InterMat Staff

Big Ten Network and ESPN wrestling analyst Jim Gibbons knows wrestling. One of the best broadcasters in the business, Gibbons knows what it takes to win an NCAA championship both as an athlete and a coach. Who does Gibbons see as the favorite coming into this year's NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in St. Louis? Who does he think will have a breakout performance and exceed expectations as Mr. Upside? Gibbons will be previewing each of the 10 weight classes leading up to the NCAAs. Follow Jim on Twitter at @JGibLacesUp and let him know what you think if his previews and picks. Alex Dieringer (Photo/Tony Rotundo)Oklahoma State's Alex Dieringer has been as dominant this season at 165 pounds as he was when he won the 157-pound weight class in last year's show. Dieringer has made a clear separation from the field and will be making his case for the Hodge Trophy. I think it will be interesting to see him enter the field looking to make our Olympic team. The USA is certainly deep in this weight class with Jordan Burroughs, David Taylor, Kyle Dake and now Alex Dieringer. He's that good. Nick Sulzer (Virginia), Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin), Bo Jordan (Ohio State) and Michael Moreno (Iowa State) round out the high placers in this weight class. Sulzer has been a leader on a good Virginia team. What else can be said about the Jordan cousins? It looks like they are both here to stay. Moreno is a tough guy looking to be a three-time All American. Like his father, who I coached, he's hoping his last season is his best Taylor Walsh and Nick Simmons (Photo/ IU Athletics)Dylan Palacio (Cornell) could be a good pick for Mr. Upside, but my pick is Taylor Walsh (Indiana). He is a big-time pinner but has had problems in his postseason career getting on the stand. He's got a junior high headlock with an Olympic champion finish. One of the reasons I believe Walsh gets there is the addition of Nick Simmons to the Indiana coaching staff. Simmons, aka The East Lansing Strangler, was a prolific pinner himself for the Spartans. The two have similar body styles for their weight class. The Simmons connection has instilled confidence in Walsh and it will show this weekend. I still get the biggest kick out of watching Nick Simmons in the corner. Trust me, if he's telling the ref something is illegal or potentially dangerous, the ref should listen. He is the expert in this field. Pick: Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) Mr. Upside: Taylor Walsh (Indiana) Previews: 125 | 133 | 141 | 149 | 157 | 165 | 174 | 184 | 197 | 285

UFC 185 goes down this weekend with two title fights and a former champion looking to get back in the win column. And the matchups, on paper, look plenty entertaining. The only problem is the style matchups seem a bit one-sided. So much so that Richard and John have the same picks for the entire main card. Then again the Mir vs. Silva card had a similar feel and had so many upsets that the online bookies were taken to the cleaners. So there is that. Do you want to listen to a past episode? Access archives.

Every year there are surprising seeds when the brackets are unveiled for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. However, this year there seems to be more head-scratching seeds than any NCAA tournament in recent memory. Each weight class is littered with unexplainable seeds, even when knowing the committee's weighted criteria formula: head-to-head (25%), quality wins (20%), common opponents (10%), RPI (10%), qualifying placement (10%), coaches' rank (10%), win percentage (10%) and number of matches (5%). Instead of dissecting every weight class and nitpicking the seeds, which could produce a book, we will just focus on the major seeding blunders this year. Devin Carter (Photo/Rob Preston)The most glaring seeding blunder is at 141 pounds where Virginia Tech's Devin Carter, a returning NCAA finalist, was handed the No. 4 seed. Edinboro's Mitchell Port and Carter have been ranked No. 2 and No. 3 respectively at 141 pounds all season long. Carter enters the NCAAs with a 26-3 record. His only losses this season have come to his teammate Sal Mastriani (seventh seed at 149 pounds) in sudden victory early in the season and the top two seeds, Ohio State's Logan Stieber and Port. The wrestler seeded one spot ahead of Carter and in the No. 3 slot is Missouri's Lavion Mayes, who failed to reach the finals of his conference tournament. Mayes fell in the semifinals of the MAC Championships to Old Dominion's Chris Mecate, a wrestler Carter defeated this season. The 11th-seeded Mecate is one four seeded wrestlers that Carter has beaten this season. The others: sixth-seeded Nick Dardanes of Minnesota, 12th-seeded Joey Ward of North Carolina and 16th-seeded Mike Morales of West Virginia. Mayes has not only taken worse losses (his other loss was to Central Michigan's Zach Horan), but his losses are much more recent. Carter has not lost a match in 2015. Mayes has lost two matches -- both to lower seeded wrestlers -- since Jan. 17. Another mind-boggling seed at 141 pounds is freshman Anthony Ashnault of Rutgers getting the No. 7 seed, two seeds higher than Nebraska's Anthony Abidin. Abidin not only beat Ashnault twice in two meetings this season -- with one of those wins being less than a week ago -- but also outplaced him at the Big Ten Championships and will arrive in St. Louis with a better season resume. Abidin has a 31-4 record this season, with three of his four losses coming to wrestlers seeded in the top seven. Ashnault, on the other hand, is 26-6. One of Ashnault's six losses is to Steven Rodrigues of Illinois, a wrestler Abidin handled twice, including once by pin at the Big Ten Championships. Unfortunately for both Carter and Abidin, the seeding blunders place both wrestlers on the same side of the bracket as three-time NCAA champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State. Cody WaltersOhio's Cody Walters drew the short straw at 174 pounds when he was given a No. 9 seed. Walters, an All-American in 2013, will bring a 30-1 record into St. Louis. His only loss of the season came nearly four months ago at the Navy Classic. He has since reeled off 24 straight wins. His most recent win came over Missouri's John Eblen, who was inexplicably given the fourth seed despite losing to Walters this week and four other wrestlers this season. Even though the committee claims that number of matches accounts for only five percent in their weighted criteria formula, the seeds say otherwise. This year, more than other year, the committee chose to penalize those wrestlers who missed a significant amount of time due to injury, even when those wrestlers who have strong resumes in limited action. That is evident when looking at unseeded All-Americans Jesse Delgado of Illinois (125), Josh Kindig of Oklahoma State (149), Hunter Stieber of Ohio State (149) and Nick Brascetta of Virginia Tech (157). While it's true that Delgado has missed much of this season due to injury, he has not lost to a wrestler seeded outside the top four. He fell to No. 1 Alan Waters of Missouri at the National Duals and to Nathan Tomasello of Ohio State in the semifinals of the Big Ten Championships before defaulting to fourth place in the toughest conference in the country. Delgado has an opportunity to join an elite group of three-time NCAA champions. The fact that he is unseeded without a bad loss is unfair to Delgado and the other competitors at 125 pounds. At 149 pounds, both Kindig and Stieber should have received seeds, especially now with 16 wrestlers seeded in each weight class. The committee does not use results from previous seasons, so Kindig's NCAA runner-up finish and Stieber's two All-American finishes mean nothing in the eyes of the committee members. However, looking strictly at this season's results, there is no question that both should be seeded. Kindig won the Southern Scuffle, which included a finals victory over Missouri's Drake Houdashelt. Houdashelt is the No. 1 seed and the only blemish on his record is the loss to Kindig. The unseeded Kindig will face Edinboro's David Habat in the first round in a battle of returning All-Americans. Even though Hunter Stieber has wrestled only seven matches this season, six of those matches have been against NCAA qualifiers, including three against wrestlers seeded in the top four. He is 2-0 against Penn State's Zack Beitz, who earned the No. 12 seed. Nick BrascettaBrascetta, an All-American two seasons ago who redshirted last season, won an ACC title and did not take a bad loss in 12 matches, but his limited resume put him on the outside looking in when it came to seeding the NCAAs. He opens his NCAA tournament Thursday morning against ninth-seeded Joey Lavalle of Missouri. One has to consider Brascetta the favorite in that match despite the seeds. At 133 pounds, two multiple-time All-Americans who missed significant time due to injury, Oklahoma's Cody Brewer and Edinboro's A.J. Schopp, are seeded much lower than where they are ranked by InterMat. Brewer finished the season ranked No. 3 by InterMat after winning a Big 12 title. He is 17-1 and avenged his only loss of the season against Iowa State's Earl Hall in the finals of the Big 12. Still, it was only good enough to land him a No. 13 seed. Schopp, who spent most of the season ranked No. 1 or No. 2, is not expected to be an All-American if the seeds hold. A knee injury kept the Fighting Scot senior off the mat for nearly two months, and he comes in seeded No. 9 despite winning 19 of 21 matches this season. He has wins this season over second-seeded Ryan Taylor of Wisconsin, 10th-seeded Mason Beckman of Lehigh and 14th-seeded Rossi Bruno of Michigan. NCAA champion Jason Tsirtsis was a Midlands champion and Big Ten champion (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte Lens)The only surprise (to me) at the very top of the seeds was Missouri's Drake Houdashelt getting the No. 1 seed over Northwestern's Jason Tsirtsis at 149 pounds. Both wrestlers have put together tremendous seasons, but I view Tsirtsis' season resume as slightly stronger than Houdashelt's. The returning NCAA champion from Northwestern avenged his only loss this season by topping Iowa's Brandon Sorensen in the Big Ten finals. He also has a win over third-seeded David Habat of Edinboro. Houdashelt's best win came over fourth-seeded Sorensen. His loss, though, is significantly worse than Tsirtsis' when looking at the seeds. While Tsirtsis' lone blemish came to the fourth-seeded wrestler, which he avenged, Houdashelt's loss came to an unseeded wrestler, Oklahoma State's Josh Kindig.

Big Ten Network and ESPN wrestling analyst Jim Gibbons knows wrestling. One of the best broadcasters in the business, Gibbons knows what it takes to win an NCAA championship both as an athlete and a coach. Who does Gibbons see as the favorite coming into this year's NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in St. Louis? Who does he think will have a breakout performance and exceed expectations as Mr. Upside? Gibbons will be previewing each of the 10 weight classes leading up to the NCAAs. Follow Jim on Twitter at @JGibLacesUp and let him know what you think of his previews and picks. Logan Stieber (Photo/Dan Vest, SB Nation)Let's start with the least challenging pick of a champion heading into the NCAA tournament. Ohio State's Logan Stieber is the three-time NCAA champ looking for his fourth title. He's now leading a team that has title aspirations after this week's tie for the Big Ten team title. This is a different sensation and one that needs to be managed; add the fact his brother Hunter is now back in the lineup and he will feel natural anxieties about watching family. It can be tough and cumulative, but manageable. Stieber has shown the ability to flip the switch. Will this be a coronation? I don't think it will. Mitchell Port (Edinboro) and Devin Carter (Virginia Tech) would be a great finals match, but it's not going to happen in the Stieber era. Of the two, Port has the ability to slow Stieber down, but he didn't show much last time they met. Carter is a big scorer but had a difficult time scrambling with Port in the Midlands final. Actually, the guy that seems to give Stieber the most trouble is Minnesota's Nick Dardanes. They went 9-8 in Columbus this year and Nick was able to get out quickly and put up two takedowns late. Dardanes dropped a match at the Big Ten Championships to Iowa's Josh Dziewa and now finds himself on the opposite side of the bracket as Stieber, which won't bother Buckeye fans. I'm looking for Dardanes to return to All-American form. However, he needs to avoid the early upset himself to get a chance for the upset of the young century. Zach Horan (Photo/CMU Sports Information)Dardanes is a candidate for Mr. Upside, along with Iowa's Dziewa (my Mr. Upside OW pick from the Big Ten Championships), but I'm going to dig a little deeper in the rankings searching for Mr. U. I'm picking the MAC champion Zach Horan of Central Michigan, seeded 10th. There is nothing flashy about this guy, with one exception: he knows how to finish a single on both sides. If you haven't been able to tell yet, I'm big on that. Horan won't get frustrated by an opponent that alternates the lead leg. Horan is coached by Tom Borrelli, who seems to get the most out of his wrestlers. Pick: Logan Stieber (Ohio State) Mr. Upside: Zach Horan (Central Michigan) Previews: 125 | 133 | 141 | 149 | 157 | 165 | 174 | 184 | 197 | 285

