InterMat Staff

Bryce Carr (Photo/UTC Athletics) University of Tennessee at Chattanooga senior 184-pounder Bryce Carr is the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year, the league office announced today. This honor was determined by a vote of the conference's eight head coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own wrestlers. Carr, the 2016-17 league champion at 184 pounds, is ranked No. 12 nationally with an overall record of 23-5. He was a perfect 7-0 in SoCon action, is 11-4 in duals and is tied for the league lead with seven pins. The senior from Dublin, Georgia, was named SoCon Wrestler of the Week twice this season. Carr earned the honor in week one of competition and on Jan. 3 after going 5-1 and finishing third overall in the Southern Scuffle. Carr has six major decisions and three technical falls thus far in the year. Carr is the eighth Moc to earn Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year honors since the award began in 1993. UTC's eight winners are the most in league history, outpacing Appalachian State with seven and VMI with six. Senior teammate Mike Pongracz, ranked No. 33 nationally, was named all-conference at 141 pounds. Pongrancz is 16-10 overall with five major decisions and three technical falls. The senior from Milford, New Jersey, is coming off a 2016-17 redshirt season. As a junior in 2015-16, Pongracz was 22-6 overall, earning an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Pongracz finished the 2017-18 regular season a perfect 6-0 in SoCon duals, helping the Mocs finish second in the SoCon with a 6-1 record. The SoCon Wrestling Championship takes place Saturday, March 3, in Charleston, South Carolina. Doors to McAlister Field House 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. Links for following the action can be found on the wrestling schedule page on GoMocs.com. 2017-18 Wrestler of the Year Bryce Carr, Sr., 184, Chattanooga 2017-18 Freshman of the Year Korbin Meink, 125, Campbell 2017-18 All-Southern Conference Team 125 Korbin Meink, Fr., Campbell 133 John Muldoon, R-Jr., SIUE 141 Mike Pongracz, Sr., Chattanooga 149 Gavin Londoff, So., Appalachian State 157 Angel Najar, Jr., Appalachian State 165 Nate Higgins, R-Jr., SIUE 174 Forrest Przybysz, Sr., Appalachian State 184 Bryce Carr, Sr., Chattanooga 197 Randall Diabe, Jr., Appalachian State 285 Jere Heino, Jr., Campbell 2017-18 All-Freshman Team Joe Accousti, 165, Appalachian State Alan Clothier, 184, Appalachian State Codi Russell, 133, Appalachian State De'Andre Swinson-Barr, 125, Appalachian State Zach Barnes, 149, Campbell Luke Funck, 184, Campbell Korbin Meink, 125, Campbell Anthony Perrine, 197, Gardner-Webb Denton Spencer, 141, Gardner-Webb Cliff Conway, 125, VMI

As we finally make it to the first of March on Thursday, many states are already done with their season, while others are reaching their close this week; Ohio and Pennsylvania will conclude theirs the following week. A group of state tournament events will feature multiple nationally ranked teams competing for the same positions. Below is a listing of those state championships. New Jersey (Friday through Sunday at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City): Three nationally ranked teams are present in single class New Jersey: No. 2 Bergen Catholic, No. 15 Delbarton, and No. 43 Howell. While the event is officially unscored, Bergen Catholic is expected to dominate with their 13 state qualifiers; the question is how many of their seven nationally ranked wrestlers (plus Gerard Angelo at 152) win state titles this weekend. Delbarton brings the next most to Atlantic City with 12 of their own, including three nationally ranked wrestlers, two of whom are returning state champions. The interesting "battle" will be for unofficial third with Howell trying to hold off Pope John XXIII and Paulsboro, among others. California (Friday and Saturday at Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield): No. 6 Buchanan seeks to win a third consecutive state title over what is arguably the deepest and strongest team field the Golden State has ever seen for its single-class state tournament. The Bears will have to fend off challenges from six other nationally ranked teams - No. 10 Poway, No. 14 Selma, No. 17 Gilroy, No. 31 Oakdale, No. 37 Clovis, and No. 47 St. John Bosco. Minnesota (dual team is Thursday, individual on Friday and Saturday; Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul): The Class AAA dual meet event will feature No. 30 Anoka and No. 40 Shakopee, while No. 32 Apple Valley will join those two teams in the individual event after the Eagles were upset by Shakopee in their dual team section final. The Class AA individual event features No. 33 Kasson-Mantorville and No. 41 Simley, while Kasson-Mantorville is the strong favorite to repeat in dual team after knocking off Simley in their section final. Michigan (Friday and Saturday at Ford Field in Detroit): After steam-rolling their way to state championships in the dual meet event, all three nationally ranked teams will seek to cap off their seasons with dominance in the individual tournament; it should be noted there is no team score in this individual event. No. 9 Detroit Catholic Central is seeking to match/exceed their Division 1 record performance of five state champions, which the Shamrocks have done in three of the previous four years (2014, 2016, 2017); No. 46 Dundee competes in Division 3, and No. 48 Lowell competes in Division 2. Additional nationally ranked team competing in its state tournament this week: No. 7 Lake Highland Prep seeks a Florida Class 1A title. All fourteen wrestlers for the Highlanders have won district and regional titles headed into Friday and Saturday's competition at Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee. Teams from Ohio and Pennsylvania are in their state qualification tournament this Friday and Saturday. No. 5 St. Paris Graham competes at their Division II district tournament in Wilmington, Ohio. No. 8 St. Edward and No. 20 Brecksville compete in their Division I district tournament in Perrysburg, Ohio No. 11 Bethlehem Catholic competes in the Class AAA Northeast Regional at Liberty High School in Bethlehem, Pa. No. 12 Cincinnati LaSalle competes in their Division I district tournament at Kettering (Ohio) Fairmont No. 21 Wadsworth and No. 38 Massillon Perry compete in their Division I district tournament at North Canton (Ohio) Hoover No. 35 Erie Cathedral Prep competes in the Class AAA Northwest Regional in Altoona, Pa. Fab 50 teams that have completed their seasons: No. 1 Blair Academy (N.J.), No. 3 Wyoming Seminary (Pa.), No. 4 Montini Catholic (Ill.), No. 13 Tuttle (Okla.), No. 16 Malvern Prep (Pa.), No. 18 Choctaw (Okla.), No. 19 Allen (Texas), No. 22 Fort Dodge (Iowa), No. 23 Christian Brothers College (Mo.), No. 24 Oak Park River Forest (Ill.), No. 25 Brownsburg (Ind.), No. 26 Park Hill (Mo.), No. 27 Indianapolis Cathedral (Ind.), No. 28 Parkersburg South (W.Va.), No. 29 Broken Arrow (Okla.), No. 34 Portage (Ind.), No. 36 Perry Meridian (Ind.), No. 39 Southeast Polk (Iowa), No. 42 Waukee (Iowa), No. 44 Lincoln East (Neb.), No. 45 Marmion Academy (Ill.), No. 49 Kearney (Neb.), and No. 50 Goddard (Kansas)

Daniel Lewis is one of eight No. 1 seeds for Missouri (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The 2018 MAC Wrestling Championships will be held March 3-4 and hosted by Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Mich. 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. Kyle Akins, Buffalo 3. Brock Hudkins, Northern Illinois 4. Drew Hildebrandt, Central Michigan 5. Barlow McGhee, Missouri 6. Tomas Gutierrez, Eastern Michigan 7. Jake Ferri, Kent State 8. Trevor Giallombardo, Ohio 133: 1. John Erneste, Missouri 2. Cameron Kelly, Ohio 3. Bryan Lantry, Buffalo 4. Anthony Tutolo, Kent State 5. Noah Gonser, Eastern Michigan 6. Caleb Richardson, Old Dominion 7. Dresden Simon, Central Michigan 8. Alijah Jeffery, Northern Illinois 141: 1. Jaydin Eierman, Missouri 2. Mason Smith, Central Michigan 3. Alex Madrigal, Old Dominion 4. Tim Rooney, Kent State 5. Mario Guillen, Ohio 6. Sa'Derian Perry, Eastern Michigan 7. Jason Estevez, Buffalo 8. Anthony Rubino, Northern Illinois 149: 1. Grant Leeth, Missouri 2. Justin Oliver, Central Michigan 3. Kade Kowalski, Ohio 4. Kyle Springer, Eastern Michigan 5. Kenan Carter, Old Dominion 6. Nolan Baker, Northern Illinois 7. Nick Monico, Kent State 8. Nick Palumbo, Buffalo 157: 1. Joey Lavallee, Missouri 2. Larry Early, Old Dominion 3. Casey Sparkman, Kent State 4. Colin Heffernan, Central Michigan 5. Cullen Cummings, Ohio 6 - J.J. Wolfe, Eastern Michigan 7. Caden McWhirter, Northern Illinois 8. Eric Fasnacht, Buffalo 174: 1. Connor Flynn, Missouri 2. Zac Carson, Eastern Michigan 3. Logan Parks, Central Michigan 4. Isaac Bast, Kent State 5. Joseph Terry, Ohio 6. Andrew Scott, Northern Illinois 7. Noah Grover, Buffalo 8. Shane Jones, Old Dominion 174: 1. Daniel Lewis, Missouri 2. CJ Brucki, Central Michigan 3. Seldon Wright, Old Dominion 4. Andrew McNally, Eastern Michigan 5. Dylan Barreiro, Kent State 6. Quinton Rosser, Northern Illinois 7. Arsen Ashughyan, Ohio 8. Austin Weigel, Buffalo 184: 1. Canten Marriott, Missouri 2. Jordan Ellingwood, Central Michigan 3. Kayne MacCallum, Eastern Michigan 4. Bryce Gorman, Northern Illinois 5. Brett Perry, Buffalo 6. Antonio Agee, Old Dominion 7. Hunter Yeargan, Ohio 8. Colin McCracken, Kent State 197: 1. Willie Miklus, Missouri 2. Jordan Atienza, Central Michigan 3. Joe Ariola, Buffalo 4. Aaron Naples, Ohio 5. Kyle Conel, Kent State 6. Derek Hillman, Eastern Michigan 7. Noah Bushman, Old Dominion 8. Max Ihry, Northern Illinois 285: 1. Jake Gunning, Buffalo 2. Gage Hutchison, Eastern Michigan 3. Zack Parker, Ohio 4. Stephen Suglio, Kent State 5. Matt Stencel, Central Michigan 6. Ali Wahab, Old Dominion 7. Caleb Gossett, Northern Illinois 8. Wyatt Koelling, Missouri

