InterMat Staff

OMAHA, Neb. -- The top-ranked University of Nebraska at Omaha wrestling team collected its second straight national team title and crowned one individual national champion in front of a home crowd at the 2010 NCAA Championships inside Sapp Fieldhouse Saturday night. The Mavericks scored 131 points, 59 points ahead of runnerup Augustana College, to record the school's sixth NCAA Division II team title. Elijah Madison (Photo/UNO Sports Information)It’s UNO’s fifth title in the last seven years. The win gives UNO NCAA II wrestling titles in 1991, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010. The Mavericks also won the 1970 NAIA tournament championship. Elijah Madison became UNO’s second freshman to win a national title in school history. The second-ranked Madison battled top-ranked Brady Wilson in the final match of the evening, and it was a good one. Wilson, who had beat Madison twice this season by one point, was also looking to become a first-time national champion. The two heavyweights went scoreless in the first period. The second period proved to be the deciding factor for the redshirt freshman, as he was able to get on top and ride Wilson for most of the second period to build up his riding time advantage to nearly two minutes after two periods of action. The two stayed at the neutral position for most of the third period until Wilson nearly scored a takedown with a minute left in the match, but Madison was able to push him off before he earned his two points. Madison’s riding time gave him the only point scored in the match to earn the 1-0 win to and claim UNO’s only individual national title of the tournament. Les Sigman, also a 285-pounder, is the only other UNO freshman to win a national title. Cody Garcia started the night for UNO, squaring off against top-ranked Shane Valko of Pittsburgh-Johnstown, looking to cap off an undefeated senior season. Garcia scored the first points of the match, scoring a takedown as time expired in the first period to take a 2-0 lead. Valko escaped at 1:21 in the second period, followed by a takedown and nearfall to go up 5-2 heading into the third period. Garcia managed an escape in the third, but Valko was able to ride Garcia for most of the third period to compile over a minute of riding time for an extra point to win the match 6-3. Garcia finishes the season with a 48-1 record, which is the second most wins in school history in a single season by a UNO wrestler. The four-time All-American ends his career at UNO with a 147-18 record, good enough for fourth on UNO’s all-time career wins list. At 141, Mario Morgan was looking for his first individual national crown of his career against Augustana’s Jay Sherer. The two were locked at 1-1 when the clock hit zero in the third period. Both men battled hard in the extra period, but Sherer scored a takedown as time expired to earn the 3-1 win in sudden victory. The loss snapped Morgan’s 29 match wining streak – he hadn’t lost since Dec. 5, 2009. Morgan caps off a great season, finishing with a 40-4 record and his second All-American accolades. Esai Dominguez battled top-ranked Craig Becker of Wisconsin-Parkside at 149. Becker scored on two takedowns to earn the 4-3 victory. Dominguez has now placed third and runnerup in his two National Tournament appearances, and finished the season with a 31-12 record Redshirt freshman George Ivanov faced Jonathan Jackson of Anderson University in the 157 pound bout. Jackson collected the 3-1 win by decision. Ivanov finished the season with a 36-11 record while earning All-American status in his first season. UNO ends the 2010 season winning two straight NCAA Division II and Super Region 2 titles. The Mavs posted a 13-1 dual meet record. Eight Mavericks earned All-Americans honors. Notes: Head Coach Mike Denney has coached 30 National Champions and 174 All-Americans ... Madison is the first 285-pounder since Les Sigman to win a title at that weight ... Saturday's session three's attendance was 2,026, while the finals session had 2,174 ... UNO has now crowned a National Champ the past eight years ... it marks the second time in school history the team has repeated as National Champions. Related: Brackets

The rosters and lineups for the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge, an exhibition men’s freestyle wrestling dual meet, have been finalized. The Challenge will be part of the NCAA Fan Festival, taking place at the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Omaha, Neb. USA Wrestling and the NCAA are teaming up to present the event, being held at the NCAA Fan Festival in Exhibit Hall C of the Qwest Center Omaha on Friday, March 19 from 1:45 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. Central time. The NCAA Fan Festival is a short indoor walk north from the Qwest Center Omaha, site of the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. The Big Ten team will be coached by Mark Johnson, who coached at the University of Illinois. The Big 12 team will be coached by Bobby Douglas, who coached at Iowa State University. Prior to their retirement, both coaches had outstanding careers during their tenure as collegiate wrestling head coaches. Both were also members of the U.S. Olympic Team as athletes. The Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge will feature matches in seven international wrestling weight classes. The competitors are former student-athlete wrestlers who competed for the universities in these prestigious conferences as undergraduates, and are now pursuing their Olympic dreams in men’s freestyle wrestling. The Big Ten team will be represented by former student-athletes who competed for Michigan State University, University of Illinois, University of Michigan, Penn State University and Northwestern University. The Big 12 team will be represented by former atudent-athletes from Oklahoma State University, University of Oklahoma and Iowa State University. A marquis matchup will happen at the 84 kg/185 lbs. weight class, when Jake Herbert, a two-time NCAA champion for Northwestern, will battle Chris Pendleton, a two-time NCAA champion for Oklahoma State. Herbert won a silver medal at the 2009 World Wrestling Championships. Another two-time NCAA champion will be Steve Mocco, competing for the Big 12 team, who won national titles for both Oklahoma State and Iowa. Other past NCAA champions Coleman Scott of Oklahoma State and Trent Paulson of Iowa State will be representing the Big 12 team. Two members of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team, Mocco and former Michigan wrestler Andy Hrovat, will be showcased at the event. There will also be two additional exhibition matches held, featuring top freestyle wrestlers who were also All-Americans in college. In an exhibition at 120 kg/264.5 lbs., Tervel Dlagnev, a two-time Division II national champion for University of Nebraska-Kearney, will battle Blake Gillis, a Division III national champion for Wartburg College. The dual meet will be held on the mats where USA Wrestling’s Team USA will hold their popular public workouts between sessions of the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships each day. Admission to the Fan Festival is free, so there will be no charge to watch the men’s freestyle action. For the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge, there will be close to 1,000 seats and many more standing room only viewing opportunities provided mat side on a first-come, first-serve basis. In addition, as many as 1,000 fans will be able to watch the dual meet on two large projection screens flanking the main stage within the NCAA Fan Festival. For those who cannot attend the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in person, the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge will be Web cast live on NCAA.com/wrestling and available through TheMat.com, with USA Wrestling's Jason Bryant and Kendall Cross calling the action. The rules for the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge have been modified. Instead of having individual match winners, there will be a cumulative point total for each conference. Team scores will be based upon adding up the technical points scored in each match by the athletes. At the end of the dual meet, the points will be tallied up, and the winning conference team will be announced. Another rule modification is that each match will consist of two, two-minute periods. There will not be any third periods contested, which is possible in an international freestyle match. This year’s NCAA Fan Festival will feature wrestling exhibit booths, displays, memorabilia, interactive games, souvenirs, food and beverage sales, and a number of other featured events. In addition to the Big Ten vs. Big 12 Challenge, the lineup Friday includes a USA Wrestling autograph session at 3:15 p.m. and the annual Semifinals Preview Show featuring Nate Carr, Scott Casber and Wade Schalles at 4 p.m. Central. For more information on the NCAA Fan Festival at the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Omaha, Neb., visit NCAA.com/wrestling. Any journalist wishing to cover this event should immediately contact Gary Abbott of USA Wrestling at gabbott@usawrestling.org or on his cell phone at 719/659-9637. TENTATIVE BIG TEN VS. BIG 12 CHALLENGE LINEUPS (Big Ten athlete/school vs. Big 12 athlete/school) 55 kg/121 lbs. - Nick Simmons (Michigan State) vs. Obe Blanc (Oklahoma State) 60 kg/132 lbs. - Jimmy Kennedy (Illinois) vs. Coleman Scott (Oklahoma State) 66 kg/145.5 lbs. - Andy Simmons (Michigan State) vs. Jared Frayer (Oklahoma) 74 kg/163 lbs. - Mike Poeta (Illinois) vs. Trent Paulson (Iowa State) 84 kg/185 lbs. - Jake Herbert (Northwestern) vs. Chris Pendleton (Oklahoma State) 96 kg/211.5 lbs. - Andy Hrovat (Michigan) vs. David Bertolino (Iowa State) 120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Aaron Anspach (Penn State) vs. Steve Mocco (Oklahoma State) Exhibition bouts 96 kg/211.5 lbs. - J.D. Bergman (Ohio State) vs. Kyle Cerminara (Buffalo) 120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Tervel Dlagnev (UN-Kearney) vs. Blake Gillis (Wartburg) Big 10 Coach: Mark Johnson (Illinois) Big 12 Coach: Bobby Douglas (Iowa State)

