InterMat Staff

The Big 12 Conference finalized the seeding for the 2016 Big 12 Wrestling Championship, which is set for March 5-6 at Sprint Center in Kansas City. Oklahoma State leads the way with five top-seeded wrestlers, while Oklahoma tallies behind with two. North Dakota State, South Dakota State and West Virginia all have one wrestler in the top spot. All ten schools will place a wrestler in each weight class. The seeds, as voted by the conference coaches, will compete over two days for 36 automatic qualifying bids to the NCAA Championships, as well as the 2016 Big 12 Championship team title. Oklahoma State's Dean Heil (141 pounds), Anthony Collica (149 pounds), Alex Dieringer (165 pounds), Chandler Rogers (174 pounds) and Austin Marsden (heavyweight) lead the way as the No. 1 seeds for the Cowboys. Ryan Millhof (125 pounds) and defending NCAA Champion Cody Brewer (133 pounds) slot in as the top seeds for the Sooners. SDSU's Cody Pack (157 pounds), NDSU's Hayden Zillmer (184 pounds) and WVU's Jake Smith (197 pounds) round out the top of the brackets for the conference. For more information on the Big 12 Wrestling Championship, visit Big12Sports.com. The first three sessions will be streamed exclusively on FloSports and FloWrestling, with FSN will broadcast the championship rounds live. FloArena will house the live stats for the event. 125: 1. Ryan Millhof (OU) 2. Eddie Kilmara (OSU) 3. Zeke Moisey (WVU) 4. Drew Templeman (WYO) 5. Josh Rodriguez (NDSU) 6. Chasen Tolbert (UVU) 7. Ben Gillette (SDSU) 8. Kyle Larson (ISU) 9. Drew Romero (AF) 10. Jesse Reed (UNC) 133: 1. Cody Brewer (OU) 2. Earl Hall (ISU) 3. Josh Martinez (AF) 4. Jade Rauser (UVU) 5. Brance Simms (SDSU) 6. Gary Wayne Harding (OSU) 7. Rico Montoya (UNC) 8. Keegan Moore (WVU) 9. Drake Foster (WYO) 10. Nico Collunga (NDSU) 141: 1. Dean Heil (OSU) 2. Bryce Meredith (WYO) 3. Seth Gross (SDSU) 4. Mitch Bengston (NDSU) 5. Jarod Maynes (UVU) 6. Trae Blackwell (OU) 7. Nathan Boston (ISU) 8. Tony DeAngelo (WVU) 9. Ben Polkowske (UNC) 10. Dylan Hyder (AF) 149: 1. Anthony Collica (OSU) 2. Alex Kocer (SDSU) 3. Davion Jeffries (OU) 4. Timmy Box (UNC) 5. Cole Mendenhall (WYO) 6. Clay Ream (NDSU) 7. Jerry McGinty (AF) 8. Trevor Wilson (UVU) 9. Zachary Moore (WVU) 10. John Meeks (ISU) 157: 1. Cody Pack (SDSU) 2. Joseph Smith (OSU) 3. Dylan Cottrell (WVU) 4. Archie Colgan (WYO) 5. Logan Breitenbach (ISU) 6. Eleazar De Luca (UNC) 7. Zach Stepan (AF) 8. Raider Lofthouse (UVU) 9. Kyle Gliva (NDSU) 10. Brock Wingbermuehle (OU) 165: 1. Alex Dieringer (OSU) 2. Tanner Weatherman (ISU) 3. Clark Glass (OU) 4. Connor Flynn (WVU) 5. Luke Zilverberg (SDSU) 6. Keilan Torres (UNC) 7. Chaz Polson (WYO) 8. Grant Nehring (NDSU) 9. Michael Billingsley (AF) 10. Brayden Humprheys (UVU) 174: 1. Chandler Rogers (OSU) 2. Matt Reed (OU) 3. Lelund Weatherspoon (ISU) 4. David Kocer (SDSU) 5. Ross Taylor (UVU) 6. Ross Renzi (WVU) 7. Adam Jackson (AF) 8. Jace Jensen (WYO) 9. Blake Thompson (NDSU) 10. Tanner Davis (UNC) 184: 1. Hayden Zillmer (NDSU) 2. Nolan Boyd (OSU) 3. Jacob Scheffel (WVU) 4. Dane Pestano (ISU) 5. Anthony McLaughlin (AF) 8. Andrew Dixon (OU) 7. Brady Ayers (SDSU) 8. Ben Stroh (WYO) 9. Will Sumner (UVU) 10. Horacio Vialpando (UNC) 197: 1. Jake Smith (WVU) 2. Nate Rotert (SDSU) 3. Trent Noon (UNC) 4. Parker Hines (AF) 5. Preston Weigel (OSU) 6. Derek Thomas (UVU) 7. Brandon Tribble (WYO) 8. Brad Johnson (OU) 9. Pat Downey (ISU) 10. Logan Paxton (NDSU) 285: 1. Austin Marsden (OSU) 2. Ross Larson (OU) 3. Tanner Harms (WYO) 4. Ben Tynan (NDSU) 5. Dustin Dennison (UVU) 6. Joe Scanlan (ISU) 7. Marcus Malecek (AF) 8. AJ Vizcarrondo (WVU) 9. Alex Macki (SDSU) 10. Jack Kuck (UNC)

TOPEKA, Kan. -- Four-time defending national champion Grand View (Iowa) closed session I of the 2016 NAIA Wrestling National Championships, presented by USA Wrestling-Kansas, leading the team competition with 41 points. Session II is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. CST with the parade of champions, while action on the mat starts at approximately 6:30 p.m. The 59th annual event is taking place inside the Kansas Expocentre for the third-straight year. The Vikings had 10 of their 11 grapplers advance to the quarterfinals of the championship bracket. Walker Marshall at 141 pounds was the only Grand View individual to lose in session I, falling to No. 2 seed Andrew Schulte of Concordia (Neb.) in the first round. Marshall is still alive in the consolation bracket after eliminating David Sparks of Campbellsville (Ky.), 8-4. Montana State-Northern is second in the team standings with 30.5 points, followed by Missouri Valley with 25 points and Indiana Tech with 24.0 points. All three programs have five individuals in the quarterfinals. All three defending national champions - Davion Caston of Campbellsville (Ky.) (133 pounds), Ricky McCarty of Oklahoma City (165 pounds) and Gabi Musallam of Missouri Valley (285 pounds) - kept their repeat title hopes alive by advancing to the quarterfinals. Twenty-one unseeded grapplers advanced to the quarterfinals, including a trio at 149 pounds, 197 pounds and 285 pounds. It was a tough morning for the No. 5 seeds, as six of the 10 wrestlers fell out of the championship bracket in the first two rounds. Arguably the most shocking upset of session I came in the second round at 125 pounds, as unseeded Casey Coulter of Southern Oregon downed top-seeded and top-ranked Adrian Gaines, 12-10. Gaines - a returning All-American - entered the match with a 20-0 record. Unfortunately for Gaines, his tournament would end in the consolation bracket with an 11-8 loss to Robert Ozuna of York (Neb.). Coulter, who is a sophomore from Grant Pass, Ore., is in the championships field for a second-straight year. He will face the No. 8 seed Hugo Perez of Midland (Neb.) in the quarterfinals. Another notable upset was Montana State-Northern's Toby Cheff falling to Korey Walker of Oklahoma City, 9-4. Cheff is a two-time All-American after finishing third in both 2014 and 2015. Lyon (Ark.) and Southeastern (Fla.) - both schools in their inaugural season of intercollegiate varsity action - earned first-ever championship wins today. Lyon's Dustin Miller won 5-2 over Kaleb Furr of Ottawa in the 125-pound consolation round one. Both of Southeastern's wrestlers won their first-ever championship bout, as Olson Delisca defeated Miller at 125 pounds and Ethan Owen (133 pounds), who received a bye in the first round, downed No. 8 seed Vicente Hernandez of Simpson (Calif.), 8-3, in the second round. Owen will face the top-seed Jacob Colon tonight in the quarterfinals.

The brackets have been released for the Big Ten Wrestling Championships, which take place Saturday and Sunday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City. Link: Brackets

A high school wrestler who believes he contacted herpes from a wrestling mat wants the California state wrestling championships to be postponed because he may have infected others slated to compete at the event. Blake Flovin, a senior at Archbishop Mitty High in San Jose, says he was diagnosed with herpes gladiatorum, caused by the herpes virus, after wrestling at the Central Coast Section tournament at Independence High School in San Jose Feb. 20-21. Flovin's face is covered with lesions, and he's concerned he may have infected others he wrestled at that San Jose tourney and at a subsequent event, and that some of these other wrestlers may be competing at the 2016 California Interscholastic Federation championships this weekend in Bakersfield. Robert Powell, the Flovin family attorney, told the San Jose Mercury-News Wednesday, "I'm not asking them to shut it down forever, but it absolutely needs to be delayed to allow for the incubation period to pass with all the wrestlers Blake wrestled with." CIF officials said they won't cancel the tournament in Bakersfield, insisting they follow rigid national safety protocols to protect wrestlers from infections and viruses like herpes gladiatorum, which is spread mostly through red skin lesions. All wrestlers undergo skin checks before the tournament and any athlete with an active infection won't be allowed to compete. The organization added that doctors will be on site during the state wrestling championships. "We've had many times where our doctors have removed an athlete who was showing symptoms or some sort of skin lesion. This is something we deal with on a regular basis," said the organization's senior director Brian Seymour, who is also tournament director in Bakersfield this weekend. "We follow protocol to the letter of the law." The federation's spokeswoman Rebecca Brutlag acknowledged, however, that "nothing is foolproof." Central Coast Section chairman Duane Morgan, who ran the tournament at Independence High, contacted all the coaches of athletes on Tuesday who wrestled Flovin, alerting them to the exposure. In an article at WebMD.com titled "Herpes gladiatorum is common among wrestlers", the medical website states, "Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) acquired during wrestling is one of the most common infections caused by personal contact during athletic activity… Physicians say the condition, called herpes gladiatorum, causes skin lesions on the head, neck, and shoulders that are often misdiagnosed." "Skin contact is the primary mode of HSV-1 transmission," Mark Dworkin, MD, told WebMD. "In wrestling, the head and neck are major points of contact, and over 90% of the lesions we observed erupted in this area." Sports medicine experts say wrestlers with active lesions should be temporarily excluded from participating in wrestling events. "Even though its common sense for an infectious athlete to sit out, sometimes there's pressure on high school kids to continue," Guy Nicolette, MD, the varsity team physician and clinical assistant professor of family medicine at the University of Florida in Gainesville, told WebMD.com. "Some are afraid of losing a scholarship. Others are afraid of losing the respect of their coach. That's a lot to handle during adolescence." Herpes gladiatorum is prevalent enough in the sport that in 2007 the National Federation of State High Schools Associations published a position statement on the disease and its effect on wrestlers in particular, saying that "in recent years, control of skin infections has become a crucial part of high school wrestling." The Flovin family has alleged lax health and safety protocols in high school wrestling, particularly at the tournament nearly two weeks ago at Independence High. "The rules and the swiftness in the way they deal with skin issues in wrestling is flawed and kids and coaches try to skirt around the issues," Blake Flovin told KGO-TV, the ABC affiliate in San Francisco. "It's widespread to hide the disease because of scholarships at stake," said Blake's father Rick Flovin, who is assistant wrestling coach at Mitty High and is trained as an EMT. He says he helped institute at the school some of the strictest hygiene standards in the sport, including requiring wrestlers to step in a pan of disinfectant before they step on a mat. That safety measure was not in place at Independence High, he said. Update: The 2016 CIF Wrestling Championships are taking place this weekend as originally scheduled. "After a thorough medical review of this situation, we have concluded that this week's CIF State Boys Wrestling Championships will proceed as scheduled for March 4-5, at Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield," said CIF executive director Roger Blake. "With regard to California high school wrestling championships, it is standard operating procedure for certified trainers and physicians to conduct a careful skin evaluation of every wrestler before weigh-ins on both days of the tournament. Physicians and certified athletic trainers are trained to detect symptoms and make a determination as to the nature of the condition and whether the student-athlete may compete without posing a risk to himself of any other competitor. "We are confident that our practices, along with an exhaustive medical review of this particular situation, ensure that there is no justification for concern about the spread of a contagious disease at the event. "We look forward to sponsoring the anticipated 561 student-athletes from 276 California high schools competing at the 44th annual CIF State Wrestling Championships."