Tervel Dlagnev coaching Kyle Snyder at the World Championships (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Four former national champions who combined for 528 career wins and a national title-winning coach have been selected for induction into the Jim Koch Division II Hall of Fame, it was announced Tuesday by the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches' Association. Wrestlers Tervel Dlagnev of the University of Nebraska-Kearney, Travis Eggers of Upper Iowa University, Kyle Evans of the University of Central Oklahoma and Jason Rhoten of Minnesota State University-Mankato along with former UNK head coach Marc Bauer comprise the 2018 class. The five will be enshrined at the Jim Koch Division II Hall of Fame Banquet, which will be held Thursday, March 8 in Grand Ballroom C of the Cedar Rapids Convention Complex on the eve of start of the 2018 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships. The social will begin at 5:30 p.m., with the program to start at 6 p.m. Questions about tickets can be addressed to Brock Wissmiller, UIU Assistant AD for External Affairs, at 563-425-5700 or wissmillerb@uiu.edu. An online registration and ticket site can be found at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/nwca-jim-koch-division-ii-hall-of-fame-ceremony-tickets-43096615136. Dlagnev was a four-time All-American heavyweight at Nebraska-Kearney and finished with a with a phenomenal 167-19 record that included 103 bonus-point wins. Dlagnev went 38-8 as a freshman in 2004-05, winning the West Regional title before finishing sixth in the national tournament to earn All-America honors. He repeated as regional champion the next year and ended 42-10 as the national runner-up. Dlagnev capped his career with back-to-back national championships. He went 49-1 in 2006-07 and a perfect 38-0 as a senior, winning a 4-1 decision in his final match to hand the Lopers their first-ever team national championship. He was named NCAA Division II Wrestler of the Year following his senior season and was also a four-time NWCA Academic All-American. Internationally, Dlagnev would go on to earn spots on eight United States national teams, winning bronze medals in 2009 and 2014 and finishing fifth in 2010 and 2013. Dlagnev reached the pinnacle of wrestling by making the U.S. Olympic Freestyle team in 2012 and 2016 finishing fifth both years. Eggers was a four-time regional finalist and three-time All-American at Upper Iowa who ended his career with a 100-34 record. He was the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Wrestler of the Year as a sophomore and earned All-America honors that season with a fourth-place finish before coming back the next season to finish as national runner-up. Eggers was NSIC Wrestler of the Year again as a senior in 2009-10 when he went 26-3 and captured both the regional and national championships at 165 pounds in leading the Peacocks to a third-place national tournament finish, their best-ever in Division II. Evans was a four-time All-American and two-time national champion at Central Oklahoma who finished with a 125-20 career record, including a school-record 25 technical falls. Evans captured the Midwest Regional title and finished sixth nationally in 2004-05 in compiling a 24-13 record, then repeated as regional champion and was national runner-up the following season in finishing 30-5. He became the first individual in UCO's rich history to complete a full season undefeated as a junior in 2006-07, putting together a perfect 39-0 campaign in winning the national title and leading the Bronchos to their 15th team championship. Evans capped his career with another sensational season as a senior, going 32-2 with a school-record 11 technical falls in winning a fourth straight Midwest Regional crown and repeating as national champion. Rhoten earned All-America honors four times at Minnesota State and compiled a fabulous 136-23 career record. He finished fourth in the national tournament as a redshirt freshman and then made it all the way to the national finals as a sophomore before losing a close decision to finish as runner-up. Rhoten missed the following year with a broken leg, but returned to finish his career with two dominating seasons. He placed third in the national tournament as a junior and then captured the national title the next season, defeating the two-time defending champion in the finals. Rhoten was named the NCAA Division II North Region Wrestler of the Year as a senior and was he was also a four-time NWCA Academic All-American. He led the Mavericks to three conference championships, three North Division Regional titles and three top-four national finishes (second, third and fourth). Bauer was a three-time All-American wrestler at Nebraska-Omaha, helping lead the Mavericks to their first Division II national championship in 1991 before getting into coaching and teaching. He took over as Nebraska-Kearney's head coach in 1999 and led the Lopers to amazing success during 17 years at the helm, racking up a stellar 218-81 dual record. Bauer directed UNK to 11 top-four national tournament finishes, winning titles in 2008, '12 and '13 while also finishing runner-up five times. The Lopers captured 14 conference/regional championships during his 17-year tenure in addition to claiming the national duals crown in 2003 and '07. Bauer was named Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Coach of the Year seven teams, Division II Coach of the Year twice and was awarded the Bob Bubb Excellence Award in 2005. He coached 90 All-America honors, including 22 national champions, and had 154 wrestlers named to the NWCA Division II Academic All-America team.

Link: Brackets GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Atlantic Coast Conference announced the seeding and brackets for the 2018 ACC Wrestling Championship, which will be held this Saturday at North Carolina's Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. 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. Virginia Tech, which captured last year's ACC wrestling title, led all schools with four No. 1 seeds, followed by NC State with two. Virginia, Pitt, North Carolina and Duke each had one No. 1 seed. Hokies who earned top seeds include redshirt sophomore David McFadden (West Milford, New Jersey) at 165, freshman Hunter Bolen (Christiansburg, Virginia) at 174, junior Zack Zavatsky (Latrobe, Pennsylvania) at 184 and senior Jared Haught (Parkersburg, West Virginia) at 197. Zavatsky and Haught are both returning individual champions. NC State, ranked sixth nationally, had two No. 1 seeds in senior Kevin Jack (Danbury, Connecticut) at 141 pounds and redshirt freshman Hayden Hidlay (Lewistown, Pennsylvania) at 157. The regular season ACC champion had five of their wrestlers receive a No. 2 seed, giving the Wolfpack seven wrestlers seeded first or second in their weight classes, the most of any school. Gaining No. 2 seeds for the Wolfpack were redshirt junior Sean Fausz (Alexandria, Kentucky) at 125, redshirt senior Beau Donahue (Centreville, Virginia) at 149; redshirt senior Pete Renda (Topton, Pennsylvania) at 184; redshirt senior Michael Macchiavello (Monroe, North Carolina) at 197 and senior Michael Boykin Coatesville, Pennsylvania) at 285. Virginia redshirt freshman Louie Hayes (Orland Park, Illinois), ranked 12th nationally was the top-seeded wrestler at 125. Pitt senior Dom Forys (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), ranked ninth nationally and a returning ACC champion, was the top seed at 133. North Carolina fifth-year senior Troy Heilmann (South Plainfield, New Jersey), ranked eighth nationally, was the top seed at 149. Duke fifth-year senior Jacob Kasper (Lexington, Ohio), ranked third nationally at 285, was the top-seeded heavyweight. Seeds for the 64th Annual ACC Wrestling Championship 125: 1. Louie Hayes, Virginia 2. Sean Fausz, NC State 3. Kyle Norstrem, Virginia Tech 4. LJ Bentley, Pitt 5. Thayer Atkins, Duke 6. James Szymanski, North Carolina 133: 1. Dom Forys, Pitt 2. Dennis Gustafson, Virginia Tech 3. Tariq Wilson, NC State 4. Jack Mueller, Virginia 5. Zach Sherman, North Carolina 6. Josh Finesilver, Duke 141: 1. Kevin Jack, NC State 2. Brent Moore, Virginia Tech 3. A.C. Headlee, North Carolina 4. Nick Zanetta, Pitt 5. Jeremiah Reitz, Duke 6. Sam Martino, Virginia 149: 1. Troy Heilmann, North Carolina 2. Beau Donahue, NC State 3. Ryan Blees, Virginia Tech 4. Sam Krivus, Virginia 5. Robert Lee, Pitt 6. Brandon Leynaud, Duke 157: 1. Hayden Hidlay, NC State 2. Mitch Finesilver, Duke 3. Kennedy Monday, North Carolina 4. Taleb Rahmani, Pitt 5. Fred Green, Virginia 6. Solomon Chishko, Virginia Tech 165: 1. David McFadden, Virginia Tech 2. Andrew Atkinson, Virginia 3. Brian Hamann, NC State 4. Jake Wentzel, Pitt 5. Josh McClure, North Carolina 6. Zach Finesilver, Duke 174: 1. Hunter Bolen, Virginia Tech 2. Ethan Ramos, North Carolina 3. Matt Finesilver, Duke 4. Daniel Bullard, NC State 5. Will Schany, Virginia 6. Tommy O'Brien, Pitt 184: 1. Zack Zavatsky, Virginia Tech 2. Pee Renda, NC State 3. Chip Ness, North Carolina 4. Gregg Harvey, Pitt 5. Drew Peck, Virginia 6. Kaden Russell, Duke 197: 1. Jared Haught, Virginia Tech 2. Michael Macchiavello, NC State 3. Danny Chaid, North Carolina 4. Kellan Stout, Pitt 5. Alec Schenk, Duke 6. Jay Aiello, Virginia 285: 1. Jacob Kasper, Duke 2. Michael Boykin, NC State 3. Cory Daniel, North Carolina 4. Ryan Solomon, Pitt 5. Andrew Dunn, Virginia Tech 6. Tyler Love, Virginia

The NCAA announced the field of competitors for the 2018 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championship as well as the brackets revealing who these individuals will compete against. The NCAA Division II Championships take place March 9-10 at U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Link: Brackets

Obe Blanc (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) DOVER, Del. -- Obe Blanc has been named Coach of the Year by the 2018 National Collegiate Open. Blanc serves as an assistant coach at NC State where his athletes have recognized him as being instramental in their training and development throughout the season, in addition to his leadership mat-side during the championship event. With the support of Blanc's mentorship, two Wolfpack wrestlers (Jamel Morris and Malik McDonald) earned National Collegiate Open Championships at the 10th annual event. The two titles moved NC State into a second place tie for the most NCO Champions all-time, sitting one champion shy of category leader Rutgers. The Wolfpack program finished the day with an impressive eight student-athletes claiming All-American honors. Blanc will be presented with the NCO Coach of the Year Battle Axe.