On Wednesday, the 70 at-large selections for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships were released weight class-by-weight class every half hour leading up to the seeds and brackets being released at 6 p.m. ET. Here is a look at 10 wrestlers -- one per weight class -- who entered Wednesday on the bubble for a berth in the NCAAs and were passed over. 125: Carson Kuhn (Boise State) Kuhn earned the No. 2 seed at the Pac-12 Championships and seemed positioned to earn an automatic spot in the NCAAs. However, the freshman from Utah suffered an injury in his Pac-12 semifinal match against Stanford's Evan Silver and was forced to default out of the tournament. Three Pac-12 125-pounders will be competing in St. Louis, but Kuhn who will not be one of them. He wrestled only 11 matches this season, but had wins over NCAA qualifiers Ares Carpio (Arizona State), Evan Silver (Stanford) and Trey Andrews (Northern Colorado). Tyler Keselring133: Tyler Keselring (Central Michigan) Keselring was a MAC runner-up, living up to his seed, but was passed over for an at-large selection by MAC third-place finisher Mack McGuire (Kent State). The MAC does not have a ranked wrestler at 133 pounds. Keselring needed to win a conference championship to earn an automatic berth to St. Louis ... and he nearly did. He led Missouri's Zach Synon in the championship match before being taken down with about a minute remaining to lose 3-2. The CMU senior finishes the season with a 15-10 record. He had wins this season over NCAA qualifiers Mack McGuire (Kent State), Gary Wayne Harding (Oklahoma State) and Dominick Malone (Northwestern). 141: Devin Reynolds (Oregon State) The freshman Reynolds had a strong Pac-12 tournament performance, going 3-1 and earning a third-place finish. His only loss in the tournament came in the semifinals to No. 7 Geo Martinez of Boise State, 5-3. Reynolds, a two-time Oregon state champion, compiled a 23-9 record this season, but lacked quality wins. He was 0-7 in matches against NCAA qualifiers from this year. 149: Nick Barber (Eastern Michigan) Barber had a solid regular season, but a disappointing performance at the MAC Championships. He went 1-3 in the tournament and placed sixth. Barber dropped his opening match to Ohio's Tywan Claxton and then bounced back to win his second match. However, in his consolation semifinal match he was pinned by Kent State's Michael DePalma, and then lost in tiebreaker, 6-5, to Central Michigan's Colin Heffernan in the fifth-place match. He finishes his season with a 15-13 record. He had wins over four NCAA qualifiers: Daniel Neff (Lock Haven), Mike Racciato (Pitt), Marcus Cain (Duke) and Michael DePalma (Kent State). 157: Jarrett Jensen (Northern Iowa) Jensen, a South Dakota native, opened eyes this season when he defeated returning All-American Ian Miller of Kent State last month. He entered the MAC Championships as the third seed, but had a forgettable performance, which ultimately kept him out of the NCAAs. After losing to Missouri's Joey LaVallee in the MAC semifinals, Jensen lost his next two matches -- both by a point -- to finish sixth. His last loss came to Eastern Michigan's Brandon Zeerip, a wrestler he defeated earlier in the season. Jensen won 21 matches this season, but failed to perform when it mattered most. He had wins over NCAA qualifiers Aaron Walker (The Citadel), Noel Blanco (Drexel), Brandon Zeerip (Eastern Michigan), Spartak Chino (Ohio) and Ian Miller (Kent State). Minnesota's Nick Wanzek was ranked in the top 20 for much of the season, but went a disappointing 0-3 at the Big Ten Championships (Photo/Mark Beshey, The Guillotine)165: Nick Wanzek (Minnesota) Expectations were high for the Gopher freshman heading into this season after earning three Minnesota state title and finishing with record of 18-4 as a redshirt. Wanzek showed flashes of his potential this season, but battled inconsistency. He pushed by teammate Brandon Kingsley for the spot all season. Wanzek entered the Big Ten Championships as the No. 8 seed in a weight class with eight automatic berths. But Wanzek struggled mightily at the Big Tens, going 0-3. He was hammered by Nebraska's Austin Wilson, 11-2, in his opening match. He then lost in sudden victory, 7-5, to Purdue's Pat Robinson. Wanzek was pinned in his last match by Iowa's Nick Moore. Wanzek finishes the season with a 16-12 record. He had wins over NCAA qualifiers Dakota Friesth (Wyoming), Jesse Stafford (Air Force), Adam Fierro (CSU Bakersfield) and Seth Thomas (Oregon State). 174: Keaton Subjeck (Stanford) Subjeck had a productive regular season, picking up quality wins and taking few unexpected losses. He entered the Pac-12 Championships as the No. 2 seed in a weight class with two automatic qualifiers. But the Stanford freshman struggled at the Pac-12s, dropping his opening match to Boise State's Holden Packard. Subjeck then lost 7-5 to Arizona State's Ray Waters. He dominated CSU Bakersfield's Jesus Ambriz, 10-2, in his fifth-place match, but it wasn't enough to earn him an at-large selection. Subjeck finishes the season with a 19-12 record. He notched two wins this season over Pac-12 champion Joe Latham (Oregon State), and also beat NCAA qualifiers John Staudenmayer (North Carolina), Dominic Kastl (Cal Poly) and Ethan Smith (Utah Valley). 184: Zach Nevills (Stanford) Stanford caught another tough break with Nevills failing to earn an at-large selection at 184 pounds. He placed third at the Pac-12 Championships in a weight class with two automatic berths. One of the wrestlers he was passed over by was Cal Poly's Nick Fiegener, a wrestler he outplaced at the Pac-12 Championships. Nevills did lose to him in their only meeting this season, though. Nevills' most notable win this season came over returning All-American Ophir Bernstein of Brown. He concludes his season with a record of 17-9. 197: Nick Bonaccorsi (Pitt) Bonaccorsi, a two-time NCAA qualifier, started the season strong, winning seven of his first eight matches, which included a victory over Lehigh's Elliot Riddick. His struggles started midseason when he went 1-2 at the Southern Scuffle, and then struggled with consistency down the stretch. He dropped five of his last six matches in the regular season. He then lost his opening match at the ACC Championships to Virginia Tech's Jared Haught. Bonaccorsi, though, came back strong to win his last two matches and place third at the ACCs, beating two wrestlers seeded ahead of him, North Carolina State's Michael Boykin and Haught. Haught received one of the six at-large selections at 197 pounds. 285: Mike Hughes (Hofstra) Hughes, a sophomore, had a nice season, going 21-11 as Hofstra's heavyweight. He earned two victories over Cornell's Jacob Aiken-Phillips during the regular season. However, it was Phillips who won the most important meeting at the EIWA Championships, knocking Hughes of the competition, and ultimately earning an automatic berth to the NCAAs.

Here is a look at the 70 at-large selections for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. 125: Joe DeAngelo (North Carolina State) Brandon Jeske (Old Dominion) Eddie Klimara (Oklahoma State) Tim Lambert (Nebraska) Ethan Lizak (Minnesota) Zeke Moisey (West Virginia) Dominic Parisi (Appalachian State) Scott Parker (Lehigh) Evan Silver (Stanford) 133: Cody Brewer (Oklahoma) Earl Hall (Iowa State) Gary Wayne Harding (Oklahoma State) Mackenzie McGuire (Kent State) Ian Nickell (Bakersfield) Kevin Norstrem (Virginia Tech) Caleb Richardson (Pennsylvania) A.J. Schopp (Edinboro) 141: George Fisher (Michigan) Dean Heil (Oklahoma State) Mike Morales (West Virginia) Mike Pongracz (Chattanooga) Steven Rodrigues (Illinois) Dante Rodriguez (Iowa State) Tyler Small (Kent State) Chuck Zeisloft (Rider) 149: C.J. Cobb (Penn) Joshua Kindig (Oklahoma State) Sal Mastriani (Virginia Tech) Gabe Moreno (Iowa State) Cody Ruggirello (Hofstra) Kenneth Theobold (Rutgers) 157: Anthony Collica (Oklahoma State) Justin DeAngelis (Oklahoma) Mike Kelly (Iowa) Immanuel Kerr-Brown (Duke) Justin Staudenmayer (Brown) Brandon Zeerip (Eastern Michigan) 165: Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) Adam Fierro (Bakersfield) Clark Glass (Oklahoma) Nick Moore (Iowa) Michael Moreno (Iowa State) Max Rohskopf (North Carolina State) Jonathan Schleifer (Princeton) Jesse Stafford Air Force 174: Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State) Brian Harvey (Army) Andy McCulley (Wyoming) George Pickett (Cornell) Matt Reed (Oklahoma) Raymond Waters (Arizona State) Tanner Weatherman (Iowa State) 184: Nolan Boyd (Oklahoma State) Nick Fiegener (Cal Poly) Brett Harner (Princeton) Andrew Romanchik (Ohio) Jakob Scheffel (West Virginia) Lelund Weatherspoon (Iowa State) 197: Scottie Boykin (Chattanooga) Kyven Gadson (Iowa State) Jared Haught (Virginia Tech) Timmy McCall (Wisconsin) Nathan Rotert (South Dakota State) Jake A. Smith West Virginia 285: Collin Jensen (Nebraska) Evan Knutson (North Dakota State) Ross Larson (Oklahoma) Austin Marsden (Oklahoma State) Garrett Ryan (Columbia) Nick Tavanello (Ohio State) Ty Walz (Virginia Tech)

