a team and entered a dual meet tournament, what would the top four team finishes be? -- Mike C. Foley: 1. ACC 2. MAC 3. NCAA Division III 4. EWL Q: Thoughts on EWL teams joining the MAC? -- Mike C. Foley: While there is a lot of talk around the size of the new MAC (15 programs), my biggest want for this merger is to help generate more interest in the PSAC programs that haven't garnered as much attention as they deserve. The size of the conference should mean that a profitable mixture of TV markets could draw some good dollars for streaming and other deals. Missouri, Central Michigan, Lock Haven, Cleveland State, and the other 11 schools will enjoy increased national exposure and the smaller schools will now have an opportunity to have consistent high-level competition. Good move. Q: How does USA Wrestling decide which wrestlers are sent abroad to compete in a Ranking Series Tournament? Why weren't Kyle Dake and David Taylor entered in the Dan Kolov tournament? -- JVM Foley: National team members are given the right of first refusal from starter down to the No. 3 on the ladder. Individuals who are hurt, committed elsewhere, or simply don't want to compete are not bound by any rules to attend these tournaments. After checking with the national team, the USA Wrestling coaching staff decides who else to bring, though their decision-making tree isn't known to me. Not sure about Dake or Taylor. Remember that there are still two more Ranking Series tournaments, continentals, and Final X matches to consider in the very near future. Q: Seth Gross is in the transfer portal. Where do you think he ends up? I'm predicting Wisconsin (Coach Bono) or Minnesota (home state, brother will be at Augsburg), but wondering if you have heard any rumblings? -- Mike C. Foley: See Daniel Cormier's tweet below.

Lonnie Morris coaching at the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships MANHEIM, Pa. -- A night before his team starts its quest for a national championship, Johnson & Wales University wrestling head coach Lonnie Morris received his sport's highest honor. The 26-year Wildcat mat boss was named the National Wrestling Coaches Association National Coach of the Year, presented by Defense Soap. "We are pleased to recognize this year's National Coach of the Year recipient, Lonnie Morris and want to thank him for providing a quality experience for his student-athletes and for being an outstanding role model to our sport," said NWCA Executive Director, Mike Moyer. Johnson & Wales had a program-best nine wrestlers qualify for the NCAA Championships, March 8-9, in Roanoke, Va. The Wildcats made history by becoming the first New England school to send nine wrestlers and set an NCAA Northeast Regional record by scoring 187 points. It was JWU's third regional title in a row. This season the Wildcats have a 23-4 dual meet record that includes the first win over Wartburg College at the NWCA National Duals. Johnson & Wales was the first New England team to make the finals of the NWCA Division III Multi-National Duals. The regional championship was JWU's fourth tournament title of the year to go along with the Roger Williams Invitational, New Standard Invitational and New England Dual Meet Championships. After dominating the competition over the weekend, Morris earned the meet's Coach of the Year Award and Brian Allen was named Assistant Coach of the Year. A native Rhode Islander, giving back to the wrestling community is also very important to Morris. He and his team are very active in the community service field with over 200 hours spent helping Beat the Streets Providence and conducting many clinics at clubs and high schools throughout the northeast. Lonnie Morris appeared on Episode 4 of The MatBoss Podcast.

Alonzo Allen earned the all-conference spot at 125 pounds (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- VMI's 174-pounder Neal Richards has been named the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year and Chattanooga's 149-pounder Tanner Smith has been named the league's Freshman of the Year as determined by a vote of the conference's eight head coaches, the league office announced Wednesday. The coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own wrestlers, also selected 10-member all-conference and all-freshman teams. Appalachian State paced all-conference field with three selection and named two to the all-freshman team. Campbell and Chattanooga came in second, having two each named to the all-conference team while Chattanooga had three named to the all-freshman team. The Citadel boasts one to the all-conference team and three to the all-freshman team. Gardner-Webb and VMI, with one member named to the all-conference team each, rounded out the team. Randall Diabe (197) is currently ranked No. 18 nationally, finishing the year with a 24-5 overall record, 14-1 dual record and a perfect 5-0 conference record. He is joined on this year's all-conference team by Alan Clothier (184) and Cary Miller (HWT). Miller posted an overall 21-11 record and a perfect 6-0 Southern Conference record. Clothier only dropped one match in SoCon action to bring his final regular season record to 18-13 overall and 5-1 in the conference while recording a pin. The Mountaineer's are represented on this year's all-freshman team by Jonathan Millner (149) and Anthony Brito (141). This year's wrestler of the year, Neal Richards (174), is ranked No. 18 nationally, finishing the year with a 27-3 overall record and a perfect 7-0 SoCon and 17-0 dual record with thirteen pins. The redshirt junior hasn't lost a match since November and is coming into the tournament with a 19-match win streak. He was named wrestler of the week four times as well as wrestler of the months twice-the first time ever for a Keydet. Richards was also named to this year's all-conference team in the 174 pounds weight-class category. VMI finished the regular season fourth overall with a conference record of 3-3. The Mocs of Chattanooga are represented on this year's all-conference team by last season's 125-pound individual champion, Alonzo Allen. He posted a 22-7 record with a conference record of 4-0 and a dual's record of 7-3. Teammate Chris Debien (141) joins him on the all-conference team with a record of 22-11 overall and 6-0 perfect conference record with four pins. A true freshman from New Carlisle, Ohio, Chattanooga's Tanner Smith claims this year's freshman of the year award. He went 9-6 overall, 4-2 in the conference and 6-4 in duals with two pins on the season. He is joined on the all-freshman team by teammates Ryan Resnick (157), and Drew Nicholson (165). Tyler Marinelli (165) is the lone Runnin' Bulldog on the all-conference squad with an overall record of 16-2 and a perfect 6-0 in the conference. Gardner-Webb finished the regular season with a conference record of 1-5. The Camels have representation on this year's all-conference by Josh Heil (149). Heil finished the 2018-19 season with a 21-7 overall record and a perfect duals and conference record while recording three pins. Campbell finished the regular season tied for regular season champions with a 5-1 conference record. At 157, Rian Burris represents The Citadel on the all-conference team, boasting a regular season 23-15 overall record. The Bulldogs have representation of three on the all-freshman team with Dazjon Castro (165), Kyle Kretzer (174) and Chon Porter (149). Six of the 10 all-conference picks -- Allen, Gonser, Debien, Heil, Marinelli, Richards and Miller - earned the maximum number of points in the voting process. The SoCon Wrestling Championship takes place Saturday, March 10, in Boone, North Carolina. Doors to Holmes Convention Center open at 9 a.m. First-round matches are set to begin at 10 a.m., with finals slated to start at 7 p.m. 2018-19 Wrestler of the Year Neal Richards, 197, VMI 2018-19 Freshman of the Year Tanner Smith, 149, Chattanooga 2018-19 All-Southern Conference Team 125: Alonzo Allen, Chattanooga 133: Noah Gonser,, Campbell 141: Chris Debien,, Chattanooga 149: Josh Heil, Campbell 157: Rian Burris, The Citadel 165: Tyler Marinelli,, Gardner-Webb 174: Neal Richards, VMI 184: Alan Clothier, Appalachian State 197: Randall Diabe, Appalachian State 285: Cary Miller, Appalachian State 2018-19 Freshman Team Anthony Brito, 141, Appalachian State Jonathan Millner, 149, Appalachian State Dazjon Castro, 165, The Citadel Kyle Kretzer, 174, The Citadel Chon Porter, 149, The Citadel Drew Nicholson, 165, Chattanooga Ryan Resnick, 157, Chattanooga Tanner Smith, 149, Chattanooga Kyle Gorant, 133, Davidson Mitchell Trigg, HWT, Davidson

The Wartburg College Knights are still the kings of Division III wrestling. Wartburg has walked away with the gold trophy for small colleges the past three years in early March. Can the Knights make it four in a row? They certainly will have a legitimate shot when the NCAA Division III Championships are contested Friday and Saturday at the Berglund Center in Roanoke, Va. Wartburg's push for another crown is one of many storylines to follow entering this year's event. The Knights have won a record 14 national titles, including seven of the last eight. Wartburg has qualified seven wrestlers and is led by a pair of returning national champions in senior Cross Cannone and sophomore Brock Rathbun. Cannone is the No. 1 seed at 157 pounds and has won his last 61 matches. He won NCAAs in 2018 at 149 after placing second the year before at 141. Cannone is a strong, physical and aggressive wrestler who is a difficult matchup for anyone. Rathbun is the No. 3 seed at 133. He has a career record of 50-9, including a 25-4 mark this season. Rathbun came on strong late in the season and won a regional title. Wartburg also has seeded wrestlers in Kyle Briggs, No. 3 at 174; Kris Rumph, No. 4 at 149; Brady Kyner, No. 7 at 125; Brady Fritz, No. 7 at 141 and unseeded Bowen Wileman at heavyweight. Augsburg was ranked No. 1 nationally before dropping a home dual meet against Wartburg late in the season. The last time a team other than Augsburg or Wartburg won the team title in Division III was when Ithaca College captured the 1994 championship. Augsburg's Lucas Jeske, ranked No. 1, battles Wartburg's Michael Ross (Photo/David Peterson) Augsburg returns a pair of national champions in juniors Lucas Jeske and Ryan Epps. Jeske was named outstanding wrestler at the 2018 national tournament and he is unbeaten this season. Jeske is seeded No. 1 at 165 pounds. Epps captured his 2018 national title in dramatic fashion, scoring a takedown in overtime to edge Wartburg's Logan Thomsen 3-1 in the 157-pound finals. Epps is the No. 2 seed in a loaded 157 class topped by Cannone, who defeated Epps 8-4 in the dual. Augsburg also returns a national finalist in No. 2 seed Sam Bennyhoff at 133. Bennyhoff avenged his national finals loss to Rathbun in the dual. The two standouts could meet again in the NCAA semifinals in a match that could play a huge role in the team race. The Auggies also have a potential champion at 197 with No. 3 seed Lance Benick, who is 25-3. Benick transferred to Augsburg last year from Arizona State. One team with the potential to end the string of titles by the Burgs is Johnson & Wales, a squad that qualified a New England record nine wrestlers for nationals. The Wildcats feature plenty of firepower with their bonus point potential. Johnson & Wales has a lineup that includes numerous wrestlers who can end a match at any point with a quick fall. Jay Albis made history for the Johnson & Wales wrestling program last season. He became the school's first national champion in any sport. Albis is back at 125 pounds and is the No. 1 seed with a 35-4 record. The Wildcats upset Wartburg at the National Duals this season before falling to Augsburg in the finals. Johnson & Wales also set a Northeast Regional record by scoring 187 points. Eighth-ranked Loras had an excellent showing in the same regional with Wartburg and matched the Knights with seven national qualifiers. The Duhawks are led by coach T.J. Miller, a past Wartburg national champion under his father Jim Miller. Returning runner-up Guy Patron of Loras is the No. 2 seed at 197 with a 18-2 record. Patron placed third at nationals two years ago. Ithaca's Ben Brisman also is back after winning the 141-pound national title as a sophomore. He is 21-1 this season and seeded second in the tournament. Sixth-ranked Ithaca has six qualifiers as does No. 4 Wabash. Mount Union's Jairod James is another wrestler who will look to repeat as a national champion. He is seeded second at 174 with a 33-4 record. Waynesburg's Jake Evans also returns to defend his national title at heavyweight. He is 46-2 this season and will be seeded third. Evans provided one of the more compelling stories in collegiate wrestling last season by winning an NCAA Division III crown at age 28. This shapes up to be an outstanding tournament. Wartburg, with seven qualifiers, has little margin for error. The Knights certainly are capable with plenty of scoring potential among their strong list of qualifiers. Augsburg looks like the best bet to end its rival's run of consecutive team titles. The Auggies have won 12 national titles since 1991 and could be in position to do it again. It may come down to bonus points and that's where Johnson & Wales could make a run at the top spot with its ability to accumulate pins. This is always a highly competitive event with compelling drama and this year promises to be no exception. It will be exciting to see how it plays out this weekend in Virginia.