Bryan Pearsall (Photo/Penn Athletics) PHILADELPHIA -- Bryan Pearsall has been elevated to Head Assistant Coach of the University of Pennsylvania wrestling team, head coach Roger Reina announced today. "This is a great day for Penn Wrestling," said Reina. "Our program continues to gain momentum, and positioning talented staff is a top priority. This past summer, one of the first things I did when I became head coach was identify Bryan as someone I wanted as part of our coaching staff. He was a talented wrestler in both folkstyle and freestyle and had quickly established himself as one of the bright young coaching minds in NCAA Division I wrestling. Over this past season, our entire program has benefited from his skills and it was evident that Bryan was the right man at the right time to be named head assistant coach." Pearsall, a Penn State graduate and a member of three NCAA championship teams with the Nittany Lions, was a four-year starter in State College while also competing in freestyle for the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club. Upon graduation, he began his coaching career at Rutgers before spending the 2014-15 through 2016-17 seasons at Army West Point. "I would like to thank Roger Reina and Matt Valenti for their belief in my ability to perform in this new role," said Pearsall. "The trust we have developed within each other in just one season of working together is something I deeply value. I am grateful to have the opportunity to work with such great leaders who have invested so much towards the success of this program. I have 100-percent faith in the direction of Penn Wrestling. This is the very best combination of premier academics, Division I wrestling, and elite Olympic Regional Training Center in the country. This program has produced Olympic and NCAA champions, EIWA champions, Ivy League champions, along with a host of freestyle and Greco roman All-Americans and national champions over its 110-plus years of competition. We currently have the right leadership in place to ensure that we not only live up to those expectations, but exceed all that was previously accomplished." Pearsall has worked alongside Reina and the Penn coaching staff to produce one of the most highly-regarded recruiting classes in the country. Through just the Early Decision process, Penn has added three Top-100 wrestlers - two of whom are ranked inside the Top-40 - and four wrestlers ranked inside the Top-20 at their respective weight. In addition, Penn's incoming group has excelled in the Olympic styles with a three-time Fargo champion, multiple Fargo All-Americans and a U.S. Cadet World Team member among the nine grapplers already admitted to Penn in the Class of 2022. In addition to his work with the Quakers, Pearsall serves as a coach with the Pennsylvania Regional Training Center and is head coach of the Pennsylvania Cadet Freestyle Team at Fargo. "Our program is extremely invested in the International Styles," said Pearsall. "The Pennsylvania Regional Training Center along with my role coaching the PAWF have allowed me the opportunity to give back to the Pennsylvania wrestling community, which is greatly rewarding for me given that I have come full circle." Pearsall and the Quakers will compete in the 2018 EIWA Championships at Hofstra March 3-4 before competing at the NCAA Championships in Cleveland March 15-17.

ROSEMONT, Ill. -- The Big Ten Conference announced the preliminary seeds for the 2018 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, which are set for March 3-4 at Michigan State. Six schools boast at least one top-seeded wrestler, with Penn State leading the way with four top-seeded wrestlers. Ohio State and Penn State will bring a seeded wrestler in each of the 10 weight classes, while Michigan boasts a seeded grappler in nine classes. The pre-seeds, as voted on by the conference's coaches, rank the top eight wrestlers in seven weight classes, along with all 14 starters in three 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 149-pounder Zain Retherford, 157-pounder Jason Nolf, 174-pounder Mark Hall and 184-pounder Bo Nickal. Ohio State and Michigan each hold a pair of top seeds. The 133-pounder Stevan Micic and 285-pounder Adam Coon pace the Wolverines, while 141-pounder Joey McKenna and 197-pounder Kollin Moore earned top billing in their weight classes for the Buckeyes. The Fighting Illini's Isaiah Martinez (165), the Hawkeyes' Michael Kemerer (157) and the Scarlet Knights' Nick Suriano (125) round out the group of top-ranked grapplers. This year's field contains a combined 15 Big Ten individual championships (nine wrestlers) and 11 NCAA individual championships (eight wrestlers). In addition, Illinois' Martinez and Ohio State's Nathan Tomasello are looking to become only the 15th and 16th wrestlers in conference history to win four individual titles. For more information on the 2018 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. Nick Suriano, RU 2. Spencer Lee, IOWA 3. Nathan Tomasello, OSU 4. Sebastian Rivera, NU 5. Ethan Lizak, MINN 6. Luke Welch, PUR 7. RayVon Foley, MSU 8. Drew Mattin, MICH 9. Travis Piotrowski, ILL 10. Elijah Oliver, IND 11. Mitch Maginnis, NEB 12. Johnny Jimenez, WIS 13. Brandon Cray, MD 14. Carson Kuhn, PSU 133: 1. Stevan Micic, MICH 2. Luke Pletcher, OSU 3. Mitch McKee, MINN 4. Jason Renteria, NEB 5. Scott Delvecchio, RU 6. Corey Keener, PSU 7. Dylan Duncan, ILL 8. Ben Thornton, PUR 141: 1. Joey McKenna, OSU 2. Nick Lee, PSU 3. Michael Carr, ILL 4. Chad Red, NEB 5. Nate Limmex, PUR 6. Tommy Thorn, MINN 7. Cole Weaver, IND 8. Eli Stickley, WIS 149: 1. Zain Retherford, PSU 2. Brandon Sorensen, IOWA 3. Ryan Deakin, NU 4. Colton McCrystal, NEB 5. Ke-Shawn Hayes, OSU 6. Eleazar Deluca, RU 7. Alfred Bannister, MD 8. Malik Amine, MICH 9. Steve Bleise, MINN 10. Cole Martin, WIS 11. Austin Nash, PUR 12. Eric Barone, ILL 13. Jwan Britton, MSU 14. AJ Raya, IND 157: T1. Michael Kemerer, IOWA T1. Jason Nolf, PSU 3. Alec Pantaleo, MICH 4. Micah Jordan, OSU 5. Tyler Berger, NEB 6. Andrew Crone, WIS 7. Jake Short, MINN 8. John Vanschenkbrill, RU 165: 1. Isaiah Martinez, ILL 2. Alex Marinelli, IOWA 3. Vincenzo Joseph, PSU 4. Richie Lewis, RU 5. Evan Wick, WIS 6. Nick Wanzek, MINN 7. Logan Massa, MICH 8. Isaiah White, NEB 9. Te'Shan Campbell, OSU 10. Jacob Morrissey, PUR 11. Bryce Martin, IND 12. Austin Hiles, MSU 13. Brendan Burnham, MD 14. Mike Sepkle, NU 174: 1. Mark Hall, PSU 2. Bo Jordan, OSU 3. Myles Amine, MICH 4. Dylan Lydy, PUR 5. Johnny Sebastian, NU 6. Devin Skatzka, IND 7. Joey Gunther, IOWA 8. Ryan Christensen, WIS 184: 1. Bo Nickal, PSU 2. Myles Martin, OSU 3. Dom Abounader, MICH 4. Emery Parker, ILL 5. Nick Gravina, RU 6. Tyler Venz, NEB 7. Ricky Robertson, WIS 8. Mitch Bowman, IOWA 197: 1. Kollin Moore, OSU 2. Shakur Rasheed, PSU 3. Cash Wilcke, IOWA 4. Kevin Beazley, MICH 5. Hunter Ritter, WIS 6. Christian Brunner, PUR 7. Zack Chakonis, NU 8. Eric Schultz, NEB 285: 1. Adam Coon, MICH 2. Kyle Snyder, OSU 3. Nick Nevills, PSU 4. Sam Stoll, IOWA 5. Youssif Hemida, MD 6. Conan Jennings, NU 7. Shawn Streck, PUR 8. Rylee Streifel, MINN

Oklahoma State Wesleyan University has named R.J. Sweat as its new head wrestling coach. Sweat replaces Colby Robertson, who abruptly left the position at OKWU in mid-December, in his first season heading up the brand-new wrestling program. The school scrapped its entire 2017-18 season upon Robertson's departure. “I am extremely excited that R.J. is joining our staff to lead our wrestling program,” said Oklahoma Wesleyan athletic director Mark Molder. “His enthusiasm, intensity, and experience are qualities he brings with him as he begins to direct our program.” Prior to being hired by OKWU, Sweat had served as an assistant coach at Coweta and Broken Arrow high schools in Oklahoma. He wrestled at Broken Arrow and at Oklahoma State. ‘This is an incredible opportunity,” said Sweat. “It was a door opened up by God to bring me to Oklahoma Wesleyan. I'm very excited to lead this program and help grow the sport of wrestling in Oklahoma.” Oklahoma Wesleyan revealed its plans to add a men's intercollegiate wrestling program in early December 2016. In late March of this year, the school announced that it had hired Colby Robinson to head up the new program. Prior to coming to Bartlesville, Robinson had been head coach at DeSmet High School in St. Louis, and an assistant at Missouri Baptist. Located in Bartlesville about 45 miles north of Tulsa, Oklahoma Wesleyan University can trace its roots back to 1909. At its website, here's how Oklahoma Wesleyan describes itself: "As an evangelical Christian university of The Wesleyan Church, OKWU models a way of thought, a way of life, and a way of faith grounded in these four pillars (Christ. Scripture. Truth. Wisdom.). We are a place of serious study, honest questions, and critical engagement, all in the context of a liberal arts community that feels like family." The four-year school has approximately 1,300 students, with about half of them at the Bartlesville campus.