The 78th annual Ohio (OHSAA) State Wrestling (individual) Tournament will be held starting tomorrow, with the championship finals slated for a first whistle at 5:45 p.m. on Saturday. It will be the last state wrestling tournament final held in the United States during the 2014-15 season. While there are no wrestlers seeking a fourth state title this year -- the first time since 2007 that is the case -- the competition will still be at a high level, with many storylines to watch. To start things off, there are the team races in Division I and Division III, along with the total lack of a team race in Division II. St. Paris Graham, currently ranked No. 2 in the country, is prohibitively favored to win a 15th straight title in the individual tournament, which would be their 17th in program history. Starting with the state title won by Jim Jordan as a freshman in 1979, the Falcons have amassed 74 titles over the last 36 state tournaments. That total is second to St. Edward (102) in Ohio history, and is equivalent to the combined total of the schools ranked third and fourth. Alex Marinelli (Photo/Rob Preston)For this year, St. Paris Graham is favored to win state titles in five weight classes, while having very legitimate chances of at least advancing to the final in four other weight classes. The seven champions from nine finalists to amass 282 points in 2009 are all state to keep in mind during the weekend. Leading the way for the Falcons is two-time state champion Alex Marinelli, who is ranked No. 1 in the nation at 160 pounds; the junior is the Buckeye State's best wrestler this year. Others to note include defending state champion Eli Stickley (120), 2013 state champion Eli Seipel (126), and freshman phenom Mitch Moore (113). Additional St. Paris Graham wrestlers in the national rankings include Rocky Jordan (132) and Kyle Lawson (152). The more openly contested team race of the two divisions with them comes in Division I, where there are four nationally ranked teams present: No. 15 St. Edward, No. 24 Brecksville (state dual meet champions), No. 26 Massillon Perry (defending individual tournament champions), and No. 37 Elyria. Also meriting attention will be Grove City Central Crossing. St. Edward, which had won 16 of the last 17 big-school state titles prior to last year, will enter the tournament as a slight favorite with their eight state qualifiers. Five of those wrestlers could be state finalists if they hit things right this weekend: No. 19 Allan Hart (113), L.J. Bentley (126), No. 14 Hunter Ladnier (132), Jared Campbell (195), and Parker Knapp (220). If that was to happen, the Eagles would regain the state title in a rout. On the other side of the spectrum, they could easily end up with just one state finalist. Entering with the most state qualifiers will be state dual meet champions Brecksville, which brings nine wrestlers to the competition; however, three of them finished fourth in the district tournament and have 13-plus losses headed to the state tournament. The Bees are anchored by No. 7 Austin Assad (126), who has finished 2nd-2nd-3rd in the state, but would have to beat the fourth, third, and second ranked wrestler in his weight class to win a state title. Three wrestlers won district titles last weekend, juniors Justin Demicco (138) and Austin Hiles (152) as well as sophomore Luke Strnad (182). Three other wrestlers join Assad in having placed previously at the state tournament: senior Sonny Lucas (145), along with juniors in Jarrod Bronstrup (106) and Demicco. Defending state champions Massillon Perry have the fourth-most state qualifiers with seven, and suffered some hard luck prior to the state series starting. The Panthers were unable to regain the services of 2013 state qualifier Austin Phillips (160), who could have won a state title in what is a rather wide open weight class; while fellow senior Zac McCauley (106), a possible mid-placer, failed to make weight for the sectional tournament. Nonetheless, they feature three returning state runners-up in No. 19 Jake Newhouse (120), No. 9 Jose Rodriguez (126), and Nick Steed (145). However, only 2013 state champion Rodriguez is in the clear to return back to the final; Newhouse would have to clear two-time state placer Mario Guillen (Perrysburg) in the semifinal, while Steed would likely face No. 14 Kade Kowalski (Tri-Valley), a returning state champion, in that same round. Rodriguez, along with fellow seniors Jason Spencer (132) and Brady Durieux (195), enter this weekend as district champions. The fourth of the nationally ranked teams is Elyria, which qualified eight individuals to the state tournament. While the Pioneers have a pair of projected state champions in No. 9 Ben Darmstadt (182) and No. 5 Kevin Vough (285), each is positioned to face the second-ranked wrestler in their weight class during the semifinal round; for Vough that is a showdown with another undefeated wrestler in Kameron Teacher (Central Crossing), the only weight class of the 42 to be contested with multiple undefeated wrestlers. Another notable for Elyria is that outside of Darmstadt and Vough, who finished second and third at state last year, their other six state qualifiers are debut participants in the state tournament. Freshman Josh Breeding (106) and junior Mikah Price (152) did qualify as district champions, to join Darmstadt and Vough, but three others qualified after finishing fourth at the district. There is more definition to the competition for the title in Division III, as it is a two-team race between No. 29 Delta and No. 31 Dayton Christian, each of whom advanced nine to the state tournament. Delta has won state duals each of the last three years, and are the defending champions of this individual tournament. The Panthers are anchored by projected state champions Drew Mattin (106), Jake Spiess (120), and Chance Veller (285); Mattin is ranked No. 4 nationally, while Spiess won state in 2013 as a freshman. Returning state placers Dustin Marteney (138) and Jesse Beverly (160), along with Mark Francis (182), join those three as district champions; while returning state placers Ryan Patchin (170) and Devon Richards (220) give the Panthers eight with state tournament experience (seven on the podium). Dayton Christian has finished runner-up in the state duals each of the last two years, and was runner-up to Delta in the individual tournament last year. The Warriors have three projected state champions in freshmen Tommy Hoskins (113) and David Carr (138), along with returning state champion Logan Lacure (145); Hoskins and Carr are ranked No. 13 and No. 18 nationally. Dayton Christian also features past state finalists in Hunter Bray (126) and Andrew Hoskins (160), Michael May (120) has twice placed sixth at state, and Nick Vestal (152) has placed twice between last year at Dayton Christian and his freshman year at Lake Highland Prep in Florida. Also qualifying for state, and projected to place are freshman Ronnie Pietro (106) along with junior Josh Clary (132). Despite being lower in the national rankings, the Warriors are a slight favorite to take home the small-school state title this weekend. From an individual standpoint, with no four-time state champion in the offing for this year's state tournament, there are two individuals that enter the weekend halfway to winning four titles. Both reside in the Division II tournament. Already mentioned is the excellent Marinelli for Graham, who is the only returning/previous state placer in his bracket at 160 pounds; while No. 12 Tyler Warner (Claymont) has the opposite of a clear path at 120 pounds. Warner was upset in the district final this past weekend 4-1 by two-time state placer, and returning state finalist, Tariq Wilson (Steubenville). There is a history with Warner losing an initial meeting of the season to Wilson, and then flipping it subsequently; back in 2013, Wilson beat Warner in a regional match at the state duals, but Warner won the individual district finals bout. Those two wrestlers are obviously on opposite sides of the draw. Also in the weight class is returning state champion Eli Stickley (St. Paris Graham), who is a three-time state placer and ranked No. 10 nationally; he beat Wilson in last year's 113 pound state final. The fourth key figure here is two-time state placer Seth Beard (Napoleon), who was runner-up to Warner as a freshman after beating Stickley in the semifinal, but last year finished third after losing to Wilson in the semifinal. Warner and Stickley are positioned to meet in the semifinal, their only previous meeting was a Warner win in the 2013 state dual meet final; while Wilson and Beard would have a rematch of last year's state semifinal. Furthermore, three other individuals are well-positioned to reach a fourth straight state championship match. In the big-school division at 126 pounds, Rodriguez is in the opposite half-bracket of his three primary challengers. Assad would face two-time state placer Shakur Laney (Pickerington North), with the winner likely to face Bentley in a state semifinal showdown. For the season, Assad is 2-0 each against Rodriguez and Bentley, though all four matches have went to overtime, in contested matches; Assad did not wrestle in the district final against Rodriguez. In Division II at 132 pounds, No. 8 Cameron Kelly (Bellbrook) seeks to bookend his career with state titles and cap off an undefeated campaign. Kelly won state as a freshman before finishing as runner-up each of the last two seasons. This season, it is a likely finals match against freshman Rocky Jordan (St. Paris Graham), who is ranked No. 19 nationally; Kelly is 3-0 against the freshman this year, including a 5-0 decision victory in this past weekend's district final. In Division III at 132 pounds, Jarred Ganger (Covington) is a clear favorite to win his third state title, after finishing runner-up as a freshman to Matthew Kolodzik; Kolodzik left Ohio after his freshman year to compete at Blair Academy (N.J.), where he would win three consecutive National Prep titles. Also in Division III, one can find our other potential three-time state champion in the Class of 2015, Garrett Hancock (Troy Christian) at 126 pounds. For a third straight year, Hancock does not enter the state tournament as the favorite; for a second straight year, the favorite is fellow senior Evan Cheek (Milan Edison). The wrestlers have met four times the last two seasons, with each winning two bouts (Cheek won at Marion County last year and the SMCC Duals this year, while Hancock won a state quarterfinal last year and at Marion County this year). Hancock's path to the Saturday night final is rather clear, while Cheek is looking at a semifinal clash against returning state runner-up Bray, a wrestler he has beaten twice this season. A final item to note in this year's state tournament is the record-setting presence of freshman wrestlers. In more than twenty years of recorded data, the 59 that qualified for this year's event is the highest ever; previously the 54 involved in the 2005 tournament as the high water mark. Five of the nation's top fifteen Class of 2018 prospects are in this event: No. 4 Mitch Moore (113), No. 6 Rocky Jordan (132), and No. 14 Ryan Thomas (138) of St. Paris Graham; No. 8 David Carr (138) of Dayton Christian; and No. 12 Jaden Mattox (113) of Central Crossing. Moore and Carr are projected state champions; Jordan, Thomas, and Mattox are ranked second in their respective weight classes. While not ranked among the top 25 prospects for the grade, Tommy Hoskins (113) for Dayton Christian is ranked nationally within his weight class overall.

Jason Bryant and Nick Mitchell to go "On the Mat" is this Wednesday, March 11. "On the Mat" is a presentation of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum. The show can be heard live on the Internet at 1650thefan.com or locally in Northeast Iowa each Wednesday from 5 to 6 p.m. Central on AM 1650, The Fan. A podcast of the show is available on mattalkonline.com. E-mail dgmstaff@nwhof.org with any questions or comments. Bryant owns and operates mattalkonline.com. He is currently the president of the National Wrestling Media Association. Jason will provide a preview of the upcoming NCAA championships. Mitchell is the head wrestling coach at Grand View University. His team won its fourth NAIA championship in a row.

The 41st annual Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic will be held this Sunday at Fitzgerald Fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh. Wrestling starts at 4 p.m. with an undercard bout between seniors from Illinois and seniors from the WPIAL, while the main event takes place between senior all-stars from across the United States wrestling those from Pennsylvania. Below are the matchups NOTE: Rankings are the InterMat weight class rankings as of March 4 PA vs. USA 113: No. 6 Devin Brown (Franklin Regional) vs. No. 1 Jabari Moody (Rich Central, Ill.) 120: David Pipa (Bishop McDevitt) vs. No. 7 Elijah Oliver (Washington, Ill.) 126: No. 10 (at 132) Korbin Myers (Boiling Springs) vs. No. 1 Nick Piccininni (Ward Mellville, N.Y.) 132: No. 5 A.C. Headlee (Waynesburg) vs. No. 6 Jared Prince (Palm Harbor University, Fla.) 138: No. 1 Sam Krivus (Hempfield Area) vs. No. 6 Davion Jeffries (Broken Arrow, Okla.) 145: No. 1 Michael Kemerer (Franklin Regional) vs. No. 2 Max Thomsen (Union, Iowa) 152: No. 2 Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh Central Catholic) vs. No. 2 (at 145) Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf, Iowa) 160: No. 2 Josh Shields (Franklin Regional) vs. No. 5 (at 170) Joe Smith (Stillwater, Okla.) 170: Te’Shan Campbell (Penn Hills) vs. No. 4 Fox Baldwin (Osceola, Fla.) 182: No. 13 Kellen Stout (Mt. Lebanon) vs. No. 2 Myles Martin (McDonogh, Md.) 195: No. 14 Jan Johnson (Governor Mifflin) vs. No. 1 Lance Benick (Totino Grace, Minn.) 220: No. 7 (at 285) Andrew Dunn (Bethlehem Catholic) vs. No. 3 Austin Myers (Campbell County, Ky.) 285: No. 15 Alan Beattie (Burrell) vs. No. 2 Zack Chaknois (Don Bosco Prep, N.J.) Eight of the 13 wrestlers for the Pennsylvania squad come from the WPIAL, which obviously impacts the WPIAL lineup for the undercard bout WPIAL vs. Illinois 113: Austin McDermitt (Burgettstown) vs. Francis Edelen (Oak Forest) 120: Brendan Howard (Jefferson-Morgan) vs. No. 15 Michael Cullen (Cary Grove) 126: Tyler Kenney (Connellsville) vs. No. 17 Kris Williams (Thornwood) 132: Josh Ridgeway (Norwin) vs. Alec McKenna (New Trier) 138: Dom Giannangelli (Franklin Regional) vs. J.J. Wolfe (Dakota) 145: No. 7 (at 152) Josh Maruca (Franklin Regional) vs. No. 15 Eric Barone (Crystal Lake South) 152: Paul Dunn (Bethel Park) vs. No. 18 Luke Fortuna (Montini Catholic) 160: Jared Walker (South Fayette) vs. No. 18 Matt Rundell (Oak Park River Forest) 170: Brooks Wilding (Upper St. Clair) vs. Carver James (Dakota) 182: Josh Bahr (West Allegheny) vs. No. 8 Xavier Montalvo (Montini Catholic) 195: Zach Smith (North Allegheny) vs. No. 3 Andrew Marsden (Crystal Lake Central) 220: Fred Mantsch (Hempfield Area) vs. Tyler Johnson (Lockport) 285: Tyler Mears (Greater Latrobe) vs. D’Andre Johnson (Glenbard East) NOTE: matches in the undercard are two periods in length, with each period lasting 2-1/2 minutes, and starting in the neutral position

