InterMat Staff

For a quarter-century, many of the nation's top senior wrestlers have competed for NHSCA Senior Nationals titles. Several all-time greats have wrestled in the event, including Olympic champions Jordan Burroughs, Jake Varner, Cael Sanderson and Brandon Slay. Over the years the weight classes have been littered with multiple-time state champions and national champions. There will always be debates among wrestling fans about which NHSCA Senior Nationals weight classes were the greatest ever and why. Wrestlers develop at different rates, which makes it very difficult to determine which weight classes are truly the greatest. A wrestler who may not have been a title contender at the NHSCA Senior Nationals can turn out to be a multiple-time All-American, NCAA champion or Olympic champion. Conversely, a dominant NHSCA Senior Nationals champion is sometimes never heard from again in the sport. With hindsight being 20/20, I'm going to look at the 10 greatest NHSCA Senior Nationals weight classes based on post-high school accomplishments. 2001, 119 Pounds In 2001, Joe Dubuque (New Jersey), a future two-time NCAA champion at Indiana, came out on top at 119 pounds in what is arguably the most talent-filled weight class in the history of NHSCA Senior Nationals. Dubuque's run to the NHSCA Senior Nationals title included a quarterfinal victory over future NCAA champion Nate Gallick (Arizona), semifinal win over future World Team member Nick Simmons (Michigan) and a finals victory over New Jersey state champion Ricky LaForge, who later became an NCAA qualifier at Hofstra. On the bottom half of the bracket, future World Team member Shawn Bunch (Kansas) topped future two-time NCAA champion Travis Lee (Hawaii) in one quarterfinal match, while LaForge edged future two-time All-American Tom Clum (Colorado) in tiebreaker in the other quarterfinal match. All-Americans (in order of finish): Joe Dubuque (New Jersey), Ricky LaForge (New Jersey), Nick Simmons (Michigan), Nate Gallick (Arizona), Travis Lee (Hawaii), Shawn Bunch (Kansas), Jacob Palomino (California) and Drew Opfer (Ohio) 2005, 145 Pounds Dustin Schlatter of Ohio edged Brent Metcalf of Michigan in the finals of NHSCA Senior Nationals in 2005 at 145 poundsIn 2005, the nation's top two 145-pounders, Dustin Schlatter (Ohio) and Brent Metcalf (Michigan), both four-time state champions, were on a collision course to meet in the finals of NHSCA Senior Nationals. The two met earlier that season, with Metcalf winning that meeting 4-3 in tiebreaker. In the NHSCA Senior Nationals semifinals Metcalf, a six-time Junior Nationals champion, faced future NCAA champion Gregor Gillespie (New York) and came out on top 6-3. Schlatter, a nine-time national champion at the time, dominated future NCAA runner-up Chase Pami (Nevada) 17-4 to reach the finals. Also in the weight class but failed to place was Mike Cannon (Maryland), who would go on to earn three All-American honors at American. Schlatter-Metcalf II lived up to the hype. Schlatter scored a quick takedown and rode out Metcalf to lead 2-0 after the opening period. Metcalf picked up a takedown in the second period, but trailed 4-2 heading into the final period. Metcalf pushed the pace in the third period and cut the deficit to 4-3 after Schlatter was called for a second stall call. In the final five seconds Metcalf was in on a single leg and nearly scored a takedown, but Schlatter fended off the attack and held on for the 4-3 victory. All-Americans: Dustin Schlatter (Ohio), Brent Metcalf (Michigan), Gregor Gillespie (New York), Joseph Cornejo (Kansas), Chase Pami (Nevada), Tyler Grayson (Missouri), Tom Fazio (New Jersey) and Lewis Gonzalez (California) Four of the 13 NHSCA Senior Nationals champions in 2005 would go on to win NCAA titles (Photo/The Mat Slap)2005, 189 Pounds While the 145-pound weight class may have been getting the most attention in 2005, the 189-pound weight class that same year produced just as many NCAA champions (three), as well as an Olympic gold medalist and UFC champion. Mike Pucillo (Ohio), who would go on to win an NCAA title and make two NCAA finals at Ohio State, finished on top of the podium in the weight class by defeating future Olympic gold medalist Jake Varner (California) 8-5 in the championship match. Three years later the two wrestlers would meet again in the NCAA finals at 184 pounds, with Pucillo once again coming out victorious. The semifinal matches in 2005 pitted Varner against future NCAA champion Max Askren (Wisconsin) on the top side, and Pucillo opposing future UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones (New York) on the bottom side. Fifth-place finisher Louis Caputo (Missouri) was a two-time All-American at Harvard. Seventh-place finisher Trevor Perry (Michigan) would go on to become a three-time NCAA qualifier and reach the round of 12 while at Indiana. All-Americans: Mike Pucillo (Ohio), Jake Varner (California), Max Askren (Wisconsin), Jon Jones (New York), Louis Caputo (Missouri), Taylor Moore (Missouri), Trevor Perry (Michigan) and Levi Wofford (Nebraska). 1992, 140 Pounds In 1992, four-time undefeated state champion Cary Kolat (Pennsylvania) earned the NHSCA Senior Nationals title at 140 by defeating Roger Chandler (Ohio), a state champion for national wrestling power St. Edward High School. Kolat and Chandler would meet in the NCAA finals five years later in 1997, with Kolat winning that match 6-2. Kolat, who now serves as the head wrestling coach at Campbell, went on to become a two-time NCAA champion and three-time World/Olympic medalist. Third-place finisher Chris Bono (Florida), now South Dakota State's head wrestling coach, became an NCAA champion and three-time All-American at Iowa State before going on to have a successful international wrestling career. All-Americans: Cary Kolat (Pennsylvania), Roger Chandler (Ohio), Chris Bono (Florida), Kyle Porter (California), Mark Petras (Pennsylvania), Jason Hartman (Ohio), Ryan Edmundson (Indiana) and Craig Wise (Ohio) 1993, 171 Pounds In 1993, Mitch Clark (New York) won the NHSCA Senior Nationals title at 171 pounds. Five years later Clark dominated college wrestling at 177 pounds while at Ohio State, winning by technical fall in the NCAA finals over West Virginia's Vertus Jones. Clark finished his collegiate career with a record of 119-27 and earned two-All-American honors. Interestingly, the wrestler who placed six spots lower in the same NHSCA Senior Nationals weight class rose to even greater heights in wrestling. That wrestler: Brandon Slay (Texas), 2000 Olympic gold medalist. Slay, a three-time state champion, reached the NCAA finals twice, but never won an NCAA title. It wasn't until after college that Slay became the best in the United States, and then the best in the world. Jason Robison (Pennsylvania) defeated Aaron Simpson (Arizona) in the third-place at NHSCA Nationals in 1993, and both would go on to become a multiple-time All-Americans at the Division I level. Robison earned All-American honors three times, while Simpson placed twice. All-Americans: Mitch Clark (New York), Grant Johnson (Maryland), Jason Robison (Pennsylvania), Aaron Simpson (Arizona), Jason Street (Montana), Robert Armey (Iowa), Brandon Slay (Texas) and Frank Field (Massachusetts) Roger Kish of Michigan defeated J.D. Bergman of Ohio to win the NHSCA Senior Nationals title at 189 pound in 2003 2003, 189 Pounds In 2003, Roger Kish (Michigan) solidified himself as one of the nation's top seniors across all weight classes by winning a weight class (189 pounds) at NHSCA Senior Nationals that would eventually produce multiple NCAA champions and a World Team member. In the quarterfinals the future Gopher two-time NCAA finalist took out future NCAA Division III champion Jared Massey (Minnesota), then topped future NCAA champion Phil Davis (Pennsylvania) in the semifinals, before beating future World Team member J.D. Bergman (Ohio) in the finals. Also in the weight class was future three-time All-American Wynn Michalek (Michigan), who lost to Davis in the second round and then was knocked out of the tournament by John DaCruz (Massachusetts). All-Americans: Roger Kish (Michigan), J.D. Bergman (Ohio), Joe Williams (California) Phil Davis (Pennsylvania), Clay Kehrer (Texas), Dino Razzano (Ohio), Jared Massey (Minnesota) and Kyle Narkiewicz (Pennsylvania) 2001, 189 Pounds Of the eight NHSCA Senior All-Americans in 2001 at 189 pounds, four were Division I All-Americans (three of the four were multiple-time All-Americans), and one was a three-time NCAA champion. Jake Rosholt (Idaho), who would go on to win three NCAA titles while at Oklahoma State, won six straight matches to claim the title at 189 pounds. Rosholt defeated future two-time All-American and UFC fighter Ryan Bader (Nevada) in the quarterfinals, then needed overtime in the semifinals to get past another future two-time All-American, Chris Skretkowicz (New Jersey), who is currently the head wrestling coach at VMI. In the finals Roshholt earned a convincing 7-1 decision over Phil Hard (Pennsylvania). Placing fifth in the bracket was Kyle Cerminara, who would later become Buffalo's first Division I All-American. All-Americans: Jake Rosholt (Idaho), Phil Hard (Pennsylvania), Ryan Bader (Nevada), Rusty Blackmon (Tennessee), Kyle Cerminara (New York), Chris Skretkowicz (New Jersey), K.C. Walsh (Washington) and Joel Edwards (Pennsylvania) 1997, 152 Pounds Donny Pritzlaff and Joe Heskett were college rivals in the late 90s and early 2000s, meeting in the NCAA finals at 165 pounds in both 2000 and 2001. Pritzlaff, who wrestled collegiately at Wisconsin, won both those meetings, but both wrestlers would go on to finish as four-time All-Americans. Their rivalry, though, started before college. In 1997, the two met in the finals of NHSCA Senior Nationals at 152 pounds, with Heskett getting the win. Finishing third in the weight class was Rick Springman, who went on to become a two-time All-American at Penn. All-Americans: Joe Heskett (Ohio), Donny Pritzlaff (New Jersey), Rick Springman (Pennsylvania), Steve Strange (California), Charlie Rallo (Missouri), Travis Nagel (Minnesota), Jared Rolph (New Hampshire) and John Christopher (New York) 1996, 112 Pounds In 1996, three-time state champion Stephen Abas (California) won the NHSCA Seniors Nationals title at 112 pounds, defeating fellow three-time state champion Evan Robinson (Florida) in the finals. Finishing third in the weight class was Jody Strittmatter (Pennsylvania), who would go on to earn two NCAA Division II titles at Pitt Johnstown before transferring to Iowa and earning two Division I All-American honors and finishing as an NCAA runner-up to Abas in 2001. Strittmatter's third-place victory at NHSCA Nationals in 1996 came over Eric Schmiesing (Minnesota), a wrestler who would go on to become a two-time All-American and four-time NCAA qualifier at Hofstra. The seventh-place finisher in the weight class was future U.S. Open champion Matt Azevedo (California), who currently serves as the head wrestling coach at Drexel. All-Americans: Stephen Abas (California), Evan Robinson (Florida), Jody Strittmatter (Pennsylvania), Eric Schmiesing (Minnesota), Sky Thacker (Florida), Paris Ruiz (California), Matt Azevedo (California) and Brent Thompson (Ohio State) 1998, 130 Pounds Like a three other weight classes highlighted, the two wrestlers who met in the finals of NHSCA Senior Nationals in this weight class would later meet on the big stage for the NCAA title. In 1998, Eric Larkin (Arizona) defeated Jared Lawrence (Idaho) to capture the NHSCA Senior Nationals title at 130 pounds. Five years later, Larkin defeated Lawrence to win the NCAA title at 149 pounds, and also claimed the Dan Hodge Trophy that year. Both Larkin and Lawrence finished their collegiate wrestling careers as four-time All-Americans and NCAA champions. Finishing third in that weight class was St. Edward product Mike Kulczycki (Ohio), who would go on to become an All-American and four-time NCAA qualifier at Michigan. Fifth-place finisher Jeremy Spates (Oklahoma) earned All-American honors at Missouri. Spates is now the head wrestling coach at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. All-Americans: Eric Larkin (Arizona), Jared Lawrence (Idaho), Mike Kulczycki (Ohio), Justin Flores (California), Jeremy Spates (Oklahoma), Steven Bradley (Indiana), Fabian Sandoval (California) and Doug Hess (Ohio)

This 26th edition of the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) High School National Wrestling Championships takes place Friday through Sunday in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The finals will take place on Sunday, with freshman and sophomore finals matches beginning at 1 p.m. ET, and junior and senior finals matches slated to begin 3:30 p.m. ET. Seniors Kenneth Brinson is looking to capture his fourth NHSCA titleThe senior division includes 19 nationally ranked wrestlers. The 220-pound weight class is perhaps the most intriguing of the 14 weight classes with three ranked wrestlers expected to compete, including two of the nation's top three: No. 2 Kenneth Brinson (Marist, Ga.) and No. 3 Austin Myers (Cambpell County, Ky.). Brinson, who signed with Army for football, is looking to become just the sixth wrestler ever to capture four NHSCA Nationals titles. The only four-time NHSCA Nationals champions are Tyler Beckwith (Greene, N.Y), B.J. Clagon (Toms River (South, N.J.), Ryan Millhof (Collins Hill, Ga.), Blake Roulo (Matoaca, Va.) and Clay Walker (Eastside, S.C.). Brinson won three Georgia state championships and finished his high school wrestling career with a record of 194-3. Last year Brinson claimed his third NHSCA Nationals title by defeating Myers, 8-6, which helped him earn Outstanding Wrestler honors. Ranked Seniors: 126: No. 11 Markus Simmons (Broken Arrow, Okla), No. 13 Ben Lamantia (St. Anthony's, N.Y.) 132: No. 17 (at 138) Brandon James (Perry Meridian, Ind.) 138: No. 8 (at 145) Bryce Parson (Lewiston, Idaho), No. 16 Mike D'Angelo (Commack, N.Y.) 145: No. 11 (at 152) Patricio Lugo (South Dade, Fla.), No. 17 (at 152) Jake Adcock (Pope, Ga.) 152: No. 5 (at 160) Myles Amine (Detroit Catholic Central, Mich.), No. 8 Neal Richards (Matoaca, Va.), No. 19 Zack Velasquez (Ponderosa, Calif.) 160: No. 6 Dayton Racer (Bettendorf, Iowa), No. 13 Jonathan Viruet (Springfield Central, Mass.), No. 15 Corbin Allen (Hanover, Va.) 182: No. 10 Dylan Wisman (Millbrook, Va.) 195: No. 12 Tevis Bartlett (Cheyenne Central, Wyo.), No. 16 Jacob Seely (Fruita, Colo.) 220: No. 2 Kenneth Brinson (Marist, Ga.), No. 3 Austin Myers (Cambpell County, Ky.), No. 12 Ian Butterbrodt (St. John's, Mass.) Juniors Israel Saavedra is a strong favorite at 132 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)This year's field of juniors includes 13 three-time state champions, and several other multiple-time state champions. The 195-pound weight has three of the nation's top 11 wrestlers: No. 5 Samuel Colbray (Hermiston, Ore.), No. 6 Blake Rypel (Indianapolis Cathedral, Ind.) and No. 11 Matt Correnti (Holy Cross, N.J.). Twins Thomas Bullard (Archer, Ga.) and Daniel Bullard (Archer, Ga.) are both three-time state champions looking for their third NHSCA Nationals titles this weekend. Other juniors looking to become three-time NHSCA Nationals champions include Kevin Budock (Good Counsel, Md.) and Matthew Correnti (Holy Cross, N.J.). Ranked Juniors: 106: No. 14 Kellan McKenna (New Hartford, N.Y.), No. 16 Thomas Cox (Deer Park, N.Y.) 113: No. 15 Drew Hildebrandt (Penn, Ind.), No. 20 David Campbell (Mission Oak, Calif.) 126: No. 14 (at 120) Alex Mackall (Walsh Jesuit, Ohio) 132: No. 5 (at 126) Israel Saavedra (Modesto, Calif.) 152: No. 14 (at 160) Thomas Bullard (Archer, Ga.) 160: No. 16 (at 170) Daniel Bullard (Archer, Ga.) 195: No. 5 Stephen Colbray (Hermiston, Ore.), No. 6 Blake Rypel (Indianapolis Cathedral, Ind.), No. 11 Matt Correnti (Holy Cross, N.J.) Sophomores Ian Timmons (Wooster, Nev.), a Fargo double finalist, is entered at 113 pounds (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)There are 23 two-time state champs registered in the sophomore division. The 113-pound weight class alone has seven two-time state champions. Returning NHSCA champions expected to compete in the sophomore division include Tyler Waterson (Spearfish, S.D.), Jaden Enriquez (Mission Oak, Calif.), Stephan Glasgow (Bound Brook N.J.), Caleb Little (Jefferson, Ga.), Chase Singletary (Blair Academy, N.J.), Zane Black (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.), Quinn Miller (Archer, Ga.) and Nick Boykin (Riverside, Tenn.). Ranked Sophomores: 113: No. 9 Ian Timmins (Wooster, Nev.) 126: No. 11 (at 132) Vitali Arujau (Syosset, N.Y.) 145: No. 12 Jared Verkleeren (Belle Vernon, Pa.) 152: No. 20 Mikey Labriola (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.) 195: No. 14 (at 182) Chase Singletary (Blair Academy, N.J.) Freshmen Roman Bravo-Young won double titles in Fargo before winning a state championship in Arizona as a freshman (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Two weight classes in the freshman division, 106 pounds and 113 pounds, have multiple ranked wrestlers. The most accomplished freshman competing is Roman Bravo-Young (Sunnyside, Ariz.), a Fargo double champion who finished as an undefeated state champion in Arizona. There are six 2014 NHSCA Middle School National champions expected to compete in the freshman division. Those wrestlers include Jakob Camacho (Danbury, Conn.), Michael Lucas (Holy Rosary Academy, Alaska), Jared Lough (Colonial Forge, Va.), Erich Byelick (Cardinal Gibbons, Fla.), Anthony Walters (Westmont Hilltop, Pa.) and Chaston Holley (Cabell Midland, W.V.). Ranked Freshmen: 106: No. 3 Roman Bravo-Young (Sunnyside, Ariz.), No. 20 Brody Teske (Fort Dodge, Iowa) 113: No. 8 (at 106) Jake Silverstein (Hauppauge, N.Y.), No. 12 (at 106) Jake Humphreys (Huntington, W. Va.)