OMAHA, Neb. -- After the first day of the 2010 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships, the top-ranked University of Nebraska at Omaha wrestling team owns a 24.5 point lead over second-place St. Cloud State in the team standings. Individually, seven UNO wrestlers advanced into tomorrow's semifinal round in front of 2,204 fans during Friday night's session two action inside Sapp Fieldhouse. Cody Garcia (133), Mario Morgan (141), Esai Dominguez (149), George Ivanov (157), Ryan Pankoke (165), Jacob Marrs (197) and Elijah Madison (285) all garnered All-American status by earning their way into tomorrow's semifinal round. Terrell McKinney (125) is also an All-American. The redshirt freshman won his first match in the consolation round over Alex Meger after losing a hard-fought match to Upper Iowa's Tyler Mumbulo 5-4 in the quarterfinals. He will face Minnesota State's Andy Forstner in the consolation round tomorrow. Garcia defeated Kyle Pedretti of Upper Iowa to move to 47-0 on the year. Garcia collected his second fall of the day, pinning Pedretti two minutes into the match. The four-time All-American will take on Gannon's Corey Bowers in the semifinals. At 141, Morgan picked up an 8-3 win over Adam Hluschak to move into the semis. The junior from Chicago has now won 28-straight matches and is a two-time All-American. Morgan will battle Central Missouri's Cory Bloodgood in the semis. Sophomore Esai Dominguez (149) scored a major decision over Derek Stolarzyk of Upper Iowa 17-6 to earn his way into the semis where he will face Augustana's Nate Herda. In one of the more entertaining matches of the evening, George Ivanov and Augustana's Marcus Edgington squared off in a rematch from February's dual. The two battled into the third period tied 1-1. With just a couple second left in the period, Ivanov scored a takedown as time expired to get the 3-1 win. The Council Bluffs, Iowa native will meet Fort Hays State's Danny Grater in the semis. Ryan Pankoke earned All-American honors for the first time in his career after edging FHSU's Blake Malloy, 3-2. The junior from Beaver Crossing, Neb., will meet UIU's Travis Eggers in the semis tomorrow. At 197, Jacob Marrs became a three-time All-American with his win by tech fall over Shane Nolan 15-0 at 5:30. Marrs will meet Augustana's Tyler Copsey in semis. Copsey defeated Marrs earlier this year 4-2 in sudden victory. Elijah Madison beat San Francisco State's Steve Franklin 7-2 to move into the semifinals where he will face Jake Kahnke of St. Cloud State. At 174, two-time All-American Aaron Denson's season came to an end with an 8-4 loss to Cody Rowell. Denson finished the tournament with a 1-2 record. Austin Boehm was also eliminated from the tournament after losing his second match of the day. Session III action will begin at 10 a.m. tomorrow. Notes: Session one featured 2,030 fans, while session two had 2,204...Head coach Mike Denney has now coached 174 All-Americans at UNO in his 31 years...Garcia became UNO 11th four-time All-American in school history...McKinney, Ivanov, Pankoke and Madison all became first-time All-Americans...Marrs became UNO's 20th three-time All-American in school history.

The Brute adidas studios will remain docked in Des Moines this week as the shadows of the season filter in around us. We too prepare for the NCAA Championships next week. Steve Foster, J Carl Guymon and Caleb Nemmers will be on the call from Omaha's Quest Center. we have 1 more show to do prior to that so... TDR this week: Matt Krumrie- Has a new book out Called "The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps", softcover, available at WrestlingCampGuide.com, self published work. Very helpful for wrestlers and parents. Where to invest time and money. Matt helps you cut through the clutter and get to the inside info and advise you need to make good decisions. Tom Borrelli- Head Coach of the Chips of Central Michigan. His #1 recruit earned his 3rd state title, his 2010 Chippewas are the first team in Mid-American Conference history to qualify all 10 individuals to the NCAA Championships. Tom gets a 5 year extension to his contract. What's next for the CMU? the National Championships of course. Caleb Nemmers- On air play by play analyst for the TDR Team broadcasting the National Championships will join us for his preview of the Team race and any individuals he see's making a run for individual history. Caleb joins us Live from Boston. Brian Smith- Head Coach of the Tigers of Missouri. The Tigers had a Big 12 Champion in Senior Nick Marable in Norman, OK. The Tigers will travel and compete 6 in the NCAA's. That's not enough for Coach Smith. He has great support among fans and administration. His Teams are destined for greatness. Find out why. Scott Glabb- Head Coach and AD at Santa Anna High School. Has been inspired by his athletes to be a better man and he inturn has inspired his athletes to care and compete. His new book "A Saint in the City" Coaching at Risk Kids to Be Champions walks you through the lives of the youngsters he has coached through the years. Incredibly touching! Wrestling fans- Please note that Episode 48 of TDR TV is now available on all the top web sites and cable systems around the country. TDR every week! It's appointment Radio and TV! Join us at Takedownradio.com. America's Wrestling Radio Talk Show airs on Supertalk 1570 in Michigan, AM 1460 KXNO in Iowa and on a radio station near you or on line at many of our broadcast partners around the world including Livesportsvideo.com. TDR "the Radio Program" airs 9 AM to 11 AM CST every Saturday morning we look forward to having you listen. Thanks for watching listening!