Pittsburgh, Pa. -- The 18th-ranked Virginia wrestling team pulled off a stunning upset by winning the 2015 Atlantic Coast Conference wrestling championship by a comfortable margin at Pittsburgh's Petersen Events Center. The Cavaliers entered the competition seeded fourth with an ACC dual meet record of 2-3. UVa managed to get six wrestlers to the championship finals and all 10 members of the team finished no lower than fourth place. The Cavaliers won two weight class titles and finished with 85.5 points. Pitt was second with 71 points, Virginia Tech scored 59.5 points, Duke was fourth with 44 points, UNC was fifth with 42 points and NC State was sixth with 31 points. The 10th-ranked Hokies, the defending ACC champions, cruised through the regular season, posting a perfect 5-0 dual-meet record. It was the fifth ACC title in the program's history. UVa also claimed championships in 1974, 1975, 1977 and 2010. It was the second title for ninth-year coach Steve Garland. "I don't think anyone predicted this was going to happen," Garland said. "It was a heck of an upset win and we are really excited about being a part of something that we think is going to be a good story about Virginia Wrestling for years to come. The biggest thing I'm proud of is we had all 10 guys contribute and all 10 guys placed in the top four. It's extremely difficult to do that with how tough this conference is, and that's what won us this tournament for us." Highlighting the championship were individual titles by redshirt sophomore George DiCamillo (Highland Heights, Ohio) at 133 pounds and senior Nick Sulzer (Cleveland, Ohio) at 165 pounds. Both championships were the second for each wrestler. DiCamillo won the 2013 ACC title at 133 and missed last season due to an injury. Sulzer repeated as the champ at 165. Sulzer, a two-time All-American who is ranked number-four nationally, became the 15th Cavalier to win back-to-back titles during their career. "I think it's great, but the even better part is the team title," Sulzer said. "We finally got the ACC title that has eluded us the last few years. It puts the cherry on top. "I think sometimes when we wrestle as the underdog, we wrestle better and when we are the favorites, we are a little too nonchalant or relaxed. I think the fact that we weren't picked to win it played into our favor." Also advancing to the championship matches were junior Nick Herrmann (Amarillo, Texas) at 125, redshirt freshman Andrew Atkinson (Lynchburg, Va.) at 157, junior Blaise Butler (Belvidere, Ill) at 174 and junior Zach Nye (Enola, Pa.) at 197. All six of the wrestlers who reached the finals received automatic berths to the NCAA Championships. Also earning an NCAA bid was senior Joe Spisak (Boiling Spring, Pa.) at 141. He placed fourth overall. "Sending seven out of 10 going to the show is a big deal," Garland said. "I'm hoping to get TJ Miller through and maybe a couple more guys, but definitely TJ has a shot with beating three highly-nationally ranked guys. But that number, if you had said that a couple months ago when we were in the deepest part of the valley, that we were going to scoot seven through, I would say you're crazy. So I feel really blessed and really thankful." The Cavaliers had a trio of competitors place fourth in their respective weight class. TJ Miller (Medford, N.J.) at 149, Tyler Askey (Newnan, Ga.) at 184 and Patrick Gillen (Shelton, Conn.) at 285 all lost in their third-place matches. "We finally came together as a team, and we struggled all year with this," Garland said. "Today these guys were faithful to each other, they were faithful with the gifts and talents they've blessed with and they were faithful with the opportunity, and they seized the moment. That's why we won." "It's an interesting dynamic," DiCamillo said. "Coach Garland said yesterday in our team meeting that for the first time, we're not on paper supposed to win. And that's when we wrestle our best. We wrestle our best when we have a chip on our shoulder and I feel like we did a good job of responding to some controversial seeding and some adversity. We took fourth in the conference during the regular season and to win this the way we did and to still have nearly the entire finals to wrestle, it's amazing. We couldn't have asked for a better situation." The NCAA Championships will be held March 19-21 in St. Louis. Team Scores 1. Virginia, 85.5 2. Pitt, 71.0 3. Virginia Tech, 59.5 4. Duke, 44.0 5. North Carolina, 42.0 6. NC State, 31.0 Most Valuable Wrestler--Tyler Wilps, Pitt Individual Results -- Championship Finals 125 Pounds: Joey Dance, Virginia Tech dec. Nick Herrman, Virginia, 6-2 133 Pounds: George DiCamillo, Virginia dec. Mitch Finesilver, Duke, 12-6 141 Pounds: Devin Carter, Virginia Tech dec. Joey Ward, North Carolina, 11-3 149 Pounds: Mikey Racciato, Pitt dec. Christian Barber, North Carolina, SV-1, 3-1 157 Pounds: Nick Brascetta, Virginia Tech major dec. Andrew Atkinson, Virginia, 13-4 165 Pounds: Nick Sulzer, Virginia dec. Ethan Ramos, North Carolina, 5-2 174 Pounds: Tyler Wilps, Pitt dec. Blaise Butler, Virginia, 4-1 184 Pounds: Max Thomusseit, Pitt major dec. Jacob Kasper, Duke, 14-6 197 Pounds: Conner Hartmann, Duke dec. Zach Nye, Virginia, 6-5 285 Pounds: Nick Gwiazdowski, NC State major dec. Ryan Solomon, Pitt, 14-3

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Iowa and Ohio State won the 2015 Big Ten Wrestling Championships title on Sunday, tying for first place with a team score of 120.0. The Hawkeyes claimed their 35th championships title and first since 2010, while the Buckeyes won their third crown and first since 1951. Ohio State took home two individual titles, as Logan Stieber became the 14th wrestler to be crowned a four-time Big Ten Champion. This is the seventh time in conference history that there have been co-champions in wrestling, and first since 1932 between Illinois and Indiana. Minnesota finished in third place with 108.0 points, while Michigan placed fourth (102.5) and Penn State (96.5) rounded out the top five. Stieber was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Year and Wrestler of the Championships. The senior becomes the first Wrestler of the Year in program history after claiming his fourth-straight Big Ten individual title. Stieber is the second Buckeye to be named Wrestler of the Championships, and first since Lance Palmer in 2010. Head Coach Tom Ryan took home Coach of the Year honors, while Illinois’ Isaiah Martinez was tabbed Freshman of the Year. Martinez becomes the first Illini to win the honor. Ohio State’s Nathan Tomasello took home the 125-pound title. Tomasello, the No. 3 seed, earned a 3-2 decision over top-seeded Thomas Gilman of Iowa. At 133, top-seeded Chris Dardanes of Minnesota posted a 7-2 decision against Wisconsin No. 2 seed Ryan Taylor to win his first Big Ten title. Stieber earned his fourth conference crown, as the No. 1 seed defeated sixth-seeded Josh Dziewa of Iowa (TF, 3:07) to claim the 141-pound title. The 149-pound crown went to No. 2 Jason Tsirtsis, who earned a 2-1 decision over Iowa No. 1 seed Brandon Sorensen, en route to his second-straight Big Ten title. At 157, No. 1 seed Martinez of Illinois claimed a 12-5 decision to defeat No. 2 seed Dylan Ness of Minnesota to win his first Big Ten crown. Wisconsin’s Isaac Jordan, a No. 2 seed at 165, posted a 3-2 decision over Ohio State’s Bo Jordan to win his first conference title. Nebraska No. 1 seed Robert Kokesh claimed his second straight Big Ten title, taking the 174-pound championship with a 7-3 decision against Iowa No. 2 seed Matt Brown of Penn State to earn the crown. At 184, Michigan’s Domenic Abounader, a No. 2 seed, claimed a 7-6 decision over Brett Pfarr of Minnesota. Penn State No. 2 seed Morgan McIntosh won the 197-pound Big Ten title, taking a 4-1 decision over top-seeded Kyle Snyder of Ohio State. Rounding out the group of individual Big Ten Champions was No. 3 seed Mike McMullan of Northwestern, who claimed a 4-3 decision over fourth-seeded Bobby Telford of Iowa. The complete list of Big Ten individual awards and All-Big Ten honorees can be found below, while the full results are attached. BIG TEN WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS INDIVIDUAL AWARDS Wrestler of the Year: Logan Stieber, Ohio State Freshman of the Year: Isaiah Martinez, Illinois Coach of the Year: Tom Ryan, Ohio State Wrestler of the Championships: Logan Stieber, Ohio State 2015 ALL-BIG TEN TEAM Isaiah Martinez, Illinois Dominic Abounader, Michigan Chris Dardanes, Minnesota Robert Kokesh, Nebraska Mike McMullan, Northwestern Jason Tsirtsis, Northwestern Logan Stieber, Ohio State Nathan Tomasello, Ohio State Morgan McIntosh, Penn State Isaac Jordan, Wisconsin

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- No. 1 Mizzou wrestling continued its historic 2014-15 season Sunday afternoon at the Hearnes Center, as they were crowned 2015 Mid-American Conference (MAC) Wrestling Championships winners for the third consecutive season. Today's crown also marks the fourth straight conference tournament win for Mizzou, dating back to the 2012 Big 12 Championship title. The Tigers' 139.5 team points this weekend set a new all-time mark for most points scored at a MAC Wrestling Championships. It surpasses the previous record of 136.0 team points set by the 2013 Mizzou wrestling squad. Highlighting the weekend for Mizzou was redshirt senior Alan Waters, as he tallied the 125-pound MAC Championship and 2015 MAC Wrestling Championships Most Outstanding Wrestler award. Also of note, redshirt senior Drake Houdashelt was crowned the 149 pound MAC champion and it marked his fourth career conference championship. Houdashelt becomes the first ever Mizzou wrestler to garner four all-time individual conference titles. Five Mizzou grapplers earned individual championship titles on the day. In all, each of the 10 Tiger competitors locked up automatic bids to the 2015 NCAA Wrestling Championships. Taking home titles today was Waters (125), redshirt sophomore Zach Synon (133), Houdashelt (149), sophomore J'den Cox (197), and redshirt senior Devin Mellon (HWT). For their victories, all five grapplers also received 2015 All-MAC First Team honors. Waters ends his Tiger Style career with three conference championships, Cox picked up second career conference title, while Synon and Mellon each received their first ever conference crown. As runner ups at their respective weight classes, sophomore Joey Lavallee (157), redshirt senior Johnny Eblen (174), and redshirt freshman Willie Miklus (184) were named All-MAC Honorable Mention honorees. Check-in to MUTigers.com for the latest information on all things Mizzou wrestling. You can also find the Tigers on social media, by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter (@MizzouWrestling). Final 2015 MAC Wrestling Championships Team Standings 1) Mizzou - 139.5 2) Old Dominion - 97.5 3) Ohio - 85.5 4) Kent State - 75.5 5) Central Michigan - 74.5 6) Northern Iowa - 72.5 7) Northern Illinois - 40.0 8) Eastern Michigan - 28.5