The Predicament is pleased to announce the tentative line-ups for the Wrestling USA/Cliff Keen Athletic 2015 Dream Team Classic. This Competition is well known to wrestling fans in Iowa, featuring one of Iowa�s top high school senior wrestlers taking on one of the top-ranked seniors from across the country at each weight class. In the 19-year history of this event, the host state has only beaten Team USA in a dual one time. The most recent Dream Team competition in Iowa was held at Iowa City West during the Olympic Team Trials in 2012. Many feel with the talent the state of Iowa's senior class has this year, Team Iowa has the chance to pull off the win. The Wrestling Classic takes place on Saturday, April 11 at the Independence Jr./Sr. High School at 6 p.m. Watch The Predicament website for more details. Questions about the event may be directed to G. Wyatt Schultz: of The Predicament at 319-551-5827 or gwyatt@thepredicament.com For advance purchase of Dream Team Classic tickets visit www.thepredicament.com and click on Dream Team Banner for order forms. Tickets may also be purchased at the event. Note: the above information was excerpted from a press release for the 2015 Dream Team Classic, written by Wyatt Schultz of The Predicament. Below are the weight class matchups for the event, with rankings from the most recent update posted to InterMat on Wednesday, March 25. 113: Brennen Doebel (Clear Lake) vs. No. 4 Devin Brown (Franklin Regional, Pa.) 120: No. 20 Jacob Schwarm (Bettendorf) vs. No. 20 (at 126) Doyle Trout (Centennial, Neb.) 126: No. 17 Nolan Hellickson (Southeast Polk) vs. No. 14 Eli Seipel (St. Paris Graham, Ohio) 132: Paul Glynn (Bettendorf) vs. No. 1 Kaid Brock (Stillwater, Okla.) 138: Josh Wenger (Cedar Rapids Prairie) vs. No. 2 Sam Krivus (Hempfield Area, Pa.) 145: No. 2 Max Thomsen (Union) vs. No. 1 Michael Kemerer (Franklin Regional, Pa.) 145: No. 3 Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf) vs. Tristan Moran (Stillwater, Okla.) 152: Chase Straw (Independence) vs. No. 1 Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh Central Catholic, Pa.) 160: No. 4 Bryce Steiert (Waverly-Shell Rock) vs. No. 2 Josh Shields (Franklin Regional, Pa.) 170: No. 11 Jacob Holschlag (Union) vs. Luke Entzel (Missoula Big Sky, Mont.) 182: No. 18 Evan Hansen (Exira) vs. No. 6 Kollin Moore (Norwayne, Ohio) 195: No. 9 Cash Wilcke (OA-BCIG) vs. No. 2 Bobby Steveson (Apple Valley, Minn.) 195: No. 10 Steven Holloway (Mediapolis) vs. Tyler Johnson (Lockport, Ill.) 220: No. 5 Ryan Parmely (Maquoketa Valley) vs. Jay Nino (Genoa, Ohio) 285: No. 3 Jacob Marnin (Southeast Polk) vs. No. 6 Tate Orndorff (University, Wash.) Head Coach: Iowa: Dan Cummings (Mediapolis) USA: Erik Mausser (Franklin Regional, Pa.) Honorary Iowa Coach: Bret Adams (Independence), head coach of 1996 state champions

The NHSCA Nationals take place at the Virginia Beach Convention Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia, a venue that has 36 wrestling mats on the floor Imagine a giant, column-free convention hall with a total of 36 wrestling mats on the floor. Then, picture 3,400 high school wrestlers -- including more than 800 state champions -- in action during a three-day mega-tournament. An amateur wrestling fan's dream, to be sure ... that in reality is called the National High School Coaches Association's High School Nationals -- perhaps better known in the wrestling world by its shorthand name, NHSCA Nationals -- taking place at the Virginia Beach Convention Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia, March 27-29, 2015. The NHSCA High School Nationals has been a major event on the wrestling calendar for a quarter-century. This weekend, the 2015 NHSCA Nationals will welcome thousands of high school mat stars in separate competitions for seniors, juniors, sophomores, freshmen and middle-school athletes. In addition to wrestling action, there are seminars for high school coaches, and a college recruiting fair. Now in its 26th edition, the NHSCA can certainly brag about the sheer size of its High School Nationals ... as well as the quality of the participating wrestlers who have gone on to achieve greatness beyond high school. Over the years, many NHSCA High School Nationals participants have become NCAA champions and All-Americans, as well as US Olympic team members. According to the organization's website, NHSCA High School Nationals alumni comprise an average of 15 of the 20 NCAA Division I National Wrestling Championship finalists each year. On average, seven of the ten wrestlers crowned champs at each NCAA D1 championship were once NHSCA participants. At the 2014 NCAAs, for example, 55 of the 80 wrestlers who earned All-American honors competed at the NHSCA Nationals while they were in high school. Among the all-time greats who have taken to the mat at the NHSCA High School Nationals include Olympic gold medalists Jordan Burroughs, Jake Varner, Cael Sanderson and Brandon Slay, as well as NCAA champs Stephen Abas, Kyle Dake, Ed Ruth, Tommy Rowlands, Donny Pritzlaff and Steve Mocco. Meet the creator of the NHSCA Nationals The father of this mega-mat event is Bob Ferraro, founder and CEO of the National High School Coaches Association, which started as an organization to provide high school wrestlers with the opportunity to test themselves against the best grapplers from beyond their state borders in folkstyle competition, and now provides competitive activities and a wide range of support services to coaches and high school athletes in additional sports besides wrestling. Bob FerraroFerraro was head wrestling coach at Bucknell University, an NCAA Division I program in Pennsylvania. Even with his own involvement in wrestling, Ferraro sought to exercise control over his own son's experience in the sport. "I did not want my son to be in a competitive wrestling program before seventh grade," Ferraro told InterMat. "As he grew up, I would let him participate in an event that would prepare him for the next year -- for example, the Keystone Games the year before going into high school. I wanted to protect him from undue pressure to succeed." "Before his senior year of high school, I sought out a tournament that would prep him for college competition. I actually had to invent the tournament -- the Senior Nationals." The birth of a major amateur wrestling event The event, named the Senior Nationals, was created for high school seniors looking to take on same-age wrestlers from across the nation. At first, the Senior Nationals required participants to be state champs. As Ferrero described that initial event, "You could register by mail or in person -- realize this was before the Internet," according to Ferraro. "Only 55 wrestlers entered by mail, so we had no real idea of how many participants to expect. Over 200 wrestlers registered in person. Participants represented 39 states." One aspect launched from that very first year: college coaches came to the Senior Nationals to see potential recruits in action. Another ongoing tradition of the Senior Nationals -- seeking coach input -- was established in its second year. "We asked participating coaches for ideas to make the event better," said Ferraro. "We're still doing that, seeking changes to make it better every year. For example, we expanded the eligibility to allow state runners-up to compete. We later started allowing prep school wrestlers into the event. We also started adding divisions to what had been known as the Senior Nationals, creating the Junior Nationals, then the Sophomore Nationals, the Freshman Nationals, and now a Middle-School division." "From this wrestling event, we launched the National High School Coaches Association," Ferraro continued. "We branched out into other sports. Right now, we include 22 sports, and communicate with 400,000 high school coaches and 60,000 administrators." "We took the model that has worked well for us with our wrestling events, and expanded it to include other sports. We started adding services, such as insurance and certification, which coaches had requested." "Coaches feel a sense of ownership. Our philosophy is to provide programs at little or no cost, thanks to obtaining sponsorships. We're a non-profit organization, offering programs and services that benefit coaches and schools. For example, we came up with coaches' insurance for all sports. This is unlimited liability insurance, to protect a coach, his family and his assets. Coaches had expressed a need for insurance that wasn't readily available." The first NHSCA Senior Nationals was held at the University of Pittsburgh. Over the years, it has been held in various locations, including Cleveland for a number of years before relocating to Virginia Beach. The Atlantic Ocean resort city was chosen because it offered a huge, uninterrupted space to accommodate dozens of mats, along with a wide range of guest accommodations, attractively priced because this time of year is still considered the off-season by hotels. ("We use 22 hotels to accommodate participants," said Ferraro.) The 2015 NHSCA Nationals will feature separate competitions for each of the divisions -- Senior, Junior, Sophomore, Freshman, and Middle School -- in one single hall at the Virginia Beach Convention Center. However, as Ferraro points out, each division competes in a self-contained space, with a set number of mats surrounded by bleachers. "When you're down on the floor, it looks intimate," said Ferraro. "Helps make the event more appealing, more spectator-friendly." A supersized mat event ... and more By any measure, the 2015 NHSCA Nationals will be huge, considering the number of mats (36), participants (approximately 3,400 wrestlers), and states represented (48) ... not to mention registrations from a number of foreign countries. In addition, hundreds of individuals volunteer their time and expertise to help the event run smoothly, with financial support from sponsorships also being a critical factor to the Nationals' ongoing success. The NHSCA Nationals is more than outstanding wrestling competition for high school and middle-school athletes. Throughout the event, there will be ten different clinics, conducted by Olympic and top college wrestlers, as well as respected coaches. For the 1,200 high school wrestling coaches that attend the Nationals, there will be seminars to help them become more effective in their jobs, making the three-day tournament an educational opportunity. In addition, there will be over 200 college wrestling coaches from NCAA Division I, II and III, as well as NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) colleges in attendance. Many coaches use the event as a convenient opportunity to watch large numbers of athletes in action against top-ranked competition, and meet with wrestlers at the recruiting fair. For student-athletes, the fair provides "one-stop shopping" convenience and a low-risk, time-efficient way to gather information about schools they may be considering, and gain an opportunity to speak directly with a member of each school's wrestling coaching staff on their "wish list". Considering the quality of the competition and the number of colleges sending coaches, the NHSCA's Bob Ferraro shared a startling statistic: "For Junior Nationals, three-fourths of the participants will be going to colleges that do not offer wrestling." Now, in some cases, that may be because a wrestler who has participated in multiple sports in high school choses to focus on a single sport in college -- football, for example. Other prep athletes may be entering academically rigorous academic programs and schools, and have decided in advance to focus all their attention on their studies. However, according to Ferraro, many past NHSCA Nationals participants end up at colleges without wrestling because, sadly, large numbers of colleges don't offer the sport. Creating opportunities for wrestlers beyond high school The Temple Wrestling Club finished its first season as a club undefeated (9-0) in league dual meetsTo expand opportunities for wrestlers who wish to continue their sport in college, the NHSCA came up with a model solution. "We established the Temple Wrestling Club at Temple University, a school that did not have a wrestling program," said Ferraro. "The club, which was established in November 2014, now has 52 student-members in its first year -- without any active recruiting, I might add." Thanks to the generous financial support of Phil Richards as the donor and Temple board of trustees member, the club was able to take root. "This success at Temple will serve as a model for other schools to establish wrestling club programs," said Ferraro. "We present the idea to schools, and provide students with a letter that's a roadmap of how set up a club at their schools. Student Activity Fees at colleges help provide basic funding for various programs for students, including wrestling clubs ... Club programs are driven by the students, not administrators, making them focused on the needs of the student-athlete wrestlers. School alumni can help generate funds to establish and sustain the wrestling club, as well as assist with infrastructure and other issues." The NHSCA Nationals -- along with this new initiative to grow college wrestling by helping students establish wrestling clubs at their schools -- are all the product of hard work by event organizers and an army of hundreds of volunteers ... and the valued input from participating coaches. "Coaches have ownership of the event," said NHSCA founder Bob Ferraro. "We try to incorporate coaches' ideas to make the event better and better each year. We'd like to think it's kind of like running a good restaurant. We listen to the customers, and use their comments and suggestions, and that results in getting good reviews -- and return participants -- year after year."

The 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships finals on Saturday, March 21, averaged 694,000 viewers on ESPN with an additional 1.6 million minutes consumed on WatchESPN, a 10% increase in television viewers (630,000) and 148% increase in WatchESPN consumption (644,000) over the 2014 Championship Finals -- also shown on ESPN in prime time. Additionally, WatchESPN more than doubled its total unique viewers during this year's Championship Finals when compared to last year. Oklahoma City was the highest-rated market for Saturday night's wrestling finale, followed by Tulsa, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Columbus, Detroit, Kansas City, Cleveland, Baltimore, Norfolk, and St. Louis. Oklahoma City was also the highest-rated market overall for the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships (March 19-21), making it the second time in three years (2013) it has been the highest-rated market for the Championships. Interestingly, Tulsa was the highest-rated market in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2014, making the state of Oklahoma the hotbed for the Championships over the last six years. Overall, ESPN's complete coverage of the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships averaged 256,000 viewers across six sessions (first, second, quarterfinals and medal rounds on ESPNU and semifinals, finals on ESPN), an increase over the 2014 Championship, which featured the same television schedule (253,000 viewers). Additionally, every mat, every match coverage on ESPN3 combined with live access to ESPN and ESPNU on WatchESPN resulted in more than 21.3 million minutes viewed throughout the three days, a 67% increase over last year's same coverage (12.7 million minutes consumed). ESPN began covering the NCAA Wrestling Division I Championships in 1980. Live telecasts of the championship finals began in 2004 and preliminary round telecasts began in 2005. Since 2011, ESPN has provided live coverage of all six sessions, including television coverage in 2014 and 2015.