The alleged gunman and one of the classmates he shot in a shooting inside a southwest Ohio school Monday were both on the same wrestling team, according to multiple media reports. The accused shooter, a 14-year-old juvenile, was a member of the eighth-grade Mohawk wrestling team -- as was one of his victims -- at Madison Junior-Senior High School, located between Cincinnati and Dayton. Two students were shot, while two others were otherwise injured but not wounded in the incident which took place in the school cafeteria at approximately 11:15 a.m. ET Monday. The two wounded students were air flighted to a Dayton hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, and are expected to be released this week. The other two students who may have been injured by shrapnel or in an attempt to flee the shooter were treated and released. The suspected shooter used a .380 caliber handgun which he obtained from a family member, according to police. After the shooting, he ran out of the school, dropping the weapon outside the building. Police K-9 units found the accused shooter and weapon within minutes. The Madison Junior/Senior High wrestling coach, Stan Oligee, declined comment when contacted by the Cincinnati Enquirer, saying the incident was "too raw" to discuss. However, at least two upper-class members of the wrestling team commented on the alleged shooter, who they knew because the middle school and high school teams conduct practice together. "He's real nice, he's friendly with everyone, everyone's usually real nice to him," Madison sophomore Jordan Eslick told WXIX-TV, the Fox affiliate in Cincinnati. "I don't ever see him get picked on or have a problem with anyone." "It was his first year on the wrestling team and we were actually pretty good friends. It didn't seem like anything was wrong with him, like he was bullied, he got along with everyone and I was really shocked when I heard it was him," Eslick said. Eslick added that he was unaware of any problems between the alleged shooter and the teammate who was shot. Jacob Farler, a senior on Madison Sr. High School's wrestling team, told WDTN, the Dayton ABC station, "We didn't personally know them too well because they were in junior high. We still saw them at practice every day. It's kind of just a surreal thing." Farler added that what happened Monday did not line up with what he knew of the accused shooter. "He usually had a smile on his face. He seemed happy. Joking around and everything." When asked why the shooting may have taken place, Farler told WDTN he had no idea. The alleged gunman has been charged with two counts of attempted murder, two counts of felonious assault, one count of inducing panic and one count of making terroristic threats, the Butler County Sheriff's Office said Monday. He is being held at the Butler County Juvenile Detention Center. On Tuesday an attorney for the 14-year-old boy entered a denial of charges, the juvenile equivalent of a not guilty plea. The case may be moved to adult court. Meanwhile, the Madison Mohawk team has traveled to Columbus for the 2016 Ohio high school state wrestling championships. One wrestler, Nick Svarda, made it to the 220-pound finals, but was pinned. He had been state champ in 2015.

Qualification weekend has arrived and for wrestlers from the Big 12 to the ACC the beginning of the "real season" has finally started. It's an exciting time to be a wrestling fan, but an even more thrilling time to be on the mat. There is a lot of extra commentary that is sometimes poured atop wrestling, which can sometimes confuse and imbalance our own perception of the sport. But stripped down and seen through the lens of this is a battle of preparation and willpower, strength and wit. The NCAAs garner much of the attention, but when watching wrestling from top-to-bottom, few weekends in the sport compare to the one weekend each year that hosts a half dozen NCAA Division I qualification tournaments across almost every time zone. There are many wrestlers who feel complete satisfaction with making the NCAA tournament and this is their weekend to do so. Last-second comebacks, unexpected upsets and heated team races will make this a great weekend for wrestling. Also this weekend brings us closer to filling out our brackets! This year we will be re-welcoming a special one-time-only Back Points podcast with linemaker extraordinaire Brian Muir (@muirorless). Tune in and get a leg up on the lines. To your questions … Q: Please look into your crystal ball and tell us who is the 2016 NCAA champ by weight and the team champion. -- David E. Foley: As you may expect I have to remind you that this is heading into the conference weekend and will almost certainly change after the Resilite residue settles Sunday night … 125: Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) 133: Nahshon Garrett (Cornell) 141: Kevin Jack (NC State) 149: Zain Retherford (Penn State) 157: Jason Nolf (Penn State) 165: Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) 174: Bo Nickal (Penn State) 184: Gabe Dean (Cornell) 197: J'den Cox (Missouri) 285: Nick Gwizdowski (NC State) Team: Penn State Q: Gardner-Webb University is also in the SoCon. They beat Appalachian State and lost to Chattanooga with some starters out of their lineup. They have also beaten Duke this year and deserve recognition in the rankings. -- Rich C. Foley: When I read this I thought you might be mistaken, but you're not. This is a solid team! I don't know where you want them in the team rankings, or if there were individuals who were overlooked, but the win over Duke and UTC are excellent markers for the program and its growth. Congrats on the success and I will be sure to keep an eye on their performance this weekend. Q: What is your most anticipated match from the ACC tournament? Between conference tournaments and the Olympic qualifier here in North Texas this weekend, it doesn't get much better than this! -- Brad B. Virginia Tech heavyweight Ty Walz gets his hand raised after winning the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in December(Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Foley: The biggest match of the ACC tournament? Hmm. I'm liking Kevin Jack vs. Joey Ward for best scrambles. I'm picking Thomas Gantt vs. Nick Brascetta for most physical. I'm liking Ethan Ramos in the mild upset over Zach Epperly. I'm choosing Nick Gwiazdowski vs. Ty Walz as most entertaining. And I'm pretty excited to see who comes out of the Pan Am Qualifiers. Definitely hurts the Americans that no Cubans made it out at the World Championships. They are on-location and ready to scrap. Their men and women are both very dangerous in a small tournament and I wouldn't be surprised to see them qualify 6/7 in freestyle along with another pair in women's wrestling and three in Greco-Roman. Also keep an eye out for the Venezuelan men, up-and-coming Canadians, and the trio of Ecuadorian middleweights who could each win the title at their weights. Q: What are the chances that Ohio State and Penn State sweep the Big Tens with individual champions? Combined, they have a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in nine weight classes and the No. 3 seed at 133 pounds. David D. Foley: Ten percent? I don't see Jordan Conaway or Johnni DiJulius making their way past Cory Clark (Go Iowa!) or Illinois' Zane Richards, who I think has an outside chance of winning the NCAA tournament. Still, you make a valid observation that there has been a massive consolidation of power in the Big Ten over the last few years. Worth checking on again heading into next year's finals. Q: Isaiah Martinez-Jason Nolf II this weekend. You are you taking? Why? -- Mike C. Foley: Jason Nolf is the favorite heading into the match and will be the favorite to the win the NCAA title after their rematch. Nolf is strict with his forward pressure and positioning. He's relentless on angles and following through with scrambles. There are no hiccups in his motion. He is constantly progressing with his positioning and once he slaps a pinning combination he simply doesn't let go. However, their first match also implied that Martinez was out of shape or suffering from a deep weight cut. That might not be the case come finals. He could be ballooned up, rested and have a full tank of gas for this most epic of rematches. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Celebrations from Minnesota's state wrestling tournament. This is cool. (Maybe a little too much chest pounding?) Q: If you're Fresno State's AD, what coaches are you looking at to lead the program? -- Mike C. Foley: The list would be pretty short. I'd aim for some of the top assistants in the country and would almost totally focus in on regional affiliations. The first names that popped in my head were the Tirapelle brothers, Alex and Adam, whose family runs deep in the area. Adam has been coaching wrestling at the high school level in recent years. Alex is the head coach at Penn and seems to be well liked and enjoying some success early in his career. Would he want to make a move back west to start from scratch? That might be a bridge too far for a young coach. Assistant coaching options include Jason Welch! Q: Can you please review which weight classes the United States has qualified for the Olympic Games, and which ones have not? -- Mike C. You have to win your semifinals match at the qualifier and wrestle in the finals to ensure that you have qualified your nation for Rio. As you know, the wrestler who qualifies is not necessarily the wrestler that goes to Rio. The team will be chosen at the Olympic Team Trials April 9-10 in Iowa City. Women's freestyle: Qualified -- 75 kilos: Adeline Gray 48 kilos: Alyssa Lampe 53 kilos: Whitney Condor 58 kilos: Alli Ragan 63 kilos: Erin Clogdo 69 kilos: Tamyra Mensah Men's freestyle: Qualified -- 74 kilos: Jordan Burroughs Qualified -- 97 kilos: Kyle Snyder 57 kilos: Anthony Ramos 65 kilos: Brent Metcalf 86 kilos: Jake Herbert 125 kilos: Tervel Dlagnev Greco-Roman: Qualified -- 75 kilos: Andy Bisek Qualified -- 130 kilos: Robby Smith 59 kilos: Spencer Mango 66 kilos: RaVaughn Perkins 85 kilos: Jordan Holm 98 kilos: Joe Rau Q: Why is it we don't see more Western European stars internationally? Zelimkhan Khadjiev has come to prominence, placing fifth at the World Championships last year, and taking second to Jordan Burroughs at the Yasar Dogu, but where are all the athletes from Spain, England, Germany? I know that Greco is somewhat more popular than freestyle there, but even that is scarce compared to the rest of Europe. Why is this? -- Brian B. Foley: Khadjiev is one of my favorite wrestlers to watch, but he's also got a wonderful backstory. Although you would assume that he is a Russian transplant purchased by the French federation, he's actually pretty French having moved to the country when he was 3 years old. As for the freestyle talent in Western Europe there are two reasons. First, some of these countries only celebrate Greco-Roman, a style that was first developed in France in the 1800s. The second is that there is a dearth of freestyle-based traditional styles in the region and very few clubs that support those programs. There is an effort to import talent and development at the international level is underway, but when looking at Europe as a whole it doesn't need to get much more difficult or concentrated with talent. Q: Any comments about Easton (Pa.) Area High School's streak ending this year? Easton wrestling teams produced at least one district champion for 68 consecutive years. Are you aware of other lengthy streaks? -- Charles W. Foley: The Streak. Impressive run by Easton, but like all good streaks they need to end to be fully appreciated. That is one hell of a long time to be putting out district champions in arguably the toughest wrestling hotbed in the nation. In NYC? Wanna wrestle? On March 12, BTS is hosting our first ever Step Into The Circle Fundraiser. It's an adult wrestling tournament. Basically instead of asking friend to sponsor you to run for a cause, you're asking your friends to wrestle for a great wrestling cause. So far we've raised over 24K (all through small donations). We have college alumni teams, corporate teams, teams with old friends, etc. It's going to be a ton of fun and it's a pretty unique fundraiser. You can check it out at https://www.crowdrise.com/StepIntoTheCircle. Email of the Week By Rich W. I am an NC State wrestling fan and enjoyed your column about NC State and Virginia Tech. I saw their dual this year and have some thoughts. Both teams have been built with a "whole team, 10-man" approach. If you look at NC State's big wins this year -- Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Missouri -- it was wins by their unranked wrestlers at 133, 149 and 174 that sealed it. Against Virginia Tech, NC State lost because Virginia Tech's unranked wrestlers at 133 pounds and 149 prevailed. Even when NC State didn't win, the unranked wrestlers contributed by not giving up bonus points. Against Oklahoma State, Missouri, Iowa, and even Old Dominion, NC State only won five matches but in every case they prevailed on bonus points. Giving up only two bonus points to Iowa was huge. I think Skip's single best move to turn the season was convincing Tommy Gantt to redshirt last season in what would have been his last year at NC State. It turned what would have been a last year with a mediocre team into a last year with a special team. However, Skip also let one get away, Bryce Meredith. He was the biggest new contributor for most of last year until Kevin Jack emerged. We'll never know if Bryce could have been comfortable wrestling at 133 this year. Your column focused on the East Coast phenomenon. But I see it more as a Southern thing. How many top-recruit wrestlers really don't want to spend four or five winters living in freezing cold? If this is the issue, maybe NC State has the edge over Virginia Tech! P.S. I think the ACC Championships will come down to who wins two finals matchups between NC State and Virginia Tech, 184 pounds and heavyweight. Both are tossups.