Related: Brackets TOPEKA, Kan. -- History was made Saturday night in the final session of the 2015 NAIA Wrestling National Championships, presented by Blue Chip Wrestling, as Grand View (Iowa) won its fourth-straight team title, while Brock Gutches of Southern Oregon ended his collegiate career with a fourth-consecutive title at 174 pounds. Despite only having two individuals advance into the title round, the Vikings cruised to the team title with 147.5 points – 38.5 points better than second-place Southern Oregon. “All four titles we’ve won have been totally different,” said Grand View head coach Nick Mitchell, “and this year was not an exception. It was a really tough tournament. We only had two in the finals, which was the least over the last four years, but I really thought our team wrestled well having eight guys in the Top 4.” With the win, Grand View joins former member Central State (Okla.) (1984-1987) to win four-consecutive banners. “There’s a lot of good history with NAIA wrestling, and for us to be part of that history is awesome. We’re excited to make our mark in the NAIA,” said Mitchell. Both of the Viking finalists accomplished their mission of repeating as national champion. Ryak Finch at 125 pounds ended a stellar two-year career with Grand View by beating Aaron LaFarge of Oklahoma City, 10-1. The senior from Reading, Ariz., is the fourth two-time national champion for Grand View and ends his two-year career with a 55-0 record. “It feels awesome,” said Finch. “First year there wasn’t a lot of pressure. I wasn’t really nervous and did not have a lot of expectations, so I went out there and just wrestled. I had to force myself to do the same thing this weekend, especially with everyone talking about not losing for Grand View. I ended up closing my college career with a title, and it felt really good.” Brandon Wright at 141 pounds was Grand View’s other champion. Wright’s title bout against Kyle Wilson of Great Falls (Mont.) came down to an extra point for riding time, 4-3. The win made him the fifth two-time champion in program history and 15th overall – tied for ninth most in NAIA history. The other major story at the championships was the conclusion of a collegiate career of arguably one of the most dominant wrestlers in NAIA history. Gutches, who had an 8-0 major decision against Campbellsville’s (Ky.) Travis McIntosh, is only the seventh grappler in NAIA history to win four consecutive titles. Turk Lords of Montana State-Northern (1998 – 2001) is the most recent wrestler to accomplish this feat. “It was a long and stressful journey,” said Gutches. “I had a lot of fun and got to be on some great teams. I enjoyed the ride with a lot of great people.” Gutches was named both the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the National Championship and the National Wrestling Coaches Association Outstanding NAIA Wrestler of the Year at the awards ceremony following the event. As a team, Southern Oregon finished second with 109 points. The Raiders have claimed the runner-up trophy in five of the last seven seasons. Joe Cozart of Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) and Jake Williams of Cumberland (Tenn.) were the other two repeat winners at this year’s championships. Cozart downed Dalton Urrutia of Southern Oregon, 8-2, to become one of the most decorated wrestlers in Blue Raider history. He is the first three-time All-American in program history and joins former teammate Jameel Bryant as a two-time national champion. “Last year was my first national title ever as a wrestler,” said Cozart, “so there’s no beating that moment. There have been many ups-and-downs with my wrestling this season, and to come here and really prove myself among the doubters and critics is just an awesome feeling.” Williams claimed a 7-5 sudden victory over Jake Ekster of Missouri Valley. The Mid-South Conference also had a champion from Campbellsville, as Davion Caston defeated top-ranked Michael Ruiz of Great Falls (Mont.), 10-6. Caston is the third national champion for the Tigers, first since Tommy Pretty in 2010. Overall, the league had three national champions and three runners-up. In addition to Caston, four other individuals earned their first-ever national title – Ricky McCarty of Oklahoma City, Jose Cruz III of Embry-Riddle (Ariz.), Charles Johnson of Southern Oregon and Gabi Musallam of Missouri Valley. Musallam is the 15th national champion from Missouri Valley, which is the eighth most all-time and third most among active NAIA programs. Outside of Grand View and Southern Oregon in the team standings, Lindsey Wilson took third with 104.5 points, Great Falls claimed fourth with 87.5 points and Oklahoma City came in fifth with 71.

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The 2015 Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championships began Saturday afternoon at the Hearnes Center, and Tiger Style grapplers claimed 18 total victories in an impressive first day showing. In all, eight of Mizzou's grapplers advanced to Sunday's championship matches. Leading the charge for Tiger Style was redshirt senior Alan Waters who picked up a pair of technical fall victories. Between his quarterfinals and semifinals contests, Waters outscored his opponents, 34-1. Waters meets Northern Iowa's Dylan Peters tomorrow afternoon for the 125 pound MAC crown. Redshirt freshman Willie Miklus also turned in an impressive first day, as he recorded a pin in his quarterfinals matchup and major decision in his semifinals contest. Miklus faces Old Dominion's Jack Dechow in tomorrow's title matchup. Rounding out Mizzou's championship match qualifiers are redshirt sophomore Zach Synon, redshirt senior Drake Houdashelt, sophomore Joey Lavallee, redshirt senior Johnny Eblen, sophomore J'den Cox, and redshirt senior Devin Mellon. Based on the NCAA qualifier allocations for the MAC, Waters, Houdashelt, Lavallee, Eblen, Miklus, Cox, and Mellon have all secured spots to the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in St. Louis, Mo. Check-in to MUTigers.com for the latest information on all things Mizzou wrestling. You can also find the Tigers on social media, by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter (@MizzouWrestling). Day 1 Standings: 1st - Mizzou - 122.0 2nd - Old Dominion - 76.5 3rd - Northern Iowa - 63.0 4th - Ohio - 55.0 5th - Central Michigan - 54.5 6th - Kent State - 48.5 7th - Eastern Michigan - 24.5 8th - Northern Illinois - 23.5

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Chattanooga won its fifth straight Arby’s Southern Conference Wrestling Championship and 29th overall Saturday at Kimmel Arena, outdistancing runner-up Appalachian State by a score of 89-70.5. The Mocs won three individual titles on the day. SIUE’s Connor McMahon was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler, while Appalachian State’s JohnMark Bentley and Gardner-Webb’s Daniel Elliott shared SoCon Coach of the Year honors. The Mocs cruised to the team title, putting four wrestlers in the finals and picking up five third-place finishes. Appalachian State put five wrestlers in the finals, winning two titles. The Citadel finished third in the team standings with 56 points, followed by Gardner-Webb in fourth with 54. SIUE was fifth with 38.5, Davidson was sixth with 27.5 and VMI finished seventh with 24.5. The Southern Conference was allocated 14 spots for the NCAA Championships, with three at 149 pounds, two each at 125 pounds and heavyweight, and one each at the seven other weights. The feel-good story of the tournament was SIUE’s McMahon, as the No. 5 seed at 165 pounds upset No. 1 seed and SoCon Freshman of the Year Nick Kee of Appalachian State via major decision in the semis before topping No. 3 seed Shabaka Johns of VMI 4-3 in the final. In the title bout, McMahon got a reversal with just under a minute left to break a 2-all deadlock and hung on for the win. SoCon Wrestler of the Year Sean Boyle of Chattanooga posted a pair of major decisions to claim the title at 125 pounds, as the top seed posted a 10-2 win over Gardner-Webb’s Cortez Starkes in the semifinals and a 10-1 victory over The Citadel’s Joaquin Marquez in the final. Chattanooga’s Nick Soto made some history at 133 pounds, becoming just the 16th wrestler in the 78-year history of the tournament to win four titles. Soto, the No. 1 seed, pinned 2013 champion Anthony Elias of Davidson and No. 2 seed Vito Pasone of Appalachian State for his third title at 133 and fourth overall. Michael Longo of Appalachian State won his first career title at 141, as the No. 3 seed upset top seed Mike Pongracz of Chattanooga in the championship bout, 7-4. The 149-pound title match featured another upset, as The Citadel’s Matt Frisch, the No. 3 seed, topped No. 1 seed Ryan Mosley of Gardner-Webb 3-1 to pick up his first SoCon crown. Both Frisch and Mosley were assured of NCAA berths heading into the bout. The 157-pound match was a thriller, with The Citadel’s Aaron Walker successfully defending his title with a 6-1 win over Appalachian State’s Zack Strickland. With the score deadlocked at 1 late in the third period, Walker used a takedown and earned three back points in the final 20 seconds to claim the win. Sean Mappes of Chattanooga and Forrest Przybysz of Appalachian State turned in another thriller at 174, with Mappes, the 4 seed, emerging as the champion on riding time, 6-5. Mappes took down No. 1 seed Jake Residori of SIUE in the semifinals, 5-3. Top-seeded Scott Patrick of Davidson defended his 184-pound title with a 6-1 win over Gardner-Webb’s Hunter Gamble, accruing more than two minutes of riding time en route to punching his ticket to the NCAA Championships. The 197 match was another barn-burner, with SIUE’s Jake Tindle, the No. 4 seed, using a takedown with 25 seconds left to rally from a two-point deficit and claim the title 4-3 over defending champion and No. 2 seed Marshall Haas of The Citadel. Boykin knocked off No. 1 seed Scottie Boykin of Chattanooga in the semifinals, 5-4. Appalachian State’s Denzel Dejournette, ranked 19th nationally at heavyweight, won that title from the No. 3 seed, downing No. 4 seed Joe Bexley in the championship bout, 1-0. The Citadel’s Marquez and Chattanooga’s Jared Johnson won true-place matches for the SoCon’s second NCAA allocations at 125 and heavyweight, respectively. Chattanooga’s Shawn Greevy took third at 149 to claim the third SoCon allocation at that weight. The lightest five weights all saw the 1 seeds advance to the title bouts, but the top seeds in the heavier five didn’t fare as well. Davidson’s Patrick at 184 was the only one to escape unscathed, as the other four fell in the semis. Appalachian State’s Kee (165), SIUE’s Residori (174) and Chattanooga’s Boykin (197) all rebounded to take third place in their respective brackets. The 14 individuals that punched their NCAA tickets Saturday will learn their fates on Wednesday, March 11, as the NCAA Division I wrestling selection show will air on NCAA.com that day at 6 p.m. Team standings Chattanooga – 89.0 Appalachian State – 70.5 The Citadel – 62.0 Gardner-Webb – 54.0 SIUE – 38.5 Davidson – 27.5 VMI – 24.5 Individual champions/NCAA qualifiers 125 – Sean Boyle, Chattanooga 133 – Nick Soto, Chattanooga 141 – Michael Longo, Appalachian State 149 – Matt Frisch, The Citadel 157 – Aaron Walker, The Citadel 165 – Connor McMahon, SIUE 174 – Sean Mappes, Chattanooga 184 – Scott Patrick, Davidson 197 – Jake Tindle, SIUE HWT – Denzel Dejournette, Appalachian State Additional NCAA allocations 125 – Joaquin Marquez, The Citadel 149 – Ryan Mosley, Gardner-Webb; Shawn Greevy, Chattanooga HWT – Jared Johnson, Chattanooga Southern Conference Co-Coaches of the Year JohnMark Bentley, Appalachian State Daniel Elliott, Gardner-Webb Tournament Most Outstanding Wrestler Connor McMahon, SIUE