Neal Richards is the top seed at 174 pounds (Photo/VMI Athletics) SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Seeding for the 2019 Southern Conference Wrestling Championship has been released, the league office announced Tuesday afternoon. Two of last year's SoCon individual champions will be back in the fields this year, defending titles in their respective weight classes. Chattanooga's Alonzo Allen looks to defend his 125-pound title while Appalachian State's Irvin Enriquez looks to defend his title in the 141-pound weight class. The SoCon was allocated 13 spots in the NCAA Championships, with the 149, 174 and 197-pound weight classes being awarded two each. This year's championship is hosted by Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina at the Holmes Convocation Center, on Sunday, March 10. Doors will open at 9 a.m., with competition scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. Seeds 125 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Alonzo Allen, Chattanooga 2. Korbin Meink, Campbell 3. DeAndre Swinson-Barr, Appalachian State 4. Derek Shockey, VMI 133 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Noah Gosner, Campbell 2. Codi Russell, Appalachian State 3. Kyle Gorant, Davidson 4. Brandon Bright, Gardner-Webb 5. Jake Huffine, Chattanooga 6. Charles Kearney, The Citadel 7. Cliff Conway, VMI 141 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Chris Debien, Chattanooga 2. Nathan Boston, Campbell 3. Irvin Enriquez, Appalachian State 4. Dom Gallo, VMI 5. Blake Mulkey, Gardner-Webb 6. Caleb Zibell, Davidson 7. Keegan Connolly 149 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Joshua Heil, Campbell 2. Matthew Zovistoski, Appalachian State 3. Tanner Smith, Chattanooga 4. Selwyn Porter, The Citadel 5. Will Baldwin, Davidson 6. Chase McKinney, Gardner-Webb 7. Zach Schmitt, VMI 157 ( 1 NCAA allocation) 1. Benjamin Barton, Campbell 2. Rian Burris, The Citadel 3. Tanner Smith, Chattanooga 4. Angel Najar, Appalachian State 5. Evan Schenk, Gardner-Webb 6. Tony Palumbo, Davidson 7. Darren Ostrander, VMI 165 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Tyler Marinelli, Gardner-Webb 2. Michael Elliott, Appalachian State 3. Drew Nicholson, Chattanooga 4. Dazjon Casto, The Citadel 5. Cameron Pine, Campbell 6. Hunter Costa, Davidson 7. Luke Niksic, VMI 174 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Neal Richards, VMI 2. Andrew Morgan, Campbell 3. Thomas Flitz, Appalachian State 4. Kyle Homet, Gardner-Webb 5. Hunter Fortner, Chattanooga 6. Noah Satterfield, Davidson 7. Kyle Kretzer, The Citadel 184 (1 NCAA allocations) 1. Alan Clothier, Appalachian State 2. Chris Kober, Campbell 3. Dominic Lampe, Chattanooga 4. Conor Fenn, Davidson 5. Max Gallahan, VMI 6. Martin Duane, The Citadel 7. Christian Salter, Gardner-Webb 197 (2 NCAA allocations) 1. Randall Diabe, Appalachian State 2. Sawyer Root, The Citadel 3. Anthony Perrine, Gardner-Webb 4. Rod Jones, Chattanooga 5. Austin McNeil, Campbell 6. Chris Beck, VMI 7. Finaly Holston, Davidson 285 (1 NCAA allocation) 1. Cary Miller, Appalachian State 2. Connor Tolley, Chattanooga 3. Odgerel Batkhishig, Campbell 4. Michael McAleavey, The Citadel 5. Trey Momon, VMI 6. Jack Trautman, Gardner-Webb

Missouri's Daniel Lewis is currently ranked No. 2 at 174 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The 2019 MAC Wrestling Championships will be held March 8-9 and hosted by Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va. Listed below is the pre-seeding for the MAC Wrestling Championship following today's conference call with all eight MAC head wrestling coaches. 125: 1. Michael McGee, Old Dominion 2. Drew Hildebrandt, Central Michigan 3. Shakur Laney, Ohio 4. Dack Punke, Missouri 5. Kyle Akins, Buffalo 6. Bryce West, Northern Illinois 7. Jake Ferri, Kent State 8. Gage Datlovsky, SIU Edwardsville 133: 1. John Erneste, Missouri 2. Mario Guillen, Ohio 3. Derek Spann, Buffalo 4. Alijah Jeffery, Northern Illinois 5. Tim Rooney, Kent State 6. Trevor Majette, Old Dominion 7. Devin Perez, Central Michigan 8. Austin Macias, SIU Edwardsville 141: 1. Jaydin Eierman, Missouri 2. Cameron Kelly, Ohio 3. Bryan Lantry, Buffalo 4. Sa'Derian Perry, Old Dominion 5. Drew Marten, Central Michigan 6. Drew West, Northern Illinois 7. Cory Simpson, Kent State 8. Lucas Bernal, SIU Edwardsville 149: 1. Brock Mauller, Missouri 2. Kevin Budock, Old Dominion 3. Alec Hagan, Ohio 4. Tyshawn Williams, SIU Edwardsville 5. McCoy Kent, Northern Illinois 6. Kody Komora, Kent State 7. Dresden Simon, Central Michigan 8. Jason Estevez, Buffalo 157: 1. Larry Early, Old Dominion 2. Jarrett Jacques, Missouri 3. Zac Carson, Ohio 4. Justin Ruffin, SIU Edwardsville 5. Logan Parks, Central Michigan 6. Alex Smythe, Buffalo 7. Mason Kauffman, Northern Illinois 8. Richard Jackson, Kent State 165: 1. Connor Flynn, Missouri 2. Troy Keller, Buffalo 3. Kenny Moore, Northern Illinois 4. Colt Yinger, Ohio 5. Isaac Bast, Kent State 6. Nate Higgins, SIU Edwardsville 7. Shane Jones, Old Dominion 8. Bret Fedewa, Central Michigan 174: 1. Daniel Lewis, Missouri 2. Brit Wilson, Northern Illinois 3. Jake Lanning, Buffalo 4. Collin Lieber, Central Michigan 5. Kade Byland, Kent State 6. Luke Drugac, Old Dominion 7. Kevin Gschwendtner, SIU Edwardsville 8. Logan Stanley, Ohio 184: 1. Dylan Wisman, Missouri 2. Antonio Agee, Old Dominion 3. Andrew McNally, Kent State 4. Jordan Atienza, Central Michigan 5. Will Feldkamp, Northern Illinois 6. Sergio Villalobos, SIU Edwardsville 7. Hunter Yeargan, Ohio 8. Logan Rill, Buffalo 197: 1. Wyatt Koelling, Missouri 2. Christian Dulaney, SIU Edwardsville 3. Brett Perry, Buffalo 4. Tim Young, Old Dominion 5. Landon Pelham, Central Michigan 6. Derek Hillman, Ohio 7. Shane Mast, Kent State 8. Max Ihry, Northern Illinois 285: 1. Matt Stencel, Central Michigan 2. Zach Elam, Missouri 3. Jake Gunning, Buffalo 4. Will Hilliard, Old Dominion 5. Caleb Gossett, Northern Illinois 6. Colton McKiernan, SIU Edwardsville 7. Spencer Berthold, Kent State 8. Zack Parker, Ohio

Mark Cody (Photo/Oklahoma Athletics) The Upstate New York Chapter of National Wrestling Hall of Fame has announced its honorees for its Class of 2019. These new inductees, to be welcomed this September, include seven Lifetime Service Award recipients, as well as the recipient of the Outstanding American Award, and the Stanbro Media Award honoree. Those who will be presented with Upstate New York Chapter's Lifetime Service Award this fall include Mark Cody, head wrestling coach at Presbyterian College who made a name for himself at the helm of the American University and Oklahoma University mat programs; Paul Cummings, Valley Central High School; Steve Dalberth, New York High Rules Interpreter and wrestling official; Tim Jenks, Greene Central School; Pete Rao, college wrestling official; Anthony Servidone, Section II's Columbia High School; and Brian Tompkins, Section I's Sleepy Hollow High School. In addition, Rear Admiral Donald P. Quinn will receive the Outstanding American Award ... while Michael Carey will get the Stanbro Media Award for promoting wrestling in Section IX and throughout New York State. The Class of 2019 awards will be presented in a special induction ceremony on Sunday, September 22, 2019 at the Double Tree Hotel in East Syracuse, N.Y. Additional information on the honorees and the awards presentation will be released at a later date. In the meantime, questions may be directed to Carl Koenig, President of Upstate New York Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, at (607) 244-8422 or carlkoenig@stny.rr.com.

Joe Smith wrestling Mark Hall in the finals of the Southern Scuffle (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) Nowadays, wrestle-off results at the college level barely get mentioned beyond the wrestling room … or on a team's website. So it's something of a "big deal" when that kind of match generates actual news stories. Then again, this wrestle-off took place at Oklahoma State, featuring two combatants from the same high school. And it saw a guy who hadn't wrestled this season at 165 pounds defeat a senior All-American at that weight. And, if that weren't enough, the winner happens to be the son of the Cowboys' head coach. Redshirt junior Joe Smith, son of John Smith, legendary Oklahoma State wrestler and coach, defeated Chandler Rogers, redshirt senior, in a best-of-three series of "ranking matches" inside the wrestling room at the storied Gallagher-Iba Arena Monday night … ensuring that the younger Smith would be representing the Cowboys at 165 pounds in postseason competition this month. It was a battle of two-time NCAA All-Americans. Smith, who redshirted last season, placed fourth as a sophomore and seventh as a true freshman at the 2016 NCAAs … both at 157 pounds. Rogers finished eighth and fifth the last two seasons at 165 pounds. Both are mat alums of Stillwater High School in the hometown of Oklahoma State who tallied a total of seven Oklahoma state titles -- three for Smith, four for Chandler. In the first match, Joe Smith scored a first-period takedown which ultimately led to a 3-2 win. An hour later, Smith racked up a series of three takedowns to come out on top 7-4. Roger Moore, long-time Stillwater-based wrestling writer, was in the Oklahoma State wrestling room for the Smith-Rogers wrestle-off. Here's how he described the situation in a story on TheMat.com: "Finding the right place and time to determine the lineup has not been easy. And having to make a difficult decision … nobody was cheering or celebrating much Monday night … " As Moore explained, the ranking match was necessary because of "a logjam in the middle weights for the Cowboys." "This hasn't been easy," John Smith told Moore. "Having guys injured, missing January, brought about a tough situation. It comes down to whoever wants it more." Joe Smith will wrestle at 165 for Oklahoma State at the 2019 Big 12 Wrestling Championships this weekend in Tulsa. Meanwhile, Chandler Rogers has concluded his Cowboy mat career with a 94-25 record.