A Kansas high school had two of its wrestlers win individual titles at the state championships on Saturday, just days after their popular assistant coach had passed away in his home. Newton High School's 44-year-old assistant coach J.J. Thaw was found dead on his sofa Wednesday morning when he did not report for work, just as eight of his wrestlers were preparing for this weekend's state tournament. Despite losing their beloved assistant coach, Grant Treasler, 113-pound sophomore, and Wyatt Hendrickson, junior at 195, both won individual Kansas state titles in Class 5A competition by pinning their finals opponents. The overall team performance helped Newton High place sixth in the final team standings, with 97.5 team points. Prior to the finals, the state wrestling championships took a minute of silence to honor Thaw, who had been the Railers assistant coach for 15 years. Jermaine J. Thaw had deep roots within Newton, with a family heritage connected to sport. His father Jack Thaw served as head wrestling coach at Newton High from 1974-1996; his mother, JoAnne, is the long-time gymnastics coach at Newton. J.J. Thaw wrestled at Newton, making it to the Kansas state finals three straight years, wining a title in 1991. In addition to serving as an assistant wrestling coach at his high school alma mater, Thaw was a paraprofessional with Newton's adaptive physical education program, working with special needs students. "J.J. was extremely passionate about wrestling his enthusiasm and love for the sport had a major positive impact on many, many people," said former Newton High wrestler and current Hutchinson coach Mike Garcia. Thaw's cause of death has yet to be determined but foul play is not suspected. He had struggled with flu symptoms and a toe infection for the majority of the wrestling season. An autopsy is scheduled for early next week. Services for J.J. Thaw have been announced. Recitation of the Holy Rosary will be 6:00 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 28 at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church following Rosary. Memorial Mass will be 2:00 p.m. Thursday, March 1 at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. Burial will be in Greenwood Cemetery in Newton.

The pre-seeded brackets have been released for the Big 12 Championships, which take place Saturday and Sunday at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla. The pre-seeds are tentative. Seeds will be finalized on Friday evening before the tournament begins. The first session of the event will take place on Saturday at 10 a.m. MT. Link: Brackets

Arizona State captured the Pac-12 title CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Arizona State successfully defended its Pac-12 title, as it captured its 18th Pac-12 wrestling crown overall at the 2018 Pac-12 Wrestling Championships. The ninth-ranked Sun Devils posted 96 points behind six individual Pac-12 champions: Ali Naser (133), Jason Tsirtis (149), Josh Shields (157), Anthony Valencia (165), Zahid Valencia (174) and Kendall Norfleet (184). CSU Bakersfield's Sergio Mendez (125) was honored with the most falls at the Pac-12 Championships, while Oregon State's Amar Dhesi (285) was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Championships. Oregon State, finished runner-up with 70 points. CSU Bakersfield finished third with 52.5 points, followed by Stanford with 47.5 points and Cal Poly with 37 points. 125 pounds: No. 11 Ronnie Bresser (Oregon State) def. No. 13 Ryan Millhof (Arizona State). D; 3-2 • Tied 2-2 heading into the third round, Bresser picked up one point for riding time to pull out the win. • Bresser is now a two-time Pac-12 champion adding to his 2015 title, and the only Beaver to hold a title at 125. • Sergio Mendez (CSU Bakersfield) took third place over Gabe Townsell (Stanford) with a fall (2:16). Yoshito Funakoshi (Cal Poly) placed fifth. • The Pac-12 received four allocations at 125 for the NCAA Championships. In addition to Bresser, NCAA qualifiers include Millhof, Mendez and Townsell. 133 pounds: No. 15 Ali Naser (Arizona State) def. Mason Pengilly (Stanford). D; 8-3 • Naser led 4-2 after the first round, increased his lead to 5-2 after two rounds, and then pulled off the victory with a 8-3 decision. • Naser becomes just the fifth Sun Devil to win the Pac-12 Championship at 133 pounds, joining Erc Larkin (1999), David Douglas (2001), Mike Simpson (2003) and Dalton Brady (2016). • Sean Nickell (CSU Bakersfield) took third place over Devan Turner (Oregon State) with a decision; 6-3. Ty Schilling (Cal Poly) finished in fifth. • The Pac-12 received two allocations at 133 for the NCAA Championships. In addition to Naser, Pengilly also qualifies for the NCAA Championships 141 pounds: Colton Schilling (Cal Poly) def. Russell Rohlfing (CSU Bakersfield). MD; 15-6 • Schilling held 4-1 lead after one round, 10-4 after two, then put the bout away with a 15-6 major decision • Schilling, who has posted seven straight wins, becomes the second Mustang to earn the Pac-12 title at 141 pounds and the first since Chad Mendes in 2008. • Jack Hathaway (Oregon State) finished third with a 6-0 decision over Nikko Villareal (Arizona State). Isaiah Locsin (Stanford) placed fifth. 149 pounds: No. 10 Jason Tsirtis (Arizona State) def. Josh Cortez (Cal Poly). D; 3-2 • Tied 2-2 after two rounds, Tsirtis picked up one point early in the third round to hold on for 3-2 decision. • Tsirtis becomes the third Sun Devil in four years to capture the crown at 149 pounds, joining Christian Pagdilao (2015) and Josh Maruca (2017). • Josh Reyes (Oregon State) earned third place with a 11-5 decision over Jake Barry (Stanford). Kalani Tonge (CSU Bakersfield) finished fifth. 157 pounds: No. 5 Josh Shields (Arizona State) def. Hunter Wilits (Oregon State). MD; 10-2 • Scoreless after one round, Shields took a 5-0 lead after two rounds and extended it in the third round for a 10-2 major decision. • Shields, ranked No. 5 by InterMat, successfully defended his crown and joins former Sun Devil Brian Stith (2005, 2007) as a two-time Pac-12 champion at 157 for Arizona State. • Paul Fox (Stanford) picked up a third-place finish with an 8-5 decision over Coleman Hammond (CSU Bakersfield). Jett Moy (Cal Poly) placed fifth. • The Pac-12 received three allocations at 157 for the NCAA Championships. In addition to Shields, Wilits and Fox also qualify for the NCAA Championships. 165 pounds: No. 15 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) def. Lorenzo De La Riva (CSU Bakersfield). Fall; 6:11 • Valencia posted a 3-2 lead after the first round, then extended it to 13-5 with a near fall at the end of the second round. He capped the bout with a fall in the third round (6:11) to successfully defend his Pac-12 crown at 165. • Valencia improved his record to 25-8 for the year. • Jared Hill (Stanford) held on for third place with a 10-9 decision over Rodney Williams (Oregon State). Ryan Farina (Cal Poly) finished in fifth. 174 pounds: No. 1 Zahid Valencia (Arizona State) def. No. 9 Keaton Subjeck (Stanford). MD; 15-7 • In a bout between two top-ten ranked individuals, Valencia took a 7-4 lead after one, then 9-6 after two rounds before closing out the bout with a 15-7 major decision to defend his title at 174. • Valencia, the nation's top-ranked wrestler at 174, stayed undefeated on the year with a 27-0 record this season. • Myles Terry (Oregon State) earned third-place honors with a 2-1 decision over Bryan Battisto (CSU Bakersfield). Ryan Anderson (Cal Poly) finished fifth. • Following the Championships, Subjeck faced Terry in a true second place bout to determine the Pac-12's second of two allocations it received at 174 for the NCAA Championships. Subjeck defeated Terry with a fall (4:23) to join Valencia as NCAA qualifiers. 184 pounds: Kendall Norfleet (Arizona State) def. Matt Wilhelm (Cal Poly). D; 9-4 • Norfleet picked up Arizona State's sixth and final individual crown of the night. • Norfleet is Arizona State's third champion in four years at 184, joining Blake Stauffer (2015, 2016). • Dom Duchame (CSU Bakersfield) picked up third place with a 14-10 decision over Bob Coleman (Oregon State). Austin Flores (Stanford) placed fifth. 197 pounds: No. 11 Corey Griego (Oregon State) def. No. 14 Matt Williams (CSU Bakersfield). D; 11-5 • Griego led 2-1 after one round, pushed it to 10-5 after two rounds, then closed out the bout with a 11-5 decision to successfully defend his conference title at 197. • Griego gives the Beavers their third title in four years, and fifth in seven years, at 197 pounds. • Nathan Traxler (Stanford) placed third with a 9-3 decision over Tom Lane (Cal Poly. Cade Belshay (Arizona State) finished fifth. • The Pac-12 received four allocations at 197 for the NCAA Championships. In addition to Griego, Williams, Lane and Traxler also qualify for the NCAA Championships. 285 pounds: No. 7 Amar Dhesi (Oregon State) def. No. 8 Nathan Butler (Stanford). MD; 11-2 • Dhesi jumped out to a 6-2 lead after one round, then cruised to a 11-2 major decision • Dhesi becomes a two-time Pac-12 champion at 285, adding to his 2016 Pac-12 title. • No. 9-ranked Tanner Hall (Arizona State) took third place over Spencer Empey (Cal Poly) with a fall (4:30). Mark Penyacsek (CSU Bakersfield) placed fifth. • The Pac-12 received three allocations at 285 for the NCAA Championships. In addition to Dhesi, Butler and Hall also qualify for the NCAA Championships. Attendance at Oregon State's Gill Coliseum for the first round of the championships was 1,472, while 1,679 fans were in attendance for the evening's championship round.