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The University of Iowa wrestling team advanced four Hawkeyes to the finals at the Big Ten Championships on Saturday night. Thomas Gilman, Josh Dziewa, Brandon Sorensen and Bobby Telford will wrestle for conference titles Sunday at 3 p.m. (ET). BTN will televise the event. The Hawkeyes were 4-3 in the semifinal round and 2-2 in the consolation bracket. Sammy Brooks picked up a pair of wins to stay alive on the backside of 184. Michael Kelly and Nick Moore were both eliminated with losses. "We did some work that was good to keep us in there when we had some things fall apart a little bit," said UI head coach Tom Brands. Big Ten Wrestling Championships Brooks Gilman collected two takedowns and an escape to edge out the No. 5 seed Jordan Conaway of Penn State, 5-4, at 125. He trailed 4-3 in the third before finishing on the edge for the go-ahead takedown with 45 seconds left in the third. He faces the No. 3 seed Nathan Tomasello of Ohio State in Sunday's finals. "It's not how I wanted to do it, but it's the postseason and as long as you're winning matches that's all that matters," said Gilman. Josh Dziewa upset second-ranked Nick Dardanes (Minnesota), 5-1, at 141. Dziewa scored takedowns in the first and third periods and added a second period escape to advance to the finals against top-seeded Logan Stieber (Ohio State). "I went after my attacks and I scored," said Dziewa. "I shot maybe three times in the match and scored on the two of them. That tells me I can shoot five, six, seven, eight times, and score five, six, seven, eight times." There is still the finals and still room to improve. Top-seeded Brandon Sorensen advanced to the finals at 149 after a 2-0 decision over Michigan's fifth-seeded, Alex Pantaleo. Sorensen rode Panteleo for 1:52 in the second period and added an escape in the third to advance to the finals, where he will face defending Big Ten and NCAA champion Jason Tsirtsis. "It feels good to get the win and help the team," Sorensen said before adding there is room to improve. "You're always looking to score and that's what I'm looking to do. It doesn't matter if you're up 14 or down two, you stay focused and keep going after your points." Bobby Telford became Iowa's fourth finalist when up upended top-seeded Connor Medbery (Wisconsin), 3-1, in sudden victory. Telford and Medbery exchanged escapes in the second and third period before Telford finished a quick single leg with 15 seconds left in the first overtime. Telford faces Northwestern's Mike McMullan in the finals. "When I went to the leg I wasn't worried about getting it up," said Telford. "I wanted to lock it out, get my head tight, control the match. The cutback was there, so I hit the cutback." Action at St. John Arena resumes on Sunday, March 8 at 1 p.m. ET and Championship matches are scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. "We have four finalists and we need to do some work," said Brands. "A lot of it is in our hands if you're talking about the team race, but really it's about being strong individually and continuing that path." After Day 1 of competition, Iowa is in second place with 101 points. Ohio State leads the pack with 102.5 and Minnesota hangs at third with 86.5. Michigan (80.5), Illinois (79), and Penn State (78.5) fall into fourth, fifth, and sixth, respectively. The Hawkeyes and Ohio State are the only two teams to advance four wrestlers to the finals, followed by Minnesota (3), and Wisconsin, Penn State, and Northwestern (2).

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Four Ohio State wrestlers advanced to tomorrow's final round of the Big Ten Championships, taking place this weekend at St. John Arena. The Buckeyes' finalists are redshirt senior Logan Stieber (141 lbs.), redshirt freshman Nathan Tomasello (125 lbs.), redshirt freshman Bo Jordan (165 lbs.) and true freshman Kyle Snyder (197 lbs.). In the team standings, Ohio State currently stands in first place 102.5 points, 1.5 points ahead of second-place Iowa. The Buckeyes are seeking their first conference title since 1951. Stieber's road to tomorrow's final included a 9-0 major decision over Nick Lawrence in the quarterfinals and a 5-1 triumph over Rutgers' Anthony Ashnault. He will face Josh Dziewa of Iowa in tomorrow's final. Earlier in the year, Stieber (24-0) defeated Dziewa by technical fall, 15-0. Logan's brother, Hunter, had the crowd on its feet during his quarterfinal match, as he defeated Penn State's Zack Beitz, 5-4, on a last second reversal in the third period. With the win, Stieber assured himself of a trip to the NCAA Championships in St Louis March 19-21. In the semifinals, Stieber medically defaulted to Northwestern's Jason Tsirtsis. The Buckeye crowed also had plenty to cheer about in the 125 pound semifinals, as Tomasello scored a takedown and escape in the third period and then held on for a 3-2 decision over No. 2 seed and two-time NCAA champion Jesse Delgado of Illinois. Tomasello now has a team-high 28 wins on the year and will face off against Thomas Gilman of Iowa, the top seed, in the finals. At 165 pounds, the much-anticipated Jordan-Jordan final will take place tomorrow, as Bo Jordan remained undefeated on the year and advanced to face his cousin Issac of Wisconsin thanks to an 8-1 decision over Pierce Harger of Northwestern. Jordan, who received a first round bye, edged Austin Wilson of Nebraska in the quarterfinals, 4-1. Snyder was able to avenge one of his losses this season by edging Nathan Burak 3-2, setting up a finals date with Morgan McIntosh of Penn State. Snyder defeated McIntosh earlier this year, 6-2, clinching a dual meet victory over the Nittany Lions. Ohio State was particularly successful in the consolation round of Saturday night, going 7-1 in matches that included a victory by Johnni DiJulius over Rossi Bruno of Michigan, Josh Demas over Anthony Perotti of Rutgers and a pair of wins from Mark Martin at 174 lbs. (over Josh Snook of Maryland Frank Cousins of Wisconsin). Action gets underway tomorrow with the third and fifth place matches at 1 p.m. and the finals at approximately 3 p.m.

AMES, Iowa -- The Oklahoma State wrestling team won its 13th Big 12 team championship and 49th conference title Saturday at Hilton Coliseum, scoring 92 team points and going a perfect 7-0 in title matches. The Cowboys' point total was 24 points better than second-place Iowa State, and no other school had more than two champions. "Each championship - they're important," coach John Smith said. "We like winning them, and this one is as satisfying as a lot of them - coming into tonight with seven in the finals and winning all seven. I saw some things out of my team that I haven't seen all year. You like to see that in post-season." Individual title winners for the Cowboys included Eddie Klimara (125), Dean Heil (141), Anthony Collica (157), Alex Dieringer (165), who was also named Outstanding Wrestler at the event, Kyle Crutchmer (174), Nolan Boyd (184) and Austin Marsden (285). Klimara started the night with a 5-3 decision over second-seeded Zeke Moisey of West Virginia at 125 pounds. Klimara traded a takedown for a reversal in the first period, then added a late takedown in the second that made the difference in the final score. It marks Klimara's second Big 12 title, as he won the 125-pound championship in 2013 and finished runner-up in 2014. "He's a great opponent," Klimara said. "I just had to stay solid and keep wrestling." Heil kept the momentum going with a fall in the 141-pound bout over Iowa State's Dante Rodriguez. He scored a takedown in the first period and a quick reversal in the second. Rodriguez escaped, but Heil took him down again straight to his back and picked up the fall with 11 seconds remaining in the period. It was Heil's fourth fall of the season and his first Big 12 title in his first conference title match. "Although it's an individual sport and you wrestle individual matches, anyone that goes out there and creates a positive chemistry for your team (has an impact)," Smith said. "A pin will do that. People get excited when you see pins." Collica's conference championship came against second-seeded Justin DeAngelis of Oklahoma. DeAngelis scored the only point in the first two periods with an escape in the second, but Collica scored an escape of his own and a followed that with a takedown in the final 30 seconds. Collica rode out the majority of the period, with a last second escape by DeAngelis making the final score 3-2 in favor of Collica. It was his second Big 12 title, as he won the 141-pound crown a year ago. Crutchmer's win at 174 pounds could be considered the most exciting of the event, as he and Iowa State's third-seeded Tanner Weatherman took their match as far as it could go through both overtime periods. Although the only scoring came via escapes to start each period, there were several close calls both ways, and each wrestler fought hard before Crutchmer's eight-second riding time advantage in overtime gave him the 4-3 win. It was Crutchmer's first Big 12 title in his first conference championship match. The 184-pound match was another closely fought bout, with Boyd coming out on top with a 2-1 decision. He and Iowa State's top-seeded Lelund Weatherspoon traded escapes in the final two periods, but Boyd's 1:28 riding time advantage was enough to give him the win, and also mathematically sealed OSU's team title. It marked Boyd's first Big 12 championship after finishing runner-up in 2014. In the 165-pound match, which was moved for broadcast purposes to the slot between 184 and 197 pounds, Dieringer added another line to his impressive resume with a dominant 14-4 major decision over second-seeded Michael Moreno of Iowa State. "I got a major decision so I can't be too mad about it, but I could have got a few more," Dieringer said. "That's the biggest thing I've got to worry about is moving my feet and hands." It was Dieringer's third-straight Big 12 individual title, as he won at 157 pounds each of the last two years, and improved his perfect record this season to 28-0. Marsden wrapped up the night with another solid win, defeating West Virginia's third-seeded Anthony Vizcarrondo by a 7-0 margin. It was Marsden's second-consecutive heavyweight conference title. The Cowboys' seven champs give them 83 all-time Big 12 individual champions and 262 all-time individual conference champions. Oklahoma State wrestling return to action March 19-21 for the NCAA Wrestling Championships in St. Louis, Mo. Standings: 1. Oklahoma State - 92 pts. 2. Iowa State - 68 pts. 3. Oklahoma - 43 pts. 4. West Virginia - 35 pts. Big 12 finals results: 125: No. 1 Eddie Klimara (OSU) dec. No. 2 Zeke Moisey (WVU), 5-3 133: No. 2 Cody Brewer (OU) dec. No. 1 Earl Hall (ISU), 10-5 141: No. 1 Dean Heil (OSU) fall No. 2 Dante Rodriguez (ISU), 4:49 149: No. 3 Shayne Tucker (OU) dec. No. 4 Roman Perryman (WVU), 8-6 157: No. 1 Anthony Collica (OSU) dec. No. 2 Justin DeAngelis (OU), 3-2 174: No. 1 Kyle Crutchmer (OSU) dec. No. 3 Tanner Weatherman (ISU), 4-3, TB2 184: No. 2 Nolan Boyd (OSU) dec. No. 1 Lelund Weatherspoon (ISU), 2-1 165: No. 1 Alex Dieringer (OSU) MD No. 2 Michael Moreno (ISU), 14-4 197: No. 1 Kyven Gadson (ISU) MD No. 2 Jake A. Smith (WVU), 10-2 285: No. 1 Austin Marsden (OSU) dec. No. 3 Anthony Vizcarrondo (WVU), 7-0

LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. -- The Edinboro wrestling team won its second straight Eastern Wrestling League championship and 14th in 18 years under head coach Tim Flynn on Saturday at Rider's Alumni Gym. The Fighting Scots crowned four champions at the 40th annual EWL Championships and five wrestlers qualified for the NCAA Division I National Championships, which are March 19-21 in St. Louis. Edinboro finished with 138.5 points to outdistance the seven-team field. Rider was second with 122.5 points, while Lock Haven was third with 101.5 points. 7542Mitchell Port won his third EWL crown. The tournament featured plenty of upsets and Edinboro was unable to avoid them. Only three number one seeds went on to win titles – Edinboro's Mitchell Port and Vic Avery at 141 and 184 lbs., and Cleveland State's Riley Shaw at heavyweight. Kory Mines and Vince Pickett joined Port and Avery as champions. After two second place finishes at 125 lbs. Mines won a 3-1 decision over top-seeded Ben Willeford of Cleveland State thanks to a takedown just before the buzzer. The redshirt senior earned his second trip to Nationals and improved to 31-7. Pickett (17-16) was one of the surprises of the tournament. The junior, the third seed, had a string of tough losses entering the EWL Championships, but he upset second-seeded Doanld McNeil over in the semifinals 4-3 in sudden victory, then claimed a 5-2 decision over Clarion's Ryan Darch to win the automatic bid and his first trip to Nationals. Port won his third straight EWL crown thanks to a 13-2 major decision over Bobby Rehm of Lock Haven at 141 lbs. Ranked second at 141 lbs., he boosted his record to 32-1. He also received the EWL award for Most Dual Points. Avery continued his impressive wrestling as he all three of his matches at 184 lbs. The junior claimed a 9-1 major decision over Lock Haven's Fred Garcia, the second seed. Avery is now 29-6. Unfortunately, top-ranked Dave Habat (149 lbs.) and second-ranked A.J. Schopp (133 lbs.) were unable to avoid the rash of upsets. In search of his third straight EWL crown, Habat dropped a 6-5 decision to second-seeded B.J. Clagon of Rider, just falling short after trailing 5-1 entering the third period. Habat is now 30-2. Clagon, a redshirt freshman, would go on to be named the Outstanding Wrestler. Schopp won his first match by fall, but the rust from a knee injury that cost him two months showed in his semifinal match against Ronnie Perry of Lock Haven. Perry, the fourth seed, posted a 5-4 decision. Denied of becoming just the seventh wrestler in EWL history to win four titles. Schopp would go on to take third place with two more pins. That boosted his career record to 63 as he is now 19-2 on the season. Seeded fourth at 165 lbs., Casey Fuller (16-17) fell one win shy of earning his first trip to Nationals. The redshirt junior won twice to reach the finals before dropping a 6-4 decision in sudden victory to second-seeded Conor Brennan of Rider. In the semifinals he had upset top-seeded Aaron McKinney of Lock Haven 4-1 in a tiebreaker. Patrick Jennings entered the tournament as the number one seed at 174 lbs., but he and Schopp will now have to wait until Wednesday, March 11 when the NCAA announces the 70 at-large recipients. The redshirt junior lost in first match to Tyler Wood of Lock Haven 8-6 in sudden victory before coming back to take third place. Jennings is now 29-10. Chase Delande took over as the starter at 157 lbs. recently, and the redshirt sophomore almost earned his first trip to Nationals. Delande finished third at 157 lbs., with all three of his wins coming by fall. With four weight classes wrestling "true second" matches, Delande (15-13) faced George Mason's Greg Flournoy, the top seed, with a trip to St. Louis on the line. He would drop a 5-3 decision. Heavyweight Warren Bosch (16-20) split his four matches to finish fifth.

FARGO, N.D. -- North Dakota State University won its second NCAA West Regional/Western Wrestling Conference championship with 67.5 team points to edge out the University of Wyoming which finished second with 63 points and third place South Dakota State (56.5) on Saturday, March 7, at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse. Five NDSU wrestlers claimed individual championships to automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships scheduled for March 19-21 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. Bison head coach Roger Kish was named Coach of the Year. North Dakota State 125-pounder Josh Rodriguez was named the NCAA West Regional/WWC Most Outstanding Wrestler coming through the tournament's toughest bracket with a 3-1 decision over Wyoming's Tyler Cox in the championship match. The 125-pound weight class advanced five of the six competitors to the NCAA Championships. Rodriguez, a sophomore from Guadalupe, Calif., opened with an 8-1 decision over Utah Valley's Chasen Tolbert in his first match. Rodriguez, who had lost to Tolbert during the dual season, improved to 17-7 overall. NDSU redshirt freshman 141-pound Mitch Bengtson (St. Cloud, Minn.) earned a 7-6 tie breaker-2 overtime win over South Dakota State's Lucas Zilverberg. Bengtson trailed 3-0 entering the third period, but rallied to take a 4-3 lead with time running out. After a video review, Zilverberg was awarded an escape to the score at 4-4. The first-minute overtime was scoreless, the wrestlers traded escapes in a pair of 30-second periods, and went scoreless again in the second one-minute overtime. Bengtson recorded a takedown in the first 30-second period and held off Zilverberg in the second 30 to post the win. It was the second overtime win of the afternoon for Bengtson, who registered a 5-4 tie breaker-1 overtime win against Northern Colorado's Benjamin Polkowske. Bengtson improved to 23-10 overall. NDSU redshirt freshman 149-pound Clay Ream (Wentzville, Mo.) grinded out a 12-2 major decision over South Dakota State's Alex Kocer in the championship match. Ream opened with a 4-0 decision over Gerald McGinty of Air Force in the semifinals. Ream raised his overall record to 23-11. North Dakota State senior Kurtis Julson (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) received an injury forfeit to claim the 174-pound championship. Julson was the runner-up at 184 last season and third at 174 pounds as a sophomore. Julson defeated South Dakota State's David Kocer 4-2 to advance. Julson improved to 18-9 overall and will make his second NCAA Championships appearance. Hayden Zillmer, a junior from Crosby, Minn., claimed his second straight NCAA West Region/WWC championship -- this one at 184 pounds. He won the 174-pound title last season. Zillmer defeated Wyoming's Ben Stroh 6-2 in the championship match. He opened with his eighth pin of the season by dispatching Zen Ikehara of Air Force at 5:30. Zillmer, who has won 10 straight matches, raised his overall record to 31-4. NDSU 285-pound senior Evan Knutson (Wausau, Wis.) was denied his second straight NCAA West Region/WWC title. Knutson lost a 5-3 decision to South Dakota State's J.J. Everard in the championship match. Knutson, who is 24-8 overall, earned a 4-2 decision over Northern Colorado's Brian Macchione to advance. North Dakota State 157 redshirt freshman Grant Nehring (Kimball, Minn.) turned in one of the fastest pins of the NCAA West Region/WWC tournament and went 2-2 to place fourth. He recorded a fall over Air Force's Samuel Kreimier at 1:53 to make the semifinals. Eventual champion SDSU's Cody Pack posted a 17-5 major decision over Nehring, who rebounded with a 5-1 decision over Utah Valley's Logan Addis. Northern Colorado's Beau Roberts defeated Nehring 8-4 in the third place match. NDSU 197 redshirt freshman Tommy Petersen (Lakeville, Minn.) went 1-2 at the NCAA West Region/WWC tournament. Petersen opened with a 5-3 win over South Dakota State's Nathan Rotert, but lost to Northern Colorado's Trent Noon 9-2 and Jack Carda of Air Force by the score of 3-2. Petersen finished with a 10-18 record. Bison 133 redshirt freshman Kyle Gliva (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) and 165 redshirt sophomore Steven Keogh (Thief River Falls, Minn.) each went 0-2.

BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- Cornell won its ninth consecutive EIWA title, matching a school record with five individual champions and comfortably holding off host Lehigh while qualifying eight of its 10 wrestlers for the upcoming NCAA championships in two weeks. The Big Red won the team title by 30 points over the Mountain Hawks, scoring 176 points - just .5 off its school record. It went 8-1 in the final session, with its only loss an injury forfeit. Cornell won all five finals and three more third place matches. The lone match of the evening that affected the NCAA tournament picture came with Mark Grey punching his ticket at 133 with a third place finish. Needing to top Columbia's Angelo Amenta to automatically qualify, the sophomore did just that with a controlling 7-4 decision. The night started out with Nahshon Garrett's third EIWA title at 125, scoring the program's seventh straight title at that weight after topping 17th-ranked David Terao of American for the second straight year in the championship match. Garrett dictated the match and won going away, 9-5, earning the Fletcher Award for most career points by a wrestler in the bracket. While Garrett was honored for his career - still well in motion - sophomore Gabe Dean took home the Coach's Award for Most Outstanding Wrestler after cruising through a brutally tough 184-pound bracket. The top-ranked wrestler in the country narrowly avoided a pair of first period shots against second-seeded and third-ranked Nathaniel Brown of Lehigh in the finals before crusing to an 8-2 victory, his second of the day against a conference wrestler ranked in the top seven nationally. Chris Villalonga (149) and Jace Bennett (197) completed repeat finishes atop the podium at Eastern's, becoming multiple-time champions along with Garrett and Dean. Villalonga used an escape and riding time to top Princeton's sixth-seeded Chris Perez by a 2-0 score and Bennett knocked off Penn's Canaan Bethea in a competitive match. Sophomore Brian Realbuto, an NCAA All-American a season ago, won his first Eastern title with a convincing 6-1 triumph over American's John Boyle in the finals. The most exciting match of the day came in the 174 pound consolation final between Duke Pickett and 17th-ranked Brian Harvey of Army). Each wrestler earned an escape to go into overtime knotted at 1-1. Two sudden victory sessions and four rounds of rideouts ended with the junior making his case for an at-large bid with an early escape that gave him a short riding time advantage. That seven second difference was enough to give Pickett third. Senior heavyweight Jacob Aiken-Phillips finished third after Lehigh's Doug Vollaro was forced to injury default midway through the second period with the score tied at 0-0. Sophomore Dylan Palacio finished second at 165 after medically forfeiting out of the championship. The ninth straight win at the meet builds on Cornell's own record and its five champions matched its total from 1993 and 2010.BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- Cornell qualified six for the EIWA finals, but it was one wrestler that earned a spot in the third-place match that may have most excited the Big Red faithful on day two of the 2015 EIWA Championships at Lehigh's Stabler Arena. Senior heavyweight Jacob Aiken-Phillips topped a pair of higher-seeded wrestlers in the consolation bracket to launch himself into the third place match and earn himself a spot at the NCAA championships for the first time in his career. He scored a comeback 7-6 victory over Hofstra's Michael Hughes in the second tiebreaker, using an escape after riding out the Pride grappler for the win. He then used a third period takedown of Columbia's Garrett Ryan, the Ivy League Rookie of the Year, to solidify his NCAA bid and send him into the third place match. With seven NCAA qualifiers (sophomore Mike Grey could become an eighth at 133 this evening), the Big Red took command of the team lead in the morning session as well. With 151 points, Cornell enters the finals rounds with a 19-point advantage over second place Lehigh and is 65 points clear of third place Bucknell. Nahshon Garrett had a big third period to pull away from Lehigh's Scott Parker, the first of three semifinal matchups between the two teams. Garrett, the top seed, with face 17th-ranked and second-seeded David Terao of American in the finals. Chris Villalonga starts a run of five of six finals featuring Big Red wrestlers starting at 149. The senior topped Drexel's Matt Cimato in the semifinals by a 3-1 decision in the second tiebreaker. He will face sixth-seeded Chris Perez of Princeton in the finals. Realbuto had a dominant semifinal win over 17th ranked Russell Parsons of Army, knocking off the No. 4 seed by a 12-3 major decision. He will wrestle for his first Eastern title tonight against American's John Boyle. Dylan Palacio will have a chance to claim his first EIWA title as well when he meets No. 1 seed Peyton Walsh of Navy after avening one of his two losses this season with a 5-3 semifinal victory over Army's Coleman Gracey. Both Gabe Dean (184) and Jace Bennett (197) won tight matches against top 10 foes in the semifinals, with Bennett using a late takedown and rideout of No. 10 Elliot Riddick of Lehigh for a 4-2 triumph. He will face fourth-seeded Canaan Bethea of Penn in the finals. Dean, meanwhile, knocked off Penn's Lorenzon Thomas, ranked seventh nationally, by a 10-7 decision in a high scoring bout. He will face Lehigh's third-ranked and second-seeded Nathaniel Brown in the finals in a match that will help determine the meet champion. It is the only finals matchup between the top two teams in the field. Sophomore Mark Grey and junior Duke Pickett will also wrestle for third place after losses in the semifinals. Grey dropped a narrow 2-1 decision to Lehigh's Mason Beckman after surrendering a riding time point, but bounced back with a win over seventh-seeded Grimaldi Gonzalez of Bucknell in the wrestlebacks. He will face Columbia's sixth seed Angelo Amenta for third place and a guaranteed spot at the NCAA championships this evening. Pickett will also wrestle for third after a 3-2 loss to Jadean Bernstein of Navy in the sems and a 7-1 decision over Columbia's Shane Hughes in the wrestlebacks. Pickett will meet Army's Brian Harvey for third, though just the two two placewinners will earn bids to the NCAAs. Pickett will be a strong candidate for an at-large bid. The Big Red's 10th placewinner was freshman Dylan Realbuto at 141, who nearly majored sixth-seeded Logan Everett of Army in the seventh place match, picking up a 12-5 win.