Matthew Kolodzik is seeded No. 1 at 149 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) The pre-seeds for the 2019 EIWA Championships at Binghamton University have been determined. Here are the weight-by-weight results. All wrestlers who received votes are shown. 125: 1. Vitali Arujau Cornell 2. Patrick Glory Princeton 3. Carmen Ferrante Penn 4. Trey Chalifoux Army West Point 5. Audey Ashkar Binghamton 6. Dylan Ryder Hofstra 7. Gage Curry American 8. Trey Keeley Brown 9. Jakob Campbell Bucknell 10. Joe Manchio Columbia 11. Jacob Allen Navy 133: 1. Chas Tucker Cornell 2. Josh Terao American 3. Brandon Paetzell Lehigh 4. Casey Cobb Navy 5. Lane Peters Army West Point 6. Zack Trampe Binghamton 6. Matt Kazimir Columbia 8. Doug Zapf Penn 9. Lukus Stricker Harvard 10. Chandler Olson Drexel 11. Jacob Martin Hofstra 12. David Campbell Bucknell 141: 1. Yianni Diakomihalis Cornell 2. Nicholas Gil Navy 3. Ryan Pomrinca Lehigh 4. Jack Mutchnik American 5. Anthony Sparacio Binghamton 6. Corey Shie Army West Point 7. Marshall Keller Princeton 8. Wil Gil F&M 9. Theo Powers Brown 9. AJ Vindici Penn 11. Danny Fongaro Columbia 12. Ryan Friedman Harvard 12. Garrett Lambert Hofstra 149: 1. Matt Kolodzik Princeton 2. Anthony Artalona Penn 3. Cortlandt Schuyler Lehigh 3. Jared Prince Navy 5. Michael Sprague American 6. Parker Kropman Drexel 7. Jonathan Furnas Cornell 8. Cole Corrigan Columbia 9. Holden Heller Hofstra 10. Frank Garcia Binghamton 11. Matthew Kolonia Bucknell 11. Brock Wilson Harvard 157: 1. Zach Hartman Bucknell 2. Josh Humphreys Lehigh 3. Quincy Monday Princeton 4. Lucas Weiland Army West Point 4. Dan Reed Columbia 6. Adam Santoro Cornell 6. Hunter Ladnier Harvard 8. Kizhan Clarke American 9. Evan Barczak Drexel 10. Joe Oliva Penn 11. Emmett LiCastri F&M 165: 1. Ebed Jarrell Drexel 2. Jon Viruet Brown 3. Tanner Skidgel Navy 4. Cael McCormick Army West Point 5. Gordon Wolf Lehigh 6. Laurence Kosoy Columbia 7. Andrew Berreyesa Cornell 8. Brandon Levesque Sacred Heart 9. DJ Hollingshead Bucknell 10. Leonard Merkin Princeton 11. Tyler Tarsi Harvard 12. Evan DeLuise Penn 174: 1. Jordan Kutler Lehigh 2. Brandon Womack Cornell 3. Ben Harvey Army West Point 4. Spencer Carey Navy 5. Vincent DePrez Binghamton 5. Travis Stefanik Princeton 7. Frankie Guida Bucknell 8. Max Elling Columbia 8. Ricky Stamm Hofstra 10. Bryan McLaughlin Drexel 11. AJ Pedro Brown 11. Anthony Falbo Sacred Heart 13 Joshua Kim Harvard 184: 1. Max Dean Cornell 2. Lou DePrez Binghamton 3. Ryan Preisch Lehigh 4. CJ LaFragola Brown 5. Noah Stewart Army West Point 6. Tanner Harvey American 7. Kevin Parker Princeton 8. Kyle Inlander Bucknell 9. Anthony Cable Navy 10. Brian Bonino Columbia 11. Anthony Walters Drexel 11. Kyle Davis Sacred Heart 197: 1. Patrick Brucki Princeton 2. Ben Honis Cornell 3. Rocco Caywood Army West Point 4. Stephen Loiseau Drexel 5. Josh Roetman Navy 6. Drew Phipps Bucknell 7. John Jakobsen Lehigh 8. Philip Robilotto F&M 9. Nezar Haddad Hofstra 10. Anthony DePrez Binghamton 10. Tucker Ziegler Brown 285: 1. Jordan Wood Lehigh 2. Joey Goodhart Drexel 3. Jeramy Sweany Cornell 4. Ben Sullivan Army West Point 5. Niko Camacho American 6. Ian Butterbrodt Brown 6. Antonio Pelusi F&M 8. Joe Doyle Binghamton 9. Omar Haddad Hofstra 10. Daniel Herman Columbia 10. Thomas Ott Navy 12. Ben Goldin Penn The coaches will meet Thursday afternoon at Binghamton to review the pre-seeds and make adjustments. The seeds will remain preliminary until locked in at weigh-ins on Friday morning. Eight to ten wrestlers will be seeded in each weight class.

Jose Champagne battles Alec Pantaleo of Michigan in Las Vegas (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) LITTLE ROCK -- Head wrestling coach Neil Erisman has announced five additions to the Trojans' inaugural wrestling roster, set to begin competing this November. Jose Champagne, Justin Grant, Cash Jones, Hasan Krigger and Blake Mateu are all enrolled in classes and are on campus, beginning to build Little Rock's wrestling program. Along with freshman Conner Ward, who has been on campus and training since the start of the Fall 2018 semester, the six comprise the initial six signees for the Trojan wrestling program, laying the ground work for the NCAA's newest Division I program. "These six young men embody what it means to be Rocked Up," Erisman said. "They have all bought in to what we are building, our beliefs and who we are going to be on and off the mat. I wouldn't want to start a program with any other student-athletes and I can't wait to see them competing in the maroon singlet next season." Jose Champagne 5-8 | 157 | Sophomore Griffith, Indiana (Marian Catholic H.S./Minnesota) Prior to Little Rock: Spent two seasons at the University of Minnesota, utilizing his redshirt season in 2016-17 … Posted a 7-7 overall record as a redshirt freshman with three pins and a pair of major decisions … State champion in 2016 at Marian Catholic High School … Posted a high school record of 103-3 … Four-time all-conference and all-state honoree … 11-time cadet and junior All-American … Three-time folkstyle national champion and one-time freestyle national champion … A and B honor roll. Personal: Son of Tim and Rebecca Champagne … Has a brother, Carlos, who wrestled at Wabash College … Plans to be a Spanish teacher. Erisman on Champagne: "Having Jose here has been incredible. He comes from a historic program at the University of Minnesota and has been a life long winner and successful at all levels. He is a seasoned wrestler that has brought a strong positive attitude and a new level to our program. In his short time here he has already taken the responsibility upon himself to mentor the younger athletes" Justin Grant 5-10 | 165 | R-Freshman Tallahassee, Fla. (Lincoln H.S.) Prior to Little Rock: Three-time All-state selection at Lincoln High School … Placed third at the Florida state championships in 2017 and 2018 after finishing fourth in 2016 … Four-time first team All-Big Bend selection … Four-time district champion and three-time regional champion … 2018 North West Florida Class 2A Wrestler of the Year … Posted an overall high school record of 172-16 … Two-time All-Star Division All-American in 2017 and 2018 … Placed first at the 2017 Florida AAU Spring States tournament … Finished with six high school letters after lettering once in football and twice in track and field. Personal: Son of James and Nancy Grant … Originally committed to North Carolina State before signing with Little Rock … Older brother Jamie plays baseball at Florida A&M … Plans to major in education with the goal to be a high school coach. Erisman on Grant: "Justin came to us via North Carolina State, one of the nation,s premier programs. I'm very excited about Justin's size and athleticism. He's big, strong, fast and has a great attitude, and Justin should be fan favorite to watch wrestle at the Jack." Cash Jones 6-0 | 174 | R-Freshman Bentonville, Ark. (Bentonville H.S.) Prior to Little Rock: Three-time Arkansas state champion at Bentonville High School … Helped lead the Tigers to back-to-back Class 6A/7A state titles in 2017 and 2018 … Posted a career high school record of 227-11, including a mark of 62-1 as a senior … Represented Arkansas at the Junior Freestyle and Greco-Roman nationals in Fargo … Placed first in the 2016 Arkansas Greco/Freestyle tournament and second in 2017 … 2017 Big West Conference champion … Recorded 15 individual tournament championships during his high school career … Four year honor roll student. Personal: Son of David and Sheila Jones … Originally committed to Campbell before signing with Little Rock … Plans to major in communications. Erisman on Jones: "I'm really excited about having Cash as part of our program. Being our first Arkansas student-athlete is incredible and I expect him to set the bar high for future in-state Trojans. Cash has great size and athletic ability and we will be looking for him to be a dominant force in the upper weights." Hasan Krigger 5-4 | 125 | Sophomore Atlanta, Ga. (Central Gwinnett H.S./Iowa Lakes C.C) Prior to Little Rock: Spent two seasons at Iowa Lakes Community College, utilizing his redshirt season … Posted a pair of wins for the Lakers in his freshman season … Three year letterwinner at Central Gwinnett High School … 2016 Georgia state champion … Posted an overall high school record of 95-20, including going 23-1 as a senior … Two-time All-American after finishing first in cadet nationals in Fargo … Captured 13 individual tournament titles during his prep career. Personal: Son of Musa Krigger and Shamimara Siddique … Plans to major in psychology. Erisman on Krigger: "Hasan comes to us from Iowa Lakes Community College and brings us experience. Hasan has competed and won at the highest level. He is a great person and he really displays the drive and determination we are looking for. I'm very excited about having him here at the Rock." Blake Mateu 5-6 | 125 | Freshman Metairie, Louisiana (Archbishop Rummel H.S.) Prior to Little Rock: Three-time Louisiana state champion at Archbishop Rummel High School … Three-time first team all-state selection … Posted a 157-5 record during high school, including a perfect 25-0 season as a senior and a 44-0 season as a sophomore … Named the 2018 Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award winner for the state of Louisiana … Placed second at the 2017 Junior Cadets Freestyle national meet … Captured 25 individual tournament titles during his high school career. Personal: Son of Luis and Jodie Mateu … Plans to major in business. Erisman on Mateu: "Blake comes to us from Louisiana and has been winner, not just in his home state, but on the national scene as well. I am excited to see his progress as the next year unfolds. He knows how to wrestle and how to win." Season tickets for the inaugural Trojan wrestling season are now on sale through the Trojan ticket office by calling (501) 569-3393. Coach Erisman is in the process of putting together Little Rock's 2019-20 schedule, which will begin in November.