The 2014-15 scholastic wrestling season is one that has seen many twists and turns, along with debates and deliberation. With that in mind, it is no surprise, there is a lack of clarity about whom the nation's top-ranked team should be. However, there has to be one team that is No. 1, and for this year that is St. Paris Graham. They join the following teams that have previously ended the season No. 1 in the InterMat Fab 50 national team rankings: 2013-14: Blair Academy (N.J.) 2012-13: Blair Academy (N.J.) 2011-12: Blair Academy (N.J.) 2010-11: Apple Valley (Minn.) St. Paris GrahamGoing all the way back almost 20 weeks already to mid-November, the preseason Fab 50 tabbed Blair Academy (N.J.) as the nation's top team in a close call over Oak Park River Forest (Ill.); ranked third was Wyoming Seminary (Pa.), and it was St. Paris Graham (Ohio) in fourth. Those four teams came together right around a month later at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman just outside of Akron, Ohio. On that occasion, it was St. Paris Graham that emerged as the team champions of the nation's best tournament. The Falcons placed nine wrestlers, three winning titles, on the way to scoring 211 points. Second in the standings was Blair Academy with 189 points, also placing nine wrestlers, but with just one champion. Third went to Oak Park River Forest, placing eight and scoring 173 points, led by a single champion; while Wyoming Seminary placed seven on the way to 134 points but lacking in a champion. For purposes of ranking analysis, it should be noted that Walsh Ironman runner-up Mason Manville would leave Blair Academy that next week (obviously reducing the capability of the 160-pound weight class for the Buccaneers); Oak Park River Forest was without the services of now four-time state placer Larry Early, a nationally ranked 145 pound wrestler who was projected to finish runner-up; while Wyoming Seminary was absent Nick Reenan, this year's National Prep champion, a nationally ranked 170-pound wrestler that was a potential tournament finalist. In addition, both St. Paris Graham and Oak Park River Forest were absent their starter at 220 pounds due to injury; each was a state qualifier this year, failing to place in their state tournament. Heading into the Christmas Holiday, the four teams were ordered in this way: St. Paris Graham, Oak Park River Forest, Blair Academy, and Wyoming Seminary. 2015 Final Fab 50 Team Rankings 1. St. Paris Graham, Ohio 2. Oak Park River Forest, Illinois 3. Blair Academy, New Jersey 4. Wyoming Seminary, Pennsylvania 5. Clovis, California 6. Franklin Regional, Pennsylvania 7. Southeast Polk, Iowa 8. Poway, California 9. Bethlehem Catholic, Pennsylvania 10. Bergen Catholic, New Jersey 11. Archer, Georgia 12. Buchanan, California 13. Broken Arrow, Oklahoma 14. Stillwater, Oklahoma 15. St. Edward, Ohio 16. Montini Catholic, Illinois 17. Apple Valley, Minnesota 18. Neosho, Missouri 19. Carl Sandburg, Illinois 20. Bettendorf, Iowa 21. St. Michael-Albertville, Minnesota 22. Glenbard North, Illinois 23. Tuttle, Oklahoma 24. Massillon Perry, Ohio 25. Lowell, Michigan 26. Brecksville, Ohio 27. Crook County, Oregon 28. Mesa Mountain View, Arizona 29. Dayton Christian, Ohio 30. St. Peter's Prep, New Jersey 31. Delta, Ohio 32. Marmion Academy, Illinois 33. Elyria, Ohio 34. DePaul Catholic, New Jersey 35. South Dade, Florida 36. Greater Latrobe, Pennsylvania 37. Don Bosco Prep, New Jersey 38. Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania 39. Minisink Valley, New York 40. Cumberland Valley, Pennsylvania 41. Bound Brook, New Jersey 42. Kaukauna, Wisconsin 43. Boyertown, Pennsylvania 44. Monroe Woodbury, New York 45. Brighton, Michigan 46. Penn, Indiana 47. Delbarton, New Jersey 48. Colonial Forge, Virginia 49. Brick Memorial, New Jersey 50. Evansville Mater Dei, IndianaRight after the New Year, St. Paris Graham traveled to Blair Academy for a Saturday afternoon dual meet; the Buccaneers pulled off a 27-24 upset victory, taking home victories in eight weight classes. Two clear upset victories for Blair Academy came at 113 and 120 pounds, where Mitch Moore lost to a lower-ranked opponent in Zach Sherman, and Eli Stickley lost to the non-ranked Requir van der Merwe. Also working in favor of Blair Academy was a tossup match victory at 145 pounds, when Michael Monica avenged an Ironman defeat in beating Brent Moore. It should be noted that Blair Academy wrestled without 132-pound wrestler Charles Tucker; though freshman Rocky Jordan had upset Tucker in the Ironman semifinal, prior productivity and subsequent productivity positions Tucker higher than Jordan in the rankings (Jordan beat the Blair Academy reserve wrestler on that day). At that point, the rankings calculus came out to the following: Oak Park River Forest, Blair Academy, St. Paris Graham, and Wyoming Seminary. For further analysis of the at-time rationale, read here. Oak Park River Forest would carry that No. 1 ranking through the regular season, one in which they went 6-0 in dual meets against Fab 50 teams, and also won an individual bracket tournament (Rex Whitlach Invitational in mid-December) that featured two other top 20 teams in the country. Those six regular season dual meet victories came over No. 5 Clovis (Calif.) by a score of 35-18, nine matches to five), No. 16 Montini Catholic (Ill.), No. 17 Apple Valley (Minn.), No. 19 Carl Sandburg (Ill.), No. 20 Bettendorf (Iowa) and No. 32 Marmion Academy (Ill.) Blair Academy had an excellent regular season of its own with one major blip. The excellent parts included tournament titles at the Beast of the East and Geary Invitational, fields that had multiple additional nationally ranked teams present; and three additional dual meet victories over Fab 50 opposition -- No. 10 Bergen Catholic (N.J.), No. 15 St. Edward (Ohio), and No. 30 St. Peter's Prep (N.J.). However, there was a 39-20 dual meet loss to Wyoming Seminary on January 31. The Buccaneers did outlast Wyoming Seminary to win the National Prep Tournament at the end of February. While all that was going on St. Paris Graham went about its normal dominance, against what can kindly be called a non-descript schedule, except for their mid-January dual meet victory over St. Edward. As a result the rankings when February came to an end looked like this: Oak Park River Forest, St. Paris Graham, Blair Academy, and then Wyoming Seminary. However, the end of the season for Oak Park River Forest was far from being absent of blemish. In the first layer of their state series, nationally ranked Anthony Madrigal failed to make weight for the 106-pound class; nationally ranked Kamal Bey did not enter at 170 pounds due to injury; while Adam Lemke-Bell missed out on the competition at 285 pounds due to injury. This left the Huskies without two projected state champions and a likely low-placer in Lemke-Bell. Headed into their state tournament, the Huskies qualified 12 wrestlers, all but 106 and 285; the starter at 182 for much of the season qualified at 170, while a reserve qualified at 182. The state rankings from prior to the state tournament produced by Illinois Matmen projected Oak Park River Forest to place eight wrestlers, but they placed seven (admittedly the missing placer was primarily due to injury default). However, of greater note is that from five projected five state champions, the Huskies only procured two weight class titles (Renteria lost a tossup final at 113, while Madrigal at 120 and Early at 145 lost state finals bouts bouts against at-the-time unranked wrestlers, though each is now ranked). In the state dual meet playoffs, which were subsequent to the individual event, Bey and Lemke-Bell returned to the lineup; while Anthony Madrigal remained out of the lineup, which means he was removed from the national weight class rankings. It should be duly noted that the Huskies did pick up another pair of wins over Fab 50 teams on the way to their state dual meet title, second victories over Marmion and Carl Sandburg for an 8-0 overall dual meet record against nationally ranked teams. This state series result set opened the door for St. Paris Graham to regain the top position in the Fab 50 national team rankings. State rankings from right before the state tournament projected the Falcons to qualify 13 to the state tournament, place 11 (all inside the top four), and have five state champions. That is precisely what happened: 13 qualified, 11 placed in the top four, and five won state gold. The final conclusion is to crown the St. Paris Graham (Ohio) Falcons as national champions for the 2014-15 scholastic wrestling season. The following three factors in favor of the Falcons outweigh those arguments that fall in favor of Oak Park River Forest: When all the top teams in the country were assembled in one place, St. Paris Graham emerged with the title; the margin was clear, and it would still have been clear if all teams were at available personnel During the state tournament, St. Paris Graham had a "net performance" that would be characterized as "on slot," while Oak Park River Forest had results that were slightly below expectations At the end of the season, as well as at other points during the season, St. Paris Graham more consistently fielded a "more complete" lineup Oak Park River Forest won The ClashIt should be noted that this article could have been written just as easily to crown Oak Park River Forest as national champions. The Huskies should be commended on an impressive season that saw them win the Clash National Duals and yet another state title. No. 3 Blair Academy (N.J.) also had an excellent season considering the slew of transition within their program. Yet another title at the Beast of the East, and regaining the top trophy at the National Prep Championships. Rounding out the top five were Wyoming Seminary (Pa.), runners-up at the National Prep Championships, and Clovis (Calif.). The fifth-ranked Cougars had arguably their best season ever in winning a fifth straight California state title; they earned a state tournament record 276.5 points on the strength of qualifying the whole team, placing ten inside the top eight, and putting six into the state finals with three earning state gold.

The Fight Network presents Takedown Radio broadcasting from the Brute Studios as Kemin Industries and 04 Water introduces Takedown Wrestling Radio, We take the pulse of America's sport! Join hosts Scott Casber, Tony Hager, Tim Harms, Steve Foster, Jeff Murphy and Brad Johnson this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. (EDT) live on KXNO.com, IHeartRadio.com and TakedownRadio.com. Our Annual NCAA Division I National Champions Show 10:00 a.m. – Nathan Tomasello - Ohio State 10:15 a.m. – Cody Brewer - Oklahoma 10:35 a.m. – Logan Stieber - Ohio State 10:45 a.m. – Tom Ryan - Ohio State Head Coach 11:00 a.m. – Drake Houdashelt - Missouri 11:20 a.m. – Isaiah Martinez - Illinois 11:40 a.m. – Alex Dieringer - Oklahoma State 12:00 p.m. – Matthew Brown - Penn State 12:15 p.m. – Gabriel Dean - Cornell 12:30 p.m. – Kyven Gadson - Iowa State 12:40 p.m. – Nick Gwiazdowski - North Carolina State Enter the Takedown Sportswear Super Sunday Singlet giveaway for a chance to win a singlet every Sunday of the year by following us on Facebook at Facebook.com/TakedownWrestling and on Twitter at @Takedownradio, @Takedownsportswear and @IAwrestle. For contests and conversation use call 866-333-5966 or 515-284-5966 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. (EDT). Listen to the show on KXNO.com, Takedownradio.com or on your iHeart Radio on iTunes and Android applications.

Fan voting for the 2015 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy has begun. The Hodge Trophy is the top award in college wrestling and has been presented annually since 1994 to the nation�s most dominant collegiate wrestler. Vote for Dan Hodge Trophy Winner! The award is named after Dan Hodge, the former three-time (1955-57) NCAA champion from the University of Oklahoma, who did not allow a takedown in his career and pinned 36 of 46 victims. For the third straight year, fans are being asked to help select the winner from the four finalists. The winner will be announced on Monday, March 30. The winner of the fan vote will earn two first-place votes among the total ballots from a group of formal voters which includes each former Hodge Trophy winner, national media, representatives of national wrestling organizations and retired former college coaches from different regions. The deadline for your vote is this Thursday, March 26, at noon EST. The following is a statistical breakdown, in alphabetical order, of the four undefeated NCAA champions of 2015.

Isaiah Martinez, a native of Lemoore, California, won his third state championship in 2013, and two years later won his first NCAA title at 157 pounds while at the University of Illinois (Photos/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)When the final grade (recruiting) rankings are posted every year, many wonder how that exactly translates to college projectability. Here is a look at the Division I All-Americans from this past weekend, and where they were ranked in their recruiting class at the end of their senior year. Sixty-six of the 80 medalists were top 100 recruits, while another five appeared in the weight class rankings (but outside the top 100). Nine of the All-Americans were neither in the grade (recruiting) rankings, nor the weight class rankings at the end of their senior year. All this shows is the obvious, the high school rankings are never perfectly predictive for college success. They can however be pretty effective in identifying a universe of wrestlers likely to have college success. Even so, there are a myriad of factors that go into the imperfect correlation of high school rankings to college success (skill/ability improvement, physical maturity, finally hitting an optimal coaching/development climate, mistakes by the high school ranker, etc.). All-Americans by graduating year: 2014: 3 2013: 12 2012: 19 2011: 22 2010: 22 (fifth-year seniors) 2009: 1 2008: 1 NCAA finalists by graduating year: 2014: 2 2013: 3 2012: 3 2011: 4 2010: 7 (fifth-year seniors) 2008: 1 Note: WCR = Weight class ranked but not grade level ranked 125: 1. Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) No. 15/2013 2. Zeke Moisey (West Virginia) No. 49/2014 3. Alan Waters (Missouri) No. 49/2010 4. Thomas Gilman (Iowa) No. 10/2012 5. Nahshon Garrett (Cornell) No. 49/2011 6. Conor Youtsey (Michigan) No. 60/2011 7. Eddie Klimara (Oklahoma State) No. 36/2012 8. Jordan Conaway (Penn State) WCR/2011 133: 1. Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) No. 42/2011 2. Cory Clark (Iowa) No. 15/2012 3. A.J. Schopp (Edinboro) No. 67/2010 4. Cris Dardanes (Minnesota) 69/2010 5. Jimmy Gulibon (Penn State) No. 3/2012 6. Mason Beckman (Lehigh) No. 6/2011 7. Ryan Taylor (Wisconsin) No. 44/2012 8. Rossi Bruno (Michigan) No. 13/2012 141: 1. Logan Stieber (Ohio State) No. 1/2010 2. Mitchell Port (Edinboro) No. 28/2010 3. Devin Carter (Virginia Tech) No. 23/2010 4. Dean Heil (Oklahoma State) No. 17/2013 5. Kevin Jack (North Carolina State) WCR/2014 6. Chris Mecate (Old Dominion) No. 75/2011 7. Lavion Mayes (Missouri) NR/2012 8. Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) No. 7/2013 149: 1. Drake Houdashelt (Missouri) No. 60/2010 2. Dave Habat (Edinboro) NR/2010 3. Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern) No. 1/2012 4. Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) No. 62/2013 5. B.J. Clagon (Rider) No. 10/2013 6. Chris Villalonga (Cornell) No. 3/2010 7. Alexander Richardson (Old Dominion) WCR/2012 8. Daniel Neff (Lock Haven) No. 57/2011 157: 1. Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) No. 5/2013 2. Brian Realbuto (Cornell) No. 8/2012 3. James Green (Nebraska) No. 21/2011 4. Nick Brascetta (Virginia Tech) No. 37/2011 5. Ian Miller (Kent State) No. 45/2011 6. Dylan Ness (Minnesota) No. 26/2010 7. Brian Murphy (Michigan) No. 27/2013 8. Mitch Minotti (Lehigh) No. 31/2012 165: 1. Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) No. 15/2011 2. Taylor Walsh (Indiana) No. 73/2010 3. Bo Jordan (Ohio State) No. 1/2013 4. Jackson Morse (Illinois) No. 7/2010 5. Nick Sulzer (Virginia) No. 13/2010 6. Ethan Ramos (North Carolina) No. 93/2013 7. Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin) No. 19/2012 8. Jim Wilson (Stanford) No. 87/2012 174: 1. Matt Brown (Penn State) NR/2008 2. Tyler Wilps (Pitt) NR/2010 3. Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) No. 39/2010 4. Logan Storley (Minnesota) No. 4/2011 5. Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State) No. 22/2012 6. Mike Evans (Iowa) No. 6/2010 7. Zach Epperly (Virginia Tech) No. 26/2013 8. Kurtis Julson (North Dakota State) NR/2010 184: 1. Gabe Dean (Cornell) WCR/2012 2. Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) No. 52/2011 3. Vic Avery (Edinboro) No. 86/2011 4. Blake Stauffer (Arizona State) NR/2011 5. Kenny Courts (Ohio State) No. 16/2011 6. Hayden Zillmer (North Dakota State) NR/2011 7. Willie Miklus (Missouri) No. 27/2012 8. T.J. Dudley (Nebraska) No. 17/2012 197: 1. Kyven Gadson (Iowa State) No. 40/2010 2. Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) No. 1/2014 3. Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) No. 1/2011 4. Scott Schiller (Minnesota) No. 7/2010 5. J'den Cox (Missouri) No. 6/2013 6. Conner Hartmann (Duke) NR/2011 7. Nathan Burak (Iowa) NR/2011 8. Max Huntley (Michigan) No. 24/2009 285: 1. Nick Gwiazdowski (North Carolina State) No. 12/2011 2. Adam Coon (Michigan) No. 2/2013 3. Mike McMullan (Northwestern) No. 14/2010 4. Connor Medbery (Wisconsin) No. 59/2011 5. Bobby Telford (Iowa) No. 18/2010 6. Jimmy Lawson (Penn State) No. 17/2010 7. Ty Walz (Virginia Tech) WCR/2012 8. Michael Kroells (Minnesota) No. 41/2012

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Three members of the University of Iowa wrestling team were arrested last Tuesday night. They are freshman Seth Gross, freshman Ross Lembeck, and freshman Logan Ryan. All three wrestlers have been suspended indefinitely. “I am extremely disappointed with the decision-making of these three young men. I am currently gathering the facts and will use the UI’s student code of conduct and our team rules as my starting points to address the situation,” UI wrestling coach Tom Brands said in a prepared statement.