Ithaca College captured the Mideast Region title ITHACA, N.Y. -- The third-ranked Ithaca College wrestling team was back on the mats inside Ithaca College's Athletics & Events Center on Sunday when it had nine grapplers still alive on the final day of 2018 NCAA Mideast Regional Qualifying. When the blood, sweat and cheers finally died down inside Glazer Arena it was the Bombers that came out on top, qualifying seven wrestlers for the NCAA Division III National Championships en route to taking the Mideast Region Team Championship with 145.0 points. Ithaca entered the day with a healthy lead in the team standings over eventual team runner-up Stevens Institute of Technology. With eight grapplers still alive in the Championship Semifinal Round and another wrestler still battling in the Wrestle-back Rounds, IC seemed poised for a big day on Sunday. The Bombers lived up to most of those hopes, as six wrestlers punched their ticket to Nationals in Cleveland, Ohio, with wins in their respective Semifinal Round bouts during the morning session. Junior 125-pounder Ferdinand Mase, sophomore 141-pounder Ben Brisman (5th NWCA | 4th d3wrestle.com), senior 165-pounder Nick Velez (4th NWCA | 3rd d3wrestle.com), senior 174-pounder Jaison White (8th NWCA), junior 184-pounder Jake Ashcraft (1st NWCA | 1st d3wrestle.com) and junior heavyweight Jake O'Brien (2nd NWCA | 2nd d3wrestle.com) each scored wins in the morning to make the title bout of their respective divisions. The afternoon session was headlined by two performances. Sophomore 133-pounder Tito Colom battled through the wrestle-backs after falling to unanimous No. 1-ranked Troy Stanich of Stevens Institute of Technology in his first matchup of the day; Stanich went on to be named Most Outstanding Wrestler in a vote by the 17 head coaches at the meet. Colom won twice in the wrestle-backs, punching his ticket to the finals after defeating TCNJ's James Goldschmidt in a 5-2 decision in the third-place match. Ashcraft put the cap on Ithaca's dominant team victory with a second-period pin of Cortland's Deuly Espinal in the 184-pound title bout, scoring the Bombers lone regional championship of the afternoon session. With Sunday's performance, the Bombers are poised to have the most wrestlers competing at the National Championships since Ithaca sent eight to the year-end tournament in 2011.

Johnson & Wales won the title at the NCAA Northeast Regional WORCESTER, Mass. -- After opening a 27-point lead on day one, Sunday's day two of the NCAA Northeast Regional was essentially a victory lap for the Johnson & Wales University wrestling team. The fourth-ranked Wildcats ran away from the competition to capture their second-straight championship with 156.5 points. After sending a program-best five wrestlers to nationals last year, Johnson & Wales one-upped itself by qualifying seven wrestlers for the NCAA Championships, March 9-10 in Cleveland, Ohio. JWU's national qualifiers are: junior Jay Albis (125 pounds), senior Joao Vicente (133 pounds), junior Joe Ferinde (141 pounds), junior Adrian Gonzalez (165 pounds), junior Khamri Thomas (184 pounds), sophomore Michael DiNardo (197 pounds) and senior Jonah Aurelio (285 pounds). Albis - who was named Most Outstanding Wrestler - Ferinde and Thomas all won their individual weight class. It was a top-five battle in the finals of 125 pounds. Albis was in control the entire match against second-ranked Peter Del Gallo of Southern Maine, posting a 10-4 decision to win his second regional title. Albis opened the day by beating Roger Williams' Nick Barbaria, 7-4, in the semifinals. At 141 pounds, Ferinde trailed for most of the championship match against NYU's Sean Lyons. A late takedown and two near fall points gave the junior his second-straight title. Ferinde avenged a loss from earlier in the year by beating Castleton's Max Temple, 5-2, in the semifinals. Tied at 3-2 in the second overtime, Thomas got control of Western New England's John Boyle then took him down with six seconds left to win the title at 184 pounds. Thomas punched his ticket with a 14-4 major decision in the semifinals against WPI's Dan Wensley. While the first six national qualifiers knew they had their spot locked up before the finals, the senior Aurelio was either going to win the third-place match and qualify or have his collegiate career come to an end. He scored a takedown of WPI's Nathan Shrewsbury in the second round of overtime for his first trip to the NCAA Championship. Aurelio nearly pulled off the upset of the number one seed, Isaiah Bellamy of Wesleyan in the semifinals, but was defeated 3-1 during the sudden victory period. Riding points decided the winner at 133 pounds. Vicente got a late escape, but NYU's Matthew Noble had exactly one minute of riding time to get the bonus point needed for the victory. Vicente made quick work of Springfield's Ian Tolotti, pinning him in 1:51 to get his spot in the finals. Pulling off a big upset was Gonzalez as he posted a 13-3 major decision over the top seed, Brenan Marion of WPI. He couldn't pull off another upset in the finals as RWU's Taylor Shay took him down in the second round of sudden victory. A strong third period vaulted DiNardo into the finals and a trip to Cleveland as he beat Coast Guard's Jonathan Wagner, 9-3. He came up just short in the championship bout, falling 7-3 to seventh-ranked and top-seeded Devon Carrillo from Wesleyan. Thomas Grippi stayed alive at 149 pounds by beating Justin Cochram of Roger Williams, 10-5, in the consolation bracket. After losing his next match, he came back to earn All-Region honors by pinning Wesleyan's Carter Armendarez in 1:47 Brady Robin won a narrow 1-0 decision over WNEU's Ryan Monteiro in his opening consolation match at 157 pounds. He came up one match short of making the third-place bout, but he picked up his first All-Region award by earning an 11- major decision over Williams' Jake Savoca. The consolation bracket at 174 pounds featured the number two and three seeded wrestlers and unfortunately JWU's Michael Gargano came out on the short end, falling to Roger Williams' Brett Leonard, 6-0.

Wartburg won its sixth straight NCAA regional title DUBUQUE, Iowa -- The No. 1 Wartburg wrestling team six-peated as NCAA regional team champions Sunday with 181.5 points. The Knights qualified nine for the National Championships. Championship Semifinals & Consolation Third Round 125: Brennen Doebel (WB) win by 11-8 dec vs. Brock Henderson (Coe) 133: #3 Brock Rathbun (WB) win by 13-3 maj dec vs. Kyle Clough (Luther) 141: Brady Ruden (Coe) won by fall at 3:46 vs. Martine Sandoval (WB) 149: #1 Cross Cannone (WB) win by 7-1 dec vs. #6 Bradan Birt (Millikin) 157: #2 Logan Thomsen (WB) win by 9-2 dec vs. Egan Berta (North Central) 165: #1 Mike Ross (WB) win by fall at 1:24 vs. Jeremy Vester (Central) 174: #1 Eric DeVos (WB) win by 18-2 tech fall vs. Matt Marcotte (North Central) 184: #2 Tyler Lutes (WB) win by 15-3 maj dec vs. Awais Arain (Loras) 197: #2 Kyle Fank (WB) win by 15-4 maj dec vs. Ethan Cain (Dubuque) 285: Tyler Ortmann (Cornell) won by 5-2 dec vs. #1 Lance Evans (WB) Notes: -Doebel moves his winning streak to six -Doebel, Rathbun, Cannone, Thomsen, Ross, DeVos, Lutes, qualifies for Nationals. -Rathbun moves winning streak to 10 -Rathbun's 20th victory of the season -Sandoval is eliminated -Cannone remains undefeated (29-0) -Ross remains undefeated (21-0) -Ross' 10th fall of the season -DeVos remains undefeated (13-0) -DeVos moves his overall winning streak to 31, which dates back to the National Championship match in 2016 -Lutes moves his winning streak to eight -Fank moved winning streak to 18 -This was Evans' first loss of the season Regional Championships and Third Place 125: Brennen Doebel (WB) won by medical forfeit 133: #3 Brock Rathbun (WB) won by 10-4 dec vs. Brendan Gould (Augustana) 149: Cross Cannone (WB) won by medical forfeit 157: #2 Logan Thomsen (WB) wins by 8-0 maj dec vs. #6 Cole Erickson (Coe) 165: #1 Mike Ross (WB) win by 8-0 maj dec vs. Ben Hewson (Cornell) 174: #1 Eric DeVos (WB) win by 6-2 dec vs. #5 Jake Voss (Coe) 184: #2 Tyler Lutes (WB) win by fall at 4:32 vs. Keajion Jennings (Millikin) 197: #2 Kyle Fank (WB) won by 6-1 dec vs. #3 Guy Patron (Loras) 285: #1 Lance Evans (WB) win by 4-3 dec vs. Emonte Logan (North Central) Notes: -Central Regional Individual Champions: Doebel, Rathbun, Cannone, Thomsen, Ross, DeVos, Lutes, Fank -Rathbun moves winning streak to 11 -Cannone remains undefeated (30-0) -Thomsen moves winning streak to five -Ross remains undefeated (22-0) -DeVos remains undefeated (14-0) -DeVos moves his overall winning streak to 32, which dates back to the National Championship match in 2016 -DeVos is now a three-time Regional Champion -Lutes moves his winning streak to nine -Fank moved winning streak to 19 -The Knights had eight individual Regional Champions, most in program history -Wartburg six-peats as Regional Team Champions, 181.5 pts. -Wartburg has won this event since its inception -Head coach Eric Keller wins Regional Coach of the Year -The Knights have nine qualifiers for the National Championships March 9-10

This weekend, the Berlin High School wrestlers who are participating at the 2018 Connecticut state open will do so without their long-time coach. Jim DayJim Day, who had coached wrestling at the school since 1981, died Thursday at age 64. Day's Redcoats wrestlers finished either first or second in the Connecticut state title race from 1985 to 1994 ... then earned four state team championships from 1999 through 2003. Day could also claim 20 conference crowns and four individual New England tournament champs. In his nearly three decades as wrestling coach at the high school located just outside Hartford, Day tallied nearly 450 victories. Day also served as a special education instructor, and, for a time, was Berlin High's athletic director. "It's a devastating loss," current school athletic director Jeff Mauri, told The Citizen newspaper . "The amount of lives he touched is unmatched." It would appear that coach Day and the community he served were a great match. "He taught a lot of life lessons that get lost nowadays, especially in sports," said former local youth wrestling coach Roger Moss. "It's a gap we're going to have a hard time filing." "I think coaches are successful because they land in a community that has the same values, or at least a group in that community has the same values as the coach does," Day said in a 2011 interview with The Citizen. "I don't think that the level of commitment that I expected in wrestling would have flown in many communities. But in Berlin, that hard-work ethic, focus and passion -- there were a group of people that believed in that. That's why it flourished. It very easily could have failed in another community." Berlin school superintendent Brian Benigni weighed in with his thoughts of the long-time high school wrestling coach. "Jim loved Berlin. And he loved the kids," Benigni told the Hartford Courant. "He died way too young. He was an icon in town. Former teacher. Former athletic director. Excellent coach. He built the wrestling program into one of the best in the state." "Honestly, he was the best coach I ever had," former Berlin wrestler and New England champion Nick Arborio told the New Britain Herald. "He was always in my corner, always giving me advice. He meant the world to me and to the wrestling team. He put his heart and soul into the program." Day was inducted into the New England Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2004 and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, Connecticut Chapter in 2010 while also becoming the driving force in the creation of Berlin's own athletic hall of fame in 2008, which welcomed him in 2011.