CLEVELAND -- The Mid-American Conference (MAC) announced today a historic membership expansion in the sport of wrestling as the MAC has added seven new affiliate members -- Bloomsburg, Clarion, Edinboro, Lock Haven, Rider, George Mason and Cleveland State -- to begin competing in the MAC with the 2019-20 wrestling season. The addition of seven new affiliate members increases MAC wrestling membership to 15 total members. Bloomsburg, Clarion, Edinboro, Lock Haven, Rider, George Mason and Cleveland State all have joined the MAC from the Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) making the MAC the second largest NCAA Division I Wrestling conference. MAC wrestling membership includes Buffalo, Central Michigan, Kent State, Northern Illinois and Ohio, along with current affiliate members Missouri (since 2013), Old Dominion (since 2013) and SIU Edwardsville (since 2018). The eight current MAC members will compete in the 2019 MAC Wrestling Championship on March 8-9 in Norfolk, Va. on the campus of Old Dominion University. Next season the 15 MAC wrestling programs will compete in the 2020 MAC Wrestling Championship on the campus of Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Ill. This addition to wrestling membership enhances the MAC's stature as one of the leading Division I Wrestling Conferences in the nation with legendary collegiate wrestling programs and solidifies membership and future growth in the sport of wrestling. This addition will also provide the MAC footprint across the Midwest towards the East Coast. "I am pleased to welcome our new additions to the Mid-American Conference that have strong traditions in the sport of wrestling. Our membership spent significant time discussing and studying the possible inclusion of these new members and we believe this will strengthen what has already grown into an elite wrestling league," said Dr. Jon A. Steinbrecher, Commissioner of the Mid-American Conference. "This addition of affiliate members is good for the Mid-American Conference, and good for collegiate wrestling. It broadens our footprint across a part of the country where youth, high school, and collegiate wrestling is very strong. I look forward to the 2019-20 season when our new and enhanced membership begins competition." The Missouri Tigers, who are currently ranked No. 5 in the nation, are currently 16-1 overall this season, 7-0 in the MAC. The Tigers are current six-time defending MAC wrestling champions and have won the MAC Wrestling Championship six consecutive years since joining the MAC in 2013. MAC wrestling history features 12 MAC wrestlers as NCAA National Champions, as the MAC has witnessed five individual NCAA Champions in the last eight years - including Kent State's Dustin Kilgore in 2011 (197 weight class), Missouri's J'Den Cox in 2014, 2016 and 2017 (197 weight class), the MAC's first-ever three-time NCAA Champion, and Missouri's Drake Houdashelt in 2015 (149 weight class). Last week, the MAC was allocated 27 qualifiers for the 2019 NCAA Wrestling Championships coming March 21-23 in Pittsburgh. The NCAA will announce the 330 qualifiers for the Division I Wrestling Championships on Tuesday, March 12. During the 2018 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Cleveland, Ohio, the MAC was represented with 34 wrestlers. Annually, the MAC is a consistent leader in Division I Wrestling in sending wrestlers to the NCAA Wrestling Championships - 2017 - 45 wrestlers - 3rd most in NCAA; 2016 - 45 wrestlers - 3rd most in NCAA; 2015 - 38 wrestlers - 3rd most in NCAA. Also, in 2018 the MAC hosted for the first time in Conference history the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland and set the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships total attendance record with 113,743 over the three-day, six-session, tournament and the single-session wrestling attendance record of 19,776 during Saturday's Finals session on March 17, 2018.

Pitt's Micky Phillippi is the top seed at 133 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Atlantic Coast Conference has announced the seedings for the 2019 ACC Wrestling Championship, which will be held this Saturday at Virginia Tech's Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Virginia. Action begins at 11 a.m. Saturday, with the Championship Finals set for 7 p.m. Tickets are priced at $10 for adults. Admission is free for youth 18 and under. ACC students are admitted free with a valid student ID. To purchase tickets, click here. Two-time defending ACC champion Virginia Tech leads all schools with three No. 1 seeds, while 2018-19 ACC dual meet co-champion NC State and Virginia landed two top seeds apiece. Co-champion North Carolina, Duke and Pitt each have one wrestler seeded atop his weight class. Seeds were determined by a vote of the league's six head coaches. Each weight class champion and runner-up at the 2019 ACC Championship will earn All-ACC recognition. In addition to ACC honors, student-athletes will be vying for berths and seeding in the 2019 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will be held March 21-23 at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh. The ACC has been awarded a league-record 37 automatic berths and is hopeful of earning several more at-large selections. The NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee will select 44 at-large qualifiers, which will be announced on March 12. Twenty-three Atlantic Coast Conference student-athletes are listed among the top 20 of their individual weight classes in the most recent InterMat rankings, including 15 among the top 10. Virginia Tech senior Zack Zavatsky holds the highest ranking at No. 3 in the 184-pound class (which includes three ACC wrestlers among the top 10). Duke senior Mitch Finesilver (149), and NC State sophomores Hayden Hidlay (157) and Nick Reenan (184) each hold No. 4 rankings. The doors to Cassell Coliseum will open at 10 a.m. on Saturday, 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 Extra again plans nearly 10 hours of live coverage from 11 a.m. through 9 p.m. Matches will be delivered on two concurrent live streams. Shawn Kenney and Tim Foley will handle the call on Mat 1, with Dean Linke and Rock Harrison manning Mat 2. The wealth of wrestling knowledge among the talent promises fans great insight into the competition. Seeds for the 65th Annual ACC Wrestling Championship are listed below. Brackets for each weight class may be viewed here. Entries are subject to change until noon on Friday. 125: 1. Jack Mueller, Virginia 2. Sean Fausz, NC State 3. Joey Prata, Virginia Tech 4. Joel Heilmann, North Carolina 5. Brendon Fenton, Pitt 6. Harrison Campbell, Duke 133: 1. Micky Phillippi, Pitt 2. Tariq Wilson, NC State 3. Gary Wayne Harding, North Carolina 4. Korbin Myers, Virginia Tech 5. Louie Hayes, Virginia 6. Arien Leigh, Duke 141: 1. Jamel Morris, NC State 2. Mitch Moore, Virginia Tech 3. A.C. Headlee, North Carolina 4. Josh Finesilver, Duke 5. LJ Bentley, Pitt 6. Sam Krivus, Virginia 149: 1. Mitch Finesilver, Duke 2. Austin O'Connor, North Carolina 3. Justin Oliver, NC State 4. Ryan Blees, Virginia Tech 5. Michael Murphy, Virginia 6. Dallas Bulsak, Pitt 157: 1. Hayden Hidlay, NC State 2. Taleb Rahmani, Pitt 3. B.C. LaPrade, Virginia Tech 4. Josh McClure, North Carolina 5. Jake Keating, Virginia 6. Ben Anderson, Duke 165: 1. Mekhi Lewis, Virginia Tech 2. Cam Coy, Virginia 3. Thomas Bullard, NC State 4. Zach Finesilver, Duke 5. Sawyer Davidson, North Carolina 6. Tommy O'Brien, Pitt 174: 1. David McFadden, Virginia Tech 2. Matt Finesilver, Duke 3. Daniel Bullard, NC State 4. Devin Kane, North Carolina 5. Gregg Harvey, Pitt 6. Robert Patrick, Virginia 184: 1. Zack Zavatsky, Virginia Tech 2. Nino Bonaccorsi, Pitt 3. Nick Reenan, NC State 4. Chip Ness, North Carolina 5. Kaden Russell, Duke 6. Will Schany, Virginia 197: 1. Jay Aiello, Virginia 2. Tom Sleigh, Virginia Tech 3. Malik McDonald, NC State 4. Kellan Stout, Pitt 5. Alec Schenk, Duke 6. Brandon Whitman, North Carolina 285: 1. Cory Daniel, North Carolina 2. Demetrius Thomas, Pitt 3. Billy Miller, Virginia Tech 4. Tyler Love, Virginia 5. Deonte Wilson, NC State 6. Araad Fisher, Duke