The brackets have been released for the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships that will take place March 18-20 at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska. Brackets Seeds At-Large Selections At-Large by Conference

Want to ensure your wrestler is a happy camper? Choose his or her wrestling camp with care. These days, more and more youth and high school coaches are recommending wrestling camps to further develop the skills of their wrestlers. However, there's an overwhelming array of options: Technique camps. Training camps. Team camps. Intensive camps. MMA-oriented camps. Camps for women. Camps for little kids. Camps for big guys. Camps for fathers and sons. There are camps that last just one day ... and camps that go on for nearly a month. Camps run by local coaches ... and camps conducted by Olympic superstars. How do you find a camp that's right for your wrestler? It's not like Consumer Reports tests wrestling camps the way they do automobiles and appliances. US News & World Report doesn't put out a "100 Top Wrestling Camps" issue. To find a camp that'll make your wrestler happy, turn to The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps. This brand-new, 120-page book written by wrestling journalist Matt Krumrie has the independent, unbiased information you and your wrestler needs to make smart choices. This Matt knows the mat ... and wrestling camps A sports writer for nearly two decades, Matt Krumrie has served as editor for TheWrestlingMall.com, and has written for wrestling publications such as WIN (Wrestling Insider Newsmagazine) and websites such as InterMat and TheGuillotine.com. For the past few years, he has written the preview article for the official NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships program distributed to fans at the national collegiate championships. As a seasoned wrestling writer, Krumrie is bombarded with questions from wrestlers and their parents about wrestling camps. Matt Krumrie"I saw that people -- even those who are heavily involved in the sport of wrestling -- want to know more about wrestling camps," said the Twin Cities-based writer. Krumrie also sensed a hunger for straightforward, factual information. "Sure, there are all the ads for wrestling camps at websites and in magazines, and all those slick brochures," said Krumrie. "But they're trying to sell you something. How do you separate hype from reality?" "There needs to be a resource, to help folks decipher all this information." "Parents spend so much money for their wrestlers for things like wrestling camps," Krumrie continued. "Camps can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars each. When a family sends multiple kids to camp, or multiple camps over the course of a summer, it really adds up." For parents who are new to wrestling, it all can be as daunting as stepping onto the mat to grapple with an NCAA heavyweight champ. Matt Krumrie shared an example from his personal experience of just how challenging it can be to make the right decisions. "I have a friend from college who never wrestled, but has three young sons who do. He was asking me, 'Do I send all of them to the same camp? Or do I want them to join a year 'round wrestling club?'" Turning an initial idea to a completed book From all these questions and observations sprang the idea for The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps. However, it took a while to go from idea to published book. "As a sportswriter, I've always wanted to write a traditional book," disclosed Krumrie, who produced an eBook titled How To Be A Sportswriter in 2000. About five years ago, the idea of a book about wrestling camps started to take shape in Matt Krumrie's mind. "I started asking coaches about the idea for the book. I seemed to be waiting for approval. At one point I finally decided I didn't need anyone's approval. I started writing in 2006." "Every moment I had free time, I would think about the book, trying to work on it." It was a real time-management issue for Krumrie, who, in addition to his wrestling writing, is responsible for