125: No. 4 Thomas Gilman (Iowa) dec. No. 10 Jordan Conaway (Penn State), 5-4 No. 7 Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) dec. No. 2 Jesse Delgado (Illinois), 3-2 133: No. 1 Chris Dardanes (Minnesota) dec. No. 7 Cory Clark (Iowa), 6-2 TB1 No. 3 Ryan Taylor (Wisconsin) dec. No. 6 Jimmy Gulibon (Penn State), 7-5 SV 141: No. 1 Logan Stieber (Ohio State) dec. No. 9 Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers), 5-1 No. 7 Josh Dziewa (Iowa) dec. No. 4 Nick Dardanes (Minnesota), 5-1 149: No. 4 Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) dec. No. 15 Alec Pantaleo (Michigan), 2-0 No. 2 Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern) by injury default over No. 7 Hunter Stieber (Ohio State) 157: No. 1 Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) dec. No. 9 Doug Welch (Purdue), 11-6 No. 2 Dylan Ness (Minnesota) dec. No. 3 James Green (Nebraska), 6-5 165: No. 5 Bo Jordan (Ohio State) dec. No. 7 Pierce Harger (Northwestern), 8-1 No. 3 Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin) dec. No. 6 Taylor Walsh (Indiana), 6-5 174: No. 1 Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) dec. No. 4 Logan Storley (Minnesota), 2-1 No. 2 Matt Brown (Penn State) dec. No. 3 Mike Evans (Iowa), 2-0 184: No. 13 Brett Pfarr (Minnesota) dec. Matt McCutcheon (Penn State), 4-2 No. 11 Domenic Abounader (Michigan) dec. No. 17 Ricky Robertson (Wisconsin), 6-1 197: No. 3 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) dec. No. 6 Nathan Burak (Iowa), 3-2 No. 4 Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) dec. No. 5 Scott Schiller (Minnesota), 5-4 285: No. 4 Bobby Telford (Iowa) dec. No. 2 Connor Medbery (Wisconsin), 3-1 SV No. 3 Mike McMullan (Northwestern) dec. No. 6 Adam Coon (Michigan), 7-6

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The semifinals are set at the 2015 Big Ten Wrestling Championships in Columbus, Ohio. Nine of the 10 No. 1 seeds advanced. The lone No. 1 to fall was Iowa's Sam Brooks, who lost 6-4 to Penn State's Matt McCutcheon in the quarterfinals at 184 pounds. Iowa has the most semifinalists with seven, followed by Minnesota with six. Ohio State and Penn State both have five. Semifinal Matchups 125: No. 4 Thomas Gilman (Iowa) vs. No. 10 Jordan Conaway (Penn State) No. 2 Jesse Delgado (Illinois) vs. No. 7 Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) 133: No. 1 Chris Dardanes (Minnesota) vs. No. 7 Cory Clark (Iowa) No. 3 Ryan Taylor (Wisconsin) vs. No. 6 Jimmy Gulibon (Penn State) 141: No. 1 Logan Stieber (Ohio State) vs. No. 9 Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) No. 4 Nick Dardanes (Minnesota) vs. No. 7 Josh Dziewa (Iowa) 149: No. 4 Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) vs. No. 15 Alec Pantaleo (Michigan) No. 2 Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern) vs. No. 7 Hunter Stieber (Ohio State) 157: No. 1 Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) vs. No. 9 Doug Welch (Purdue) No. 2 Dylan Ness (Minnesota) vs. No. 3 James Green (Nebraska) 165: No. 5 Bo Jordan (Ohio State) vs. No. 7 Pierce Harger (Northwestern) No. 3 Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin) vs. No. 6 Taylor Walsh (Indiana) 174: No. 1 Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) vs. No. 4 Logan Storley (Minnesota) No. 2 Matt Brown (Penn State) vs. No. 3 Mike Evans (Iowa) 184: No. 13 Brett Pfarr (Minnesota) vs. Matt McCutcheon (Penn State) No. 11 Domenic Abounader (Michigan) vs. No. 17 Ricky Robertson (Wisconsin) 197: No. 3 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) vs. No. 6 Nathan Burak (Iowa) No. 4 Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) vs. No. 5 Scott Schiller (Minnesota) 285: No. 2 Connor Medbery (Wisconsin) vs. No. 4 Bobby Telford (Iowa) No. 3 Mike McMullan (Northwestern) vs. No. 6 Adam Coon (Michigan)

125: No. 4 Thomas Gilman (Iowa) dec. Luke Welch (Purdue), 8-4 No. 10 Jordan Conaway (Penn State) dec. No. 11 Tim Lambert (Nebraska), 7-4 No. 7 Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) dec. No. 20 Conor Youtsey (Michigan), 5-2 No. 2 Jesse Delgado (Illinois) dec. Ethan Lizak (Minnesota), 6-3 133: No. 1 Chris Dardanes (Minnesota) dec. No. 9 Rossi Bruno (Michigan), 8-3 No. 7 Cory Clark (Iowa) dec. No. 11 Johnni DiJulius (Ohio State), 2-0 No. 6 Jimmy Gulibon (Penn State) dec. No. 8 Zane Richards (Illinois), 3-1 No. 3 Ryan Taylor (Wisconsin) vs. No. 12 Danny Sabatello (Purdue) 141: No. 1 Logan Stieber (Ohio State) maj. dec. Nick Lawrence (Purdue), 9-0 No. 9 Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) pinned Jesse Thielke (Wisconsin), 5:50 No. 7 Josh Dziewa (Iowa) dec. No. 8 Anthony Abidin (Nebraska), 3-1 No. 4 Nick Dardanes (Minnesota) pinned Jameson Oster (Northwestern), 3:58 149: No. 4 Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) dec. Rylan Lubeck (Wisconsin), 6-1 No. 15 Alec Pantaleo (Michigan) by injury default over No. 18 Ken Theobold (Rutgers) No. 7 Hunter Stieber (Ohio State) dec. No. 14 Zack Beitz (Penn State), 5-4 No. 2 Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern) dec. Justin Arthur (Nebraska), 6-0 157: No. 1 Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) tech. fall Luke Frey (Penn State), 24-9 No. 9 Doug Welch (Purdue) dec. No. 8 Brian Murphy (Michigan), 3-2 No. 3 James Green (Nebraska) dec. No. 13 Josh Demas (Ohio State), 8-2 No. 2 Dylan Ness (Minnesota) maj. dec. No. 15 Mike Kelly (Iowa), 15-6 165: No. 5 Bo Jordan (Ohio State) dec. Austin Wilson (Nebraska), 4-1 No. 7 Pierce Harger (Northwestern) dec. No. 8 Jackson Morse (Illinois), 10-5 No. 6 Taylor Walsh (Indiana) pinned No. 17 Garrett Hammond (Penn State), 0:39 No. 3 Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin) maj. dec. Pat Robinson (Purdue), 16-4 174: No. 1 Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) pinned No. 13 Taylor Massa (Michigan), 0:16 No. 4 Logan Storley (Minnesota) dec. No. 10 Zac Brunson (Illinois), 5-2 No. 3 Mike Evans (Iowa) dec. No. 15 Mark Martin (Ohio State), 2-0 No. 2 Matt Brown (Penn State) maj. dec. No. 19 Nate Jackson (Indiana), 15-7 184: Matt McCutcheon (Penn State) dec. No. 8 Sammy Brooks (Iowa), 6-4 No. 13 Brett Pfarr (Minnesota) dec. No. 12 Kenny Courts (Ohio State), 7-2 No. 17 Ricky Robertson (Wisconsin) dec. No. 14 T.J. Dudley (Nebraska), 10-9 TB No. 11 Domenic Abounader (Michigan) dec. No. 19 Nikko Reyes (Illinois), 6-4 197: No. 3 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) dec. No. 14 Timmy McCall (Wisconsin), 6-2 No. 6 Nathan Burak (Iowa) dec. Hayden Hrymack (Rutgers), 9-5 No. 5 Scott Schiller (Minnesota) dec. No. 8 Max Huntley (Michigan), 9-6 No. 4 Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) maj. dec. Nick McDiarmid (Michigan State), 13-3 285: No. 2 Connor Medbery (Wisconsin) dec. No. 15 Billy Smith (Rutgers), 6-3 No. 4 Bobby Telford (Iowa) vs. No. 7 Jimmy Lawson (Penn State), 2-1 No. 3 Mike McMullan (Northwestern) dec. No. 14 Michael Kroells (Minnesota), 10-8 SV No. 6 Adam Coon (Michigan) dec. Brooks Black (Illinois), 5-1

TOPEKA, Kan. -- Grand View (Iowa) strengthened its lead on a potential fourth-straight team championship Saturday night in Session II of the 2015 NAIA Wrestling National Championships, presented by Blue Chip Wrestling. The three-time defending champions boast 83 points -- 19 more than second-place Great Falls (Mont.). The 58th annual event is taking place for the second-consecutive season inside the Kansas Expocentre. The Vikings, who with a team title this season will join former-member Central State (Okla.) (1984-87) as the only programs to win four in-a-row, had nine of their 12 qualifiers lock up All-America status, including six that reached the semifinals. Defending national champions Ryak Finch at 125 pounds and Brand Wright at 141 pounds headline the group of Grand View grapplers that will be in action tomorrow. Finch, who is in his second season with the Vikings, owns a 53-0 overall record (two seasons) after a 16-0 technical fall against Michael Andreano in the quarterfinals. Wright won 5-0 against 2014 All-American A.J. Valles. Great Falls (Mont.) had an equally impressive record in the quarterfinals, as five Argonauts will wrestle for a chance at a national title tomorrow. Top-ranked 133 pounder Michael Ruiz posted his second pin of the championships to reach the semifinals for the first time in his career, sticking Keaton Thomas of Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) in 1:51. Rounding out the remainder of the top five are Lindsey Wilson and Southern Oregon in third-place with 62 points, while Oklahoma City rests at No. 5 with 41 points. All three programs have at least three wrestlers competing in the semifinals tomorrow. Arguably the most decorated match of the night came in the quarterfinals of the 165-pound weight class, as three-time All-American Jimmie Schuessler of Grand View took on two-time All-American Eric Lopez of Menlo (Calif.) in a rematch of the 2013 finals. Lopez avenged his 2013 loss with a 5-3 decision to advance to the semifinals for the second time in the last three seasons. Four institutions – Williams Baptist (Ark.), Ottawa (Kan.), Doane (Neb.) and St. Andrews (N.C.) – had their first-ever individual guarantee All-American status during the session. Williams Baptist’s Isaiah Johnson, in addition to being the program’s first-ever All-American, is one of the Cinderella stories at this year’s championships. The freshman from Waynesville, Mo., knocked off second-ranked Luke Schlosser of Great Falls in his opening bout, before downing James Flint of Lindsey Wilson to reach the semifinals. However, the road moving forward doesn’t get any easier, as he faces off against Finch. Overall, 19 different programs will have an individual wrestling in the semifinals tomorrow. Session III action is slated to begin Saturday morning at 10 a.m. CST. Stretch Internet, the NAIA’s official video streaming company, will be broadcasting the 10 title bouts (Session IV) of the 2015 NAIA Wrestling National Championships on March 7 on www.NAIANetwork.com. Packages can be purchased for $10.