Duke's Mitch Finesilver recently defeated UNC's Austin O'Connor (Photo/Duke Athletics) This weekend all eight Division I wrestling conference will officially kick off the 2019 postseason. The parity across college wrestling leads to a variety of interesting matches between the superpowers and some mid-major squads. The following is a breakdown of the most interesting potential matches from each conference tournament. SoCon: No. 18 Neal Richards (VMI) vs. No. 19 Andrew Morgan (Campbell) at 174 The SoCon tournament could end up hosting this ranked match at 174 pounds. If it happens, it would be a trilogy match. The two wrestlers have already met twice this year. Morgan won the first meeting back in November via a 5-2 decision. However, the rematch was an entirely different story. In late February, Richards took home a commanding 14-7 victory over Morgan. In fact, Richards has not lost since falling against No. 1 Mark Hall (Penn State) in the semifinals of the Keystone Classic back in November. He will bring a 19-match winning streak into the SoCon championship tournament. During the streak, he captured the 174-pound crown at the All Academy Championships. Morgan has dropped seven matches on the season, but he has picked up some key wins in addition to his win over Richards. On the year, he has defeated the likes of Mitch Bowman (Iowa), Ben Harvey (Army) and Anthony Mantanona (Oklahoma). This will be his first match back since Richards stopped his four-match winning streak. Once Richards got going this season, he has looked like a different wrestler. Their most recent meeting is much more emblematic of his style of wrestling. Look for the VMI to take the match and the top spot on the podium at the SoCon tournament. Prediction: Richards (VMI) dec. Morgan (Campbell) EIWA: No. 3 Patrick Brucki (Princeton) vs. No. 7 Ben Honis (Cornell) at 197 Brucki has been one of the top wrestlers at this weight class all season, and he has only one loss on the season. That lone defeat came against Honis in Princeton's dual against Cornell. In their first meeting, Brucki got out to a 4-2 lead based on two first-period takedowns. He then chose bottom, but Honis was able to ride him out. In the third period, Brucki scored yet another takedown. He could not cut into the riding time from the top position. Late in the period, Honis scored a takedown. To tie it at 6-6 with the riding time. Brucki appeared to score a reversal at the buzzer, but the referee said it was after the bell. Honis finish the regular season with a 16-3 record. The senior saw two of his losses come against No. 2 Kollin Moore (Ohio State). Brucki was in the driver's seat against Honis in their previous match. If he avoids the bottom, he should be able to rack up the takedowns and take the match. Prediction: Brucki (Princeton) dec. Honis (Cornell) EWL: No. 10 Thomas Haines (Lock Haven) vs. No. 16 Matt Voss (George Mason) at 285 Coming into this season, Haines owned a pair of victories over Voss. However, when they met in November, it was Voss who left with the 5-2 decision. Haines will likely get another shot at Voss at the EWL tournament. Haines went 20-3 on the season and is currently riding an eight-bout winning streak that dates back to the Southern Scuffle. Haines has twice qualified for the NCAA tournament, and his quest to make it onto the podium starts right here. Voss nearly picked up his biggest win of the season. He dropped a sudden victory match against No. 9 Youssif Hemida (Maryland) two weeks ago. In addition to his victory over Haines, Voss has also defeated No. 18 Joey Goodhart (Drexel). Voss, like the rest of the George Mason program, has seemed to take a step forward this year. He has looked like the best version of himself so far in his senior season. His ability to shutdown Haines' offense in their first meeting this year was impressive, and he will likely be able to make it happen again. Prediction: Voss (George Mason) dec. Haines (Lock Haven) MAC: No. 9 Larry Early (Old Dominion) vs. No. 16 Jarrett Jacques (Missouri) at 157 Early burst onto the scene this season with a victory over No. 4 Hayden Hidlay (North Carolina State) in November. He picked up some losses on the season and finished 20-4. However, he enters the MAC tournament as the highest ranked wrestler at this weight in conference. Jacques locked down the starting job for the Tigers in early December. After the Cliff Keen Invitational, he has gone 13-2 with his only losses coming against Jake Keating (Virginia) and No. 14 Christian Pagdilao (Arizona State). During the run, he has picked up victories over Chase Straw (Iowa State), Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State) and Fredy Stroker (Cornell). Early has recently regained some of his early season momentum, and he should be able to control the match against Jacques. He might not have the dynamic scoring ability that Jacques has shown at times, but he has more experience and the ability to control tempo. That should put him in the driver's seat to win a MAC title. Prediction: Early (Old Dominion) dec. Jacques (Missouri) ACC: No. 4 Mitch Finesilver (Duke) vs. No. 5 Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) at 149 Finesilver and O'Connor have wrestled three times already this season. Their first meeting came at the Hokie Open where Finesilver won a 3-2 decision. In the rematch at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, O'Connor took another close match via a 3-1 score. The rubber match was the last regular season action for both wrestlers, and Finesilver took home the 6-4 victory. Finesilver has gone 26-3 on the season and picked up victories over the likes of No. 8 Justin Oliver (NC State), Jared Prince (Navy), No. 13 Brady Berge (Penn State) and No. 10 Josh Heil (Campbell). Outside of his two losses to Finesilver, O'Connor has only dropped matches against Matt Kolodzik (Princeton) and Micah Jordan (Ohio State). He finished the regular season with a 28-4 record including victories over Oliver, Prince, Heil and No. 17 Tommy Thorn (Minnesota). These two will likely meet at the ACC tournament and could possibly run into each other at the NCAA tournament. Finesilver showed in their last meeting that he can put up points if he turns on his offense, and that confidence will likely carry him to a victory here. Prediction: Finesilver (Duke) dec. O'Connor (North Carolina) Big Ten: No. 1 Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State) vs. No. 2 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) at 165 In order for this match to happen per the pre-seeds, Marinelli will need to pick up a third victory over Evan Wick (Wisconsin) for these two to meet in the finals. Last year Marinelli handed Joseph one of his two losses of the year. They met in a dual meet at Penn State, and the Iowa wrestler picked up a 9-6 victory. This year, they have both gone undefeated, which sets up a clear battle for No. 1 at the Big Ten tournament. Both wrestlers have looked unstoppable at moments during this season. Joseph continues to be hard to score against, while Marinelli has controlled matches in the tie. Last season Marinelli went undefeated in the regular season before dropping six matches at the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments. He will need to get over his postseason issues in order to pick up the win here. Based on his savvy approach to matches and his previous history with Joseph, he should be able to get it done. Prediction: Marinelli (Iowa) dec. Joseph (Penn State) Big 12: No. 9 Branson Ashworth (Wyoming) vs. Joe Smith (Oklahoma State) at 165 Smith recently won a challenge match against No. 10 Chandler Rogers to earn the starting spot for the rest of the season for the Cowboys. Smith has gone 14-4 this season and picked up some impressive victories, but all of those matches have come at 174. At 165 he is mostly an unknown commodity. Ashworth his risen to the top of a deep 165-pound division in the Big 12. The field will include three other ranked wrestlers. Ashworth has gone 31-3, and he holds victories over all of them. If Smith wants to start his postseason campaign with a Big 12 title, he will certainly need to go through Ashworth. Smith has shown that he has dynamic takedown ability. A lot of his problems getting to his offense could be due to the fact that he was wrestling up a weight class. However, Ashworth will certainly be a test and a good barometer of his chances to become an All-American for a third time. Prediction: Smith (Oklahoma State) dec. Ashworth (Wyoming) Pac-12: No. 14 Christian Pagdilao (Arizona State) vs. Paul Fox (Stanford) at 157 On paper Pagdilao comes into the Pac-12 tournament as the favorite. However, there are reasons to believe that Fox is a live underdog. First, Fox has struggled the past two regular seasons, but he has turned it on at tournament time. He made the round of 12 last year and placed seventh the previous season to become an All-American. Fox dropped eight matches this season, but this is normally when he shines. The good news for Pagdilao is that the loss to Fox came all the way back in 2015, and he has had the better results recently. He finished the season 21-8 including a signature victory over No. 5 Alec Pantaleo (Michigan). In the last month, he has gone 4-0 with a win over No. 16 Jarrett Jacques (Missouri). Pagdilao has clearly made strides this season and should be able to handle Fox. Regardless of his status as an underdog, Fox's history makes this one of the most interesting matches at the Pac-12 tournament. Prediction: Pagdilao (Arizona State) dec. Fox (Stanford)

INDIANAPOLIS -- The NCAA Division III Wrestling Committee has announced the participants and brackets for the 2019 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. The championships will be held March 8-9 at the Berglund Center in Roanoke, Virginia. Ferrum College will serve as the host. CHAMPIONSHIP INFO: Brackets | 2018 championship highlights | Complete championship history A total of 180 participants will compete in the championships. Student-athletes qualified for the championship by placing top-three in their respective weight classes at one of the six NCAA regional tournaments held on Feb. 22, 23 and 24. NCAA.com will stream all sessions of the championships.

Lee Kemp -- arguably one of the greatest amateur wrestlers of all time -- is the subject of a new documentary, now in production, with a planned release for summer 2019. "Wrestled Away: The Lee Kemp Story" is a full-length documentary film chronicling the life, loss and legacy of one of America's finest athletes that most folks outside of wrestling do not know. Horizons Companies -- a Columbus, Ohio-based digital media production company which is involved in the production of "Wrestled Away" -- posted this description of the documentary on Lee Kemp at its website: "Few stories resonate as powerfully as those about elite athletes who are denied the glory they so richly deserve because of circumstances beyond their control. One such story is that of Leroy Kemp -- a once-in-a-generation wrestler who drove himself to unparalleled achievements at the scholastic, collegiate and international levels. In 1980, Kemp was widely regarded as the greatest in his sport -- and one of the greatest ever -- when he lost his shot at certain Olympic Gold, and its accompanying acclaim, because of the U.S. decision to boycott the Summer Olympics in Moscow." Kemp's life story is the stuff of a fictional Hollywood movie. He was born in Cleveland but given up at birth and raised in foster homes until he was adopted by a couple who raised him on a farm outside Chardon in northeast Ohio. He took on the name of his adoptive father, Leroy P. Kemp. In ninth grade, Kemp was introduced to wrestling. Despite that relatively late start, Kemp managed to win two Ohio state titles for Chardon High School, going undefeated in his junior and senior years. Kemp then headed north to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he was a four-time NCAA championships finalist, and three-time champ, compiling an incredible 110-3 overall record. It was in freestyle where Kemp truly made his mark, as America's first three-time World Champion, winning his first title in 1978 at age 21. In addition, he was a four-time World Cup Champion, 7-time United States Freestyle National Champion and was a heavy favorite for gold earning a berth on the 1980 United States Olympic Freestyle Wrestling Team but was unable to compete because of the U.S. boycott of the Moscow Olympics. Kemp was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1990. Nearly two decades later, at the 2008 Beijing Olympics (where he was one of the freestyle coaches for the U.S.), Kemp became just the fifth American to be welcomed into the United World Wrestling Hall of Fame. He is now a motivational speaker, business entrepreneur, and author of the 2018 book "Winning Gold: Success Secrets of a World Champion." Want to know more? Watch the opening credits of "Wrestled Away: The Lee Kemp Story" here ... and, to learn more about Lee Kemp himself, check out his official website.

UNI's Josh Alber earned the No. 1 seed at 141 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Link: Preliminary Brackets The Big 12 has released the pre-seeds for the Big 12 Wrestling Championship set to take place on March 9-10 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Oklahoma State leads the way heading into the championship with six No. 1 seeds, while Iowa State, Northern Iowa, Oklahoma and Wyoming earned the remaining four top seeds. The pre-seeds were voted into their positions by the leagues 12 head coaches and are subject to change. Final seeds will be confirmed at Friday's pre-championship coaches meeting. OSU's Nick Piccininni (125), Daton Fix (133), Kaden Gfeller (149), Jacobe Smith (174), Preston Weigel (197) and Derek White (HWT) earned top seeds. ISU's Sam Colbray (184), Northern Iowa's Josh Alber (141), OU's Justin Thomas (157) and Wyoming's Branson Ashworth (165) were also voted No. 1 seeds. Tickets for the 2019 Big 12 Wrestling Championship can be purchased online through TicketMaster or the Big 12 Wrestling Championship page. This is the fourth year in which the Big 12 Championship has taken place at a neutral site which makes the Big 12 Wrestling Championship the only Division I Conference Championship to be hosted at a neutral site. FloWrestling will broadcast the first three sessions here, while the fourth and final session (championship finals) will be telecast by Fox Sports Regional Networks.