Northeastern Oklahoma claimed the team title at the NJCAA National Championships COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa -- Led by nine All-Americans, but no individual champions, Northeastern Oklahoma claimed the team title at the NJCAA National Championships on Saturday, a full 23 points ahead of runner-up Clackamas. Defending champion Iowa Central was third. The team title was clinched during the consolation rounds, as no team could catch Joe Renfro's Norse during the gold-medal finals. Northeastern Oklahoma A&M had only one finalist, returning champion Wyatt Jordan of Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (165), who was soundly defeated in the finals by Troy Keller of Niagra, 10-0. Read complete story on TheMat.com ... Placewinners 125: 1st: Nodir Safarov (Northwest Wyoming) dec. Benny Gomez (Muskegon), 11-7 3rd: Jaxon Cole (Western Wyoming) dec. Boo Dryden (Northeast Oklahoma), 3-0 5th: Marcelino Lopez (Cowley) dec. Dillon Prutch (Labette), 10-9 7th: Esco Walker jr. (North Idaho) dec. Javier Moreno (Ellsworth), 9-7 133: 1st: Todd Small (Iowa Central) pinned Munkhbat Bat-erdene (Northwest Kansas Tech), 4:10 3rd: Gage Gomez (Barton) dec. D'andre Brumfield (Iowa Western), 8-3 5th: Ottis Rollins (Colby) dec. Justin Folley (Ellsworth), 11-7 7th: Jack Karstetter (Northeast Oklahoma) dec. Tramon Jenkins (Spartanburg), 19-16 141: 1st: Austin Anderly (NIACC) dec. Christian Kanzler (Lincoln), 3-2 3rd: Tyree Johnson (Triton) dec. Ralph Tovar (Clackamas), 7-5 5th: Eric Clarke (Iowa Central) M FOR Kevin Kissane (Pratt) 7th: Jake Thompson (Western Wyoming) DEF Cody Karstetter (Northeast Oklahoma) 149: 1st: Kenny Astle (Western Wyoming) pin Michael Zachary (Iowa Western), 3:55 3rd: Kendon Lee (Northeast Oklahoma) pinned David Hollingsworth (Iowa Lakes), 1:05 5th: Jasiah Williams (Clackamas) pinned Christopher Meloni (Nassau), 6:16 7th: Mark Voss (Ridgewater) dec. John Reina (Niagara), 6-3 157: 1st: Kade Sander (Barton) dec. Ethan Karsten (Iowa Central), 5-4, tb2 3rd: Steven Lawrence (Ellsworth) pinned Isaiah Diggs (Clackamas), 4:59 5th: Liam Corbett (Highline) dec. Thomas Stevenson (North Idaho), 7-3 7th: Noah Jackson (NIACC) maj. dec. Tate Allison (Northwest Wyoming), 10-2 165: 1st: Troy Keller (Niagara) maj. dec. Wyatt Jordan (Northeast Oklahoma), 10-0 3rd: Michial Foy (Harper) pinned Dillon Ulrey (Clackamas), 6:40 5th: Jacob Swift (North Idaho) dec. Jose Rodriguez (Iowa Central), 16-9 7th: Sangobunmi Smith (Iowa Lakes) pinned Justin Anderson (Northeastern), 0:18 174: 1st: Dylan Reel (Clackamas) dec. Anthony Collins (Ellsworth), 8-6, sv 3rd: Cody Kingery (Iowa Western) dec. Devin Crawl (Northeast Oklahoma), 5-3 5th: David Kelly (Barton) dec. Michael Abidin (Nassau), 9-7 SV 7th: Cameron Page (Jamestown) dec. Matt Hebel (Western Wyoming), 11-8 184: 1st: Tanner Harvey (Southwestern Oregon) dec. Levi Perry (North Idaho), 14-9 3rd: Nick Maximov (Clackamas) pinned Ottis Peeler (Iowa Western), 5:00 5th: Alex Kaufmann (Northeast Oklahoma) dec. Antrez Clagon (Iowa Central), 1-0 7th: Joseph White (Northwest Kansas Tech) pinned Jeff Oakes (Northwest Wyoming), 4:06 197: 1st: Wade French (Western Wyoming) dec. Tyree Sutton (Iowa Central), 10-8, sv. 3rd: Baker Hadwan (Muskegon) dec. Amos Daigbe (Highline), 3-2 TB2 5th: Mason Hawkins (Rochester) dec. Seth Ham (Iowa Western), 9-8 7th: Zeke Silva (Northeast Oklahoma) dec. Cory Schmidt (Itasca), 8-6 285: 1st: Odgerel Batkhishig (Northwest Kansas Tech) maj. dec. Lisiate Anau (Northwest Wyoming), 10-1 3rd: Brian Andrews (Northeast Oklahoma) maj. dec. Damian Trujillo (North Idaho), 13-3 5th: Bryan Ditchman (Joliet) pinned Darryl Aiello (Clackamas), 1:05 7th: Jonathan Solorzano (Nassau) FOR Jimsher Sidhu (NIACC) Team Standings 1. Northeastern Oklahoma A&M 147.5 2. Clackamas 124.5 3. Iowa Central 121 4. Western Wyoming 99.5 5. Iowa Western 86.5 6. North Idaho 80.5 7. Ellsworth 76.5 8. Northwest Wyoming 9. Barton 70.5 10. Northwest Kansas Tech 61 11. Niagara 46.5 12. Iowa Lakes 44 13. Nassau 43 14. Muskegon 42.5 15. Harper 37.5 16. Southwestern Oregon 35 17. NIACC 34.5 18. Rochester 32.5 19. Highline 29.5 20. Spartanburg 26.5 21. Triton 25 22. Joliet 22 22. Pratt 22 24. Labette 20.5 25. Lincoln 19

Gregg Moore, Mike Shearer and Bob Purcell were welcomed into the NJCAA Hall of Fame Two former wrestlers, Gregg Moore and Mike Shearer -- along with long-time Minnesota West coach Bob Purcell -- were welcomed into the National Junior College Athletic Association's Wrestling Hall of Fame at the 2018 NJCAA National Championships at Mid-America Center on the Iowa Western campus in Council Bluffs Saturday night. Gregg Moore was a two-time NJCAA national champion for Triton College in Illinois, becoming the school's first-ever national titlewinner in 1977. The following year, Moore earned the Ernest B Gould Award as the championships' Outstanding Wrestler. In his two-years at Triton, Moore crafted a perfect 78-0 record. The Oak Lawn, Ill. native then completed his collegiate career at University of Jamestown in North Dakota, where he earned All-American honors at the NCAA championships. Michael Shearer became Muskegon Community College's first NJCAA wrestling champ, winning the 123-pound title at the Nationals in 1969. While at Muskegon, Shearer earned a perfect 30-0 dual-meet record, with back-to-back Michigan Community College state championships, then served as an assistant coach at his alma mater for one season before heading west to Iowa State. Bob Purcell served as head wrestling coach at Minnesota West Community and Technical College for 20 seasons, guiding the Bluejays to multiple conference and Region XIII Wrestlers of the Year awards, Region XIII championships, and national tournament qualifiers. What's more, with Purcell at the helm, the Bluejays recorded a graduation rate of 90 percent. For all these accomplishments, Purcell was named the NJCAA Man of the Year in 2014. He retired from coaching in August 2014.

Mack Beggs claimed the girls Class 6A state title at 110 pounds History is made again as Mack Beggs, an 18-year-old transgender wrestler transitioning from female to male, won his second Texas state title Saturday. And he did it by defeating the same opponent he faced in the state finals one year ago. The senior from Euless Trinity High School outside Dallas-Fort Worth, won the girls Class 6A state title at 110 pounds with a 11-2 decision over Chelsea Sanchez of Katy Morton Ranch High School at the state championships at Berry Center in Cypress, a suburb of Houston. Last year, Beggs defeated Sanchez, 12-2, in the 110-pound title match in Class 6A competition. As Beggs was presented with his second gold medal, he was greeted with a mix of cheers and boos. After the match, Beggs was asked how his second state championship felt in comparison to the first. "It definitely felt different," Beggs told the Dallas Morning News Saturday night. "I felt a lot more humble. This year I wanted to prove a point that anyone can do anything. Even though I was put in this position, even though I didn't want to be put in this position, even though I wanted to wrestle the guys, I still had to wrestle the girls. "But what can I tell people? I can tell the state Legislature to change the policy, but I can't tell them to change it right now. All I can hope for is that they come to their [senses] and realize this is stupid and we should change the policies to conform to other people in my position." Beggs has compiled a perfect record over the past two seasons. He was 36-0 this season, and 56-0 during the 2016-17 school year. Perfect record aside, over the past two years, Beggs' family has said Mack would rather be wrestling boys. Texas is one of six states with separate competitions for girls and boys. Texas' University-Interscholastic League (UIL) -- the independent body that governs collegiate and high school athletics in the Lone Star State -- had implemented a rule in 2016, requiring transgender individuals to wrestle against the gender listed on their birth certificates. He was born female, as Mackenzie, but he identifies as male even though he has yet to have gender reassignment surgeries. The Dallas Morning News reported that Mack Beggs recently consulted with a Texas plastic surgeon and hopes to soon have "top surgery," which involves breast tissue removal and male chest contouring. Beggs has taken doctor-prescribed, low-dose testosterone injections (currently 36 milligrams per week) since October of his freshman year. His gender transition and hormone therapy, however, did not come to public light until last January. State law and UIL rules prohibit steroid use by high school athletes. However, Beggs' testosterone injections are permissible, thanks to the UIL rule's "safe harbor" provision, which allows steroids that are "dispensed, prescribed, delivered and administered by a medical practitioner for a valid medical purpose." The UIL's birth certificate rule is in sharp contrast to that of the NCAA, which in 2011 set transgender policy as requiring a trans male athlete who is receiving testosterone treatment, such as Beggs, to compete on a men's team, while prohibiting the athlete from competing on a women's team. Prior to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, the International Olympic Committee issued updated transgender guidelines allowing athletes who transition from female to male to compete in the male category without restriction. Now that Mack Beggs has completed his high school wrestling career, what does the future hold? A couple weeks ago, Beggs told the Dallas paper that he had received an offer for an academic scholarship offer from a "small school" that he did not identify, with a promise he would be able to try out for the men's wrestling program at the school.