the day-to-day management of the website and other digital media for a major accounting firm ... along with writing employment advice columns for the Minneapolis Star-Tribune and Examiner.com, and providing a resume-writing service for business professionals. The wrestling camp book shifted into high gear about a year or more ago, when Krumrie contacted other writers to assist with information-gathering and writing for the book, including Kip Carlson, sports information director for wrestling at Oregon State University, and Andrew Hipps, senior writer at InterMat. (This writer also contributed to the book.) Last fall, the book shifted into overdrive. "In November, I went to a book publishing seminar, and learned more about how to make it happen. I am self-financing the project, but I believe in the book and the product. I believe it is a valuable resource. It really can help wrestlers and parents." "As a father, I want to look out for young people," the author continued. "Parents put out so much time and money for their kids' sports. They travel all over the place to provide their kids opportunities for training and competition. As a parent, you and your kids could go to a wrestling event every weekend… You want to make sure you're doing the best you can for your kids, making the right choices. Wrestling camp is no different." What Krumrie is most proud about is the resources who have helped out with the book. Ken Chertow wrote the foreword. Bruce Baumgartner provided information. Rob Koll of Cornell provided comments. Steve Garland of Virginia was another. Frank Popolizio of Journeymen Wrestling talked. There is an article talking about how J Robinson started his camps, as well as training tips and advice from J Robinson Camps. There is a chapter featuring camp tips from Dan Gable. Some of the top high school coaches in the country from California, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Iowa and more, have commented. Over 40 Olympians, NCAA champions, college coaches, high school coaches, parents and more have provided their insight and personal expertise and opinion. "What I did was take the advice, comments and experiences of those who are involved with camps, clubs and training and coaching wrestlers and turned it into resources and stories that can benefit wrestlers and their parents," says Krumrie. Anticipating -- and answering -- questions about camps As a wrestler -- or the parent of a wrestler -- the idea of going to a wrestling camp may sound like a winner. But it can be an intimidating decision. There are usually a ton of questions, such as ... • What camp should I send my wrestler to? • What off-season training program are you participating in? • Do you think a club would help my child become successful? • What do I need to do to become a state champion? • How do I know what the best camp is for the money? • When is the right age to go to camp? • How do I really know what each camp offers? The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps is designed to provide answers to the questions wrestlers and their parents have about choosing a wrestling camp ... or, even if attending a wrestling camp is a good idea for that particular individual in the first place. Krumrie's book provides sound information to help wrestlers and their parents choose the right camp for their specific situation. It assumes no prior experience with wrestling or wrestling camps. The first chapter starts with the items that are most important to consider when selecting a camp. The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps even incorporates an entire chapter titled "Wrestling Camp 101" that provides clear explanations of basic terms used in the wrestling camp industry, such as technique camp ... intensive camp ... training camp ... outdoor challenge camp ... and team camp. The book also has a chapter on nutrition, and a handy "What to bring to camp" checklist. Among the other topics The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps covers: Camps or clubs -- or both: Some wrestling coaches are advising their wrestlers to join a