Penn State's Mark Hall is seeded No. 1 at 174 pounds (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) ROSEMONT, Ill. - The Big Ten Conference announced the preliminary seeds for the 2019 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, which are set for March 9-10 at Minnesota. Seven schools boast at least one top-seeded wrestler, with Penn State leading the way with four No. 1 seeds. Iowa, Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State will bring a seeded wrestler in each of the 10 weight classes, while Nebraska and Northwestern boast a seeded grappler in nine classes. The pre-seeds, as voted on by the conference's coaches, rank the top eight wrestlers in three weight classes, along with all 14 starters in seven weight classes due to the Big Ten receiving nine or more NCAA Championships qualifier allocations in those classes. Penn State boasts four top-seeded wrestlers, with 157-pounder Jason Nolf, 165-pounder Vincenzo Joseph, 174-pounder Mark Hall and 197-pounder Bo Nickal. The Fighting Illini's Michael Carr (141), the Wolverines' Stevan Micic (133), the Gophers' Gable Steveson (285), the Wildcats' Sebastian Rivera (125), the Buckeyes' Myles Martin (184) and the Scarlet Knights' Anthony Ashnault (149) round out the group of top-ranked grapplers. This year's field contains a combined 10 Big Ten individual championships (eight wrestlers) and eight NCAA individual championships (five wrestlers). For more information on the 2019 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, visit the Big Ten Championships Central page. The complete list of Big Ten Championships pre-seeds can be found below. 125: 1. Sebastian Rivera, NU 2. Spencer Lee, IOWA 3. Sean Russell, MINN 4. RayVon Foley, MSU 5. Travis Piotrowski, ILL 6. Drew Mattin, MICH 7. Zeke Moisey, NEB 8. Malik Heinselman, OSU 9. Devin Schroder, PUR 10. Elijah Oliver, IND 11. Brandon Cray, MD 12. Devin Schnupp, PSU 13. Shane Metzler, RU 14. Ethan Rotondo, WIS 133: 1. Stevan Micic, MICH 2. Austin DeSanto, IOWA 3. Nick Suriano, RU 4. Roman Bravo-Young, PSU 5. Luke Pletcher, OSU 6. Ethan Lizak, MINN 7. Ben Thornton, PUR 8. Dylan Duncan, ILL 9. Anthony Tutolo, MSU 10. Colin Valdiviez, NU 11. Jens Lantz, WIS 12. Paul Konrath, IND 13. Jevon Parrish, NEB 14. Orion Anderson, MD 141: 1. Michael Carr, ILL 2. Nick Lee, PSU 3. Joey McKenna, OSU 4. Tristan Moran, WIS 5. Kanen Storr, MICH 6. Mitch McKee, MINN 7. Max Murin, IOWA 8. Chad Red, NEB 9. Pete Lipari, RU 10. Nate Limmex, PUR 11. Kyle Luigs, IND 12. Austin Eicher, MSU 13. Danny Bertoni, MD 14. Alec McKenna, NU 149: 1. Anthony Ashnault, RU 2. Micah Jordan, OSU 3. Pat Lugo, IOWA 4. Thomas Thorn, MINN 5. Cole Martin, WIS 6. Brady Berge, PSU 7. Shayne Oster, NU 8. Malik Amine, MICH 157: 1. Jason Nolf, PSU 2. Tyler Berger, NEB 3. Ryan Deakin, NU 4. Alec Pantaleo, MICH 5. Kaleb Young, IOWA 6. Steve Bleise, MINN 7. Ke-Shawn Hayes, OSU 8. Eric Barone, ILL 9. Griffin Parriott, PUR 10. John Van Brill, RU 11. Jake Danishek, IND 12. Jake Tucker, MSU 13. Garrett Model, WIS 14. Adam Whitesell, MD 165: 1. Vincenzo Joseph, PSU 2. Alex Marinelli, IOWA 3. Evan Wick, WIS 4. Isaiah White, NEB 5. Logan Massa, MICH 6. Te'Shawn Campbell, OSU 7. Bryce Martin, IND 8. Carson Brolsma, MINN 9. Joseph Gunther, ILL Tyler Morland, NU 10. Phillip Spadafora, MD 11. Stephan Glasgow, RU 12. Austin Hiles, MSU 13. Cole Wysocki, PUR 174: 1. Mark Hall, PSU 2. Myles Amine, MICH 3. Dylan Lydy, PUR 4. Mikey Labriola, NEB 5. Devin Skatzka, MINN 6. Ethan Smith, OSU 7. Ryan Christensen, WIS 8. Drew Hughes, MSU 9. Joe Grello, RU 10. Mitch Bowman, IOWA 11. Carver James, ILL 12. Jake Covaciu, IND 13. Josh Ugalde, MD 14. Braxton Cody, NU 184: 1. Myles Martin, OSU 2. Shakur Rasheed, PSU 3. Tyler Venz, NEB 4. Emery Parker, ILL 5. Cash Wilcke, IOWA 6. Mason Reinhardt, WIS 7. Jelani Embree, MICH 8. Max Lyon, PUR 9. Nick Gravina, RU 10. Cameron Caffey, MSU 11. Norman Conley, IND 12. Brandon Krone, MINN 13. Kyle Jasenski, MD 14. Brendan Devine, NU 197: 1. Bo Nickal, PSU 2. Kollin Moore, OSU 3. Jacob Warner, IOWA 4. Christian Brunner, PUR 5. Eric Schultz, NEB 6. Jackson Striggow, MICH 7. Dylan Anderson, MINN 8. Brad Wilton, MSU 285: 1. Gable Steveson, MINN 2. Anthony Cassar, PSU 3. Mason Parris, MICH 4. Trent Hillger, WIS 5. Chase Singletary, OSU 6. Conan Jennings, NU 7. David Jensen, NEB 8. Sam Stoll, IOWA

NCAA champion Yianni Diakomihalis will look to repeat as EIWA champion (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) The nation's senior college wrestling tournament debuts at Binghamton University this weekend. This is the first time in more than fifty years that the EIWA has enjoyed consecutive first-time hosts; Hofstra hosted a year ago. At Hempstead Lehigh broke Cornell's record run of eleven consecutive team titles, a string equal to the next two longest winning streaks combined. The Mountain Hawks hope to defend their title while the Big Red seek to reclaim the top perch. The two teams sport multiple new faces, not due to graduation so much as to injuries that have unsettled both rosters. Both teams have managed to patch together quality lineups so it's unlikely that another team can contend for top honors. The Black Knights of Army West Point may be in the best position to claim third place, possibly moving higher if things break right. Army returns seven veterans from last year's tournament, all of whom could return in 2020 as well. The likeliest challenge comes from Princeton; the Tigers feature more stars but less balance and, as with Army, we'll see their team again next year. Other contenders for the top positions are the host Binghamton Bearcats, the Diplomats of American University, and the Midshipmen of the Naval Academy. Beyond the team and individual titles, awards will be presented for outstanding wrestler, most career points, and best pinner; the coaches will choose the top coach and the referees will honor the most sportsmanlike team. The EIWA tournament holds forty-seven automatic qualifying bids for the NCAA Championships to be held in Pittsburgh in two weeks; wrestlers not receiving those bids hope to receive the at-large selections to be extended next week. The weight-by-weight preview: 125 NCAA bids: 4 Returning champion: None This class looks to be dominated by freshmen. Leading the way is Cornell's Vitali Arujau, who began the season at 133 and made the cut in December. Arujau pinned Princeton's top newcomer, Patrick Glory, in their dual meet matchup. In other seasons Penn's Carmen Ferrante or Hofstra's Dylan Ryder might win top freshman honors at this weight. Columbia's Joe Manchio and Navy's Jacob Allen are the other top first years. Not to say that there aren't some older wrestlers still making the lightest weight. Harvard senior Nolan Hellickson looks to improve upon last year's seventh place. Army junior Trey Chalifoux (fifth, sixth) and American sophomore Gage Curry (fourth) also look to make the youngsters wait their turn. Binghamton will send out soph Audey Ashkar; Ashkar ended Ryder's 11-dual winning streak. Brown's Trey Keeley (wins over Manchio and Ryder) and Bucknell's Jakob Campbell could also figure in the medals. 133 NCAA bids: 4 Defending champion: Scott Parker, Lehigh This is the first of three weight classes where the defending champion won't be present. Scott Parker's hopes of a third title were derailed by a shoulder injury, suffered last season, that prevented him from completing his career. The other 2018 finalist, Chas Tucker of Cornell, took control of this weight and has held the EIWA's top rankings all season. American's Josh Terao, a finalist at 125 two years ago, and Lehigh's Brandon Paetzell appear to be the challengers for the other finals position, with Navy's Casey Cobb also in the picture. No shortage of past medalists at this class: Princeton soph Jonathan Gomez was fifth last year; Army soph Lane Peters was seventh and beat Cobb in the Star Dual; Bucknell's David Campbell was eighth. Binghamton's freshman Zack Trampe missed the fall semester but he's won eight straight EIWA duals and wants to stand on the podium at home. Matt Kazimir (Columbia) and Doug Zapf (Penn) are two more freshmen who could go home with hardware. 141 NCAA bids: 3 Defending champion: Yianni Diakomihalis, Cornell Graduation and injuries resulted in heavy turnover in this weight. The two returning 2018 medalists are champion Yianni Diakomihalis and fourth-place Nicholas Gil of Navy, 25-5 this year. Yianni won NCAAs as well, despite a torn ACL that hampered him in Cleveland; regardless, he was the first to win both the EIWA's Freshman of the Year and Wrestler of the Year awards in the same season. Both men have been ranked all season and seem the likely finalists. At this weight there's no shortage of ranked wrestlers, as no fewer than eight additional EIWA grapplers appear in current rankings. Moving down by class, they are senior Jack Mutchnik (American); juniors Anthony Sparacio (Binghamton) and Ryan Pomrinca (Lehigh); sophomore Wil Gil (Franklin & Marshall); and freshmen Corey Shie (AWP), Danny Fongaro (Columbia), and Marshall Keller (Princeton). In other years it would be tempting to bet the field. 149 NCAA bids: 5 Defending champion: Matthew Kolodzik, Princeton Junior Matt Kolodzik is the only two-time returning champion in the 2019 tournament; ranked third in the nation, he's the favorite in this field. If anyone can mount a challenge, it should come from Penn freshman Anthony Artalona, ranked 15th, or Navy junior Jared Prince, twice third in this tournament. But that assumes no surprises, like those provided by the host's Frank Garcia a year ago; he beat three higher- seeded wrestlers on his way to the finals, where he gave Kolodzik a handful. Or those by Lehigh senior Cortlandt Schuyler, fourth last year, who sandwiched a loss to Prince at EIWAs between wins in their dual and at NCAAs. Prefer your surprises more recent? Drexel's Parker Kropman, seventh two years ago with Binghamton, recently upset Kolodzik in their dual. Or maybe you like American's Michael Sprague, a two-time medalist, who just upset Prince in their dual and also holds a win over Kropman. Cornell's Jonathan Furnas was sixth two years ago and that red singlet is always dangerous; Harvard's Brock Wilson was seventh last year as a freshman but has been out of the lineup recently with injuries. Others? Maybe Cole Corrigan, yet another Columbia freshman, with eight straight EIWA dual wins. Or Hofstra newcomer Holden Heller, who has put together a good campaign and could survive the blood round. 157 NCAA bids: 6 Returning champion: None Top returnee Mike D'Angelo took the year off from Princeton, leaving three freshmen as the top contenders. The young trio -- Bucknell's Zach Hartman, Lehigh's Josh Humphreys, and Princeton's Quincy Monday -- have been in the rankings most of the year. Hartman and Monday haven't met, Humphreys edged Monday early in the season, Hartman turned a scoreless duel against Humphreys into a pin with a Navy ride to a cradle. That could settle the top three seeds right there. Five additional wrestlers appear in the national rankings, so it's not a done deal that the new faces will sweep the top places. Army junior Lucas Weiland was fourth in his first EIWA last year, Harvard junior Hunter Ladnier was fifth at 149 last year after a second place in 2017. Hofstra senior Ryan Burkert was eighth last year at 149. Columbia senior Dan Reed came back for his finest season after taking last year off; he was eighth at 149 two years ago and recently upset Hartman. There's no easy path to the medal round, with at least a half dozen other solid wrestlers in the field. 165 NCAA bids: 4 Defending champion: Jon Jay Chavez, Cornell Last year's champ, Jon Jay Chavez, has missed the season with injury and weight issues; his absence throws the class wide open. Leading contenders are Brown senior Jon Viruet, sixth twice, riding 12 straight dual wins; and Drexel junior Ebed Jarrell, seventh last year. Half a step back is Lehigh senior Gordon Wolf, twice fifth at this weight but nagged by injuries throughout the season. Making their first EIWA appearances are Army junior Cael McCormick (dual win over Wolf) and Navy soph Tanner Skidgel (Star Dual win over McCormick), both of whom are in the rankings. Others looking to make a statement are Bucknell senior DJ Hollingshead, Columbia junior Laurence Kosoy, Cornell newcomer Andrew Berreyesa, Sacred Heart senior Brandon Levesque, soph Ricky Stamm of Hofstra, and Leonard Merkin or Dale Tiongson of Princeton. 174 NCAA bids: 5 Defending champion: Jordan Kutler, Lehigh Returning champion: Brandon Womack, Cornell (165) Defending champ Jordan Kutler heads the only weight with two former champions and All-Americans. He's been ranked in the top five all year. Cornell's Brandon Womack, third last year, was the 165 champion two years ago. Two-time placewinner Ben Harvey, Army, would like to crash the finals party, as would Navy junior Spencer Carey, in his first tournament. A mix of old and new look to move up; also ranked are Binghamton senior Vince DePrez, with more than 90 wins in his career, and Princeton freshman Travis Stefanik. Columbia's Max Elling bumped up from 165 and the higher weight seems to agree with him, as his six EIWA dual wins suggest. Drexel freshman Bryan McLaughlin or Bucknell soph Frankie Guida could surprise. 184 NCAA bids: 6 Defending champion: Ryan Preisch, Lehigh 2018 champion Ryan Preisch, winner of the Outstanding Wrestler and Sheridan awards, should be a shooin for the title .... except that Cornell sophomore Max Dean was the EIWA's All-American at this weight .... except that Binghamton freshman Lou DePrez has a win over Dean (and many others); De Pre Three ended the regular season with a dozen straight wins. All three have been in or near the top ten in the rankings all season, making this one of the EIWA's best chances for multiple A/A's. Top man this weekend? We should know by 5:30 pm Saturday. Five more wrestlers are ranked: American soph Tanner Harvey, Army junior Noah Stewart (with a win over Harvey), Brown senior CJ LaFragola (fifth last year), Bucknell junior Kyle Inlander, and Princeton junior Kevin Parker. Unranked but looking good are Navy's Anthony Cable and Sacred Heart's Kyle Davis. Looking for a dark horse? Maybe Columbia soph Brian Bonino, who seems to keep things close. 197 NCAA bids: 6 Defending champion: Ben Darmstadt, Cornell Ben Darmstadt is the third missing champion. His brilliant inaugural season ended with All-American status and a lower back injury. Rest was the best medicine, and so .... he's not here. The EIWA has been well-represented at the top of the rankings, though, with both Princeton soph Patrick Brucki (fifth last year) and Army senior Rocco Caywood (seventh) appearing in the top 5. Don't write that finals matchup down in ink just yet, though; in recent duals Caywood lost to Bucknell's Drew Phipps (eighth at 184), and Brucki dropped a tight decision to Cornell's Ben Honis (third two years ago). Drexel senior Stephen Loiseau, in the meantime, finished higher (third) than any of them at last year's tournament; he dropped a sudden victory decision to Caywood in their dual. Lehigh is still deciding between Chris Weiler, sixth last year, and John Jakobsen; both have been ranked Top 25 this season. Navy's Josh Roetman has support in the rankings; Brown's Tucker Ziegler grabbed eighth place and wouldn't mind a higher spot on the podium in his senior season. Seniors Phil Robilotto of F&M and Nezar Haddad of Hofstra have their work cut out for them if they want to score placement points. 285 NCAA bids: 4 Defending champion: Jordan Wood, Lehigh Jordan Wood became a rare freshman heavyweight champ last year, the first in Lehigh's long history. Wood doesn't believe in sharing, so anyone wanting to wrest the title away will need to come prepared. Those most likely to do so are Drexel senior Joey Goodhart, second two years ago; Cornell senior Jeramy Sweany, third last year; and Army plebe Ben Sullivan, the best of the Point's platoon of 285s. Brown senior Ian Butterbrodt was eighth last season and has won 11 straight; anyone who's seen F&M senior Antonio Pelusi leap into his coach's arms after clinching his two trips to NCAAs hopes for an encore. Navy senior Thomas Ott, Hofstra senior Omar Haddad, and Binghamton soph Joe Doyle might have the best chances for the remaining medals. Add American freshman Niko Camacho, with wins over Sullivan and Ott, to the list of potential surprises. For those planning ahead, the 116th EIWA tournament will return to Stabler Arena at Lehigh University on March 7-8, 2020.