The seeds for the EIWA Wrestling Championships were released on Thursday. Cornell has the most No. 1 seeds with four. The 112th EIWA Championships take place Saturday and Sunday at Jadwin Gym in Princeton, N.J. 125: 1. Paul Petrov (Bucknell) 2. Darian Cruz (Lehigh) 3. David Terao (American) 4. Dalton Macri (Cornell) T5. Zach Fuentes (Drexel) T5. Pat D'Arcy (Princeton) 7. Nolan Hellickson (Harvard) 8. Steven Bulzomi (Binghamton) 9. Bryan Damon (Hofstra) 10. Michael Russo (Brown) 133: 1. Nahshon Garrett (Cornell) 2. Mason Beckman (Lehigh) T3. Angelo Amenta (Columbia) T3. Davis Pearce (Drexel) 5. Caleb Richardson (Penn) 6. Zack Davis (Navy) T7. Jacob Nicholson (Binghamton) T7. Jeffrey Ott (Harvard) 9. Austin Harry (Army) 141: 1. Rick Durso (F&M) 2. Todd Preston (Harvard) 3. Randy Cruz (Lehigh) 4. Tyler Smith (Bucknell) 5. Jordan Laster (Princeton) 6. Nicholas Gil (Navy) 7. Logan Everett (Army) T8. Kevin Devoy (Drexel) T8. Jamel Hudson (Hofstra) 10. Tyler Scotton (American) 149: 1. C. J. Cobb (Penn) 2. Matt Cimato (Drexel) 3. Laike Gardner (Lehigh) 4. Steven Galiardo (Brown) 5. Joe Galasso (Cornell) 6. Victor Lopez (Bucknell) 7. Corey Wilding (Navy) 8. Frankie Garcia (Binghamton) 9. Mike D'Angelo (Princeton) 157: 1. John Boyle (American) 2. Dylan Palacio (Cornell) 3. Justin Staudenmayer (Brown) 4. Markus Scheidel (Columbia) 5. May Bethea (Penn) 6. Ian Brown (Lehigh) 7. Russell (Parsons (Army) 8 Adam Krop (Princeton) 9. Vincent DePrez (Binghamton) 165: 1. Duke Pickett (Cornell) 2. Ryan Preisch (Lehigh) 3. Devon Gobbo (Harvard) 4. Tyrel White (Columbia) 5. Jonathan Viruet (Brown) 6. Mitchell Wightman (American) T7. Austin Rose (Drexel ) T7. Ray Bethea (Penn) 9. Judd Ziegler (Princeton) 174: 1. Brian Realburo (Cornell) 2. Casey Kent (Penn) 3. Brian Harvey (Army) 4. Jon Schleifer (Princeton) 5. Jadaen Bernstein (Navy) 6. Jack McKeever (Binghamton) 7. Rustin Barrick (Bucknell) 8. Zack Hernandez (Columbia) 9. Frank Affronti (Hofstra) 10. Andrew LaBrie (Brown) 184: 1. Gabe Dean (Cornell) 2. Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) 3. Mathew Miller (Navy) 4. Lorenzo Thomas (Penn) 5. Steven Schneider (Binghamton) 6. Abe Ayala (Princeton) 7. Tom Sleigh (Bucknell) 8. Stephen Loiseau (Drexel) 197: 1. Brett Harner (Princeton) 2. John Bolich (Lehigh) 3. Michael Woulfe (Navy) 4. Owen Scott (Cornell) 5. Frank Mattiace (Penn) 6. Bryce Barnes (Army) 7. Jeric Kasunic (American) 8. Tyler Greene (Bucknell) 9. Josh Popple (Harvard) 285: 1. Joe Stolfi (Bucknell) 2. Max Wessell (Lehigh) 3. Mike Hughes (Hofstra) 4. Jeramy Sweeney (Cornell) 5. Garrett Ryan (Columbia) 6. Ray O'Donnell (Princeton) 7. Nick Gajdzik (Harvard) 8. Joseph Goodhart (Drexel)

TOPEKA, Kan. -- (Brackets) The 2016 NAIA Wrestling National Article ImageChampionships, presented by USA Wrestling-Kansas, official brackets have been released. Session one action inside the Kansas Expocentre is scheduled to start Friday at 10 a.m. CST. The 59th annual event consists of four sessions, concluding Saturday with the championship finals. Official brackets were verified and approved by the NAIA-Wrestling Coaches Association Bracketing Committee Thursday afternoon. There will be 239 wrestlers representing 46 institutions. For the first time in the history of the NAIA, the first three sessions and all six mats will be live streamed at the NAIA Wrestling National Championships on www.NAIANetwork.com. Fans will be able to find the specific match they're looking for using the interactive live scoring system Trackwrestling. The title bouts (session 4) will be delivered on ESPN3. For more information on the NAIA Wrestling National Championship, click here.

Isaiah Martinez will be looking to win his second straight Big Ten title at 157 pounds, but the road to the title likely goes through Jason Nolf (Photo/Darrell Hoemann, Fighting Illini Athletics)This Saturday and Sunday, the Big Ten Conference tournament takes place at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City. The finals will air live on the Big Ten Network at 4 p.m. ET, while the rest of the rounds can be seen on BTN Plus. The tournament field includes nine teams ranked in the InterMat tournament rankings and 64 nationally ranked wrestlers. The following is a weight-by-weight preview of the tournament. The number is parentheses the probability of each wrestler taking home the championship in each individual weight class. The prediction model is based on Nate Silver's March Madness methodology. The probability is determined using three factors, the conference issued preliminary seeds, the InterMat rankings and StrikeScoreMMA.com's Wrestler's Pythagorean Expectation (WPE) which accurately predicted match outcomes in multiple dual meets this season. 125: 1. Nathan Tomasello, OSU (15.83%) 2. Thomas Gilman, IOWA (15.35%) 3. Nico Megaludis, PSU (14.16%) 4. Tim Lambert, NEB (11.43%) 5. Elijah Oliver, IND (8.78%) 6. Johnny Jimenez, WIS (6.04%) 7. Conor Youtsey, MICH (7.43%) 8. Sean McCabe, RU (6.45%) Steve Polakowski, MINN (3.48%) Garrison White, NU (3.33%) Mitch Rogaliner, MSU (3.26%) Michael Beck, MD (1.90%) Francis Edelen, ILL (1.39%) Luke Schroeder, PUR (1.16%) The probability numbers fall in line with the general consensus that this weight in a three-man race between Tomasello, Gilman and Megaludis. Already this season, Tomasello defeated Megaludis, while Gilman has faced neither. The expected Gilman-Megaludis semifinal will be brutal. The winner will most likely not be at his best to face the returning NCAA champion in the final. 133: 1. Zane Richards, ILL (12.90%) 2. Cory Clark, IOWA (12.64%) 3. Jordan Conaway, PSU (11.39%) 4. Geoff Alexander, MD (9.12%) 5. Eric Montoya, NEB (8.74%) 6. Ryan Taylor, WIS (8.57%) 7. Johnni DiJulius, OSU (8.40%) 8. Rossi Bruno, MICH (6.21%) 9. Dom Malone, NU (6.50%) 10. Anthony Giraldo, RU (5.23%) 11. Luke Welch, PUR (3.39%) 12. Garth Yenter, MSU (2.29%) 13. Alonzo Shepherd, IND (2.05%) 14. Sam Brancale, MINN (2.56%) Richards is undefeated on the season. He holds an overtime victory over Clark, which was the Iowa wrestler's only defeat of the season. Do not expect an easy trip to the finals for either man as 133-pound division contains the most ranked wrestlers (9) of any weight in the tournament. 141: 1. Micah Jordan, OSU (15.13%) 2. Tommy Thorn, MINN (13.50%) 3. Anthony Ashnault, RU (14.25%) 4. Jameson Oster, NU (9.07%) 5. Javier Gasca III, MSU (9.18%) 6. Anthony Abidin, NEB (7.25%) 7. Danny Sabatello, PUR (6.26%) 8. Jimmy Gulibon, PSU (6.10%) Brock Ervin, ILL (4.87%) Brody Grothus, IOWA (4.66%) George Fisher, MICH (4.44%) Alfred Bannister, MD (3.09%) Luke Rowh, WIS (1.31%) Tommy Cash, IND (0.90%) Jordan has been solid all season. His lone defeat was a one-point loss to Missouri's Matt Manley. This should be an interesting division for the team race between Penn State and Iowa. Gulibon and Grothus have both performed below expectations this season. Grothus has one of the highest win probabilities among unseeded wrestlers. 149: 1. Zain Retherford, PSU (14.70%) 2. Brandon Sorensen, IOWA (13.93%) 3. Jake Sueflohn, NEB (12.87%) 4. Jason Tsirtsis, NU (11.50%) 5. Alec Pantaleo, MICH (11.49%) 6. Alex Griffin, PUR (7.15%) 7. Andrew Crone, WIS (5.72%) 8. Jake Short, MINN (7.47%) Tyson Dippery, RU (4.02%) Luke Blanton, IND (3.42%) Kyle Langenderfer, ILL (2.96%) Cody Burcher, OSU (2.03%) Wade Hodges, MD (1.86%) Kaelan Richard, MSU (0.87) Retherford is undefeated on the season and has scored bonus in over 88 percent of his matches. Sorensen is also undefeated and extremely hard to score on. Both wrestlers hold victories over Sueflohn and Tsirtsis, so fans can look forward to a final featuring a pair of undefeated wrestlers. 157: 1. Jason Nolf, PSU (16.17%) 2. Isaiah Martinez, ILL (15.38%) 3. Richie Lewis, RU (11.90%) 4. Jake Ryan, OSU (10.74%) 5. Edwin Cooper, Jr., IOWA (8.95%) 6. Brian Murphy, MICH (9.21%) 7. Tyler Berger, NEB (7.45%) 8. Lou Mascola, MD (5.19%) Brandon Kingsley, MINN (5.20%) Doug Welch, PUR (3.81%) Jake Danishek, IND (2.70%) TJ Rushchell, WIS (1.73%) Mark Bozzo, MSU (1.02%) Anthony Petrone, NU (0.66%) Nolf has the second-highest win probability of anyone in this tournament. In January, he handed Martinez, the returning national champion, his first career collegiate defeat via third-period fall. Since then, Martinez has returned to form with four-straight wins. Nolf has extended his undefeated season record to 27-0. He is putting up bonus in a staggering 93 percent of his matches. The expected finals rematch is one of the most anticipated matches of the tournament and it should not disappoint. 165: 1. Isaac Jordan, WIS (14.25%) 2. Bo Jordan, OSU (13.78%) 3. Steven Rodrigues, ILL (12.39%) 4. Anthony Perrotti, RU (11.98%) 5. Chad Welch, PUR (11.21%) 6. Austin Wilson, NEB (9.29%) 7. Geno Morelli, PSU (6.97%) 8. Patrick Rhoads, IOWA (5.71%) Brandon Krone, MINN (3.30%) Garrett Sutton, MICH (3.14%) Brendan Burnham, MD (3.08%) Bryce Martin, IND (1.96%) Luke Norland, NU (1.63%) Dean Vettese, MSU (1.31%) As expected, the Jordan cousins dominated this weight in the conference. Last month, Isaac moved to 2-0 career against Bo with a 6-4 victory that did not seem that close. There should be a tough fight for third as Rodrigues, Perrotti and Welch have all had strong seasons up to this point. 174: 1. Bo Nickal, PSU (15.33%) 2. Alex Meyer, IOWA (12.33%) 3. Zach Brunson, ILL (13.39%) 4. Myles Martin, OSU (10.41%) 5. Nathan Jackson, IND (10.95%) 6. Micah Barnes, NEB (8.49%) 7. Nick Wanzek, MINN (6.47%) 8. Ricky Robertson, WIS (4.47%) 9. Phil Bakuckas, RU (6.67%) 10. Mitch Sliga, NU (4.04%) 11. Aaron Calderon, MICH (3.59%) 12. Josh Snook, MD (1.99%) 13. Shane Shadaia, MSU (1.26%) 14. Andrew Hoselton, PUR (0.60%) Nickal has one of the bigger gaps over the field in terms of win probability. His lone defeat on the season came against Jackson in January. Brunson over Meyer has been one of the more popular upset picks among wrestling writers. The win probability seems to agree with that sentiment. The two did not wrestle this year. However, Meyer did score a come-from-behind fall at the buzzer over Brunson last season. The Illinois wrestler might not be at the top of his game. In his last match, he was upset by Wanzek 13-10. 184: 1. Dominic Abounader, MICH (15.68%) 2. Matt McCutcheon, PSU (13.85%) 3. Sam Brooks, IOWA (11.82%) 4. TJ Dudley, NEB (11.96%) 5. Nick Gravina, RU (8.43%) 6. Kenny Courts, OSU (8.64%) 7. Jeff Koepke, ILL (7.15%) 8. Ryan Christensen, WIS (4.74%) Tanner Lynde, PUR (4.19%) Mark Colabucci, MD (3.73%) Matt Irick, IND (3.46%) Mitch Sliga, NU (2.68%) Shwan Shadaia, MSU (2.25%) Chris Pfarr, MINN (1.41%) Abounader should be the favorite here. He is 20-1 on the season and his only defeat came against Cornell's Gabe Dean. McCutcheon is still not right due to injuries and has defaulted two of his last five matches. Brooks is coming off a loss to Pete Renda of NC State, but he defeated Abounader at last year's NCAA tournament. 197: 1. Morgan McIntosh, PSU (16.31%) 2. Brett Pfarr, MINN (15.06%) 3. Nathan Burak, IOWA (14.44%) 4. Max Huntley, MICH (13.35%) 5. Aaron Studebaker, NEB (10.67%) 6. Mark Martin, OSU (6.18%) 7. Hayden Hrymack, RU (5.83%) 8. Jacob Cooper, MSU (4.13%) Jacob Berkowitz, NU (3.32%) Andre Lee, ILL (2.62%) Eric Peissig, WIS (2.49%) Drake Stein, PUR (2.12%) Garrett Wesneski, MD (1.93%) Jake Massengale, IND (1.56%) McIntosh has the highest win probability of anyone in the tournament. He is undefeated on the season and holds a victory over second seeded Pfarr. The Penn State wrestler is 4-0 in his career against Burak with a 19-7 combined score in those four matches. The expected semifinal between Pfarr and Burak might be the most interesting rematch of the bracket. Burak's only defeat on the season came against Pfarr after the referee did not call a near takedown at the final buzzer that would have won the match for Iowa.. 285: 1. Adam Coon, MICH (14.19%) 2. Kyle Snyder, OSU (13.66%) 3. Sam Stoll, IOWA (12.79%) 4. Billy Smith, RU (10.85%) 5. Michael Kroells, MINN (10.89%) 6. Collin Jensen, NEB (6.77%) 7. Brooks Black, ILL (6.94%) 8. Nick Nevills, PSU (6.84%) Dawson Peck, MD (4.64%) Garrett Goldman, IND (3.48%) Tyler Kral, PUR (3.43%) Brock Horwath, WIS (3.03%) Conan Jennings, NU (1.52%) Dimitrus Renfroe, MSU (0.97%) Coon enters as the number-one seed with the highest win probability. The junior world medalist is 15-1 with his only defeat coming against nemesis Ty Walz of Virginia Tech. However, Snyder is a reigning World champion at 97 kilos. He has only wrestled three matches so far this season and taken bonus in all three. Stoll was injured at the end of the NC State dual meet, so his status is still up in the air. Also, Nevills has returned from what was thought to be a season ending injury. He has loads of talent but has only wrestled in six matches on the season. Richard Mann currently runs the data-driven MMA blog StrikeScoreMMA.com.