wrestling club, either in conjunction with attending wrestling camps, or instead of a camp. "Clubs are growing fast," according to Matt Krumrie. "Clubs give wrestlers more training opportunities not traditionally available in youth or high school programs. It's a supplemental thing that has been used in other sports, and becoming more popular in wrestling. But ... does it replace attending camps? And, how do you know which club is right for you?" MMA (mixed martial arts) and wrestling: There's a natural tie-in between the type of wrestling that takes place in school gyms, and what goes on the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championships) and other alphabet-letter promotions in mixed martial arts. Especially since a large number of MMA stars come from amateur wrestling backgrounds, such as current UFC heavyweight champ Brock Lesnar. "MMA is exploding in popularity," said Krumrie. "Youth and teen wrestlers are huge fans. However, it raises questions and concerns from parents when their wrestlers show an interest in MMA, with parents asking things like, 'Why would I want my kid to train in MMA?' and 'Will it hurt my kid's wrestling career?' Many wrestlers use MMA to learn different combat styles, to broaden their training ritual, and enhance their conditioning, without any intention of ever competing in the Octagon. In fact, adding different disciplines and skill sets from other martial arts can actually help an athlete with wrestling." The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps covers the MMA/wrestling connection thoroughly, with a primer on MMA ... what MMA instructors advise if you have a wrestler who wants to learn other martial arts techniques ... and what to look for in a camp or training facility to ensure the physical and mental well-being of the wrestler. Women's wrestling: The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps has an entire chapter devoted to wrestling camps especially designed for girls and women ... along with a case study of girl wrestler Joey Miller and her dad Jerry, where they share their experiences in the sport of wrestling and from participating in various wrestling camps. Perspective from multiple, varied points-of-view: The book delivers a true "insider perspective" on wrestling camps, bringing together interviews, comments, quotes and information from over 40 of the most informed and educated people involved in the sport of wrestling -- high school and college coaches, all-time great wrestlers, and individuals who run camps, as well as youth and high school wrestlers and their parents. In other words, people who have experienced wrestling camps from just about every angle possible. For example, The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps incorporates the opinions of a number of high school wrestling coaches from some of the most successful programs throughout the country, because, as Matt Krumrie put it, "These are the individuals who are the most influential to young wrestlers." There's also whole chapter that has college coaches from various types of programs -- from small, private schools to the largest state universities -- answering fundamental questions in a roundtable format, so readers can easily compare answers. "In writing the book, I wanted to benefit wrestlers of all skill levels who might be interested in wrestling camp,” said Krumrie. "Those who wrestle just for fun, or to be in a sport, or those who want to earn a place in the starting lineup on the team, not just those who expect to win state and national titles and get a college scholarship to wrestle." For more information about The Ultimate Guide to Wrestling Camps -- or to purchase a copy -- visit the Web site www.wrestlingcampguide.com