ST. LOUIS, Mo. - All four of Virginia Tech's wrestlers competing in the medal round of the NCAA Wrestling Championships won at least a match Saturday morning, as the Hokies wrapped up their season at the NCAA Championships held at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. Tech's four All-Americans - Devin Carter (141 pounds), Nick Brascetta (157), Zach Epperly (174) and Ty Walz (heavyweight) - were the ones competing and all improved at least one place in their respective weight classes from where they were entering the medal round. Carter claimed third place and Brascetta finished in fourth place. Epperly and Walz both ended in seventh place. Tech was in 10th place in the team competition with 56 points. The Hokies could record their third straight top-10 finish, pending the outcome of certain matches on Saturday night. "This was really satisfying considering we had such a tough morning yesterday [Friday]," Tech coach Kevin Dresser said. "To come back in the consolation round takes a lot of guts, a lot of heart and a lot of fight because you're done if you lose. We lost some tough matches yesterday on paper, a couple we were favored in and a lot we weren't favored. But for these guys to come back and fight they way they fought - it was really a great finish. "I'm proud of us. We've got a chance to stay in the top 10 and if we do that's great. It's a testament to these guys." Carter got the Hokies off to a quick start on the final day. The 141-pounder took on Old Dominion's Chris Mecate, whom he had beaten earlier this season at the Virginia Duals, in his first match and got a couple of first-period takedowns to grab a 4-1 lead. Then in the second period, Carter pinned Mecate, advancing to the third-place match. In the third-place match, he faced Oklahoma State's Dean Heil and went on the attack right from the start. He got two first-period takedowns and another takedown early in the second period. That started a barrage of takedowns, the Christiansburg, Virginia native concluded his career with a 17-8 major decision win over Heil. "This isn't really what I wanted, but I thought I came back and wrestled and ended up winning out," Carter said. "I think that was the best way I could have gone out if I was going to go that way. I guess it's that much easier to live with myself. "It's [his career] been awesome. It's been a long five years, and if it had ended with a loss and ended with getting seventh or eighth place, I wouldn't have been happy. I guess this is the best way to go down." Brascetta, a redshirt junior from St. Paris, Ohio, got the easiest of wins in his first match of the day. The 157-pounder won when Minnesota's Dylan Ness, the No. 3 seed, forfeited because of an injury. Ness was injured in his semifinal match Friday night against Cornell's Brian Realbuto. Brascetta, a redshirt junior from St. Paris, Ohio, thus advanced to the third-place match, where he met Nebraska's James Green, the No. 4 seed at 157 pounds. The two were tied at 2 heading into the third period, but Green got a point for an escape, and Brascetta couldn't get in on Green's legs to get a takedown. He ended up losing 3-2 and finished in fourth place at 157. Zach Epperly concluded his redshirt freshman season in fine fashion, claiming seventh place at 174 pounds with a victory over North Dakota State's Kurtis Julson. The Christiansburg native trailed 1-0 going into the third period, but he escaped Julson for a point to tie things and then he got a takedown to take a 3-1 lead. Epperly held off Julson's advances to record the 3-1 win. "It was an awesome season," Epperly said. "It's not where I wanted to finish at each place [the ACC Championships and the NCAA Championships], but you have to take what you get. All-American is pretty neat. Third place in the ACC is ok. I got my revenge on the UVa guy [Blaise Butler, who beat Epperly at the ACCs] yesterday, and that was huge. It shows I'm building and progressing more and getting better." Walz polished off a tremendous Championships appearance by winning his seventh-place match at heavyweight against Minnesota's Michael Kroelis. The redshirt sophomore from Cleveland, Ohio, got a takedown in the first period and added another one in the second period, riding Kroelis for much of that period. Kroelis mustered little in the way of offense, and Walz's riding time advantage enabled him to record a 6-2 win to finish seventh. "My whole thing coming into this tournament was I didn't want to plan anything because when you plan something, things go wrong," Walz said. "It depends on how you handle those things when they go wrong. I wanted to finish higher than I did at ACCs. That was my goal. I came up a couple of spots short of it. "But now I know what it feels like. Now I know what it feels like to be an All-American. Now I know what it feels like to lose in the wrestlebacks. It's interesting. You find the emotions that you hate and the ones you love, and you now know what you're working for." Ohio State held a 10-point edge on Iowa in the team chase for the national championship. Edinboro was third, with Missouri in fourth and Cornell in fifth. The national title matches in each weight class are later Saturday evening. FINAL RESULTS FROM THE 2015 NCAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS That'll do it for the Hokies here at the 2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships. The four Hokies who earned All-America honros took to the mats today for their placements matches. Devin Carter went out in style, picking up a pin and a major decision to take third place. He'll go down as one of the all-time greats, finishing his career with 121 wins as a three-time All-American and four-time ACC champion. Nick Brascetta picked up an injury default to reach the third-place match, but had to settle for fourth place after falling to fourth-seeded James Green of Nebraska, 3-2. After a tough year in which he missed three months with an elbow injury, Brascetta surely has big goals for next year. He'll enter his senior season as a two-time All-American and three-time ACC champion. Zach Epperly finished his freshman year strong, beating NDSU's Kurtis Julson 3-2 to seal a seventh-place finish. He beat both of tonight's 174-pound finalists (Wilps and Brown) and will carry a ton of momentum into his sophomore campaign. Ty Walz also finished his season strong, winning his seventh-place match over ninth-seeded Michael Kroells of Minnesota. He'll build on this season and look fro great things his junior year. The Hokies are in 10th place headed to the finals with a program-best 54.0 points. Tech has clinched its fourth-straight top-11 finish and will remain in 10th if NC State's Nick Gwiazdowski beats Michigan's Adam Coon. Michigan is two points behind Tech and a championship win is worth four additional points. Be sure to check back to hokiesports.com in a bit for a full recap with quotes. Thanks for following us all weekend.

WVU coaches Sammie Henson and Danny Felix celebrate (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) ST. LOUIS -- West Virginia University wrestler Zeke Moisey�s incredible NCAA tournament run came to end with a 9-5 loss to No. 4 seed Nathan Tomasello of Ohio State in the 125-pound championship finals at the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships on Saturday night at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. The true freshman from Northampton, Pennsylvania, will cap his rookie season as the NCAA runner-up in addition to receiving All-America honors. He finishes with a mark of 32-14, tying the program mark for wins at 125 and ranking second in program history in wins as a freshman. �I�m extremely proud of Zeke and his performance this weekend,� said WVU coach Sammie Henson. He represented West Virginia University and the Mountaineer wrestling program with guts and honor. We have a bright future with an extremely motivated coaching staff, support staff, administration and wrestlers.� After battling through two scoreless minutes in the first, Tomasello hit Moisey for a takedown with 44 seconds remaining. Moisey escaped to trail 2-1 as the first came to a close. Starting the second in the defensive position, Moisey tied the score 2-2 on an escape 26 seconds into the period. Tomasello added another takedown as the period wound down, taking a 4-2 lead into the final stanza. Starting on top, Moisey yielded an escape to Tomasello, who took a 5-2 lead, but scored a takedown to cut the deficit to two at 5-4. Tomasello escaped to push his advantage to 6-4, then registered a final takedown with just under a minute to go. Battling through injury, Moisey escaped to trail 8-5 with 33 seconds left, but couldn�t come from behind. Tomasello tacked on a point for riding time to take the 9-5 decision and the NCAA title. The first unseeded wrestler since 2003 to compete for a national title, Moisey was the first Mountaineer to reach the NCAA semifinals since 2005 when Greg Jones won the national championship at 184 pounds. He is the 30th All-American in WVU program history and the first to earn the honor since Brandon Rader in 2007. West Virginia finished the tournament with in 20th place with 23.5 points. It marks the Mountaineers� first top-25 finish since 2005, when they took 18th overall with 34.00 points. Entering the tournament as an unseeded, unranked true freshman, Moisey pulled off four consecutive upsets in earning his spot in the finals. He defeated No. 15 seed Chasen Tolbert of Utah Valley in a 14-6 major decision in the first round before upsetting No. 2 seed Nahshon Garrett of Cornell in a 5-2 decision. Moisey then beat Big 12 foe and No. 7 seed Eddie Klimara in a 5-2 decision to earn his spot in the semifinals.

ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Seniors Robert Kokesh (174) and James Green (157) finished their Husker careers by each finishing third at the 2015 NCAA Championships at the Scottrade Center on Saturday. Kokesh, a three-time All-American, won a pair of sudden victories against Big Ten foes. He downed third-seeded Mike Evans of Iowa, 6-4, before topping No. 6 seed Logan Storley of Minnesota by the same margin in the third-place match. Kokesh finished his season with a 39-1 record, which is tied for the sixth-most wins in a season in school history. He concluded his career at Nebraska with a 144-15 record, good for second in school history. He collected a third-place finish after taking fourth in 2014 and third in 2013. Green, who became the second four-time All-American in school history on Friday, defeated No. 7 seed Ian Miller of Kent State by a 13-4 major decision before taking down Virginia Tech�s Nick Brascetta, 3-2, in the third-place match. Green finished the season with a 35-5 mark. With his win in the third-place match, Green passed Jordan Burroughs for fifth in school history with his 129th career victory. Green took third place for the second consecutive year after finishing seventh in 2012 and 2013. Sophomore TJ Dudley (184) finished eighth after falling to Missouri�s Willie Miklus by a 6-5 decision. Dudley went 31-11 this season and collected All-America honors for the first time. As a team, Nebraska finished in ninth place with 59 points, marking the 19th top-10 finish in program history. Ohio State won the team title with 102 points. The NCAA Championships conclude with Session VI, consisting of the finals, on Saturday night at 7 p.m. (CT). Every match will be televised on ESPN.

ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Two Western Wrestling Conference grapplers earned All-America honors Saturday at the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in St. Louis. North Dakota State's Hayden Zillmer and Kurtis Julson were the two wrestlers to accomplish the feat this year as they placed sixth at 184 pounds and eighth at 174, respectively. Zillmer and Julson not only marked the only wrestlers in the league to earn All-America finishes this season but also the first time that NDSU's has ever had multiple placers in the same season at the Division I level. After going a perfect 4-0 in the wrestlebacks on Friday to secure the first All-American finish of his career, the sixth-seeded Zillmer dropped two tight matches during Saturday's medal round (fifth session) to place sixth. In the consolation semifinals, Zillmer fell to No. 13 Victory Avery of Edinboro by a score of 4-2 and then 4-3 to Ohio State's Kenny Courts in the fifth-place bout. The senior Zillmer finished his 2015 NCAA Championship run with a 5-3 record and a 38-6 clip overall. Julson went 3-1 in the wrestlebacks on Friday to punch his ticket into Saturday's seventh-place match at 174 pounds. In another close match, the unseeded Bison grappler found himself on the wrong end of a 3-2 score to Virginia Tech's Zach Epperly to end up placing eighth at 174. Julson concluded his 2015 run at the `Big Show' with a 4-3 clip and a 23-12 record overall. In all 23 wrestlers competed for the WWC at the NCAA Championships this weekend, and 14 of them made it to day number two of the three-day event. With two placers, NDSU led the conference in the team race as it finished in 23rd place with 19.5 points. Wyoming was next as it tied for 39th with six points while Northern Colorado followed in a tie for 46th with three. With Zillmer and Julson's sixth and eighth-place finishes on Saturday, the WWC has now crowned 17 All-Americans in its nine year history. To view final brackets from the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships click HERE. The Western Wrestling Conference is comprised of six schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, South Dakota State, Utah Valley and Wyoming.

ST. LOUIS -- Fighting Illini redshirt-freshman Isaiah Martinez put an exclamation point on his season Saturday night, winning the NCAA 157-pound national title. Martinez defeated Brian Realbuto (Cornell) by major decision, 10-2, to become the first freshman to be an undefeated national champion since Cael Sanderson of Iowa State accomplished the feat in 1999. Martinez struck first in the championship bout, taking down Realbuto to grab a 2-0 lead. Realbuto escaped to cut the lead to 2-1 at the end of the first period. Martinez opted to start the second period in the down position, from which he quickly escaped to take a 3-1 lead. Another takedown for the Illini grappler gave him a 5-1 lead advantage at the end of the second period. A two-point nearfall in the third gave Martinez a 7-1 lead. Realbuto escaped to make it 7-2, but Martinez grabbed a final takedown and rode out the Cornell grappler to seal the 10-2 victory. Martinez began his run to a national title with an 18-2 technical fall over Russell Parsons (Army). He followed up that performance by pinning Spartak Chino (Ohio) in 1:25 to advance to the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, Martinez took down Nick Brascetta (Virginia Tech), 10-4. He then edged James Green (Nebraska), 3-2, before squaring off with Realbuto. Martinez finishes his stellar season with a 35-0 record, just the third time in Illinois history that a wrestler has completed an undefeated season, and the first since Matt Lackey in 2002-03. Of his 35 wins, 24 came by major decision or greater, including an NCAA Division I leading 11 technical falls. Dating back to last season, Martinez has won 42 matches in a row. The Illini finished the 2015 NCAA Championships in 12th place with 51 points.

Tristan Warner, a 165-pound redshirt senior at Old Dominion University from Mechanicsburg, Pa., has been named the recipient of the prestigious Elite 89 Award for the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship. This marks the second-consecutive year he has taken home the award and the second Division I wrestler to win it in back-to-back seasons. The Elite 89, an award founded by the NCAA, recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The Elite 89 is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s championships. “We are very excited for Tristan to receive the prestigious Elite 89 award for the second year in a row," said Head Coach Steve Martin. "The Elite 89 goes to the student-athlete with the highest GPA at the championships, so essentially we have had the smartest guy in division I wrestling for two consecutive years. What makes it even more exciting is that this is just the second time that a DI wrestler has won the award two straight years!” Warner is a double major in criminal justice and communications and currently holds a 3.984 cumulative grade-point average. Over Warner’s career, he earned Academic All-American laurels and NWCA Division I All-Academic Team honors. He has also been a member of the Dean’s List nine times, earning a 4.0 GPA on seven occasions. “I am honored to receive the NCAA Elite 89 award again,” said Warner. “Although my wrestling season and career did not end as I had imagined, this definitely helps put a little brighter outlook on my future. I want to thank everyone affiliated with Old Dominion University that supported me on the mat or in the classroom. I couldn't have achieved this without them." “Finally, I want to acknowledge Jake Henderson, Matt Tourdot, and Austin Coburn for their outstanding academic accomplishments that may get overshadowed but have been an integral part of my success and our team's ability to secure the second highest GPA in the nation,” added Warner. Eligible student-athletes are sophomores or above who have participated in their sport for at least two years with their school. They must be an active member of the team, traveling and a designated member of the squad size at the championship. The number of credits completed breaks all ties. “This is a great testament to our academic advising staff, led by April Brecht,” added Martin. “There are a lot of people involved in this process, but her staff does a phenomenal job getting our kids ready to excel in the classroom.” For more information on the Elite 89 award winners, log on to NCAA.com/elite89.

ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Penn State senior Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah) added yet another wrestling national title to Penn State's growing list of accomplishments with a thrilling 5-4 win over Pittsburgh's Tyler Wilps in the NCAA finals. Brown, a three-time All-American, earned his first NCAA title with the victory after coming up short in the finals as a sophomore. Brown's win was capped off by a lengthy delay as the match ended with each bench challenging a bout deciding call. In the end, Penn State's challenge won the day and Brown walked away with a 5-4 win and the NCAA title. Brown won Penn State's 30th national title and is the 23rd individual to claim one. The Brown/Wilps match-up was the first ever national final between Penn State and Pitt and it would produce a thrilling end. Brown began the match working for control on his feet, forcing Wilps to the outside circle while looking to work his offense. The duo traded low shots at the :35 mark with no on connecting. Brown continued to press Wilps but the bout moved to the second tied 0-0. Wilps chose down to start the middle period and Brown was able to control the action for :33 before Wilps escaped to a 1-0 lead. Brown took yet another shot, not able to finish as Wilps worked his way out of bounds once again. Brown forced the Panther into a first stall warning but Wilps then connected on a single leg that nearly took Brown to the mat. Brown was able to fight off the move and force a reset with :22 left in the period. Trailing by one, Brown chose down to start the third period and steadily worked his way to an escape and a 1-1 tie at the 1:32 mark. Brown worked in on another single leg and got the takedown as Wilps worked to get out of bounds. The takedown gave the Lion a 3-1 lead at the 1:02 mark. Wilps was awarded an escape at the :42 mark but the Penn State bench challenged the call. The call was overturned and Brown maintained the 3-1 lead. Wilps did quickly escape on the reset to cut Brown's lead to 3-2. He then quickly took Brown down to take a 4-3 lead with :20 on the clock. Wilps, who was called for stalling early in the bout, hung on to Brown's leg for five seconds and Brown picked up the stall point to tie the match at 4-4. With :03 left, Brown worked for an escape and Wilps appeared to lock his hands as the period ended. The non-call was challenged by Penn State and after a long review, the locked hands was awarded and Brown was given the point. Pitt then immediately challenged as to whether the penalty occurred before time expired and the officials confirmed that it did and Brown collected the 5-4 win, claiming his NCAA title. Brown became Penn State's 24th three-time All-American with his quarterfinal victory and his finals win over Wilps marks the fifth straight year Penn State has crowned a national champion. The Utah native is head coach Cael Sanderson's 11th national champion and his ninth at Penn State. The newest Penn State national champion, Brown went 5-0 at nationals and ends his year with a 29-3 record. Brown was the national runner-up in 2013 and the fifth place finisher in 2014. In 2013, as a sophomore and a national runner-up, Brown was named the Elite 89 Award winner as the nation's top wrestling scholar athlete. Brown ends his Penn State career with a 118-16 career record. He leaves Penn State alone in 11th place on the school's all-time wins list. Junior Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), the No. 2 seed at 197, rebounded from a quarterfinal upset in outstanding fashion and roared back to place third. McIntosh went 6-1 at this year's championships and is now a two-time All-American. The junior ends his season with a 32-3 overall record. Sophomore Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), the No. 7 seed at 133, ended his tournament run as An All-American and the fifth place finisher. He went 4-2 at this year's NCAA tournament and ends his year with a 26-9 overall record. Senior Jimmy Lawson (Toms River, N.J.), the No. 8 seed at 125, ended the NCAA Championships as a first time All-American, the sixth place finisher and with a 4-3 record. He ends his season with a 19-6 record overall. Junior Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), the No. 11 seed at 125, ended the tournament with a 4-3 mark as the 8th place finisher and an All-American. He closed out the year with a 27-9 overall record. Sophomore Zack Beitz (Mifflintown, Pa.) concluded his tournament on Friday with a 1-2 mark including a major. Beitz posted a 19-11 overall record on the year. Freshman Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), the No. 14 seed at 184, bowed out in last night's session with a 2-2 mark in the `round of 12'. McCutcheon went 26-14 on the year. Brown's win gave Penn State a final record of 26-13 at this year's NCAA Championship. Sanderson's squad returns home with five All-Americans and a sixth place finish off 67.5 points. The lkjl place finish breaks Penn State's string of four straight NCAA titles but is the sixth top ten finish in Sanderson's six years at the help of the Nittany Lions. Sanderson has now coaches 46 All-Americans, 31 at Penn State. This year's haul of hardware winners brings Penn State's All-American total to 194. Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at www.twitter.com/pennstateWREST and on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling. The 2014-15 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline. 2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships - Team Score - Top Ten FINAL Saturday, March 21, 2015 - Scottrade Center - St. Louis, Mo. 1: Ohio State - 102.0 2: Iowa - 84.0 3: Edinboro - 75.5 4: Missouri - 73.5 5: Cornell - 71.5 6: PENN STATE - 67.5 7: Oklahoma State - 65.0 8: Minnesota - 59.5 9: Nebraska - 59.0 10: Virginia Tech - 56.0

ST. LOUIS -- Redshirt junior Dan Neff (Quarryville, Pa./Solanco) of the Lock Haven University wrestling team finished eighth overall at 149 pounds at the 2015 NCAA Division I Championships. With the eighth-place finish, Neff became the Bald Eagles' 39th All-American and first since 2007. The three-day tournament began Thursday morning and runs through tonight's (8 p.m. EST) finals at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. After dropping his opening match of the tournament on Thursday morning to the No. 2 seed and returning National Champion, Neff rattled off four straight wins and guaranteed himself All-American status. Neff was 3-1 yesterday and entered today's action at 4-2 in the tournament. Today (Saturday), Neff met Old Dominion's Alexander Richardson, the eighth seed in the seventh-place match. Neff gained the upper hand early and took Richardson down, but Richardson was quick to escape. With Neff leading 2-1, Richardson scored a takedown. Shortly after a late first-period restart, Richardson tilted Neff to his back and earned the pin at the 2:39 mark. The loss moved Neff to 4-3 for the tournament. The 4-3 record this week pushed Neff to 6-7 all-time at the NCAA Championships. This marked his third straight NCAA Championship appearance after reaching the sport's biggest stage in each of the last two seasons at 141 pounds. Neff closes the season with a 25-15 record and will enter his final season as Bald Eagle next year with an 82-34 career record. Heading into tonight's finals, Lock Haven is 37th overall in the team standings. The Bald Eagles sit ahead of three Big Ten teams, including Maryland, Purdue and Michigan State. LHU will also finish ahead of local-rival Bucknell, as well as traditionally-strong programs - Penn, Wyoming, Boise State and Central Michigan. Wyoming (#16), Purdue (#23), Bucknell (#24) and Central Michigan (RV) were all ranked in the final 2014-15 USA Today/NWCA National poll. Today's action marks the end of the season for second-year head coach Scott Moore and his Bald Eagles. Neff's All-American honor highlights another strong here for LHU and it marks the first All-American in the head coaching career of Moore. For the second straight year Moore and his coaching staff have guided three or more student-athletes into NCAA Tournament. Last season, LHU sent four guys to Oklahoma City. Neff was joined by both Ronnie Perry (Christiana, Pa./Solanco) and Fred Garcia (Donora, Pa./Ringgold) at this week's championships. Perry (133) was making his NCAA Tournament debut, while Garcia, a senior capped a sensational Haven career with a third straight trip to NCAA's. During the 2014-15 season LHU went 3-3 in EWL action (7-12 overall). The three conference wins mark Lock Haven's most EWL wins since the Bald Eagles were 3-3 during the 2004-05 season. At the 2015 EWL Championships (March 7), Lock Haven finished third overall with 101.5 points, thanks to a strong all-around day that saw all 10 wrestlers place among the top-five and nine, who finished fourth or better. It marks the second straight season where LHU has finished third at the EWL Championships. Last year when the Bald Eagles took third, it marked their highest finish since 2007.

Edinboro finished third at the NCAAs (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- It was a historical night, albeit bittersweet, for the Edinboro wrestling team as the 2015 NCAA Division I National Championships wrapped up at the Scottrade Center. The Fighting Scots would wrap up their best showing ever at the Division I Nationals, coming in third. Unfortunately, after an outstanding morning session in which A.J. Schopp and Vic Avery each won twice to finish third at 133 and 184 lbs., respectively, Dave Habat and Mitchell Port had to settle for runner-up showings in their quest to become Edinboro's fifth Division I national champion. Habat suffered a 3-1 loss in sudden victory to Drake Houdashelt of Missouri in the 149 lb. championship match. Port, hampered by a knee injury suffered late in the first period, dropped an 11-5 decision to Logan Stieber of Ohio State in the marquee match of the night at 141 lbs. Edinboro finished third in the final team standings with 75.5 points. It marked the highest finish in school history at the Division I championships, bettering last year's fifth place showing. Ohio State, with former Edinboro All-American and assistant coach Lou Rosselli serving as associate head coach, won its first national championship. The Buckeyes finished with 102 points, bettering Iowa's 84 points. Missouri finished fourth with 73.5 points and Cornell rounded out the top five with 71.5 points. Head coach Tim Flynn's squad leaves St. Louis with four All-Americans – a pair of second place finishes and two third places. The 1988 squad was the only other Edinboro team with four All-Americans. In addition, the only other time Edinboro had two wrestlers in the finals was in 2009. In addition, Schopp won the Manuel Gorrarian Award for most pins in the least time. While disappointed at how the evening transpired, Flynn was pleased with the three-day showing of his Fighting Scots. "It's awesome. It's something that has culminated for years and years of work and these kids together. They worked. They did what we asked of them." Habat got the evening started as the 149 lb. championship match was the first of the ten championship matches. A scoreless first period saw Habat the aggressor, with a pair of solid shots defended by Houdashelt (41-1). The first, midway through the period, was close enough to be called a takedown by the ESPN announcers, before the two rolled out of bounds. Houdashelt chose bottom to start the second period, with Habat riding for 35 seconds before Houdashelt escaped for a 1-0 lead. The two wrestlers exchanged shots in the final minutes without any scores. Habat started down in the third period and would escape at 1 minute, 17 seconds for a 1-1 tie. The escape was a notable accomplishment since Houdashelt had not allowed a point in his previous three matches. Both shot almost simultaneously with 27 seconds left and they went out of bounds. A Habat shot at 23 seconds was answered by one by Houdashelt with 15 seconds, but Habat was able to fend it off to send the match into overtime. Houdashelt would register the match's lone takedown and win the national title midway through the one-minute overtime period. He blocked a shot by Habat, in the process knocking Habat backwards and off balance. He jumped in at Habat's waist for the winning takedown with 28 seconds left. "Dave put himself into position to win," related head coach Tim Flynn. "He had a little trouble getting out of the collar tie, but it is a one-takedown game. Hats off to Houdashelt, he got the takedown." Habat finished the year with a 36-3 record and wraps up his career with a 134-27 career record. That is good for fifth in career victories. The Port-Stieber matchup was one of only two one-versus-two meetings in the finals. Port, seeded second, stood in the way of Stieber becoming the fourth four-time Division I national champion. The two met once before in February, with Steiber handing Port his lone loss of the season 6-3. Port was making his second appearance in the 141 lb. finals in the last three years, losing in the 2013 finals. Stieber opened the scoring with a takedown on a single-leg shot at 2:06 of the first period, with Port escaping at 1:51. Stieber completed a double-leg takedown with 1:20 left for a 4-1 advantage. With Port maneuvering to escape, he yelled out in pain with 16 seconds left after injuring his left knee. The injury gave Stieber the option of top or bottom on the restart, and would take the bottom and escape with four seconds showing for a 5-1 lead after one period. A game Port would limp noticeably over the final two periods but continued to battle. Port chose down to start the second and would escape with 1:05 left in the period to cut the margin to 5-2. Stieber added a single-leg takedown for a 7-2 lead with 32 seconds to go. Stieber began the third period with an escape at 1:40 to make it 8-2 and extended the lead to 10-2 with a takedown at the 1:25 mark. Port, showing the heart of a champion while wrestling on one leg, rallied with an escape at 1:08, and took Steiber down with 40 seconds left. He would end the match riding Stieber but was unable to turn him for near fall points. Flynn commented afterwards, "Logan Stieber is a four-time national champion. He is a great wrestler. You've got to be healthy for sure to battle him. Him twisting his kneecap there didn't help the cause." With the win Stieber recorded his 51st straight victory and ended the year at 29-0. Port concluded a brilliant career as one of eight Edinboro wrestlers to earn All-American honors three times. He finished second in 2013 and 2015 and third in 2014 at 149 lbs. The redshirt senior ended the year with a 36-2 record and concluded his career with a 132-17 ledger. He finishes tied for eighth in career victories and is third in career winning percentage at .886. The senior trio of Habat (134), Schopp (133), and Port (132) ended up ranking fifth, tied for sixth, and tied for eighth, respectively in career wins while combining for 399 wins. They won eight All-American medals. Add in Kory Mines, the fourth part of Edinboro's Murderer's Row, and the foursome finished with 487 career victories. Schopp ends up second in career winning percentage (.887). "We've got a team trophy. Those kids, they're quality wrestlers, better kids and are going to be hard to replace," surmised Flynn.