USA Wrestling, the national governing body for wrestling in the United States, has declared the week of March 5-13 as Women's Wrestling Week in the United States. This year's Women's Wrestling Week is in conjunction with the celebration of Girls Sports Month in March. USA TODAY Sports is helping celebrate March's Girls Sports Month with a series of feature stories and other activities. It is also Women's History Month, a perfect time to focus on women athletes and leaders in the sport of wrestling. As part of Women's Wrestling Week, any female athlete who is not a member of USA Wrestling is invited to come out and try the sport at a chartered club practice. USA Wrestling will provide a complimentary membership for March 5-13, the time covered by Women's Wrestling Week. USA Wrestling chartered clubs have been encouraged to allow females of all ages to attend their practice free of charge during World Wrestling Week. To find a club program in your area, visit the link below: http://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Membership/Athletes/Find-a-Club Additionally, female athletes with prior wrestling experience who would like to participate in a USA Wrestling sanctioned event may do so on both weekends of March 5-6 and March 12-13. USA Wrestling extended the week to cover two weekends in order to provide even more opportunity for young women to try the sport. Athletes who will attend practices or events with the complimentary membership are asked to confirm their attendance in advance with the club leader or event host before going to the activity. To continue on last year's efforts the hashtag #EachOneBringOne will be used within social media as part of Women's Wrestling Week this year. In addition, to extend the success of National Girls and Women in Sports Day in February, people are also encouraged to continue using the hashtag #GirlsWrestle during this time. Three-time World champion Adeline Gray, a top medal contender for the upcoming Olympic Games, encourages girls and women of all ages to give wrestling a try and learn about its many benefits. She has been interviewed by USA Today as part of their series on Girls Sports Month, and her feature in USA Today will be published next week during Women's Wrestling Week. "It is not just for young girls, it is for anybody. There are so many women who say to me that they wish they had been able to have the opportunity to wrestle. I love to see them try it, to get on the mat, get in a stance and use it as part of their personal fitness and lifestyle. For young girls, they need to realize that these opportunities are real. Even if they try it out for fun, it is important to realize that there are so many things that come from wrestling that are very good, for both males and females," said Gray. Leaders within USA Wrestling and its women's wrestling programs are looking forward to this year's Women's Wrestling Week. "I am excited to join our amazing female athletes and USA Wrestling leaders in kicking off Girls Sports Month with a week focused on introducing more girls and women to wrestling and its athletes. Working together, we can ensure that all American girls have access to wrestling and the opportunity to benefit from the discipline, confidence and grit wrestling develops in each individual," said Kyra Barry, U.S. Women's Team Leader. "Women's Wrestling Week is important because there are still people, including a lot of coaches, athletes and parents, who don't know about the opportunities we have in this country for women in wrestling. We are seeing explosive growth for young women in the sport of wrestling, but there are so many more we have yet to reach. The USA has a strong Senior Women's Team, but we will be even stronger as we increase our numbers by expanding opportunity," said National Women's Coach Terry Steiner. "Wrestling teaches the most amazing life lessons, and we are pleased to offer this opportunity to more girls and young women during Women's Wrestling Week. As a community, we have a great chance this week to continue to create more opportunity for women in wrestling," said Patricia Fox, chair of USA Wrestling's Women's Age-Group Council. "It is our mission to build and grow women's wrestling in our nation. USA Wrestling is committed to being inclusive. We invite all girls and women to try wrestling and learn about how the sport can make a positive impact in your life," said USA Wrestling President James Ravannack. As part of Women's Wrestling Week, USA Wrestling will be providing daily features on American women's women's wrestling through its media platforms, to highlight the rich heritage of women's wrestling in our nation. "We are excited to celebrate and promote Women's Wrestling Week. USA Wrestling is committed to providing every single American youth with the opportunity to experience wrestling, both male and female. Our goal is for young girls to be given additional quality opportunities to get on the mat. America needs wrestling now as much as ever, and that goes for women and men alike. These are exciting times as we thrive to make our sport available to all," said Rich Bender, USA Wrestling Executive Director. Take part in Women's Wrestling Week!! Go to TheMat.com or follow USA Wrestling's social media platforms for more information about Women's Wrestling Week.

Quick quiz for current and former high school wrestlers, their families and fans: You've just been pinned in a match. What should you do? A. Shake your opponent's hand, then leave the mat without incident. B. Shake your opponent's hand, then punch him in the face, then create a scene that gets you and your dad arrested. Sadly, one New Jersey high school wrestler apparently thought that "B" was the correct answer, judging by his reported behavior at the Region 1 wrestling tournament at Wallkill Valley Regional High School this past weekend, according to multiple media reports. Ralph Hall Jr., a senior at Lenape Valley High School, was pinned at 2:28 of his 220-pound match in the first round of wrestlebacks by Adam Schlereth of Newton. As Schlereth was being declared the winner by having his arm raised by the referee, the 18-year-old Hall punched the Newton senior in the face. "He got up, shook my hand and hit me with a nice punch," Schlereth told NJ.com. "We played youth football together when we were younger and he's always been the type of kid to be mad and frustrated after a loss, but I never thought it would come to that." After Hall threw the punch, he was kicked out of the building and police on duty followed him out. He was arrested for assault. Ralph Hall Sr., seated in the stands, expressed his displeasure with what was happening to his son, and was also escorted out of the building by police. The elder Hall continued to cause a disturbance while leaving the gym and into the hallway, the New Jersey Herald reported. He was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. Despite getting socked in the face, Schlereth returned to wrestling in the tournament. "Everybody was talking to me about it but I was trying to focus on my match," Schlereth said. "The cops came to me and asked if I wanted to press charges but I told them to talk to me after I wrestle." Schlereth made it to the consolation finals, where he was pinned at 5:04 of the match. Meanwhile, Ralph Hall Jr. and his father are awaiting court appearances for their arrests. Update March 3: Good things can come from a bad situation: Adam Schlereth will be wrestling at the 2016 New Jersey state wrestling championships after all. The wrestler who pinned him at the Region 1 consolation finals, Todd Eckert of Roxbury, was forced to pull out of the state tournament because of an injury; Schlereth will go in his place this weekend..

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. -- The Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) has announced the preliminary seeds for the 2016 Championships (Saturday, March 5). The 2016 EWL Championships are set for Saturday, March 5 at Lock Haven University. The championship bracket will be available tomorrow (Friday) evening at www.GoLHU.com. Link: EWL Championship Central 125: 1. Sean Russell - Edinboro 2. Ibrahim Banduka - George Mason 3. Jake Field - Lock Haven 4. John Martin - Cleveland State 133: 1. Rob Deutsch - Rider 2. Vince Rodriquez - George Mason 3. Bobby Rehm - Lock Haven 4. Andy Schutz - Bloomsburg 141: 1. Brock Zacherl - Clarion 2. Mike Carlone - Cleveland State 3. Paul Kirchner - Rider 4. Tejon Anthony - George Mason 149: 1. Dan Neff - Lock Haven 2. Patricio Lugo - Edinboro 3. BJ Clagon - Rider 4. Nick Montgomery - Cleveland State 157: 1. Chad Walsh - Rider 2. Austin Matthews - Edinboro 3. Greg Flournoy - George Mason 4. Aaron McKinney - Lock Haven 165: 1. Conor Brennan - Rider 2. Casey Fuller - Edinboro 3. Evan Delong - Clarion 4. Cody Cordes - Lock Haven 174: 1. Michael Pavesko - Clarion 2. Patrick Jennings - Edinboro 3. Gabe Stark - Cleveland State 4. Tyler Wood - Lock Haven 184: 1. Vic Avery - Edinboro 2. Tristan Sponseller - Lock Haven 3. Mike Fagg-Daves - Rider 4. Dominic Rigous - Clarion 197: 1. Ryan Wolfe - Rider 2. Sam Wheeler - Cleveland State 3. Phil Sprenkle - Lock Haven 4. Vince Pickett - Edinboro 285: 1. Billy Miller - Edinboro 2. Riley Shaw - Cleveland State 3. Mauro Correnti - Rider 4. Matt Voss - George Mason

The seeds for the SoCon Wrestling Championships have been released. The event will be contested at UNC Asheville's Kimmel Arena in Asheville, N.C., on Saturday, March 5. The SoCon has 13 allocations for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. 125 (1 NCAA allocation): 1. Vito Pasone, Appalachian State 2. Cortez Starkes, Gardner-Webb 3. Dalton Henderson, VMI 4. Alonzo Allen, Chattanooga 5. Collin Stewart, Campbell 6. Patrick Kearney, The Citadel 7. Freddie Rodriguez, SIUE 8. Zamir Ode, Davidson 133 (1 NCAA allocation): 1. Nathan Kraisser, Campbell 2. Tyler Ziegler, Gardner-Webb 3. Irvin Enriquez, Appalachian State 4. Dakota Leach, SIUE 5. Dominick Gallo, VMI 6. Cody Hill, Chattanooga 7. Dustin Runzo, Davidson 8. Caleb Smith, The Citadel 141 (1 NCAA allocation): 1. Michael Longo, Appalachian State 2. Mike Pongracz, Chattanooga 3. Ty Buckiso, The Citadel 4. Luke Stewart, Campbell 5. John Muldoon, SIUE 6. Ryan Hull, Gardner-Webb 7. Hunter Starner, VMI 8. Billy McClelland, Davidson 149 (1 NCAA allocation): 1. Chris Vassar, Gardner-Webb 2. John Fahy, SIUE 3. Chase Zemenak, Chattanooga 4. Matt Frisch, The Citadel 5. Matt Zovistoski, Appalachian State 6. Emmitt Kelly, VMI 7. Kaleb Warner, Campbell 8. Aidan Conroy, Davidson 157 (2 NCAA allocations): 1. Aaron Walker, The Citadel 2. Kamaal Shakur, Chattanooga 3. Neal Richards, VMI 4. Ryan Mosley, Gardner-Webb 5. David Peters-Logue, Appalachian State 6. Erik Travers, SIUE 7. Tony Palumbo, Davidson 8. Quintin Perez, Campbell 165 (1 NCAA allocation): 1. Austin Trott, Gardner-Webb 2. Forrest Przybysz, Appalachian State 3. Paul Duggan, Campbell 4. Dustin Lampe, Chattanooga 5. Nate Higgins, SIUE 6. Shabaka Johns, VMI 7. Adam Flatt, Davidson 8. Daniel Smith, The Citadel 174 (1 NCAA allocation): 1. Nick Kee, Appalachian State 2. Sean Mappes, Chattanooga 3. Brett Stein, Gardner-Webb 4. Connor McMahon, SIUE 5. Mark Darr, VMI 6. Tim Knipl, The Citadel 7. Alex Vosburgh, Campbell 8. Nathaniel Powers, Davidson 184 (1 NCAA allocation): 1. John Lampe, Chattanooga 2. Hunter Gamble, Gardner-Webb 3. Ville Heino, Campbell 4. Derek Nagel, SIUE 5. Taylor Jackson, Appalachian State 6. Derek Thurman, VMI 7. Sawyer Root, The Citadel 8. Konner Pritchard, Davidson 197 (1 NCAA allocation): 1. Scottie Boykin, Chattanooga 2. Marshall Haas, The Citadel 3. Jake Tindle, SIUE 4. Gray Jones, Gardner-Webb 5. Randall Diabe, Appalachian State 6. Austin McNeil, Campbell 7. Taylor Thomas, VMI 8. Ryan Devlin, Davidson 285 (3 NCAA allocations): 1. Denzel Dejournette, Appalachian State 2. Jared Johnson, Chattanooga 3. Boyce Cornwell, Gardner-Webb 4. Joe Bexley, The Citadel 5. Chris Johnson, SIUE 6. Jere Heino, Campbell 7. Urayoan Garcia, VMI 8. Will Cooley, Davidson