UW-Parkside qualified six for the NCAAs FINDLAY, Ohio --The Parkside wrestling team dominated at the NCAA DII Midwest Regional over the weekend, as the Rangers are sending six NCAA Qualifiers to Cedar Rapids, Iowa for a chance at a National Championship. Had Parkside been eligible to win as a team, the Rangers would have finished with 142.5 team points while Ashland, who took home the trophy, finished with 94.5 points. "Incredibly proud of the six qualifiers, but also very proud of the other four who did not qualify," first year head coach Corey VanGroll said. "All ten guys were outstanding today. We're going to enjoy ourselves on the trip home and prepare for Iowa." Three wrestlers walked away on Saturday as NCAA Midwest Regional Champions in Airk Furseth (133), Frank Yattoni IV (149) and Nick Becker (174). Pernevlon Sheppard (157), James Lehman and Matt Halverson (285) all earned a trip to Nationals as well by finishing top-4 in their weight class. Sheppard took second, Halverson took third and Lehman finished in fourth. Lehman had to battle back at 197, as the redshirt-junior took down Peguero of Coker College in an intense overtime match, the final match of the day. At 133, No. 2 Furseth pinned Newberry's No. 9 ranked Nolan Whitely at the 5:19 mark. No. 7 Yattoni beat Findlay's Wimer in overtime 8-6 and No. 1 Becker, the back-to-back National Champion, pinned No. 10 Christian Price of Ashland at the 3:38 mark. Robby Mutimer, Anthony Cheloni, Brett Scoles and Connor Price all entered Saturday with a chance to make Nationals as well. The NCAA National Championship will go from Friday, March 9 to Saturday, March 10 at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Messiah won the Southeast Regional title (Photo/Josh Whitelaw) ROCKY MOUNT, Va. -- No. 15 Messiah wrestling put together an historic weekend at the Southeast Regional Championship, with a program-record eight Falcons qualifying for the NCAA Division III National Championship next month. Messiah also captured it's fifth-straight regional title, and it's first in the newly-arranged Southeast grouping. The Falcons scored 147 points, with York picking up 133 points and being the only-other team to reach triple digits. The eight NCAA qualifiers by the Falcons eclipses the previous record of seven, which was accomplished during the 2015-16 season. The National Championship will be held March 9-10 at the Cleveland Public Auditorium in Cleveland, Ohio. Repeat Performers Hunter Harris (133) qualified for his second-straight NCAA Championship with a runner-up finish this weekend. The Falcons' all-time leader in pins picked up a single fall in the quarterfinal, and his most impressive performance came in the semifinal. In that match against Delaware Valley's Brenden Velez -- the MAC Champion from earlier this season -- Harris earned an 8-6 decision in sudden victory. That put him in the NCAA tournament, even as he was pinned by Johns Hopkins' Ricky Cavallo in the final.11201 Ben Swarr (174), Derek Beitz (184), and Kyle Koser (197) all made good on their high expectations by earning qualification to the NCAA Championship. For Swarr and Koser, this marked three-straight qualifications. Swarr's showing was especially dominant as he earned three-straight tech falls by a combined score of 50-0 before winning 6-0 over Lycoming's Brandon Conrad in the final. Koser also earned a regional title with a 6-0 win over Antavian Leary of Ferrum. Like Swarr, Koser won four-straight bouts, and he didn't give up a point by going fall, major (13-0), and decision (5-0) to get into the final. For Beitz, the qualification was undoubtedly extra sweet considering his march back from a mid-season injury. He was outstanding in the quarterfinal (10-1 major decision) and semifinal (fall, 3:50) to earn his qualification, and he withdrew early in the final against Isaac Morales from Johns Hopkins. Back on Board Jeff Hojnacki (165) qualified for both the second time in his career and the first time since 2016. He had a big start with a tech fall (18-2) in the Round of 16, and he followed that up with a major decision (16-3) in the quarterfinal. In the semifinal he was matched up with Gettysburg's Colin Kowalski, and it was a must-watch rematch of Hojnacki's 7-6 decision over Kowalski on Dec. 8. The rematch didn't disappoint, as Hojnacki earned a 3-1 sudden victory decision to earn the NCAA qualification. In the final Hojnacki lost 8-7 to Ferrum's Andrew Tolbert. New to the Show Messiah's lineup is full of big names, but the biggest highlights of the weekend may very well have come from some new faces. Surely among that group is Sean Redington (125), who lost his opening bout on Friday and fought all the way back through the consolation bracket to take third place. Redington's march to an NCAA qualification included five wins in the wrestleback rounds, and he was nothing short of dominant on that path. His first three victories went 15-6 decision, 19-2 tech fall, and fall (2:40) to put him into a match with Lenny Ogozalek of Gettysburg. The loser of that bout would go to the fifth-place match, but Redington kept his streak going with a 7-0 decision. That put him into the third-place bout with Samuel Braswell of Averett, and Redington kept his momentum with an impressive 27-14 major decision to secure a spot at the National Championship. Redington's noteworthy streak will get plenty of attention, but two other Falcons -- Stephen Maloney (149) and Kevin Edwards (157) -- also qualified for the first time in their respective careers -- albeit by a more-traditional route. Maloney took second overall, with his only loss (5-2) coming in the final to Gregory Warner of York. Warner also defeated Maloney earlier this month by an 8-3 score. On his path to the runner-up finish, Maloney collected two pins, including one at 4:15 in the semifinal over Trevor Corl of Lycoming. Edwards was the third Falcons to earn a first-ever qualification to the National Championship, and he did so with a title win at 157. Like Maloney before him, he also faced a York Spartan (Eric Hutchinson), and he came away with a 6-3 win. Coaching Honors Messiah's outstanding weekend was preceded by head coach Bryan Brunk being named Southeast Region Coach of the Year, and Craig Hogan being named Assistant Coach of the Year. They, along with the rest of the coaching staff, led Messiah to a 16-5 record this season, with Brunk picking up his 200th career win. With a program-record eight NCAA qualifiers this season, Brunk has now coached 43 qualifiers during his 14-plus seasons with the Falcons.

Baldwin Wallace claimed the Central Regional title CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind.-- The three-time defending Ohio Athletic Conference champion and sixth-nationally ranked Baldwin Wallace University wrestling team won the NCAA Division III Central Regional Championship and qualified nine individuals for the NCAA Division III National Championships. The top three individuals in each weight class qualify for the national championship which is hosted by BW and the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission at Cleveland's historic Public Auditorium on March 9-10. The Yellow Jackets (19-2) were first of 18 teams with 165.5 points. Wabash (Ind.) College, who was the host school, was second with 147.5 points. The University of Mount Union was third with 116 points. BW Head Coach Jamie Gibbs was named the Central Region Head Coach of the Year and Assistant Coach Jason Zastrow was named the Central Region Assistant Coach of the Year. The nine Yellow Jackets that qualified were senior All-OAC 125 pounder Chris Doyle (Akron/Green), sophomore 133-pounder Dante Ginnetti (Poland/Seminary), sophomore 141-pounder Charlie Nash (Norwalk), freshman 149-pounder Stanley Bleich (North Ridgeville/Elyria Catholic), junior All-American and All-OAC 165-pounder Anthony Arroyo (Maumee), junior 174-pounder Justin Ransom (Mason), junior 184-pounder Zeckary Lehman (Akron/Revere), senior All-OAC and Academic All-OAC 197-pounder Tyler Maclellan (Medina/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy) and senior 285-pounder Gabe Mahaney (Green). Doyle (Akron/Green), who is making who is making his second straight trip to the national championship, earned All-Central Region honors as he won the 125-pound title. Doyle received a first round bye, won a 18-0 technical fall in 6:25, earned a 12-4 major decision and posted a 4-1 decision in the title match. Ginnetti who qualified for his first national tournament, earned All-Central Region honors as he placed third. Ginnetti won by pinfall in 56 seconds, suffered a loss, earned a 5-3 tiebreaker decision, won by pinfall in 6:43, picked up a 20-1 technical fall in 4:28 and won by pinfall in 26 seconds. Nash, who is making his first trip to the national championship, earned All-Central Region honors as he finished second. Nash received a first round bye, won by pinfall in 2:49, earned an 8-6 decision and fell in the championship match. Bleich, who qualified for his first national tournament, earned All-Central Region honors as he placed third. Bleich received a first round bye, earned a 20-2 technical fall in 6:58, won by pinfall in 6:58, suffered a loss, picked up a 9-4 decision and won by pinfall in 3:43. Arroyo who is making his second straight trip to the national championship after placing fifth a year ago, earned All-Central Region honors as he won the 165-pound title. Arroyo won a 16-1 technical fall in 4:50, earned a 11-4 decision, won by pinfall in 1:44 and won the title with an 8-1 decision. Ransom, who is making his first trip to the national tournament, earned All-Central Region honors as he placed third. Ransom won by pinfall in 1:17, earned a 4-1 decision, suffered a loss, picked up a 10-2 major decision and earned a 7-2 decision. Lehman, who is making his first trip to the national championship, earned All-Central Region honors as he won the 184-pound title. Lehman received a first round bye, picked up a 4-0 decision, won by pinfall in 5:48, earned a 5-1 decision and won by pinfall in 4:38 in the title match. Maclellan, who is making his second trip to the national tournament and the first since 2016, earned All-Central Region honors as he won the 197-pound title. Maclellan won by pinfall in 3:49, earned 6-1 and 7-2 decisions and picked up a 3-1 decision in the title match. Mahaney, who is making his first trip to the national championship, earned All-Central Region honors as he placed third. Mahaney received a first round bye, picked up a 3-0 decision, earned a 17-0 technical fall in 6:45, suffered a loss, picked up a 5-3 decision and won by pinfall in 4:52. Also placing was junior All-OAC 157-pounder Benjamin Hoof (Worthington/Thomas Worthington) as he finished sixth. Hoof received a first round bye, won by pinfall in 2:00, suffered a loss, picked up 5-3 and 6-4 decisions and suffered losses in his final two matches.