UFC light-heavyweight (205-pound) champion Jon Jones retained his title with a unanimous decision over Anthony Smith in the main event at UFC 235. All three judges scored the five-round bout 48-44 for Jones, who, prior to launching his pro MMA career, won a New York high school wrestling championship as well as a NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) title at Iowa Central Community College. "If there is such a thing as a casual UFC title defense, Jon Jones' victory over Anthony Smith was it," according to ESPN.com, describing the fight as "tepid." "Jon Jones made it look easy against Anthony Smith in the UFC 235 main event Saturday night, but he nearly lost his light heavyweight title in the process," is how Sherdog.com summed up the bout. "A Jones elbow busted up Smith's nose in the fourth, but that was also the stanza in which Jones nearly lost his title," Sherdog continued. "Jones was pouring on the attrition with Smith on the canvas, but when "Lionheart" was down on one knee, Jones landed a knee to the head. Referee Herb Dean intervened, watched the replay and swiftly took two points from the champ. With Jones avoiding a disqualification, he coasted down the stretch and won a lopsided unanimous decision." Jones holds onto the light-heavy UFC belt with a 24-1 overall record, while Smith drops to 31-14. Usman wrests welterweight title from Woodley In a battle of former college wrestlers, Kamaru Usman left the Octagon with the welterweight (170-pound) belt, having earned a unanimous decision over Tyron Woodley in their five-round title bout at UFC 235. Kamaru UsmanUsman, a 2010 NCAA Division II wrestling champ and three-time All-American for University of Nebraska-Kearney, defeated Woodley, a two-time NCAA Division I All-American at University of Missouri by the score of 50-44, 50-44 and 50-45. "The UFC and many within the MMA media were touting Tyron Woodley as the greatest welterweight the promotion ever saw," Sherdog.com asserted. "Kamaru Usman made sure that narrative ended on Saturday night as he dominated Woodley from pillar to post in the UFC 235 co-main event." "'The Nigerian Nightmare' did whatever he wanted in what was the biggest fight of his career," Sherdog continued. "He controlled the pace of the bout, landed timely punches and mauled the champ on the ground." Yahoo Sports described the fight as "not even remotely competitive. Usman repeatedly took the one-time Missouri wrestling star down and held him, as Woodley could generate no offense." With the win, Usman gains a shiny title belt and a 15-1 pro MMA record, while Woodley is now 19-4-1 in his MMA career. Askren makes UFC debut with controversial submission Ben Askren, who had been lobbying for a decade for the opportunity to fight in the UFC, finally realized his dream, securing a technical submission of Robbie Lawler at 3:20 of the first round… but not without some controversy. MMAmania.com describe the welterweight bout featuring the UFC debut of the two-time NCAA champ for Missouri as a "simultaneously amazing and disappointing fight between former welterweight champ Robbie Lawler and new UFC arrival Ben Askren. Lawler mauled Askren for the first two minutes of the bout, only to end up in a bulldog choke that prompted the referee to step in and stop the fight, thinking 'Ruthless' was unconscious." "Lawler nearly authored a quick finish, as he answered a clinch from the four-time NCAA All-American wrestler with a powerful slam, swooped into top position and cut loose with devastating punches and elbows, one of which opened a cut," according to Sherdog. "Even so, Askren survived, staggered to his feet and slowly recovered. He closed the distance yet again, tripped Lawler to the canvas and advanced to the back before threatening with a rear-naked choke. Askren transitioned to the bulldog choke when 'Ruthless Robbie' attempted to scramble free. Lawler's arm appeared to go limp for a brief moment, prompting referee Herb Dean to intervene. However, the American Top Team star protested immediately once Askren released the choke." Even UFC President Dana White weighed in on the side of Lawler, a former high school wrestler from Bettendorf, Iowa. "Bad stoppage," White declared at the press conference. "And we had a debate, me, the ref, and the commission, about being choked out. I've been choked out many times before, too, and one of the things you don't do is jump right up and say 'What the f**k did you just do?' It just never happens that way. That was a bad stoppage, it happens. What are you gonna do? Sucks. It was a good fight." With his winning debut in the Octagon, Askren remains perfect in his pro MMA career (19-0) and in UFC (1-0), while Lawler now sports an overall record of 28-13, (13-7 in UFC).

Donnie Vinson coaching at the 2018 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) SMYRNA, Del. -- Donnie Vinson has been named Coach of the Year by the 2019 National Collegiate Open. Vinson serves as an assistant coach at NC State where his athletes have recognized him as being instrumental in their training and development throughout the season. The Wolfpack program finished the day with an NCO record ten student-athletes claiming All-American honors at the 2019 Championship with two athletes claiming Championships.