Related: Coverage | Results ST. LOUIS -- On Saturday night at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Logan Stieber finished his college wrestling career on top of the college wrestling world. The Ohio State senior not only capped his collegiate wrestling career with a fourth NCAA Division I title, becoming just the fourth wrestler ever to accomplish the feat, but he also led the Buckeyes to their first national championship in wrestling. Ohio State's Logan Stieber defeated Edinboro's Mitchell Port (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)"I'm extremely proud of my teammates," said Stieber, who finishes the season with a perfect 29-0 record. "As an individual to win it's amazing. For the team, it's something I've dreamed of ever since I came to Ohio State. When I was a freshman in high school I dreamed of doing it my senior year of high school. We did it and I've been dreaming of it for four years here at Ohio State and to finally do it, it's unbelievable." Ohio State clinched the team title earlier in the day during Saturday's first session, and put an exclamation point on it Saturday night with two Buckeyes winning NCAA titles, Stieber and freshman Nathan Tomasello, who claimed the title at 125 pounds. Ohio State finished the tournament with 102 points, 18 points in front of runner-up Iowa. Edinboro finished third in the team standings with 75.5 points. Missouri and Cornell rounded out the top five teams. Stieber handled Edinboro's Mitchell Port, 11-5, in the championship match. He came out strong, picking up two takedowns in the opening period and raced out to a 5-1 lead heading into the second period. Stieber added another takedown in the second period to lead 7-2 after two periods. He extended the lead to 10-2 in the third period before Port found some offense, scoring a takedown off an ankle pick, but it was too little too late. Tomasello, who entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed, claimed a 9-5 decision over another freshman, unseeded Zeke Moisey of West Virginia. The Buckeye freshman picked up takedowns in each of the first two periods to take a 4-2 lead into the third period. Moisey added some intrigue to the match in the third period when he put Tomasello on his back briefly, but was unable to secure the pin or get himself back in the match. "It's been a dream of mine and a goal of mine for many years now," said Tomasello. "Putting in the time every single day makes it worth it. Just going through the grind of the season ... This is where you can let yourself fly and see who is the best. At this tournament I feel like I peaked at the right time and was wrestling at my best through the Big Tens and then here." Tomasello was one of two freshmen to win an NCAA title on Saturday night. Isaiah Martinez of Illinois was the other. Martinez, a native of Lemoore, California, capped an undefeated (34-0) freshman season with a national championship at 157 pounds. Isaiah Martinez became the first undefeated freshman NCAA champion since Cael Sanderson accomplished the feat in 1999 (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Martinez was dominant in the finals, winning by major decision, 10-2, over Cornell's second-seeded Brian Realbuto. The match was close early before Martinez blew it open. Martinez struck first, scoring a takedown off a double leg to go up 2-0. He added another takedown in the second period to go up 5-1 going into the final period. Martinez picked up two nearfall points early in the third period and added a takedown and riding time point for the major decision. "I knew it was going to be a dogfight," said Martinez. "I just stayed with what my coaches told me and it worked out for the best for me. So I'm very happy right now. It's just been an amazing journey that led up to that match on that stage, and it's been awesome." Martinez becomes the first undefeated freshman NCAA champion since Cael Sanderson accomplished the feat while at Iowa State in 1999. So is Martinez ready to be compared to Cael? "I was made ready for it," Martinez said confidently. "I've been working at this for 14 years. Wrestling is my life. I don't plan on doing anything else for the rest of my life. I plan on being around it forever. As far as comparisons go, we'll get there when the time comes. But if I can stay undefeated, I'm going to do it." Of his 35 wins this season, 24 were bonus-point victories. He led NCAA Division I wrestling in technical falls with 11. Two wrestlers won their second NCAA titles, Oklahoma State's Alex Dieringer (165) and North Carolina State’s Nick Gwiazdowski (285). Dieringer was dominant in the finals and finishes the season unbeaten at 35-0. Dieringer was all over his finals opponent Taylor Walsh of Indiana in a 14-7 victory. The Cowboy junior led 4-2 after the opening period and extended the lead to 9-4 after two periods. Dieringer finished the match strong, scoring two takedowns in the final period to win convincingly. "Coach always told me the second one was harder," said Dieringer, who won the title at 157 pounds last year. "So I feel like this one feels a lot more special to me. Just coming back and going undefeated and pretty much getting ninety percent bonus matches. And moving up too, which made it a lot harder. So I feel like I did pretty good this season." Dieringer, a Junior World silver medalist in 2013, has his sights set on competing with the best U.S. wrestlers on the senior level, in arguably the deepest weight class, 74 kilos. The weight class includes Jordan Burroughs, Kyle Dake, David Taylor and Andrew Howe, among others. "I want to wrestle those top guys," said Dieringer. "I feel like I'm ready. I don't know if I'm going to the Open, but for sure I'm going to the Trials." Gwiazdowski edged Michigan's Adam Coon, 7-6, to claim his second straight title at heavyweight. NC State's Nick Gwiazdowski takes down Michigan's Adam Coon (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Gwiz struck first, scoring a takedown off a double leg midway through the first period. After a couple Coon escapes, which tied the score at 2-2, Gwiz shot another double leg and converted it to a takedown to take a 4-2 lead. After a Coon escape, Gwiz led 4-3 heading into the final period. The NC State big man picked up a reversal early in the third period to go up 6-3 and looked to be in total control. But Coon battled back, escaping and scoring a takedown of his own to tie the match at 6-6. Gwiz quickly escaped to retake the lead, 7-6, which is how the match would end. "I knew it was going to be a war," said Gwiazdowski. "It was not going to be easy. You look at all his matches, he doesn’t stop. So I went in there with the mentality of, You're going to have to kill someone or you’re going to get killed.' So I thought about my preparation." He becomes first wrestler in school history to win two NCAA titles. In the first match of the night, top-seeded Drake Houdashelt of Missouri lived up to his No. 1 seed, claiming the title at 149 pound with a 3-1 win in sudden victory over Edinboro's David Habat. After a scoreless first period, the two wrestlers traded escapes in the second and third periods. In sudden victory, Houdashelt scored a takedown off a counter attack to give the Tigers a national championship. Houdashelt becomes just the third wrestler in Missouri history to earn three or more All-American honors in their careers, joining Ben Askren and Max Askren. "It was a tough match, said Houdashelt. "But nothing really matters but winning, and I pulled it off. I'm excited." Houdashelt is a native of O'Fallon, Missouri, right outside St. Louis. Winning in his home state only added to the accomplishment. "It's kind of nice to come back to St. Louis and finish my career off especially like I just did,” said Houdashelt. "It's unreal." Six No. 1 seeds came through to win the title: Stieber (141), Houdashelt (149), Martinez (157), Dieringer (165), Gwiazdowski (285) and Cornell's Gabe Dean (184). Dean topped Lehigh's Nathaniel Brown, 6-2, in a rematch of the EIWA finals two weeks earlier. It was Dean’s fourth win over Brown this season. Dean won the takedown game 2-0, picking up takedowns in the second and third periods and shutting down Brown’s offense. "It hasn't really set in yet," said Dean of winning his first title. "It's a surreal atmosphere to wrestle in and I guess no other words describe it but it’s just incredible, especially to share this with my family and close friends and my teammates and my school. It's the best. I'm truly blessed." Penn State, NCAA champions from 2011-2014, finished sixth in the competition and crowned its lone champion, Matt Brown, who edged Pitt's Tyler Wilps, 5-4, in the championship match at 174 pounds. Brown was an NCAA runner-up in 2013 and finishes his PSU career as a three-time All-American. The first two periods in the Brown-Wilps match saw little scoring. In the third period Brown broke a 1-1 tie with a takedown off a single leg to go up 3-1. Wilps escaped and picked up a takedown to take the lead, 4-3, with 23 seconds remaining. Brown continued to push the action. Late in the match Wilps was hit for his second stalling call, which tied the match, and in the process the Pitt wrestler clasped his hands, which gave Brown the dramatic one-point victory as time expired. "I didn't expect the match to end like that," said Brown. "But that's how the ball bounces and it landed my way this time." Cody Brewer, despite entering the tournament ranked No. 3 by InterMat, became the lowest seed in the history of the tournament to win a national championship, doing so as a No. 13 seed. The Sooner three-time All-American was offensive through the first two periods, picking up two takedowns in the opening period and three more in the second period to build a 10-5 lead. Clark found some offense in the third period and scored a takedown, but was unable to get back in the match. "Like Coach Cody talks about all season, the only seed that matters is that NCAA tournament," said Brewer, who avenged his only loss of the season in the Big 12 finals against Iowa State's Earl Hall. "Whether I would have lost or I would have won, I was top two in the country." Iowa State's Kyven Gadson pinned Ohio State's Kyle Snyder (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Iowa State's Kyven Gadson picked up the only pin in the finals. The Cyclone senior decked Ohio State true freshman Kyle Snyder at 4:24 in the 197-pound final. After a scoreless first period, Snyder escaped within five seconds in the second period to lead 1-0. Snyder then attacked Gadson and nearly scored a takedown off a high crotch. Gadson, though, fought off the attack and threw the Buckeye freshman to his back and secured the pin. "Wednesday night I wrote myself a letter," said Gadson. "I sat down in the hotel room and I told myself, I put all the stuff in there that I needed to know that I needed to do to dominate this tournament." Team Standings (Top 10): 1. Ohio State 102 2. Iowa 84 3. Edinboro 75.5 4. Missouri 73.5 5. Cornell 71.5 6. Penn State 67.5 7. Oklahoma State 65 8. Minnesota 59.5 9. Nebraska 59 10. Virginia Tech 56 Placement Match Results 125: 1st: Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) dec. Zeke Moisey (West Virginia), 9-5 3rd: Alan Waters (Missouri) dec. Thomas Gilman (Iowa), 7-4 5th: Nahshon Garrett (Cornell) dec. Connor Youtsey (Michigan), 9-3 7th: Eddie Klimara (Oklahoma State) dec. Jordan Conaway (Penn State), 5-4 133: 1st: Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) dec. Cory Clark (Iowa), 11-8 3rd: A.J. Schopp (Edinboro) dec. Chris Dardanes (Minnesota), 4-3 5th: Jimmy Gulibon (Penn State) dec. Mason Beckman (Lehigh), 9-5 7th: Ryan Taylor (Wisconsin) dec. Rossi Bruno (Michigan), 7-3 141: 1st: Logan Stieber (Ohio State) dec. Mitchell Port (Edinboro), 11-5 3rd: Devin Carter (Virginia Tech) dec. Dean Heil (Oklahoma State), 17-8 5th: Kevin Jack (North Carolina State) dec. Chris Mecate (Old Dominion), 3-0 7th: Lavion Mayes (Missouri) wins by medical forfeit over Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) 149: 1st: Drake Houdashelt (Missouri) dec. David Habat (Edinboro), 3-1 SV 3rd: Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern) dec. Brandon Sorensen (Iowa), 3-1 SV 5th: B.J. Clagon (Rider) dec. Chris Villalonga (Cornell), 6-3 7th: Alexander Richardson (Old Dominion) pinned Daniel Neff (Lock Haven), 2:38 157: 1st: Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) maj. dec. Brian Realbuto (Cornell), 10-2 3rd: James Green (Nebraska) dec. Nick Brascetta (Virginia Tech), 3-2 5th: Ian Miller (Kent State) won by medical forfeit over Dylan Ness (Minnesota) 7th: Brian Murphy (Michigan) won by medical forfeit over Mitchell Minotti (Lehigh) 165: 1st: Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) dec. Taylor Walsh (Indiana), 14-7 3rd: Bo Jordan (Ohio State) pinned Jackson Morse (Illinois), 1:00 5th: Nick Sulzer (Virginia) dec. Ethan Ramos (North Carolina), 12-4 7th: Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin) dec. Jim Wilson (Stanford), 3-2 174: 1st: Matt Brown (Penn State) dec. Tyler Wilps (Pittsburgh), 5-4 3rd: Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) dec. Logan Storley (Minnesota), 6-4 SV 5th: Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State) dec. Mike Evans (Iowa), 2-1 TB1 7th: Zach Epperly (Virginia Tech) dec. Kurtis Julson (North Dakota State), 3-2 184: 1st: Gabe Dean (Cornell) dec. Nate Brown (Lehigh), 6-2 3rd: Victor Avery (Edinboro) dec. Blake Stauffer (Arizona State), 3-2 5th: Kenny Courts (Ohio State) dec. Hayden Zillmer (North Dakota State), 4-3 7th: Willie Miklus (Missouri) dec. Tim Dudley (Nebraska), 6-5 197: 1st: Kyven Gadson (Iowa State) pinned Kyle Snyder (Ohio State), 4:24 3rd: Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) dec. Scott Schiller (Minnesota), 12-7 5th: J'den Cox (Missouri) dec. Conner Hartmann (Duke), 4-2 TB1 7th: Nathan Burak (Iowa) dec. Max Huntley (Michigan), 6-4 285: 1st: Nick Gwiazdowski (North Carolina State) dec. Adam Coon (Michigan), 7-6 3rd: Mike McMullan (Northwestern) dec. Connor Medbery (Wisconsin), 3-2 5th: Bobby Telford (Iowa) dec. Jimmy Lawson (Penn State), 6-0 7th: Ty Walz (Virginia Tech) dec. Michael Kroells (Minnesota), 6-2

ST. LOUIS -- Sixty-eight days after Ohio State's football team won its eighth national championship, the Buckeye wrestling program has claimed its first. Ohio State clinched the team title during Saturday morning's Session V at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. "I'm just so happy," said Ohio State coach Tom Ryan. "All the coaches in the state, all the people in the state, Buckeye nation everywhere, I'm just really proud of the way the guys fought this weekend." Ohio State's Bo Jordan placed third at 165 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Ohio State earned key points today from freshman Bo Jordan, who won two matches to finish third at 165 pounds after losing to Oklahoma State's Alex Dieringer in the semifinals on Friday night. Jordan notched a 6-2 win over fourth-seeded Nick Sulzer of Virginia in the consolation semifinals before pinning Jackson Morse of Illinois in a minute to place third. "He's just a champion," Ryan said of Bo Jordan. He's devastated. He wanted to win four titles. He won four state titles. He wanted to win four national titles. He was broken last night. But what do we do? It's life. You're broken, you wake up the next morning and you get the job done." Kenny Courts, an unseeded junior, defeated North Dakota State's Hayden Zillmer to place fifth at 184 pounds, which guaranteed the Buckeyes at least a share of the national championship. "Kenny Courts was a big difference this weekend," said Ryan. It was not until after Iowa failed to get a pin at 197 pounds, few minutes before 1 p.m. CT, that it became official that Ohio State was this year's outright national champion. Ohio State will enter tonight's finals with 94 points, while Iowa has 84 points. The Buckeyes have three wrestlers in the NCAA finals. "Tonight is about them and putting an exclamation point on a great weekend for our program," said Ryan. Edinboro's A.J. Schopp bounced back from a first-round loss to to Penn's Caleb Richardson on Thursday morning to win seven straight matches and place third at 133 pounds. It marks the third All-American honor for the Fighting Scot senior. "I definitely had to change my mindset and attitude, and really had to come up with something to work my way back to third," said Schopp. Another Edinboro wrestler, Vic Avery, bounced back from a semifinal loss to place third at 184 pounds. Edinboro is third in the team standings with 75.5 points and in position to win a team trophy. Two No. 1 seeds who fell in the semifinals came back to place third, Alan Waters (Missouri) and Robert Kokesh (Nebraska). Waters defeated Iowa's Thomas Gilman 8-4 in the third-place match at 125 pounds. "I just wanted to go have fun," said Waters. "It's the last time to be out there, so enjoy it." Kokesh claimed third at 174 pounds with a 6-4 win in sudden victory over friend and rival Logan Storley of Minnesota. Returning NCAA champion Jason Tsirtsis of Northwestern, who lost in the semifinals, won two matches on Saturday to finish third at 149 pounds. "I've worked extremely hard this year," said Tsirtsis. "To come up short of my goal, it hurts bad. But you've got to do what you can to do the best you can with what you're given." Minnesota Dylan Ness did not wrestle today and defaulted to sixth place at 157 pounds, but was given a standing ovation by the crowd at the Scottrade Center. Ness finishes his career at Minnesota as a four-time All-American and two NCAA finalist. Ness and the Gophers are currently sitting in eighth place in the team standings. Paid attendance for Session V was 18,797. Team Standings (Top 10): 1. Ohio State 94 2. Iowa 84 3. Edinboro 75.5 4. Missouri 69.5 5. Cornell 67.5 6. Penn State 63.5 7. Oklahoma State 61 8. Minnesota 59.5 9. Nebraska 59 10. Virginia Tech 56 Placement Match Results 125: 1st: Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) vs. Zeke Moisey (West Virginia) 3rd: Alan Waters (Missouri) dec. Thomas Gilman (Iowa), 7-4 5th: Nahshon Garrett (Cornell) dec. Connor Youtsey (Michigan), 9-3 7th: Eddie Klimara (Oklahoma State) dec. Jordan Conaway (Penn State), 5-4 133: 1st: Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) vs. Cory Clark (Iowa) 3rd: A.J. Schopp (Edinboro) dec. Chris Dardanes (Minnesota), 4-3 5th: Jimmy Gulibon (Penn State) dec. Mason Beckman (Lehigh), 9-5 7th: Ryan Taylor (Wisconsin) dec. Rossi Bruno (Michigan), 7-3 141: 1st: Logan Stieber (Ohio State) vs. Mitchell Port (Edinboro) 3rd: Devin Carter (Virginia Tech) dec. Dean Heil (Oklahoma State), 17-8 5th: Kevin Jack (North Carolina State) dec. Chris Mecate (Old Dominion), 3-0 7th: Lavion Mayes (Missouri) wins by medical forfeit over Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) 149: 1st: Drake Houdashelt (Missouri) vs. David Habat (Edinboro) 3rd: Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern) dec. Brandon Sorensen (Iowa), 3-1 SV 5th: B.J. Clagon (Rider) dec. Chris Villalonga (Cornell), 6-3 7th: Alexander Richardson (Old Dominion) pinned Daniel Neff (Lock Haven), 2:38 157: 1st: Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) vs. Brian Realbuto (Cornell) 3rd: James Green (Nebraska) dec. Nick Brascetta (Virginia Tech), 3-2 5th: Ian Miller (Kent State) won by medical forfeit over Dylan Ness (Minnesota) 7th: Brian Murphy (Michigan) won by medical forfeit over Mitchell Minotti (Lehigh) 165: 1st: Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) vs. Taylor Walsh (Indiana) 3rd: Bo Jordan (Ohio State) pinned Jackson Morse (Illinois), 1:00 5th: Nick Sulzer (Virginia) dec. Ethan Ramos (North Carolina), 12-4 7th: Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin) dec. Jim Wilson (Stanford), 3-2 174: 1st: Tyler Wilps (Pittsburgh) vs. Matt Brown (Penn State) 3rd: Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) dec. Logan Storley (Minnesota), 6-4 SV 5th: Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State) dec. Mike Evans (Iowa), 2-1 TB1 7th: Zach Epperly (Virginia Tech) dec. Kurtis Julson (North Dakota State), 3-2 184: 1st: Gabe Dean (Cornell) vs. Nate Brown (Lehigh) 3rd: Victor Avery (Edinboro) dec. Blake Stauffer (Arizona State), 3-2 5th: Kenny Courts (Ohio State) dec. Hayden Zillmer (North Dakota State), 4-3 7th: Willie Miklus (Missouri) dec. Tim Dudley (Nebraska), 6-5 197: 1st: Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) vs. Kyven Gadson (Iowa State) 3rd: Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) dec. Scott Schiller (Minnesota), 12-7 5th: J’den Cox (Missouri) dec. Conner Hartmann (Duke), 4-2 TB1 7th: Nathan Burak (Iowa) dec. Max Huntley (Michigan), 6-4 285: 1st: Nick Gwiazdowski (North Carolina State) vs. Adam Coon (Michigan) 3rd: Mike McMullan (Northwestern) dec. Connor Medbery (Wisconsin), 3-2 5th: Bobby Telford (Iowa) dec. Jimmy Lawson (Penn State), 6-0 7th: Ty Walz (Virginia Tech) dec. Michael Kroells (Minnesota), 6-2