Ashland won the Super Region II championship Ashland University wrestling won the NCAA Super Region II championship on Saturday (Feb. 24), its first under fifth-year head coach Josh Hutchens. Five Eagles placed top-four, and will advance to the NCAA Division II National Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, set for March 9-10. Following the tournament, Hutchens was named the 2018 Midwest Region Coach of the Year. Redshirt sophomore Bret Romanzak (ranked No. 3 nationally at 165 pounds), as well as redshirt seniors Jordan Murphy (No. 2 at 184) and Luke Cramer (No. 3 at 197) all won individual regional titles. Murphy and Cramer also won in 2017. Murphy is now 21-0, and is seeking to become the first wrestler in AU history to complete a season as an undefeated national champion. Redshirt sophomore Christian Price (No. 9 at 174) took second place, and junior Lawrance Dudgeon (133) earned fourth, rounding out the group of Eagles who will advance. Cramer defeated the No. 10- and No. 9-ranked wrestlers at his weight class en route to his tournament victory. Murphy beat No. 4 and No. 11. Romanzak took out No. 7 and No. 11. The Eagles scored 94.5 team points, edging out second-place Newberry by 1.5. Lake Erie placed third with 91 points. In the previous four super regionals under Hutchens, Ashland finished second in both 2016 and 2017, third in 2015 and fourth in 2014. AU took sixth at nationals in Birmingham, Ala., last season, its best effort since taking fourth in 2002. Murphy and Cramer garnered their first All-American honors, placing sixth and third, respectively. Michael Labry, a 133-pound senior in 2017, won the program's first individual national title since Corey Kline was a champion in 1996.

Sam Bennyhoff celebrates after winning his third regional title (Photo/David Peterson, Minnesota/USA Wrestling) MINNEAPOLIS -- The No. 2-ranked Augsburg University wrestling team claimed an NCAA Division III regional title for the 16th straight year, qualifying individuals in seven weight classes to the national championships at the NCAA Upper Midwest Regional, completed on Saturday at Si Melby Hall. THE BASICS FINAL TEAM SCORES: 1. Augsburg (Minn.) 147.0; 2. Wisconsin-La Crosse 128.0; 3. Wisconsin-Whitewater 93.0; 4. Wisconsin-Stevens Point 79.0; 5. Elmhurst (Ill.) 78.5; 6. Wisconsin-Platteville 77.0; 7. Wheaton (Ill.) 66.0; 8. Wisconsin-Eau Claire 65.5; 9. Wisconsin-Oshkosh 53.5; 10t. Concordia-Moorhead (Minn.) 49.5; 10t. University of Chicago (Ill.) 49.5; 12t. Milwaukee School of Engineering (Wis.) 32.5; 13t. Saint John's (Minn.) 19.5; 13t. St. Olaf (Minn.) 19.5; 15. Concordia-Wisconsin 9.5; 16. Pacific (Ore.) 5.5; 17. Lakeland (Wis.) 0.0. LOCATION: Si Melby Hall, Minneapolis HOW IT HAPPENED • Augsburg, ranked No. 2 in the latest National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III national poll, won the 17-team regional with 147.0 points. Augsburg has won the team title in its NCAA regional every year since starting regional competition in the 2002-03 season. • With its seven national tournament qualifiers -- including five first-year competitors -- Augsburg has had seven or more national tournament qualifiers in 15 of the last 16 seasons. Augsburg had three regional champions, two runners-up and two third-place finishers. The top three finishers in each weight class qualify for the national tournament. • Augsburg Head Coach Jim Moulsoff was named Co-West Region Coach of the Year, sharing the honor with Wisconsin-La Crosse's Dave Malacek, while Augsburg's Tony Valek was named West Region Assistant Coach of the Year by his coaching peers. • Sam Bennyhoff (JR, Mound, Minn./Mound-Westonka HS), ranked No. 4 nationally at 133, will compete in his third straight national tournament, after winning the regional title for the third straight year. Now 32-5 on the season, Bennyhoff claimed an 8-5 victory over Josh Stenger of Wisconsin-La Crosse in the semifinals, then topped No. 5-ranked Anthony Munoz of Elmhurst (Ill.) in the finals, his second win over Munoz this season. Bennyhoff is now 90-21 on his career with 17 pins, 15 technical falls and 25 major decisions. • Top-ranked 157-pounder Ryan Epps (SO, Cannon Falls, Minn./Cannon Falls HS) extended his winning streak to 22 straight matches with two victories on Saturday to claim the regional title and a national tournament berth for the second straight year. He scored a 5-4 win over Grant Zamin of Wisconsin-La Crosse in the semifinals, then beat No. 3-ranked Mark Choinski of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in the finals. Epps is now 38-1 on the season and 70-8 in his career with 12 pins, six technical falls and 11 major decisions. • Lucas Jeske (SO, St. Michael, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville HS), ranked No. 2 nationally at 165, earned his second straight regional title and national tournament bid with his regional title, improving to 35-1 on the season. On Saturday, he scored a 5:27 pin of Chase Schmidt of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in the semifinals. He claimed the regional title on a medical forfeit. Jeske is now 59-9 in his collegiate career with 27 pins, five technical falls and 11 major decisions. • At 125, Victor Gliva (SO, Farmington, Minn./Farmington HS) reached the finals with a 12-3, major-decision win over No. 8-ranked Mike Tortorice of Wisconsin-Whitewater, but dropped a 9-5 decision to No. 4-ranked Carlos Feuntez of Wheaton (Ill.), named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler by coaches, in the finals. Advancing to his second straight national tournament, Gliva is now 28-6 on the season and 60-13 in his career, with 15 pins, six technical falls and 13 major decisions. He earned All-American honors with an eighth-place national finish last year. • Tanner Vassar (SO, Maple Lake, Minn./Maple Lake HS) finished second at 174 pounds to earn his first trip to the national tournament. In the semifinals, he scored a 7-5 win over Sawyer Massie of Wisconsin-La Crosse, but suffered a 5-0 loss to No. 7-ranked Jon Goetz of Wisconsin-Platteville in the finals. Vassar is now 32-8 on the season and 64-18 with 20 pins, six technical falls and six major decisions in his career. • David Flynn (SO, Jordan, Minn./Jordan HS (Scott West)), ranked No. 2 nationally at 141, finished third in the weight class at the regional, earning his second straight national tournament trip. He was upset 9-4 by Hayden Schlough of Wisconsin-La Crosse in the semifinals, but rallied with a 12-2 major decision win over Chaise Hauck of Chicago (lll.) and a 6-4 win over No. 4-ranked Devin Tortorice of Wisconsin-Whitewater in the third-place match. An All-American after finishing third nationally last year, Flynn is now 19-4 on the season, 43-9 in his Augsburg career and 71-23 in his collegiate career. • Alex Wilson (JR, Oak Grove, Minn./St. Francis HS), ranked No. 3 nationally at 149, will compete in his first national tournament, after finishing third in his weight class. In the semifinals, he suffered a 5-2 loss to Spencer Nevills of Wisconsin-La Crosse, but came back with a 15-5 major decision win over Luke Smiley of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, then topped Concordia-Moorhead's Ty Johnson for the third time this season, a 6-0 win in the third-place match. Wilson is now 31-5 on the season and 89-29 in his career with 24 pins, nine technical falls and 17 major decisions. • Three Auggies saw their seasons come to an end on Saturday. At 184, senior Sebastian Larson (SR, River Falls, Wis./River Falls HS), a national tournament qualifier in 2016, finished fourth. On Saturday, he scored a 5-0 win over Luke Dodd of Saint John's and a 2-1 win over Colten Cashmore of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in the wrestlebacks, but dropped a 7-2 decision to No. 10-ranked Dan Squires of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in the third-place match. He finished his senior season at 27-10 and his career at 86-55 with eight pins, five technical falls and 13 major decisions. • No. 9-ranked 197-pounder Lance Benick (FY, Fridley, Minn./Totino-Grace HS) ended his first Auggie campaign with a fourth-place regional finish. He lost a 7-3 decision to Ramsey Bloy of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in the semifinals, then edged Cody Meyer of Wisconsin-Platteville 8-7 to reach the third-place match. But he suffered a 2:30 pin to No. 4-ranked Wesley Schultz of Wisconsin-La Crosse in the third-place match. Benick, a transfer from Division I Arizona State, finished his season at 11-5. • Heavyweight Ethan Hofacker (SO, Spring Valley, Wis./Spring Valley HS) suffered a 6-1 loss to Will Hare of the University of Chicago (Ill.) in the wrestlebacks, finishing his season with 10 wins. He has 29 wins in his Auggie career. UP NEXT • The seven Auggie qualifiers will compete at the NCAA Division III National Championships, to be held March 9-10 at the Cleveland Public Auditorium in Cleveland, Ohio.