Shane Griffith of Stanford claimed the title at 165 pounds (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) SMYRNA, Del. -- The Wolfpack of NC State made a statement at the 2019 National Collegiate Open in Delaware on Saturday with ten athletes earning NCO All-American honors at the 11th annual event. NC State broke the event's record for All-Americans which it had previously set in 2017 with nine placewinners. While Athletic Coast Conference rival Virginia turned in their best ever performance with six athletes earning All-American honors--the second most of any programs on the year. The Caveliers have now tied Central Michigan (2010), Indiana (2009), Maryland (2010), and Purdue (2012) for the eighth most NCO All-Americans in one season. Minnesota (Lee, Joles), Stanford (Woods, Griffith), and NC State (Camacho, Hidlay) led all programs with two champions each. With the addition of two champions, NC State has crowned seven all-time champions and overtaken Rutgers for the most all-time NCO Champions. The record for most champions in one season was set in 2012 when Minnesota crowned three champions. Arizona State (Teemer), California Baptist (Schrader), Campbell (Perez), Nebraska (Sjomeling), and Stanford all crowned their first-ever NCO champions. Markus Hartman (Army West Point) posted the fastest fall at 0:17 for the 2019 championship. Message from the event: "To all the coaches, athletes, and volunteers who made the 2019 NCO happen. Your participation and support helped make 2019 one of the best events yet. A few programs helped provide table work which made the event keep moving along throughout the day. Smyrna, DE high school was an excellent host and we appreciate all their admin and volunteers did to make our participants feel welcome and supported. This event began as an idea 11 years ago and now we have a highly competitive, nationally supported event that showcases the future stars of NCAA wrestling. Thank you all for helping us move the sport of wrestling forward." - Teague Moore,event co-creator For more information on the National Collegiate Open, visit the event website. 2019 National Collegiate All-Americans (Note: Affiliation listed is not official record): 125: 1st: Jakob Camacho (NC State) 2nd: Joey Melendez (North Carolina) 3rd: Zurich Storm (NC State) 4th: Cody Phippen (Air Force Prep) 5th: Dalton Rohrbaugh (Lock Haven) 6th: Tommy Cox (NC State) 133: 1st: Tucker Sjomeling (Nebraska) 2nd: Jevon Parrish (Nebraska) 3rd: Andrew Wert (Army Prep) 4th: Jarrett Trombley (NC State) 5th: Sam Brook (Virginia) 6th: Cole Manley (Lock Haven) 141: 1st: Real Woods (Stanford) 2nd: Nick Lirette (North Carolina) 3rd: Matt Fields (NC State) 4th: Alex Urquiza (NC State) 5th: Robert Cleary (Rider) 6th: Chase Zollmann (Wyoming) 149: 1st: Brayton Lee (Minnesota) 2nd: Daxton Gordon (Cal Baptist) 3rd: Denton Spencer (Virginia) 4th: AJ Jaffe 5th: PJ Ogunsanya (Army) 6th: Matt Grippi (NC State) 157: 1st: Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) 2nd: Justin McCoy (Virginia) 3rd: Micha Hoffman 4th: Markus Hartman (Army) 5th: Tyler Eischens (Stanford) 6th: Joe Casey (Rider) 165: 1st: Shane Griffith (Stanford) 2nd: Samuel Cokeley 3rd: Philip Conigliaro (Harvard) 4th: Hadley Harrison 5th: Mason Smith (Army Prep) 6th: Owen Brown (Army) 174: 1st: Quentin Perez (Campbell) 2nd: Brad Laughlin (Army) 3rd: Clay Lautt (North Carolina) 4th: Michael O'Malley (Drexel) 5th: Drew Peck (Virginia) 6th: Evan Bockman (Cal Baptist) 184: 1st: Trent Hidlay (NC State) 2nd: Victor Marcelli (Virginia) 3rd: Jonathan Lowe 4th: Garret Strang (Cal Baptist) 5th: Micael Battista (Virginia) 6th: Connor Doyle (Navy) 197: 1st: Garrett Joles (Minnesota) 2nd: Chasen Blair (North Carolina) 3rd: Bennett Paulson (Army) 4th: Mike Bulkin (Columbia) 5th: Paul Carson (Appalachian State) 6th: Cole Forrester (Air Force Prep) 285: 1st: Zach Schrader (Cal Baptist) 2nd: Keaton Kluever (North Carolina) 3rd: Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) 4th: Deonte Wilson (NC State) 5th: Tyrie Houghton (NC State) 6th: Sean O'Malley (Drexel)

125: 1st: Jordan Marshall (Northwest Kansas) maj. dec. Mason Naifeh (Northeast Oklahoma), 9-0 3rd: Zeth Brower (Clackamas) pinned Greg Quinn (Niagara), 1:04 5th: Kevin Radcliff (Iowa Central) dec. Esco Walker (North Idaho), 6-3 7th: Tre Ponce (Labette) by medical forfeit over Tramon Jenkins (Spartanburg Methodist) 133: 1st: Boo Dryden (Northeast Oklahoma) dec. Hector Candelaria (Ellsworth), 8-5 3rd: Jacob Ruiz (Iowa Western) dec. Quintel Fuchs (Northeastern), 11-7 5th: Jason Shaner (Clackamas) by medical forfeit over Munkhbat Bat-erdene (Northwest Kansas) 7th: Brock Luthens (Niacc) dec. Nathaniel White (Lackawanna), 5-3 SV 141: 1st: Elijah Ozuna (Clackamas) dec. Zack Donathan (Ellsworth), 3-1 SV 3rd: Bat-erdene Boldmaa (Northwest Kansas) pinned Anthony Fisher (Iowa Lakes), 3:37 5th: Kyle Evans (Western Wyoming) maj. dec. Gad Huseman (Iowa Western), 17-3 7th: Freddy Eckles (Niagara) dec. Joshua Franich (Highline), 7-5 149: 1st: Cardeionte Wilson (Ellsworth) pinned Kendon Lee (Northeast Oklahoma), 4:47 3rd: Bryce Parson (North Idaho) pinned Austin Eldredge (Cloud County), 6:57 5th: Tony Mendoza (Niacc) by medical forfeit over Enkhbold Sukhbaatar (Northwest Kansas) 7th: Kolby Drogemeier (Barton) dec. Yarhoski Aldiva (Iowa Central), 11-5 157: 1st: Ethan Karsten (Iowa Central) maj. dec. Joel Romero (Clackamas), 17-5 3rd: David Hollingsworth (Iowa Lakes) maj. dec. Tristin Guaman (Harper), 12-3 5th: Cooper McCullough (North Idaho) tech. fall Dallas Boone (Neosho), 21-6 4:43 7th: Shae Chafin (Labette) dec. Zach Porter (Northeast Oklahoma), 9-7 165: 1st: Michial Foy (Harper) dec. Travis Willers (Iowa Central), 8-2 3rd: Mason Mcdaniel (Clackamas) dec. Kyle Caldwell (Northeast Oklahoma), 8-5 5th: Noah Tarr (Thaddeus Stevens) by medical forfeit over Nick Lucas (Pratt) 7th: Garrett Lange (Cowley) dec. Noah Aziere (Cloud County), 5-3 174: 1st: Trajan Hurd (Clackamas) maj. dec. Ashton Eyler (Iowa Central), 11-3 3rd: Shane Siewert (Rochester) dec. Gage Mcbride (Barton), 6-2 5th: Caleb Spears (Spartanburg Methodist) by medical forfeit over Tsogtbayar Tserendagua (Northwest Kansas) 7th: Dominic Mancina (Henry Ford) dec. J'havon Innocent (Sullivan), 4-3 184: 1st: Charles Small (Northwest Kansas) dec. Marcus Placide (Iowa Lakes), 11-10 3rd: Cameron Page (Jamestown) dec. Alex Kauffman (Northeast Oklahoma), 5-3 5th: Trevor Senn (Clackamas) dec. Brian Stanford (Iowa Central), 6-4 7th: Bailey Shutt (Thaddeus Stevens) dec. Corey Perkins (Muskegon), 4-3 197: 1st: Tyree Sutton (Iowa Central) dec. Joey Daniel (Clackamas), 6-2 3rd: Connor Kirkland (Western Wyoming) dec. Hunter Harnish (Mercyhurst), 9-6 5th: Zeke Silva (Northeast Oklahoma) dec. Morgen Moreno (Rochester), 5-2 7th: Chris Henderson (Pratt) pinned Hunter Gregerson (North Idaho), 2:15 285: 1st: Antonio Andrade (Northeast Oklahoma) dec. Charles Griffin (Ellsworth), 6-0 3rd: Landon Brown (Western Wyoming) dec. Connor Sullivan (North Idaho), 6-4 SV 5th: Zach Santee (Niacc) maj. dec. Andre Bissainthe (Iowa Lakes), 9-1 7th: Tommy Mommer (Clackamas) pinned Gunner Cash (Iowa Central), 3:40

1. Clackamas 176.5 2. Northeast Oklahoma 152 3. Iowa Central 125.5 4. Northwest Kansas 109.5 5. Ellsworth 89 6. North Idaho 84.5 7. Iowa Lakes 72.5 8. Western Wyoming 71.5 9. Harper 52 10. Iowa Western 51.5 11. Northeastern 48.5 12. Rochester 45 13. Niacc 44.5 14. Cloud County 44 15. Barton 41 16. Jamestown 31 16. Niagara 31 18. Thaddeus Stevens 30.5 19. Pratt 25.5 20. Mercyhurst 24.5 21. Spartanburg Methodist 24 22. Highline 23.5 23. Labette 23 24. Itasca 15.5 25. Henry Ford 14.5 25. Nassau 14.5 25. Umpqua 14.5

DES MOINES, Iowa -- The No. 2-ranked Indiana Tech men's wrestling team concluded its 2018-19 season on Saturday on the second day of the NAIA National Championships inside the Richard O. Jacobson Exhibition Center with a four-place performance after scoring 81 points and getting two national champions and five All-Americans. Sawyer Miller and Erique Early each won their first national titles and become the second and third wrestlers in program history to stand atop the podium at the national meet, joining Mitch Pawlak (2016) on the exclusive list. Early became just the second grappler in program history to make it to back-to-back finals, etching his name next to Pawlak again. Miller kicked off his day with a first round fall in the semifinals, pinning 11th-ranked Koby Millner of Reinhardt University in 60 seconds to earn a spot in the national title bout. The South Adams High School product needed extra time in the finals as he was tied 2-2 with Life University's Randy McCray. The second-ranked wrestler at 125-lbs. would not be deterred though, as he took down Millner 14 seconds into extra time to score first and come away with sudden victory at 4-2. Early, the defending national runner-up at 133-lbs. started his day off with a 10-7 victory in the semifinals to secure a matchup with top-ranked Shiquan Hall of Grand View University in the finals. After battling to a 1-1 draw through three periods, the top-two wrestlers in the division need two extra sessions to decide a champion. Trailing 2-1 with under 15 seconds to go, Early recorded a takedown to take a 3-2 lead with six seconds in the second overtime and held off advances from Hall in the third overtime to prevail 4-2 and claim his first national title. Gaige Torres fell to top-ranked David Berg in the semifinals of the 141-lbs. division and suffered an 11-8 setback in the consolation semifinals before ending his tournament on a high note by defeating Oklahoma Wesleyan's Dayton Marvel, 6-4, to finish in fifth place. Justin Atkinson started off his day with a 9-8 decision over teammate Robert Humphrey before falling to top-ranked Tres Leon of University of the Cumberlands and fourth-ranked Terrill Sidner of Menlo College to finish in his fifth place and cap his career with All-American honors. After falling to Atkinson, Humphrey dropped the seventh-place match to sixth-ranked Latrell Davis of Lindsey Wilson College to finish in eight place and add an All-American plaque to his mantle. It is the fourth straight season the Warriors have finished inside the top-10 at the NAIA National Championships while it is the second time in the last four years they have recorded top-five finishes.