INDIANAPOLIS -- The NCAA has released the updated standings for the 2016 NCAA Wrestling Awards that will be awarded in March at the respective Division I, II and III Wrestling Championships. The inaugural NCAA Wrestling Awards were presented at the 2012 wrestling championships. The three awards, given in each division, honor the Most Dominant Wrestler as well as the student-athletes that have accumulated the most falls and the most technical falls throughout the course of the regular and postseasons. For falls and tech falls to be counted towards a student-athletes total they must come against opponents in the same division. Ties in the two categories are broken based on the aggregate time. Most Division I schools took last week off to prepare for conference tournaments taking place this weekend leading to no changes in the standings. Division II and III wrestlers competed in regional action last weekend to qualify for national championship competition March 11-12. The NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships take place in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, while the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships return to Cedar Rapids, Iowa. For tickets to either championship, visit http://www.ncaa.com/tickets. Pittsburgh-Johnstown 184-pounder Travis McKillop leads Division II with an average of 4.95 team points per match, followed by heavyweight Garrett Grey of Tiffin with 4.81 points. The 2014-15 NCAA Division III Most Dominant Wrestler is well on his way to earning the award for the second year in a row as Wabash 184-pounder Riley Lefever has an average of 5.73 points. Heavyweight Donald Longendyke is second with an average of 5.46 points for Augsburg. The Most Dominant Wrestler standings are calculated by adding the total number of points awarded through match results and dividing that number by the total number of matchs wrestled. Team points per match are awarded as follows and based on a minimum of 17 matches in the division. * Fall, forfeit, injury default or DQ = 6 points (-6 points for a loss) * Tech falls = 5 points (-5 points for a loss) * Major decision = 4 points (-4 points for a loss) * Decision = 3 points (-3 points for a loss) Central Oklahoma 141-pounder Joshua Ailey is the new leader in Division II with 14 falls, but three wrestlers are on his heels with 13 falls. AJ Kowal of Stevens Institute of Technology holds the national lead with 21 falls this season in Division III, while Lefever and Josh Thomson of Messiah (57:28) each have 20 falls. Martin Ramirez of Adams State and Francis Mizia of Mercyhurst both have nine tech falls in Division II. Ramirez holds the tiebreaker in aggregate time (28:07-34:15) over Mizia, while two more wrestlers have earned eight tech falls. Michael Fleck, a 125-pounder from Wilkes, holds the national lead in Division III with 13 tech falls, one ahead of College at Brockport 184-pounder Jeff Palmeri.

Nick Suriano (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Yet another prominent state tournament on the docket this weekend is the one held at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J. The single-class New Jersey state tournament is always one full of fireworks, interesting results, and high-level wrestling. This weekend's "star of stars" will be Nick Suriano (Bergen Catholic), who is ranked No. 1 in the country at 126 pounds and seeks to finish his career as a four-time undefeated state champion. The "team of teams" in New Jersey is Bergen Catholic, which is ranked No. 4 in the nation and features five returning state champions; Suriano, No. 16 Gerard Angelo (120), No. 4 Shane Griffith (138), No. 10 Joe Grello (170), and No. 6 Kevin Mulligan (195). Angelo is not favored, but the other four are. The following is a weight-by-weight look at the tournament in the Garden State, which starts Friday evening and concludes on Sunday afternoon. 106: Super 32 Challenge runner-up JoJo Aragona (Pope John) is ranked No. 2 nationally, while Michael Kelly (St. Peter's Prep) is ranked No. 16. Those two wrestlers do feature in opposite halves. Aragona is joined in the top half, but opposite quarter, by fellow undefeated Joe Manchio (Seneca); while Beast of the East placer Kyle Kaiser (Paramus) is a possible quarterfinal opponent. In the lower-half, Kelly is joined by undefeated sophomore Joe Heilmann (South Plainfield), who is in the other quarter. 113: Three nationally ranked wrestlers feature in this weight class, led by No. 3 Sebastian Rivera (Christian Brothers), the Super 32 Challenge champion and two-time state fifth place medalist. No. 5 Patrick Glory (Delbarton) was runner-up to Rivera at the Super 32 this fall and runner-up to Angelo at state last year; while No. 10 Jonathan Tropea (St. Joseph Montvale) placed third at state last year and is a two-time medalist. Glory is in the easier half, with returning medalist Carmen Ferrante (Bergen Catholic) as a possible semifinal opponent; while Tropea and Rivera should meet in the lower half-bracket semifinal. 120: Angelo won state last year at 106 pounds as a freshman while competing for Hanover Park, but has since moved on to Bergen Catholic. The highest ranked wrestler in this weight class competes for Hanover Park, freshman Nick Raimo, ranked No. 3 nationally. Also nationally ranked in this weight class are last year's 113 pound finalists, champion Brandon Cray (Steinert) and runner-up Gianni Ghione (Brick Memorial); Cray is No. 10 and Ghione No. 17. Bracket wise, Cray is opposite of the other three, but not bereft of talent in his half; returning state placer Joe Casey (Bound Brook) is a possible quarterfinal opponent, with either undefeated returning state placer Shane Metzler (West Morris Central) or returning state placer Richie Koehler (Christian Brothers) awaiting in the semifinal. It's a total fiasco in the lower half-bracket. Angelo has a relative free ride to the semifinal, while the lower quarter is a circus. Raimo and Ghione both have opening round byes and are slated to meet in the round of 16, with that winner looking at a quarterfinal collision with returning state medalist Trace Kinner (Kingsway Regional). All that subject to Kinner being healthy enough to compete, which would force a re-draw. 126: Last year's state final at 120 was between the pair of 2014 state champions in Suriano and No. 9 Ty Agaisse (Delbarton), Suriano won that one obviously; the pair wrestled in a dual meet one month ago, with Suriano winning 9-2. They are obviously anchoring opposite halves of the draw. Within Suriano's half-bracket, but in the opposite quarter, is undefeated returning state medalist Kyle DiNapoli (Voorhees) as well as returning state medalist Troy Stanich (Roxbury). Returning state medalist John Burger (New Milford) is a possible quarterfinal opponent for Agaisse, with returning medalists Quinn Kinner (Kingsway Regional) and Garrett O'Shea (Butler) in the bottom-most quarter of the draw. 132: No nationally ranked wrestlers are here, but that doesn't mean no talent. Two-time state third place medalist Alec Kelly (St. Peter's Prep) is in the top quarter of the draw with returning state placer Sam Schneider (Emerson-Park Ridge) as a possible quarterfinal opponent. Two-time state medalist and Junior freestyle All-American Nick Farro (Delbarton) is in the other top half-bracket quarter along with undefeated two-time state placer Zack Firestone (Clearview Regional); Firestone is likely to face Wilfredo Gil (Ramapo), whose only loss on the season as in the regional final, in the round of 16. Freshman Chris Foca (Bergen Catholic), champion at the Beast of the East, is the lower half-bracket with either undefeated 2014 state medalist Chris Wolf (Haddon Township) or returning state medalist Owen McClave (Toms River South) awaiting in the quarterfinal. The bottom most quarter features two-time state placer Brandon Paetzell (Phillipsburg). 138: Returning state champion Shane Griffith (Bergen Catholic) is ranked No. 4 nationally, while returning state medalist and Flo Nationals placer Michael Van Brill (Clearview Regional) is No. 18 in the country. Each anchors a half-bracket. Griffith seems clean to the semis, where it's a likely match with 2014 state medalist Kris Lindemann (Howell). Van Brill should also be well to advance to the semifinal, where he is likely to face either two-time state placer Mark McCormick (Camden Catholic) or undefeated Nicholas Maher (WWP South). 145: Two-time state medalist Mekhi Lewis (Bound Brook), third last year as a sophomore, is ranked No. 15 nationally and anchors the top half-bracket. His biggest challenge is likely to be in the semifinal against returning state placer Mohammed Farhan (Clifton), presuming Farhan can clear the undefeated Tyler Gazaway (New Providence) in the quarterfinal bout. Returning state medalist Michael O'Malley (Hasbrouck Heights), who has an undefeated sophomore season to date, is favored from the bottom half. 152: Returning state runner-up Stephan Glasgow (Bound Brook) is ranked No. 9 nationally and the favorite in this weight class. The path won't be easy, as it could include a quarterfinal against presently undefeated Steve Bonsall (Newark Academy) before a possible semifinal against returning state medalist Dominick Mandarino (Don Bosco Prep). The lower half-bracket is led by two-time state medalist Alex Sebahie (Paramus), who has a rather manageable path to the final. 160: No. 5 Kyle Bierdumpfel (Don Bosco) is the defending state champion and after a fourth finals appearance. He is prohibitively favored to do so, with a state title to consummate an undefeated senior season. Undefeated senior Craig Roumes (Roxbury) leads the half-bracket opposite of Bierdumpfel, but it is a far from easy one, starting with a round of 16 bout against most likely returning state medalist Kyle Cochran (Paramus). In the other quarter of the lower half (i.e. opposite of Bierdumpfel) is returning state medalist Tyler Mullen (North Valley Old Tappan). 170: Nationally ranked wrestlers in No. 10 Joe Grello (Bergen Catholic) and No. 13 Brett Donner (Wall Township) lead each half of this bracket. Grello was state champion last year after placing eighth the year before, while Donner was third in 2014 before a disappointing DNP last year. In other quarter bracket of Grello's half, it is returning state medalist Jala'a Darwish (Passaic Valley) and Junior National freestyle All-American Spencer Carey (DePaul Catholic). Returning state placers Anthony Oliveri (Hanover Park) and Daniel Kilroy (Wayne Hills) could meet in the bottom most quarterfinal to feed into Donner in the semifinal. 182: Again, zero nationally ranked wrestlers does not mean zero talent. Powerade champion Brandon Kui (DePaul Catholic), eighth at state last year as a sophomore, is the top seed here (which puts him in the upper quarter of the top half-bracket). Dominic Maniero (Queen of Peace) is the only other returning medalist in that half. In the bottom half-bracket, freshman sensation Josh McKenzie (Bergen Catholic) and Luke Drugac (Morris Knolls) are a likely quarterfinal, while a pair of returning seventh place medalists in Kyle Murphy (Bridgewarter-Raritan) and Niko Capello (Cranford) are the other likely quarterfinal; Murphy is undefeated on the season. 195: Two nationally ranked wrestlers reside in this weight class, No. 6 Kevin Mulligan (Bergen Catholic) and No. 16 Dean Drugac (Morris Knolls). Each was a Junior National freestyle All-American this past summer, while Mulligan has the state title to his credit with Drugac seeking his first state medal. Mulligan's top half is bereft of state medalists, though he could see two one-loss wrestlers before the reaching the final in Van Miller (Bridgewater-Raritan) and Sean O'Malley (Hasbrouck Heights). Drugac is looking at a likely semifinal clash with returning state medalist Joseph McKenzie (Wall Township). 220: Three-time state medalist Matt Correnti (Holy Cross) is ranked No. 3 nationally and seeking state gold after falling one match short last year. He has been absolutely dominant this year, losing zero matches with only four making it a full six minutes. Returning state medalist Scott Lavelle (DePaul Catholic) is a possible semifinal opponent. The bottom half-bracket is anchored by returning state medalist Robert Melise (Phillipsburg). 285: Only the third weight in this state tournament without a ranked wrestler, but it's also not one bereft of talent. Returning state fifth place finisher Anthony Porcaro (Sayreville) is the top seed, but has been thrown into a potentially dangerous quarterfinal bout against Eric Chakonis (Don Bosco Prep). No other state medalist resides in the Porcaro half of the draw. Down in the lower half, returning state runner-up Nick Rivera (Brick Memorial) is the anchor figure, his only loss of the season coming against Chakonis in late December. However, his path isn't easy, as it could include a round of 16 bout against returning state medalist Joe Longobardi (River Dell), and a quarterfinal against the undefeated Keith Swartley (Cinnaminson). The lower quarter favorite is Kyle Nothnagel (Phillipsburg), who was excellent last year up to the state tournament, but failed to place.