Here is a preview of tonight's NCAA finals matches: 125: No. 4 Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) vs. Zeke Moisey (West Virginia) You can bet against Zeke Moisey, but it’s not recommended. After locking up the cradle on Thomas Gilman the true freshman opted for the “pick him up and turn him over” finish, something that Nathan Tomasello will have to contend with for all seven minutes. Tomasello is built like a manhole cover and with a slick outside single and pass-by he could out-technique Moisey, but that will require stopping the young wrestler’s early aggression. 133: No. 13 Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) vs. No. 3 Cory Clark (Iowa) Brewer ran over No. 1 Chris Dardanes (Minnesota), 15-3, in the semifinals to prove the adequacy of my pre-tournament predictions and the power of Mark Cody wrestling. Brewer should be the heavy favorite heading into the finals with No. 2 Cory Clark (Iowa) whose creative takedown defense led him to the win over Gulibon. If he maintains his offense and staunch score-first Brewer shouldn’t have much issue with Clark’s aggression. If Brewer can get out from bottom and avoid the crowd, he’ll be in the driver’s seat for much of the match. 141: No. 1 Logan Stieber (Ohio State) vs. No. 2 Mitchell Port (Edinboro) Port will meet Stieber as the Ohio State wrestler looks for his fourth straight title. At their first matchup Stieber looked commanding, though not dominant, in a 6-3 decision. Still, if any wrestler can challenge Stieber, it might be Port who has a trip to a national finals in his back pocket and a win over Hunter Stieber. Still, Logan is too talented in too many positions to bet against, or to even lean against. Look for a five-point spread. 149: No. 1 Drake Houdasheldt (Missouri) vs. No. 3 David Habat (Edinboro) This isn’t the finals many expected, but in knocking off No. 2 seed Jason Tsirtsis with a second-period takedown, Habat proved he has the juice to make a championship run. He’ll face Houdasheldt who he beat last year at the same tournament and who bested Villalonga 4-0 in the semifinals. Houdasheldt will need to open up early with offense, something that Tsirtsis did as well, but couldn’t finish. Habat is tough to hold down, but Houdasheldt can get the job done if he finds a leg and keeps aggressive. Look for a low-scoring brawl. 157: No. 1 Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) vs. No. 2 Brian Realbuto, (Cornell) Martinez is on his way to completing a dream freshman season, but to get to the top of the podium he’ll need to knock off Realbuto (Cornell). The Cornell grappler made his way past No. 3 Dylan Ness (Minnesota) via injury default but was in control at the time. The pair have never met in folkstyle, but Realbuto owns a freestyle win. That might not translate at the NCAA level, but Realbuto should be taken as Martinez’s most serious competition. Look for him to battle for takedowns, open up the offense and make Martinez feel uncomfortable in scrambles. Look for Martinez to muscle his way out for a period or two, but be in trouble late. 165: No. 1 Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 6 Taylor Walsh (Indiana) Dieringer looked flawless in dispatching Bo Jordan 6-1 in the semifinals. His consistency has been almost unmatched this season and facing a dangerous, but limited Taylor Walsh means that Dieringer is likely to win his second consecutive title. Watch for Walsh to create action from scrambles and always be looking for falls. That’s dangerous against opponents in the 5-20 ranking, but likely ineffective against someone of Dieringer’s composure. 174: No. 2 Matthew Brown (Penn State) vs. No. 8 Tyler Wilps (Pitt) With only one takedown in their two semifinal wins, Wilps and Brown don’t look on paper to provide excitement. That’s incorrect. This matchup could be the highlight of the night with Brown determined to win his NCAA title and Wilps an opponent with the athleticism and flexibility to make for interesting exchanges. Brown should take this by a takedown and a riding time point, but don’t count Wilps out of the match. 184: No. 1 Gabe Dean (Cornell) vs. No. 7 Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) Neither semifinal included much scoring, but Brown found the only takedown of the round. In the finals it’ll be the fourth meeting of the two this season. Dean is up 3-0 with a win in the EIWA finals two weeks ago, 8-2; a 7-2 victory a few weeks before and 3-1 in SV at the dual meet. With those results it’s easy to assume that Dean will find similar offense and put up similar points, but this is the national finals and that much familiarity could open up opportunities for Brown. Still, look for Dean to feel comfortable and find his first NCAA title. 197: No. 4 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) vs. No. 3 Kyven Gadson (Iowa State) A rematch of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas semifinals where Gadson prevailed, 3-2, the 197-pounf finals should be one of the most athletic matches of the night. Snyder used several kickouts and a beautiful ankle pick to make it by J’den Cox in the semifinals, while Gadson used several attacks to score, and fend off the late offense of Conner Hartmann. The match should be a tossup with the first to score being the most likely to win. Watch for Gadson to come out strong and try to get Snyder on his heels and forced to defend his right leg. 285: No. 1 Nick Gwiazdowski (North Carolina State) vs. No. 6 Adam Coon (Michigan) Advancing to his second NCAA finals, defending champion Gwiazdowski has looked marvelous in his first two days of competition. Coon needed an incredible overtime scramble to edge Mike McMullan with a takedown as time expired. The finals will be a rematch from last year’s Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational where Coon beat Gwiazdowski. Both wrestlers have improved, but how much and where just isn’t known. Gwiz’s attacks have sharpened, Coon has gotten stronger and more agile. That could mean a lot more scrambling and high action than most fans have come to expect from the heavyweights.

ST. LOUIS -- A mix of youth and experience has Ohio State positioned to claim its first national championship in wrestling. On Friday night, the Buckeyes advanced three wrestlers -- two freshmen and a senior three-time NCAA champion -- to the NCAA finals, and lead the team race at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in St. Louis with 86.5 points. Iowa sits in second place, 13.5 points behind Ohio State. In addition to their three finalists, the Buckeyes have two wrestlers competing for medals on Saturday. Iowa has one finalist, Cory Clark (133), and five other wrestlers competing in the placement matches. Cornell (66.5), Edinboro (64.5) and Missouri (60) round out the top five teams after Friday's competition. Ohio State redshirt freshman Nathan Tomasello defeated Missouri's Alan Waters to reach the NCAA finals at 125 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Both Ohio State freshmen finalists, Tomasello (125) and Snyder (197), entered the tournament as No. 4 seeds and upset No. 1 seeds in the semifinals. Stieber (141) earned a bonus point victory for the fourth straight match to reach his fourth straight NCAA finals. He is looking to capture his fourth NCAA title and become just the fourth wrestler to accomplish the feat, joining Pat Smith, Cael Sanderson, and Kyle Dake. Tomasello and Snyder are two of four freshmen to reach the NCAA finals. Joining them in the finals are fellow freshmen Zeke Moisey of West Virginia (125) and Isaiah Martinez of Illinois (157). Moisey and Snyder are true freshmen, while Tomasello and Martinez are redshirt freshmen. Six No. 1 seeds reached the finals: Stieber (141), Missouri's Drake Houdashelt (149), Martinez (157), Oklahoma State's Alex Dieringer (165), Cornell's Gabe Dean (184) and North Carolina State's Nick Gwiazdowski (285). Stieber, Dieringer, and Gwiazdowski are returning NCAA champions. Two wrestlers who won titles last year as freshmen, Jason Tsirtsis of Northwestern (149) and J'den Cox of Missouri (197), lost in the semifinals. Team Standings (Top 10): 1. Ohio State 86.5 2. Iowa 73 3. Cornell 66.5 4. Edinboro 64.5 5. Missouri 60 6. Penn State 58 7. Oklahoma State 55.5 8. Michigan 51 9. Minnesota 49 9. Nebraska 49 Finals Matchups: 125: No. 4 Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) vs. Zeke Moisey (West Virginia) 133: No. 3 Cory Clark (Iowa) vs. No. 13 Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) 141: No. 1 Logan Stieber (Ohio State) vs. No. 2 Mitchell Port (Edinboro) 149: No. 1 Drake Houdashelt (Missouri) vs. No. 3 David Habat (Edinboro) 157: No. 1 Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) vs. No. 2 Brian Realbuto (Cornell) 165: No. 1 Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 6 Taylor Walsh (Indiana) 174: No. 2 Matt Brown (Penn State) vs. No. 8 Tyler Wilps (Pittsburgh) 184: No. 1 Gabe Dean (Cornell) vs. No. 7 Nate Brown (Lehigh) 197: No. 3 Kyven Gadson (Iowa State) vs. No. 4 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) 285: No. 1 Nick Gwiazdowski (North Carolina State) vs. No. 6 Adam Coon (Michigan) Here is a weight class-by-weight class summary of the 20 semifinal matches that occurred on Friday night. 125 Freshman Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) knocked off top-seeded Alan Waters (Missouri), 4-2. It marked Waters' first loss of the season. After a scoreless first period, Tomasello chose to start the second period in neutral. The two wrestlers then went another period without scoring. In the third period Waters chose down and picked up a quick escape to go up 1-0. Tomasello responded with a takedown with 1:25 remaining in the match to go up 2-1. Waters escaped to even the score at 2-2. Then, in the closing seconds, Tomasello scored a takedown to win 4-2. Unseeded true freshman Zeke Moisey (West Virginia) continued his unlikely run through the championship bracket, pinning No. 6 Thomas Gilman (Iowa) in 52 seconds. Moisey wasted little time, scoring a takedown off a single leg in the first 15 seconds. Gilman escaped quickly, and the WVU freshman attacked again and put Gilman to his back and secured the pin. 133 Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) reached the finals as the No. 13 seed. The Big 12 champion rolled to a 15-3 victory over previously unbeaten Chris Dardanes (Minnesota). Dardanes came out of the gates quickly, hitting a double leg takedown to go up 2-0. Brewer then escaped and scored a takedown of his own to take a 3-2 lead. Dardanes evened the score with an escape. But it was all Brewer the rest of the way. The 13th-seeded Sooner used a five-point move to go up 8-3 ... and the carnage continued as Brewer picked up another takedown and earned three more nearfall points to put the match out of reach. No. 3 Cory Clark (Iowa) topped No. 7 Jimmy Gulibon (Penn State), 7-5, avenging a loss from earlier this season. After a scoreless first period, Gulibon chose down and reversed Clark to go up 2-0. Clark escaped to cut the deficit to 2-1. With 30 second left in the period, Clark registered a takedown to go up 3-2. He then rode out Gulibon for the rest of the period. Clark picked up an escape early in the third period, and then countered a Gulibon attack and converted it to a takedown to go up 6-2. Gulibon escaped and scored a late takedown, but it was too little too late. 141 Three-time NCAA champion Logan Stieber (Ohio State) was dominant from start to finish, earning a 12-2 major decision over unseeded freshman Kevin Jack (North Carolina State). Stieber scored two takedowns in the first period to lead 4-1. In the second period he added another takedown and three-point point nearfall. In the third period the Buckeye senior scored an early reversal and rode out Jack the rest of the way. No. 2 Mitchell Port (Edinboro) cruised to a 14-2 major decision victory over No. 11 Chris Mecate (Old Dominion). Late in the first period Port used a reversal and nearfall to go up 7-2. The Edinboro senior added to his lead in the second period, picking up an escape and takedown to go up 10-2. He added a third-period takedown. 149 Top-seeded Drake Houdashelt (Missouri) shut out Chris Villalonga (Cornell), 4-0. Houdashelt scored a first-period takedown and added an escape in the second period and a riding time point. No. 3 David Habat (Edinboro) edged defending NCAA champion Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern), 3-2. One takedown is all the Fighting Scot needed. 157 No. 2 Brian Realbuto (Cornell) advanced to the finals by injury default over Dylan Ness (Minnesota). The two wrestlers went back-and-forth early, with Realbuto picking up a takedown and Ness a reversal. But midway through the period Ness suffered an injury and was unable to continue. Top-seeded freshman Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) remained undefeated on the season and punched a ticket to the NCAA finals with a 3-2 victory over James Green (Nebraska). The match was scoreless after the opening period. In the second period, Martinez rode Green and accumulated over a minute in riding time before being reversed to go down 2-0. Martinez escaped and the second period ended 2-1. Martinez earned another escape early in the third period, keeping his minute-plus riding time intact. He then fought off Green's attacks to win 3-2 after the additional riding time point was added. 165 No. 1 Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) had little trouble in a 6-1 semifinal victory over No. 5 Bo Jordan (Ohio State). Dieringer, an NCAA champion last year at 157 pounds, picked up takedowns in each of the first two periods to lead 4-1 after two periods. He added an escape in the third period and an additional riding time point for the five-point victory. No. 6 Taylor Walsh (Indiana) blanked No. 15 Ethan Ramos (North Carolina), 5-0. Walsh earned a first-period takedown and a second-period reversal to pace him to the victory. 174 No. 2 Matt Brown (Penn State) edged longtime rival Mike Evans (Iowa), 1-0. After no scoring in the first period, Brown earned an escape early in the second period, and the period ended 1-0 in favor of the PSU senior. Evans chose to start the third period in the neutral position, but was unable to break through Brown's defense. Tyler Wilps (Pitt), seeded No. 8, picked up a takedown in sudden victory to edge No. 12 Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State), 3-1. He becomes Pitt's first NCAA finalist since 2008 when Keith Gavin reached the finals in the same weight class. 184 Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) reached the finals as the No. 7 seed, blanking Kenny Courts (Ohio State), 4-0. The match went scoreless after the first period. In the second period Brown escaped, and then countered a Courts attack and scored a takedown to lead 3-0. He then rode out Courts in the third period. Top-seeded Gabe Dean (Cornell) edged No. 13 Vic Avery (Edinboro), 3-2, in the second tiebreaker. The two wrestlers traded escapes in the second and third periods. After no scoring in the first sudden victory period, the two traded escapes in the first tiebreaker period. The two went scoreless in the second sudden victory period. Then, in the second tiebreaker, both escaped again, but Dean held the advantage in riding time, which proved to the difference in the match. 197 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) edged defending champion J'den Cox (Missouri), 3-2. Snyder scored an early takedown, but a couple Cox escapes made the match 2-2 after two periods. Snyder earned an escape early in the third period and then held on for the one-point victory. No. 3 Kyven Gadson (Iowa State) reached the finals by defeating Conner Hartmann (Duke), 4-1. Gadson secured a takedown in the first period, escape in the second period and then added a riding time point in the third period. 285 Returning NCAA champion Nick Gwiazdowski (North Carolina State) will be looking to make it two straight titles after winning 6-3 over Connor Medbery (Wisconsin) in the semifinals. Gwiz broke open a 2-2 match in the third period with an escape, takedown and riding time point to win by three. No. 6 Adam Coon (Michigan) upended No. 2 Mike McMullen (Northwestern), 3-1, in sudden victory, avenging a 7-6 loss from the Big Tens. Coon came out on top of a wild scramble in sudden victory to advance to the finals.