As the story has been in the Golden State all season, look for a shootout between top 10 in the country squads Buchanan and Clovis for the title. Throughout the season No. 5 Buchanan has beaten neighbor and rival No. 9 Clovis in all common competitions: Zinkin Classic, Doc Buchanan Invitational, dual meet, TRAC tournament, and Yosemite Valley. However, Clovis came home with the title at last weekend's Central Section Masters event. Seth Nevills (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)It was not for the lack of performance from Buchanan, and the Bears qualified 13 to the state tournament via nine Masters finalists, including five champions. Clovis countered by qualifying the whole roster to state and winning five titles of their own, plus seven others placing in the top four. However, it is probably advantage Clovis at the state tournament this Friday and Saturday in Bakersfield, as the Cougars feature four clear state title favorites: No. 2 Justin Mejia (120), No. 7 Josh Hokit (182), No. 12 A.J. Nevills (195), and No. 7 Seth Nevills (285). Mejia and Seth Nevills are returning state champions, while Hokit and A.J. Nevills placed second last year. Buchanan counters with two nationally ranked wrestlers in No. 19 Matthew Olguin (106) and No. 11 Durbin Lloren (132); Lloren is favored to repeat as state champion. A third nationally ranked team is in this tournament field with No. 13 Poway; however, the Titans are lacking for "high-end" talent. They only return three state placers, none of them finishing top three last year: Chase Zollman (113), Brandon Kier (126), D.J. Garcia (152), and Chris Bailey (195). The team best positioned to finish third in the state tournament standings is San Marino, who has three state tournament favorites in No. 12 Julian Flores (138), No. 5 Zander Wick (145), and No. 4 Evan Wick (152); the Titans have a fourth potential high placer in Zander Silva (126). The following represents a look at weight classes with nationally ranked contestants. 106: No. 3 Nico Aguilar (Gilroy) is the dominant force in this weight, as he is actually a full-sized competitior, something that was not the case last year. The other nationally ranked wrestler is No. 19 Matthew Olguin (Buchanan), who occupies a position in the other half-bracket. The first notable hurdle for Aguilar is likely to be a quarterfinal against Central Section runner-up Brandon Betancourt (Clovis); with a potential semifinal against either Jacob Allen (Poway), Super 32 placer Christian Nunez (St. John Bosco), or Eric Rivera (Clovis North). The first notable obstacle for Olguin comes in a likely quarterfinal against multi-time Fargo All-American Izzak Olejnik (Bakersfield). 120: No. 2 Justin Mejia (Clovis) is a heavy favorite to take home a third state title, which would move him one step away from being the rarest of four-time state champions in California. Most notable challenge in Mejia's path to the final would be a potential semifinal against 2014 state runner-up Robert Garcia (Selma), who has been in-and-out of the national rankings this season. The other half-bracket features freshman Jaden Abas (Bakersfield Frontier), who upset Garcia last week during his runner-up finish to Mejia, along with state placers Isaiah Perez (Dinuba) and Richard Casillas (Northview). 132: No. 11 Durbin Lloren (Buchanan) is the defending national champion and deserved weight class favorite; though No. 17 Alex Felix (Gilroy), third at state in this same weight last year as a freshman, is also present. The most probable semifinal opponent for Lloren is Scott Kiyono (Poway); while Felix is looking at a possible quarterfinal against returning state placer Curtis Booth (Folsom), before another state placer in Trence Gillem (Helix) looms as a potential semifinal opponent. 138: The unfortunate injury to returning state runner-up Jaden Enriquez (Mission Oak) shrinks this to a two-horse race between No. 12 Julian Flores (San Marino) and No. 13 Navonte Demison (Bakersfield); Flores a returning state champion, while Demison was second at state last year. Obstacles for Flores most likely start in the quarterfinal round against Dylan Martinez (Clovis) before a potential semifinal against Jacob Wright (Dinuba), though each should be cleared. For Demison, returning state placer Kenny Jones (Lassen) awaits in the semifinal, presuming Joel Romero (Buchanan) doesn't upset Jones in the quarterfinal. 145: Returning state runner-up Zander Wick (San Marino) is ranked No. 5 in the nation, and the clear favorite in this weight class. Buchanan is hoping to see Greg Gaxiola, a returning state placer, reach the semifinal against Wick. In what is a rather wide open lower half, Ruben Garcia (Selma) might be the favorite to clear to the final. 152: A pair of nationally ranked wrestlers dot this weight class, No. 4 Evan Wick (San Marino) and No. 5 Luke Troy (Martin Luther King). They were teammates last year at San Marino, Wick placing fourth at 138, while Troy was third in this weight class. Wick has won both meetings against Troy season to date. In Wick's half of the draw, Clovis is hoping to see Brandon Martino through to the semifinal. Troy should clear to a rematch with Wick bereft of real challenge. 160: A pair of ranked wrestlers also appear in this weight class, three-time state placer and returning runner-up Justin Thomas (Calvary Chapel) and two-time state placer Abner Romero (Buchanan); Thoms is ranked No. 9 with Romero ranked No. 17. Thomas could see returning state placer Sam Loera (Bakersfield) in the quarterfinal round, with Jason Bergquist (Folsom) as a semifinal opponent. In the lower half-bracket, Romero is looking at a likely quarterfinal against returning state placer Brandon Claiborne (Oak Ridge) before a possible semifinal against another returning state placer in Beau Colombini (Windsor). 170: Two nationally ranked wrestlers also appear in this weight class, with No. 14 Anthony Mantanona (Palm Desert) having gotten the better of No. 15 Jeremy Thomas (Calvary Chapel) in the Southern Section final. These wrestlers met in the consolation final last year at 145 pounds in the state tournament, Thomas winning that bout. Mantanona has three-time state qualifier Antonio Gutierrez (Bakersfield) as a round of 32 opponent, but then should advance manageably to the semifinal round against either state placer Nikko Chapman (Inderkum) or Cade Belshay (Buchanan). The lower half-bracket features Thomas likely having to face Ruger Wyneken (Clovis) in the round of 16 before a potential semifinal against Dominic Ducharme (Windsor), a returning state placer. 182: The back-end hammers for Clovis start in this weight class with No. 7 Josh Hokit, who was state runner-up last year at 170, and the favorite to win gold in this weight class before moving on to Drexel University next year. Standing in his way includes a semi-challenging quarterfinal against Nathan Tausch (Poway) and a possible semifinal against returning state placer Roman Romero (McNair). The upper-bracket is anchored by returning state placer Chasen Blair (Rancho Bernardo), who was ranked very early in the season. If Buchanan could see Anthony Montalvo into that semifinal against Blair, it would be big for them in the team perspective. 195: No. 12 A.J. Nevills (Clovis) is a returning state runner-up and favorite to take home gold this season before going on to Penn State. He anchors the lower half-bracket, one that could include a semifinal bout against returning state placer Danny Salas (St. John Bosco). The upper half-bracket is led by Poway's highest returning state placer in Chris Bailey. 220: No. 18 Jesus Madrigal (Oak Hills) placed sixth at state last year in this weight class, which makes him only the third highest returning state placer; however, he is the top ranked wrestler in the state this season. He does face a dangerous round of 32 bout against Tyler Collier (Clovis), who gets to bang against both Nevills brothers and Hokit in the room every day. Returning state runner-up Bevan Brandt (Bullard) is in the other quarter of the top half-bracket that Madrigal anchors. The lower half-bracket features Darryl Aiello (De La Salle), who placed third at state last year. Aiello is looking at a round of 16 bout against Christian Ayala (Pacifica), a fellow Junior National freestyle All-American this past summer. Buchanan would hope to see Zack Levatino advance to the semi against either Aiello or Ayala. 285: No. 7 Seth Nevills (Clovis) won state last year at 220 as a freshman, so he is darn good, and happens to be favored to win this state weight class. Anchoring the lower half-bracket, returning state placer Gavin Nye (Corning) is a possible semifinal opponent. In the upper half-bracket, it's a potential semifinal between Jarrod Snyder (Bakersfield Frontier) and Christian Rebottaro (Monte Vista Christian).

Some of the nation's best talent will be taking to the mats of the Jerome Schottenstein Center on the Ohio State campus this weekend. Five of the teams are nationally ranked, with over 25 wrestlers in the 672 person field appearing in the national rankings. The 24 defending and/or previous state champions are the most in one tournament within at least the last 10 years. Hunter Ladnier (Photo/Rob Preston)Division I Even with three nationally ranked teams, it is rather likely that No. 7 St. Edward will comfortably win the state championship. It would be a 30th individual state tournament title for the Eagles, all from 1978 going forward, also an 18th title in the last 20 years. They qualified a division-high 11 wrestlers for the state tournament led by state champion Allan Hart (126) and a pair of nationally ranked returning state runners-up in No. 9 Hunter Ladnier (138) and No. 9 Jared Campbell (220). Other cogs for St. Edward include impact freshmen Bryce Andonian (106) and Sam Dover (132), returning state placer Jack Conway (152), and returning state qualifier Matt Kazimir (113). Three teams qualified eight to the state tournament, including No. 38 Olentangy Liberty. The Patriots are led by two-time state champion Kyle Lawson (160), who is ranked No. 12 nationally; returning state runner-up Brakan Mead (106), the favorite for a state title; and freshman sensation Connor Brady (132). Also to note are returning state qualifiers Jordan Rosselli (120), Zach Furnas (126), and Trey Grenier (145); as well as district champion Trevor Lawson (170). Also qualifying eight were Brecksville and Cincinnati Moeller. Three teams qualified seven to the state tournament, including No. 20 Elyria, state dual meet runners-up. The Pioneers are led by two nationally ranked defending state champions, No. 4 Ben Darmstadt (195) and No. 3 Kevin Vough (285). Other state title contenders include returning state placers Brandon Fenton (113) and J.T. Brown (182); also with state experience is returning placer Mikah Price (152). They suffered significant setbacks at the district tournament last week when returning state qualifier Josh Breeding (120) and returning state placer Nico O'Dor (152) failed to advance to the state tournament. Also qualifying seven were Central Crossing and Massillon Perry. Three weight classes have the potential to feature nationally ranked wrestlers facing one another. The battle of defending state champions at 145 pounds, No. 2 David Carr (Massillon Perry) and No. 8 Dominick Demas (Dublin Coffman); a rematch of last year's 195-pound final between No. 4 Matt Stencel (Oregon Clay) and No. 9 Jared Campbell (St. Edward), Stencel won that final by major decision last year and scored a first period pin in the Ironman semifinal before Campbell scored the 4-1 upset in last week's district final; and then a clash of undefeated wrestlers at 285 pounds between No. 3 Kevin Vough (Elyria) and No. 12 Kameron Teacher (Central Crossing). The other major collision comes at 126 pounds. Defending state champion Allan Hart (St. Edward) and 2014 state champion Alex Mackall (Walsh Jesuit), ranked No. 18 nationally, are projected to meet in the semifinal round. Three-time state medalist Mario Guillen (Perrysburg), who placed third the last two years, beat Hart 1-0 in the district final and looms in the opposite half of the draw. Division II We are now into year 16 of the "Graham Dynasty" in the Buckeye State's medium-school division. The Falcons, ranked No. 3 nationally, are prohibitive favorites to win their 16th straight state title at the individual tournament, and 17th in 19 years. Not since 2001 has the margin between first and second been within 30 points, and seven times the margin has been over 100 points. Last year was the 6th time that St. Paris Graham scored over 200 points at the state tournament, the other five coming from 2007-2011. Last year's national title team scored 250 points, second most in the history of the state tournament (St. Paris Graham had 282 points in 2009, which was David Taylor's senior year). This year's team will almost assuredly be over 200 points, the question is how much over that mark. The Falcons are led by returning three returning state champions, all of whom are nationally ranked: No. 12 Mitch Moore (126), No. 8 Brent Moore (138), and No. 2 Alex Marinelli (160); two other wrestlers are returning as state runners-up, Justin Stickley (120) and No. 13 Rocky Jordan. Also of note are impact freshman Jordan Crace (106) as well as returning state third place medalists Ryan Thomas (132) and Garrett Jordan (160). In all, St. Paris Graham qualified a state tournament high 13 wrestlers. Among teams in the race for second are Lake Catholic, team state semifinalists who qualified eight for state; 2014 state runner-up Claymont, who qualified seven; team state semifinalist Steubenville and Canfield, who qualified six each; along with team state runner-up Wauseon, who only qualified four to state but have three potential top three finishers. The division also features the two wrestlers in Ohio this year seeking to win their fourth state title, Tyler Warner (Claymont) and Alex Marinelli (St. Paris Graham). Warner, ranked No. 7 nationally at 120 pounds, is in a weight class that features seven other returning/previous state placers; however, it would be a clear upset for any of them to beat Warner. His path could involve facing a returning state medalist at each stage. Though four other returning state placers are competing in Marinelli's weight class, to call any of them a threat would be inaccurate. Last year his state title run involved three technical falls and a pin, and for his state tournament career, nine matches have ended in pin or technical fall; only the 9-8 championship match his sophomore year was truly close. The future Hawkeye is likely to end his career with exactly 200 career wins, against just four losses, and a consecutive match win streak at 137. There is, however, one absolute barn-burner of a potential final in this division. That comes at 126 pounds with two-time state runner-up Tariq Wilson (Steubenville) possibly to face returning state champion Mitch Moore (St. Paris Graham). Wilson, ranked No. 10 nationally, was champion at the Walsh Ironman while Moore placed third. However, the wrestlers did not face off. When the wrestlers did meet in a high leverage situation, it came in the match to place at the Super 32 Challenge four months ago; Wilson held a good sized lead before Moore rallied back, and was about to take the lead before securing the fall. This likely final should not be one to miss. Division III Delta, who is ranked No. 25 nationally, has won the team state title now four years running. However, in the previous three individual state tournaments, the Panthers were champions in 2014 with runner-up finishes sandwiching that title. They qualified eight wrestlers to state, led by returning state champions Drew Mattin (120), No. 18 Jake Spiess (132), and Chance Veller (285). Also present are returning state runners-up in Dustin Marteney (138) and Jesse Beverly (152), along with two-time state placer Devin Richard (220) and impact freshman Cole Mattin (106). Also with eight state qualifiers in the small-school division are Mechanicsburg and Oak Harbor, both were team state participants with Mechanicsburg placing second. Those Indians are led by two-time state champion Kaleb Romero (160), who is ranked No. 11 nationally; also to note are returning state placers Tyler Wetzel (113), Alex Rhine (120), Tanner Smith (138), and Wade Smiddy (145). The Rockets of Oak Harbor in previous years have competed in Division II and return Dylan Mansor (132), Rhett Petersen (145), and Brandon Garber (285) with previous state tournament experience; also expected to place rather high are Bruce Hrynciw (120) and Kian Thompson (182). Joining Mechanicsburg and Oak Harbor in the race for second behind Delta, or having a puncher's chance for the title should Delta slip, is Dayton Christian. The Warriors qualified six wrestlers to state led by two-time state champion Logan Lacure (145), who is ranked No. 10 nationally. Also returning as a state champion is Tommy Hoskins (113), who is ranked No. 16 nationally despite an overtime loss in the district final. Others qualifiers include returning state runner-up Nick Vestal (152), state placer Ronnie Pietro (106), now two-time qualifier Josh Clary (126), and Henry Danishek (138) who upset a two-time state placer in the district quarterfinal. The most notable finals matches should come at 113, 138, and 152. Hoskins would likely see the undefeated junior Greg Quinn (Shadyside), who has already placed twice at state, and secured an upset victory over Drew Mattin in the team state tournament; there is a potential team state finals rematch between Smith and Marteney at 138, one that Smith won in overtime last month; and then there is a potential battle between returning state runners-up in Marteney and Vestal.

This week on Takedown ... Segment 1: Oregon State captures fifth consecutive conference title on Saturday. Segment 2: NCAA has announced the qualifier allocations for the Division I Championships in New York. The NCAA also released individual award standings in all three divisions. Northeastern Oklahoma A&M took home the NJCAA team title Saturday Pan American Olympic Qualifier. Jim Raschke is one of seven individuals who will be welcomed into the Minnesota National Wrestling Hall of Fame this April. Two headline bouts featuring former college wrestlers have been scheduled for Bellator 154. Segment 3: Kevin Dresser, Tom Ryan, Pat Popolizio, Brian Smith and J Robinson weigh in on NWCA Bowl Championships. Andrew Long Segment 4: Associate Director of Communications for the Big 12 Conference Bob Burda. Technique of the week Takedown Shop Super Sunday Singlet Winner

FRESNO, Calif. -- Fresno State officially announced Tuesday it will be integrating two new sports into its intercollegiate athletics programs. The Bulldogs will be adding wrestling and women's water polo as the 20th and 21st NCAA Division I sanctioned sports under the Department of Athletics' umbrella. The Department of Athletics will immediately begin a national search to hire the head coaches for both programs. "We are really excited to add women's water polo and wrestling, providing young men and women the opportunity right here in the heart of the Valley to continue playing the sport that they love while getting their education close to home," Director of Athletics Jim Bartko said. "Wrestling has such a rich tradition here in the Valley and water polo makes perfect sense in the footprint of our Athletics structure and with our premiere Aquatics venue. We look forward to incorporating these two sports into our University community while remaining focused on our continued commitment to gender equity and Title IX." Fresno State has raised necessary funds to support both programs over the course of its first three seasons. "The generous support from the wrestling community, the tremendous support we receive from the University and our fundraising efforts is what made these additions possible," Bartko added. "It was very important to us to incorporate these sports the right way to set them up for success, and we feel that we have done just that." The move to bring wrestling back was initiated by President Joseph I. Castro in fall 2013 when he asked the Department of Athletics to explore the possibility. "I am ecstatic that we are officially moving forward with reinstating wrestling and adding women's water polo. We have taken the time to adequately prepare for the new programs and to do the fundraising necessary for them to succeed," said Castro. "It's a bold move to add two new sports, but they will provide great opportunities for student-athletes at Fresno State and tremendous enjoyment by Bulldog fans throughout the Valley and beyond. This is additional evidence that our academic and athletics programs are rising together." The timeline for the sport additions is as follows: March 2016 - Head coaching positions posted April-June 2016 - Announce hiring's of head coaches for both programs July 2016 - Hiring of assistant coaches Summer 2016 - Recruitment of student-athletes begins November 2016 - Early signing period; recruits can sign National Letters of Intent to join Bulldog programs August 2017 - Student-athletes of the two sports arrive on campus Winter 2017-18 - Wrestling program begins competition Spring 2018 - Women's water polo begins competition Conference affiliation will be forthcoming. Fresno State has wheels in motion to support the infrastructure of both programs. The wrestling program, which will compete in the Save Mart Center, will have coaches' offices, a locker room and a mat room in the North Gym. The women's water polo program will hold competitions in the Aquatics Center, which will also house the coaches' offices. The team's locker room will be located in the North Gym Annex, which is directly adjacent to the Aquatics Center (in the same building that houses the women's swimming and diving locker room). The sports will be the first additions to Bulldog Athletics since the women's lacrosse program began competition during the 2008-09 school-year, the same year the women's swimming and diving program was restored after being dropped in 2004. For wrestling, this marks its return at Fresno State. The program was dropped from the University umbrella as an NCAA Division I competing program on June 15, 2006. Wrestling at Fresno State dates back to 1962 when it competed as an NCAA Division II program. In 1969 it made the move to Division I and won 11 team conference championships, had 14 top 25 finishes, three individuals that combined to win six national championships and 33 All-Americans. The introduction of the women's water polo program is the first of its kind for that sport at Fresno State.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The 2016 MAC Wrestling Championships will be held March 5-6 and hosted by Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Mich. Listed below is the pre-seeding for this weekends Championships following today's conference call with all nine MAC head wrestling coaches. 125: 1- Dylan Peters, Northern Iowa 2- Barlow McGhee, Missouri 3- Brent Fleetwood, Central Michigan 4- Shakur Laney, Ohio 5- Brandon Jeske, Old Dominion 6- Kyle Akins, Buffalo 7- Alijah Jeffery, Northern Illinois 8/9- Armando Tores, Eastern Michigan 8/9- Del Vinas, Kent State 133: 1- Mack McGuire, Kent State 2- Zach Synon, Missouri 3- Cameron Kelly, Ohio 4- Corey Keener, Central Michigan 5- Josh Alber, Northern Iowa 6- Emilio Saavedra, Old Dominion 7- Austin Eicher, Northern Illinois 8/9- Shayne Wireman, Eastern Michigan 8/9- Bryan Lantry, Buffalo 141: 1- Matt Manley, Missouri 2- Chris Mecate, Old Dominion 3- Steve Bleise, Northern Illinois 4- Zach Horan, Central Michigan 5- Trevor Jauch, Northern Iowa 6- Anthony Tutolo, Kent State 7- Kyle Springer, Eastern Michigan 8/9- Noah Forrider, Ohio 8/9- Brandon Lapi, Buffalo 149: 1- Lavion Mayes, Missouri 2- Justin Oliver, Central Michigan 3- Alexander Richardson, Old Dominion 4- Mike DePalma, Kent State 5- Nick Barber, Eastern Michigan 6- Gabe Morse, Northern Illinois 7- Colt Cotton, Buffalo 8/9- Cullen Cummings, Ohio 8/9- Adam Perrin, Northern Iowa 157: 1- Ian Miller, Kent State 2- Luke Smith, Central Michigan 3- Bryce Steiert, Northern Iowa 4- Spartak Chino, Ohio 5- Le'Roy Barnes, Missouri 6- Andrew Morse, Northern Illinois 7- Devan Marry, Eastern Michigan 8/9- Alex Smythe, Buffalo 8/9- Devin Geoghegan, Old Dominion 165: 1- Daniel Lewis, Missouri 2- Cooper Moore, Northern Iowa 3- Austin Reese, Ohio 4- Tyler Buckwalter, Kent State 5- Seldon Wright, Old Dominion 6- Dakota Juarez, Eastern Michigan 7- Shaun'Qae McMurtry, Northern Illinois 8/9- Rrok Ndokaj, Buffalo 8/9- Colin Heffernan, Central Michigan 174: 1- Mike Ottinger, Central Michigan 2- Blaise Butler, Missouri 3- Cody Walters, Ohio 4- Trace Engelkes, Northern Illinois 5- Jacob Davis, Eastern Michigan 6- Jeriod James, Kent State 7- Muhamid McBryde, Buffalo 8/9- Kyle Lux, Northern Iowa 8/9- Jared Swan, Old Dominion 184: 1- Willie Miklus, Missouri 2- Jack Dechow, Old Dominion 3- Andrew Romanchik, Ohio 4- Jordan Ellingwood, Central Michigan 5- Cole Baxter, Kent State 6- Derek Hillman, Eastern Michigan 7- Drew Foster, Northern Iowa 8/9- Joe Ariola, Buffalo 8/9- Quinton Rosser, Northern Illinois 197: 1- J'den Cox, Missouri 2- Kyle Conel, Kent State 3- Phil Wellington, Ohio 4- Shawn Scott, Northern Illinois 5- Anthony Abro, Eastern Michigan 6- Jackson Lewis, Central Michigan 7- James Benjamin, Buffalo 8/9- Cody Krumweide, Northern Iowa 8/9- Terrell Forbes, Old Dominion 285: 1- Blaize Cabell, Northern Iowa 2- Gage Hutchison, Eastern Michigan 3- Jake Gunning, Buffalo 4- Newton Smerchek, Central Michigan 5- Austin Coburn, Old Dominion 6- Arthur Bunce, Northern Illinois 7- Devin Nye, Kent State 8/9- Jesse Webb, Ohio 8/9- Cody Johnston, Missouri

No. 2 Oklahoma State will enter the postseason without one of its returning All-Americans. Kyle Crutchmer battles Missouri's Blaise Butler on Jan. 22 (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com)On Tuesday morning, All-American Kyle Crutchmer announced via Twitter that he will not be competing in the postseason due to injury. "I found out two weeks ago that I need surgery on my right foot," wrote Crutchmer. "I broke it in two places. I have trained on it for two weeks now in pain. This morning I have made my decision to go ahead and get surgery next week and therefore I'm going to miss junior season. Thanks for the support from my friends and family as this is a difficult time for me. I am excited to see what my future holds. GO COWBOYS." Crutchmer finishes his junior season with a 15-4 record. He was ranked No. 8 at 174 pounds in the latest InterMat rankings. Chandler Rogers will replace Crutchmer in the Oklahoma State lineup at 174 pounds. Rogers, a redshirt freshman, has compiled a 24-6 record this season. He notched a win over North Carolina's Ethan Ramos, who was ranked No. 2 at the time, in his last outing on Feb. 19.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- For the first time in association history, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) will deliver the final bouts of the 2016 NAIA Wrestling National Championships, presented by USA Wrestling-Kansas, on ESPN3. The 10 matches will begin at 8 p.m. EST/7 p.m. CST on Saturday, March 5. The coverage takes place at the Kansas Expocentre in Topeka, Kan. To view the entire championships schedule, click here. "The association has had a great partnership with ESPN, and we're excited to expand that relationship into the sport of wrestling," said Jim Carr, NAIA President and CEO. "ESPN3 will put our wrestling championships in more homes than ever before, which is great exposure for our student-athletes and institutions. I also want to thank our host partner Visit Topeka for helping make this happen. Each year in Topeka, the organizing committee has worked hard to raise the quality of the student-athlete experience. This is a great example of the many things they've done." ESPN3 is ESPN's live multi-screen sports network, a destination that delivers thousands of exclusive sports events annually. It is accessible on computers, smartphones, tablets and connected devices through WatchESPN. The network is currently available to 99 million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider. The network is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers, smartphones and tablets connected to on-campus educational and on-base military broadband and Wi-Fi networks. This past fall, ESPN3 carried the 2015 NAIA Volleyball National Championship and 2015 NAIA Football National Championship. Additionally, the semifinals and finals of the Division II Women's Basketball National Championship and the finals of the Division II Men's Basketball National Championship, Division I Women's Basketball National Championship, and Buffalo-Funds NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship will be on ESPN3. Future coverage on the ESPN networks will be announced at a later date. About ESPN3 • List of ESPN3 service providers (high speed internet) | Click Here. • List of ESPN3 service providers (video) | Click Here. • You may also download the WatchESPN app for iOS, Android and Kindle Fire smartphones and tablets.