Here is a preview of tonight's semifinal matches: 125 No. 1 Alan Waters (Missouri) vs. No. 4 Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) Tomasello is putting up major points from the top position. Will he be able to keep up the production against Waters? Unlikely. A win for Tomasello may include back points, but would come from limiting Waters uncanny ability to pick up scramble takedowns, and fight on the edge. No. 6 Thomas Gilman (Iowa) vs. Zeke Moisey (WVU) The most impressive of the tournament's upset special Moisey is he is in a great position to knock off Iowa's Gilman. He'll need to stay aggressive, find his cheap turn from top and frustrate the young Hawkeye. Will Gilman slam his way out from bottom? 133 No. 13 Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) vs. No. 1 Chris Dardanes (Minnesota) Brewer destroyed George DiCamillo in the quarterfinals and though his one season loss stands out, he is wrestling better than his opponents. Can Dardanes keep up the pace and find offense? Brewer has too few holes in his game. No junk, just forward pressure and creative finishes. No. 2 Cory Clark (Iowa) vs. No. 7 Jimmy Gulibon (Penn State) A matched packed with storylines. To win Gulibon will need to wrestle with the same wit he used in the quarterfinals. For his part Clark will need to crack the intensity and lean on the Hawkeye faithful. 141 No. 1 Logan Stieber (OHST) vs. Kevin Jack (NC State) A great run for Kevin Jack, but expect a blowout win for Stieber en route to his fourth title. No. 11 Chris Mecate (Old Dominion) vs. No. 2 Mitchell Port (Edinboro) Mecate can't be counted out of any match, but he'll be faced into a brutal back-and-froth with Mitchell Port. A returning national finalist, Port can make his way to the finals, but will need to avoid giving up points early. 149 No. 1 Drake Houdasheldt (Missouri) vs. No. 5 Chris Villalonga (Cornell) A dynamic semifinal pairing that has the potential to end up with a football-like score. Houdasheldt will need to work on the mat to get past a Villalonga wrestling better on Day two than on Day One. No. 2 Jason Tsirtsis, (Northwestern) vs. No. 3 David Habat (Edinboro) The defending NCAA champion has done nothing to impress fans of action. Ankle rides, front headlocks and a Virginia basketball- like defense earned him the yawn-inspiring 2-1 quarterfinal advancement. Habat, coming off a bad conference tournament, seems to have found his attacks. Can he open up Tsirtsis? 157 No. 1 Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) vs. No. 4 James Green (Nebraska) Ahh! The most anticipated rematch of the year. Will Green be able to avoid the powerful counters of Imar? Likely, but he'll also need to finish his offense and score points. The 2-0 win for Imar was his closest, but Green can't generate a takedown then two points is more than Imar will need. No. 2 Brian Realbuto, (Cornell No. 3 Dylan Ness (Minnesota) Realbuto is coming off a stunning comeback against Ian Miller of Kent State. He'll have a rematch against Dylan Ness who he beat at the National Duals. To repeat he'll need to avoid the throws, but that might be tough to do. This is the NCAA tournament and Ness is going to be Ness. 165 No. 1 Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 5 Bo Jordan (Ohio State) The top seed keeps rolling, but as Dieringer progresses further he'll need to deal with more complicated opponents and Jordan is all types of complicated. The Buckeye is fast, flexible and able to score in bunches. He's also got great defense. To win Dieringer needs to get in and finish without hassle. No. 6 Taylor Walsh (Indiana) vs. No. 15 Ethan Ramos (North Carolina) Ramos landed in a great spot after Pierce Harger tore his shoulder in warmups. Walsh should handle the Carolina wrestler with ease, and should find a fall. 174 No. 8 Tyler Wilps (Pitt) vs. No. 12 Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State) Wilps was overlooked for much of the year, but found the space to beat undefeated Kokesh in the quarters. He's big and strong and should outgun Crutchmer who has won three straight decisive matches. No. 3 Michael Evans (Iowa) No. 2 Matthew Brown (PSU) Push repeat on this classic 174-pound matchup! Throw out the records and be ready for a barnburner. 184 No. 1 Gabe Dean (Cornell) vs. No. 13 Vic Avery (Edinboro) A perennial almost-there, Avery cruised against Meeks in the quarters and will face a sluggish Dena in the semifinals. Should Avery find the type of offense he's keyed into this tournament Dean will be in major trouble. For his part Dean needs to score early and get Avery out of the match. Kenny Courts (Ohio State) vs. No. 7 Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) Courts has kept three matches close against equal opponents. Brown should manage this match and find the victory by 3-4 points. 197 No. 1 J'den Cox (Missouri) vs. No. 4 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) Cox is almost impossible to take down, but if there is a man for the job it's Kyle Snyder with an NCAA team title on the line. Both wrestlers struggled to gain separating in their quarterfinal wins and look for a low-scoring affair that may come down to riding time and Cox's ability to keep Snyder low on his ankle. No. 3 Kyven Gadson (ISU) vs. No. 10 Conner Hartmann (Duke) Hartmann has been overlooked and dismissed over the years. The Duke wrestler has s complete game, but look for him to be outmatched by Gadson's explosive counters and open attacks. To win Hartmann will need a takedown and plenty of top control. 285 No. 1 Nick Gwiazdowski (NC State) vs. No. 5 Connor Medbery (Wisconsin) Gwiz is arguably the best wrestler heading into the semifinals. While Medbery is wrestling a decent tournament, he'll need to finish shots and defend with perfection is he's to make it to the NCAA finals. No. 6 Adam Coon (Michigan) vs. No. 2 Michael McMullan (Northwestern) A match featuring two of the sprightliest heavyweights in history will be the perfect way to close out Friday's championship round.

ST. LOUIS -- After a strong quarterfinal round on Friday morning, Ohio State extended its lead in the team race at the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. Logan Stieber is one of five Ohio State wrestlers in the semis (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)The Buckeyes went 5-for-5 in the quarterfinals and are in a strong position in the team race heading into tonight's Session IV. Ohio State finished the round with 64.5 points, 17 points in front of Iowa. Missouri sits in third place with 45 points. The Tigers lost four team points after John Eblen (174) was called for a flagrant misconduct after headbutting Zac Brunson of Illinois in the consolation bracket. The Buckeyes' five semifinalists are Nathan Tomasello (125), Logan Stieber (141), Bo Jordan (165), Kenny Courts (184) and Kyle Snyder (197). Ohio State has no other wrestlers alive in the competition besides their five semifinalists. Iowa, Missouri and Cornell all have three wrestlers in the semifinals. The lone No. 1 seed to lose was Nebraska's Robert Kokesh (174), who fell 4-3 to Pitt's Tyler Wilps in the quarterfinals. North Carolina State's Kevin Jack (141) and Courts were the only unseeded wrestlers to advance to the semifinals. Here is a weight class-by-weight class look at what transpired in Friday morning's quarterfinals: 125 Big Ten champion Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) was dominant in a 16-1 technical fall over Kory Mines (Edinboro). The fourth-seeded freshman scored early and often against the 12th-seeded Mines. No. 6 Thomas Gilman (Iowa) scored a takedown in sudden victory to defeat No. 3 Joey Dance (Virginia Tech). Dance led 5-3 late in the match and looked to be on his way to the semifinals. But Gilman stayed active and eventually scored a takedown in the final 10 seconds to send the match to sudden victory. Gilman then scored off a bear hug in the extra period to steal the victory. Unseeded true freshman Zeke Moisey (West Virginia) punched his ticket to the semifinals with a 5-2 victory over Eddie Klimara (Oklahoma State). After a scoreless first period, Moisey picked up an escape and takedown in the second period to lead 3-0 heading into the final period. He added another takedown in the third period to seal the victory. It was Moisey's first win over Klimara in three matches this season. No. 1 Alan Waters (Missouri) advanced to the semifinals with a 4-1 victory over David Terao (American). Waters scored a takedown late in the first period. He added an escape in the second period and with riding time took the 4-1 victory. 133 No. 7 Jimmy Gulibon topped No. 2 Ryan Taylor (Wisconsin), 9-4, to move on to the semifinals. Gulibon registerd a takedown and two nearfall points in the first period to jump out to a 4-0 lead. He led 7-4 after two periods and then added another takedown to win by five and send the second-seeded Badger to the consolation bracket. Top-seeded Chris Dardanes (Minnesota) crusised to a 7-2 victory over Kevin Devoy (Drexel). Dardanes controlled the action from start to finish, scoring takedowns in each of the three periods. In a Cy-Hawk battle, Cory Clark (Iowa) proved to be too much for Earl Hall (Iowa State). Clark scored a takedown and picked up three nearfall points in the first period to go up 5-0. He added an escape in the second period and coasted to the 7-1 victory. Two-time All-American Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) reached the semifinals as the No. 13 seed, dominating George DiCamillo (Virginia), 14-5, in the quarterfinals. Brewer started quickly, collecting two takedowns and a three-point nearfall to take a 7-1 lead heading into the second. He led 11-4 through two periods and controlled the match the rest of the way. 141 No. 1 Logan Stieber (Ohio State) continued his dominance, picking up a 16-1 technical fall victory over Anthony Abidin (Nebraska) in the quarterfinals. Arguably the biggest surprise of the tournament is unseeded true freshman Kevin Jack (North Carolina State) reaching the semifinals. He knocked off returning NCAA runner-up Devin Carter (Virginia Tech), 10-8, in the quarterfinals. The two went back-and-forth, and with the score tied 8-8, Jack picked up a reversal in the final minute to take the lead and then rode out the Hokie wrestler. Chris Mecate (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)No. 2 Mitchell Port (Edinboro) took care of freshman Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) in the semifinals, 9-4. It was an action-filled first period, with Ashnault getting a takedown and escape and Port picking up a takedown and reversal. Port then led 7-3 after two periods and closed out the victory. Chris Mecate (Old Dominion) defeated No. 14 Dean Heil (Oklahoma State), 4-3. Mecate picked up an early takedown, which proved to be the difference in the match. 149 Top-seeded Drake Houdashelt (Missouri) had no trouble in the quarterfinals beating Alexander Richardson (Old Dominion), 13-2. Chris Villalonga reached the semifinals and guaranteed himself All-American status for the first time in his career. His quarterfinal victory came over C.J. Cobb (Penn), 3-1. Villalonga led 1-0 after two periods, and then picked up a takedown with 1:11 left to go up 3-0, which is all he the scoring he would need. Returning All-American David Habat (Edinboro) blanked Tywan Claxton (Ohio), 10-0. The match was scoreless after two periods before Habat broke it open in the third period, scoring 10 points and picking up a major decision. Returning NCAA champion Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern) edged No. 7 Sal Mastriani (Virginia Tech), 2-0. Tsirtsis used a second-period escape and riding time point to take the victory. 157 Brian Realbuto became Cornell's second semifinalist by beating Ian Miller (Kent State), 11-9, in sudden victory. Miller led 2-1 after one period, and 4-3 after two periods. Miller picked up a reversal in the second period and looked to be on his way to an upset victory. But the Big Red wrestler kept pressing and scored two late takedowns to force sudden victory. Realbuto then scored a takedown early in sudden victory to win. Isaiah Martinez (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Undefeated freshman Isaiah Martinez was pushed early by Nick Brascetta (Virginia Tech), but eventually opened up the scoring and won 10-4. The Illini freshman scored a second takedown in the second period and two more in the final period. Two-time NCAA finalist Dylan Ness is back in the semifinals after a 4-3 victory over No. 11 Brian Murphy (Michigan). Ness scored a first-period takedown and added an escape in the second period to lead 3-0 through two periods. In the third period Murphy escaped and picked up a takedown to make it 3-3 on the scoreboard. However, Ness' riding time point gave him the one-point victory. James Green cruised to a 12-4 major decision over returning All-American Mitch Minotti (Lehigh). Green led 4-1 after the opening period and stayed on the offensive the rest of the way. Green becomes the second wrestler in Nebraska history to earn All-American honors four times, joining his assistant coach Bryan Snyder. 165 Freshman Bo Jordan (Ohio State), a Big Ten runner-up, picked up his second pin in three matches and gave the Buckeyes a bonus point. His quarterfinal victim was Cooper Moore (Northern Iowa), who he pinned at 3:56. NCAA champion and top-ranked Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) continues to wrestle like a man on a mission. He handled Jackson Morse (Illinois), 18-6, in the quarterfinals. Dieringer led 14-2 heading into the third period and coasted to the major decision victory. In a Big Ten battle, Taylor Walsh (Indiana) edged Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin), 4-3. The two traded takedowns in each of the first two periods, and Walsh led 3-2 after two periods. Walsh escaped in the third period to go up 4-2, and Jordan added a late point, but was unable to score a winning takedown. No. 15 Ethan Ramos (North Carolina) won by injury default over No. 7 Pierce Harger (Northwestern) to advance to the semifinals. 174 No. 8 Tyler Wilps (Pitt) upset top-seeded Robert Kokesh (Nebraska), 4-3, to advance to the semifinals. It was Kokesh's first loss this season, and he becomes the first No. 1 seed to lose. Wilps scored a takedown with just over 30 seconds left in the first period, which is the only takedown of the match and proved to be the difference. No. 3 Mike Evans (Iowa) topped longtime Big Ten rival Logan Story (Minnesota), 2-1. The two traded escapes in the second and third periods, and with the match tied 1-1 went into sudden victory. Neither wrestler scored in the first period. In the first tiebreaker Evans escaped from Storley. He then rode out Storley for the victory. No. 12 Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State) reached the semifinals by defeating Pac-12 champion Joe Lathan (Oregon State), 5-2. The match was tied 2-2 after two periods. Crutchmer then took control in the final period, picking up an escape and late takedown to win by three. No. 2 Matt Brown (Penn State) avenged a loss from earlier this season by defeating No. 7 Zach Epperly (Virginia Tech), 2-1, in a match that saw no takedowns scored. The two wrestlers traded escapes in the second and third periods, but it was Brown's riding time point that gave the Nittany Lion wrestler the victory. Brown, a senior, becomes Penn State's 24th three-time All-American. 184 No. 1 Gabe Dean (Cornell) won a hard-fought match over Sam Brooks (Iowa), 3-2, to advance to the semifinals. The match was tied 1-1 late before Dean picked up a takedown in the final minute to go up 3-1. Brooks quickly escaped, but was unable to break through Dean's defense. Unseeded Kenny Courts (Ohio State) topped Matt McCutcheon (Penn State), 7-5, in sudden victory, and gave the Buckeyes critical team points. McCutcheon seemed to be in control. He led 4-2 after two periods and had over a minute of riding time. But Courts was not going to be denied. He escaped and picked up a takedown to go up 5-4. McCutcheon escaped to send the match to sudden victory. Courts then picked up the winning takedown in sudden victory. No. 13 Vic Avery (Edinboro) continued his run through the championship bracket. He crushed No. 5 Taylor Meeks (Oregon State), 14-5. Avery led 6-2 after the first period and extended his lead to 9-2 through two periods. The Fighting Scot kept the pressure on and rolled to a convincing victory. No. 7 Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) used two first-period takedowns to pace him to a 7-4 victory over No. 2 Max Thomusseit (Pitt). Brown becomes Lehigh's 140th All-American and fourth in the last five years at 184 pounds (Robert Hamlin '11-'13). 197 True freshman Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) won a tight battle over No. 5 Scott Schiller (Minnesota), 3-2. Snyder picked up an early takedown and Schiller earned to escape, which made the match 2-1 after the opening period. Snyder escaped in the second period to go up 3-1. Schiller earned an escape in the third to cut the deficit to 3-2, which is how the match would end. Returning NCAA champion J'den Cox (Missouri) was pushed in the quarterfinals by Max Huntley (Michigan), but came out on top, 3-2. Cox scored the match's only takedown in the second period. No. 3 Kyven Gadson (Iowa State) dominated No. 6 Nathan Burak (Iowa), 12-2, to reach the semifinals. The match was scoreless after the first period before the Cyclone senior broke open the match with two takedowns in the second period. In a wild and somewhat controversial match, Conner Hartmann (Duke) edged Morgan McIntosh (Penn State), 3-2. Hartmann grabbed a 2-1 lead in the second period by countering a McIntosh attack. McIntosh would tie the match 2-2 after an escape. Hartmann re-took the lead after an escape with 1:25 left in the match. Near the end of the match McIntosh nearly scored the winning takedown, but Hartmann held on for the victory. 285 NCAA champion Nick Gwiazdowski (North Carolina State) handled No. 8 Jimmy Lawson (Penn State), 11-3, to reach the semifinals. Gwiz picked up a takedown and two nearfall points to lead 4-0 after the opening period. He extended his lead to 8-2 after two periods and added another takedown in the final period to pick up the major decision. No. 6 Adam Coon (Michigan) edged unseeded Spencer Myers (Maryland), 2-1, in a match with no takedowns. Coon's riding time point was the difference. No. 2 Mike McMullan (Northwestern) topped No. 7 Blaize Cabell (Northern Iowa), 6-3. McMullan scored a second takedown midway through the second period to go up 5-1 and continued to rack up riding time. No. 5 Connor Medbery (Wisconsin) and No. 4 Austin Marsden battled to a 1-1 tie after regulation. Eventually it was Medbery who scored a takedown in the second sudden victory period to win 5-3.