Links: Brackets | Event Website GREENSBORO, N.C.-- The Atlantic Coast Conference announced Tuesday the individual seeds and competition brackets for the 2016 ACC Wrestling Championship, which will be held this Sunday at the University of Virginia's John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va. The Championship begins at 11 a.m. on Sunday with first-round action, continues with the semifinals at 1 p.m., consolation semifinals at 3:30 p.m. and the consolation finals matches at 5:30 p.m. The Championship concludes with championship finals matches which begin at 7 p.m. ESPN3 will air live all of the matches of the 62nd Annual ACC Wrestling Championship, streaming action from both mats in the preliminary rounds. The brackets and seeds are subject to change, as coaches can make changes in their lineups until 5 p.m. on Saturday. NC State, ranked second nationally this week, led all schools with four wrestlers selected as No. 1 seeds in their weight classes, led by two-time national champion Nick Gwiazdowski (285), but also including Kevin Jack (141), Thomas Gantt (157) and Max Rohskopf (165). Virginia Tech, which is ranked third nationally, and North Carolina, which is ranked 14th, each had two top seeds, followed by Duke and Virginia with one each. Virginia Tech, which had Joey Dance (125) and Zack Zavatsky (184) named as No. 1 seeds, also led all schools with five wrestlers tabbed as No. 2 seeds in their weight classes. The Hokies led all teams with seven wrestlers seeded first or second, followed by NC State (6), Duke (3), North Carolina (2), Virginia (1) and Pitt (1). North Carolina's top seeded wrestlers included Evan Henderson (149) and Ethan Ramos (174). Virginia had George DiCamillo (133) and Duke had Conner Hartmann (197) also named as the top-seeded wrestlers in their respective weight classes. 125: 1. Joey Dance, Virginia Tech 2. Sean Fausz, NC State 3. LJ Bentley, Pitt 4. Nick Herrmann, Virginia 5. Thayer Atkins, Duke 6. Anthony Bosco, North Carolina 133: 1. George DiCamillo, Virginia 2. Dom Forys, Pitt 3. Dennis Gustafson, Virginia Tech 4. Jamal Morris, NC State 5. James Szymanski, North Carolina 141: 1. Kevin Jack, NC State 2. Solomon Chishko, Virginia Tech 3. Joey Ward, North Carolina 4. Zach Finesilver, Duke 5. Nick Zanetta, Pitt 6. Justin Van Hoose, Virginia 149: 1. Evan Henderson, North Carolina 2. Mitch Finesilver, Duke 3. Sal Mastriani, Virginia Tech 4. Beau Donahue, NC State 5. Chris Yankowich, Virginia 6. Robert Lee, Pitt 157: 1. Tommy Gantt, NC State 2. Nick Brascetta, Virginia Tech 3. Andrew Atkinson, Virginia 4. Connor Bass, Duke 5. Robert Henderson, North Carolina 6. Ronnie Garbinsky, Pitt 165: 1. Max Rohskopf, NC State 2. Jake Faust, Duke 3. John Michael Staudenmeyer, North Carolina 4. Cody Wiercioch, Pitt 5. David McFadden, Virginia Tech 6. Garrett Peppelman, Virginia 174: 1. Ethan Ramos, North Carolina 2. Zach Epperly, Virginia Tech 3. TeShan Campbell, Pitt 4. Nick Hall, NC State 5. Tyler Askey, Virginia 6. Alec Schenk, Duke 184: 1. Zack Zavatsky, Virginia Tech 2. Pete Renda, NC State 3. Alex Utley, North Carolina 4. Will Schany, Virginia 5. Trey Adamson, Duke 6. Donovan McAfee, Pitt 197: 1. Conner Hartmann, Duke 2. Jared Haught, Virginia Tech 3. Zach Nye, Virginia 4. Michael Boykin, NC State 5. Chip Ness, North Carolina 6. Nick Bonaccorsi, Pitt 285: 1. Nick Gwiazdowski, NC State 2. Ty Walz, Virginia Tech 3. Ryan Solomon, Pitt 4. Patrick Gillen, Virginia 5. Brendan Walsh, Duke 6. Cory Daniel, North Carolina

This past weekend in Minnesota, it was a tale of two tournaments for Apple Valley. In Thursday's dual team tournament, the No. 15 Eagles upended No. 19 St. Michael-Albertville 31-26 for an 11th straight state title. (These two teams did share the title in 2013 after the final dual meet was tied.) Through 10 weight classes, St. Michael-Albertville held a 21-20 lead despite only winning four bouts. Those wins came through a pin from No. 8 Patrick McKee (106), a pin from No. 5 Mitch McKee (138), a pin from No. 13 Jake Allar (152), and a 4-2 decision from Garrett Ailts (170). The McKee's and Allar pinned weak links in the Apple Valley lineup, while Ailts beat Tony Watts in a battle of state alternates (Watts bumping up from 160). Apple Valley countered with a 3-2 win from Nate Larson (113), a 17-3 major decision from Sebas Swiggum (120), a 7-3 decision from Kyle Rathman (126), a 9-1 major decision from Devin Roberts (138), a 3-1 decision from Jalen Thul (145), and an 8-3 decision from Brock Morgan (160). Larson earned his victory in a battle of state placers against Zach Nygaard, Rathman earned his in a battle of state qualifiers against Zach Dehmer, state alternate Roberts beat state qualifier Cody Schoen, state placer Thul bumped up a weight to beat state qualifier Wyatt Bice, while state placer Morgan bumped up a weight class to beat state qualifier Donie Leuer. Mark Hall celebrates after pinning Lucas Jeske in the state team competition (Photo/The Guillotine)The key moment in the dual meet came at 182 pounds, where Apple Valley presented Mark Hall, the nation's top wrestler at 170 pounds. St. Michael-Albertville chose to send out No. 10 Lucas Jeske, instead of bumping him off of Hall. It was a baffling strategy, though one theory would be that Jeske could hold Hall to a decision or major decision to set up the dual meet's end game. It ended up being an unmitigated disaster for the Knights. Hall scored the pin at 1:56, and when Jeske threw his head-gear after the match, there was a team point deduction to boot. The dual meet score was now 26-20 in favor of Apple Valley, Apple Valley won its seventh match, and would also have criteria in case of a tie (even before considering a possible eighth win). With Gable Steveson, the nation's top overall sophomore, still to wrestle - St. Michael-Albertville needed a total miracle. Another "interesting" move was to send out reserve wrestler Max Jensen at 195 against Prince Hyemang, a state qualifier at 182 pounds. That meant state placer Evan Ronsen would have to be used against Steveson. Jensen did get a 4-3 decision victory to cut the deficit to 26-23. However, Apple Valley then sent Steveson out at 220, where he got the match-clinching 20-4 technical fall over Ronsen. In the dual meet's final match, Evan Foster (state runner-up to Steveson) earned a 3-2 decision over state qualifier Tanyi Besong. The following two days were the individual bracket tournament, where in Class AAA, St. Michael-Albertville won the unofficial points race over Apple Valley. The lone state titles for the team state champion Eagles were earned by No. 1 Mark Hall (170) and No. 1 Gable Steveson (220). It was a sixth individual state tournament title for Hall (to go along with his six team titles), the first ever to accomplish this feat in Minnesota. Hall earned pins in his opening two bouts, followed by technical falls by scores of 15-0 and 16-1. Four others placed for Apple Valley: Brock Morgan (152) finished as runner-up, Sebas Swiggum (120) earned third, Nate Larson (113) placed fourth, and Jalen Thul (138) placed fifth. No. 13 Jake Allar (152) was one of three state champions for St. Michael-Albertville (Photo/The Guillotine)The individuals from St. Michael-Albertville were the standouts in the big-school division as five were in the state finals bout. Winning titles were No. 8 Patrick McKee (106), No. 5 Mitch McKee (138), and No. 13 Jake Allar (152). Patrick beat a pair of state ranked wrestler to earn his title, 5-3 over No. 18 Israel Navarro (Wilmar) in the semifinal and 9-4 over No. 4 Aaron Cashman (Mound Westonka) in the state final; Mitch had a pin and a technical fall sandwiched around two major decisions; while Allar beat Morgan 3-0 for his title. Finishing as runners-up for the Knights were No. 10 Lucas Jeske (182) and Evan Foster (220). Returning state champion Jeske lost by 12-3 major decision to 2013 state champion Taylor Venz (Farmington), an opponent he had beaten 6-4 in a dual meet two months earlier; while Foster lost by technical fall to Steveson. Other placers for St. Michael-Albertville were Evan Ronsen (195) in fifth and Zach Nygaard (113) in sixth. Farmington, Owatonna, and Shakopee also had multiple champions in Class AAA. Victor Gliva (113) joined Venz as state champion for Farmington; Peyton Robb (120) was a repeat champion while Brandon Moen (195) improved upon two previous third place finishes for Owatonna; and Brent Jones (126) won a third state title with Alex Lloyd (145) winning his first for Shakopee. Also winning a state title was No. 20 Andrew Piehl (Rogers) at 285. Watch Mark Hall win his sixth individual state championship ...

Andrew Long was dismissed from the Grand View University wrestling team for violating terms of the pact he signed with the Des Moines school when he enrolled last summer, an Iowa TV station reported Monday. The news came just one day after the same station -- WOI-TV, the ABC affiliate in Des Moines -- broadcast a positive 8.5 minute feature story on how the former Iowa State and Penn State NCAA All-American wrestler who had served time in Pennsylvania for sexually assaulting the mother of a fellow student had seemingly gotten his life together, and just days before the GVU Vikings will compete at the 2016 NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) Wrestling Championships with the goal of winning their fifth straight team title this coming weekend. Elias Johnson, morning anchor and reporter for the profile shown on Sunday, Feb. 28 -- and himself a former wrestler at Iowa Central Community College and Arizona State -- reported the story Monday afternoon on Twitter, stating, "Breaking: GVU Head Coach Nick Mitchell confirms @weareiowa5news Andrew Long dismissed after violating code of conduct policy over weekend" then followed a few minutes later with this tweet: "Andrew Long dismissed for drinking alcohol over the weekend. Not arrested, but violated code of conduct policy he signed to enroll at GVU." Shortly before Johnson's tweet, Des Moines Register wrestling writer Andy Hamilton shared quotes from Long's former coach on Twitter, saying, "He violated his contract and basically it's a situation where if it were a normal student it probably wouldn't have been a big deal, probably nothing that he even would've been reprimanded for but his situation wasn't normal, so we had to let him go." Andrew Long won a Midlands title at 141 pounds, and picked up the Champion of Champions award as voted by the other champions and the Dan Gable Outstanding Wrestler awardMitchell said Long was honest about what happened, according to Hamilton. Last July, Mitchell sought assurances from Long that he was remorseful for his past run-ins with the law, had made lifestyle changes, and was willing to be held accountable. Beyond that, Mitchell wanted the former Cyclone/Nittany Lion wrestler to sign a contract that spelled out guidelines that Long must follow as a student-athlete at Grand View, complying with all requirements of his five-year probation (including no alcohol) which was part of his sentence after agreeing to a plea of aggravated indecent assault in Pennsylvania for an August 2011 incident in which a 55-year-old mother of a Penn State student awoke in her son's apartment to find Long in bed with her. (Long did not know the victim nor her son, nor did he remember the incident. Long was sentenced to 1-2 years at the local county jail, and served nine months. As part of his plea, he agreed to seven years of no alcohol consumption, and must register as a sex offender the rest of his life.) Long's life on and off the mat was one of extreme contrasts. On the mat, the Creston, Iowa native crafted a career of impressive accomplishments, including being a three-time Iowa high school state champ. Long launched his collegiate career at Iowa State, where he made it to the 125-pound finals at the 2010 NCAA Division I championships, losing to Iowa's Matt McDonough. Later that summer, after a couple run-ins with Ames, Iowa police, Long was dismissed from the Cyclone wrestling program, and enrolled at Penn State. As a Nittany Lion wrestling for head coach Cael Sanderson, Long won the 133-pound crown at the 2011 Big Ten conference championships, then, two weeks later, placed third in that weight class at the 2011 NCAAs. However, the incident with the Penn State student's mother took place in late August of that year. In his time as a Grand View Viking, Andrew Long -- now a junior -- was undefeated and ranked No. 1 at 149 pounds. In late December, Long won the 141-pound title at the 2015 Ken Kraft Midlands tournament at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., and became the first NAIA wrestler to be crowned champ at the prestigious post-Christmas event since 2003. Long was also named Outstanding Wrestler and Champion of Champions at the Midlands. According to its website, Grand View is a private, not-for-profit liberal arts university, affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It has an enrollment of approximately 2,200 students. To watch the WOI-TV 8.5 minute feature on Andrew Long, click here.