125: 1 Escobedo Angel Indiana RSSR 33-0 Big Ten 2 Nickerson Troy Cornell RSSR 13-1 EIWA 3 McDonough Matt Iowa RSFR 32-1 Big Ten 4 Robles Anthony Arizona State RSJR 28-2 Pac-10 5 Long Andrew Iowa State RSFR 23-6 Big 12 6 Sanders Zachary Minnesota RSSO 23-5 Big Ten 7 Nicholson James Old Dominion RSJR 30-1 CAA 8 Steintrager Matt Central Michigan RSSR 23-3 MAC 9 Patterson Jarrod Oklahoma FR 28-9 Big 12 10 Notte Christopher Oklahoma State SR 23-8 Big 12 11 Martinez Michael Wyoming RSSO 30-7 West Regional 12 Kjar Ben Utah Valley RSJR 30-8 West Regional 133: 1 Ness Jayson Minnesota RSSR 26-0 Big Ten 2 Dennis Daniel Iowa RSSR 18-3 Big Ten 3 Gomez Franklin Michigan State RSSR 23-2 Big Ten 4 Oliver Jordan Oklahoma State RSFR 28-2 Big 12 5 Novachkov Borislav Cal Poly RSSO 24-3 Pac-10 6 Mitcheff Dan Kent State RSJR 30-3 MAC 7 Grey Mike Cornell JR 35-6 EIWA 8 Graff Tyler Wisconsin RSFR 26-7 Big Ten 9 Bell Steve Maryland RSSR 23-5 ACC 10 Fanthorpe Nicholas Iowa State SR 16-7 Big 12 11 Sentes Scotti Central Michigan SO 20-7 MAC 12 Mytych Steve Drexel RSSR 33-6 CAA 141: 1 Dake Kyle Cornell FR 29-2 EIWA 2 Parks Jamal Oklahoma State RSSO 28-5 Big 12 3 Thorn Michael Minnesota RSJR 24-5 Big Ten 4 Humphrey Reece Ohio State RSJR 29-3 Big Ten 5 Bailey Zack Oklahoma RSJR 24-6 Big 12 6 Marion Montell Iowa RSSO 23-5 Big Ten 7 Novachkov Filip Cal Poly RSJR 23-6 Pac-10 8 Krom Alex Maryland RSSR 20-5 ACC 9 Jones Levi Boise State RSJR 17-8 Pac-10 10 Nauman Tyler Pittsburgh RSSO 33-3 EWL 11 Diaz Christopher Virginia Tech JR 29-4 ACC 12 Duenas Adin Cal State Fullerton RSJR 20-8 Pac-10 149: 1 Palmer Lance Ohio State JR 27-2 Big Ten 2 Metcalf Brent Iowa RSSR 31-1 Big Ten 3 Terry Kyle Oklahoma RSSR 26-2 Big 12 4 Ruschell Kyle Wisconsin RSSR 28-3 Big Ten 5 Molinaro Frank Penn State RSSO 29-5 Big Ten 6 Kyler Matthew Army SR 30-3 EIWA 7 Mueller Mitch Iowa State SR 25-8 Big 12 8 Chamberlain Jason Boise State SO 24-8 Pac-10 9 LeValley Kevin Bucknell JR 37-6 EIWA 10 Abel Barrett UC Davis RSJR 21-7 Pac-10 11 Green Desmond Buffalo RSSO 27-6 MAC 12 Mason Mario Minnesota RSFR 19-10 Big Ten 157: 1 O'Connor JP Harvard SR 30-0 EIWA 2 Hall Adam Boise State RSJR 28-2 Pac-10 3 Dong Jesse Virginia Tech SO 34-3 ACC 4 Sanderson Cyler Penn State RSSR 28-4 Big Ten 5 Fittery Steve American RSJR 29-2 EIWA 6 Schlatter Dustin Minnesota RSSR 14-2 Big Ten 7 Pami Chase Cal Poly RSSR 25-6 Pac-10 8 Saddoris Bryce Navy JR 31-10 EIWA 9 Moley Matt Bloomsburg SR 25-3 EWL 10 Vernon Shane Oklahoma RSSR 20-5 Big 12 11 Erisman Robert Oklahoma State RSJR 27-8 Big 12 12 Brown Steven Central Michigan RSSR 13-3 MAC 165: 1 Howe Andrew Wisconsin SO 32-0 Big Ten 2 King Jarrod Edinboro RSSR 34-1 EWL 3 Marable Nick Missouri SR 33-3 Big 12 4 Reader Jonathan Iowa State JR 22-4 Big 12 5 Sponseller Colt Ohio State SO 27-5 Big Ten 6 Vallimont Dan Penn State RSSR 27-7 Big Ten 7 Morningstar Ryan Iowa RSSR 26-6 Big Ten 8 Onufer Shane Wyoming RSSO 27-5 West Regional 9 Rendos Andrew Bucknell SR 29-3 EIWA 10 Meade Alex Oklahoma State RSFR 28-8 Big 12 11 Schmelyun Rick Bloomsburg SR 28-7 EWL 12 Young Paul Indiana RSJR 33-8 Big Ten 174: 1 Lewnes Mack Cornell JR 36-0 EIWA 2 Borschel Jay Iowa RSJR 32-0 Big Ten 3 Henrich Christopher Virginia JR 29-2 ACC 4 Dwyer Stephen Nebraska SR 24-3 Big 12 5 Glasser Scott Minnesota RSJR 30-6 Big Ten 6 Benefiel Mike Oklahoma State RSSO 31-4 Big 12 7 Bennett Ben Central Michigan RSFR 21-5 MAC 8 Covington Colby Oregon State RSJR 38-5 Pac-10 9 Manuel Luke Purdue RSJR 38-4 Big Ten 10 Blanton Jordan Illinois SO 14-7 Big Ten 11 Patterson Joshua Binghamton SR 26-6 CAA 12 Tovuujav Bagna George Mason SO 30-8 CAA 184: 1 Smith Kirk Boise State JR 25-0 Pac-10 2 Dergo John Illinois SR 26-2 Big Ten 3 Kilgore Dustin Kent State RSFR 33-1 MAC 4 Cannon Michael American RSSR 25-1 EIWA 5 Foster Clayton Oklahoma State JR 19-3 Big 12 6 Askren Maxwell Missouri SR 15-2 Big 12 7 LeBlanc Joe Wyoming RSSO 35-4 West Regional 8 Caputo Louis Harvard SR 22-3 EIWA 9 Keddy Philip Iowa RSSR 23-7 Big Ten 10 Pucillo Mike Ohio State RSJR 20-7 Big Ten 11 Erwin Dave Penn State RSSR 29-8 Big Ten 12 Craig David Lehigh SR 22-5 EIWA 197: 1 Varner Jake Iowa State SR 26-0 Big 12 2 Brester Craig Nebraska RSSR 26-2 Big 12 3 Taylor Hudson Maryland RSSR 38-2 ACC 4 Simaz Cam Cornell RSSO 37-5 EIWA 5 Brandvold Trevor Wisconsin RSJR 20-3 Big Ten 6 Lapotsky Eric Oklahoma SR 24-6 Big 12 7 Biondo Anthony Michigan RSJR 33-5 Big Ten 8 Yohn Sonny Minnesota RSSO 24-10 Big Ten 9 Beatty Chad Iowa RSSR 14-3 Big Ten 10 Strawn Jesse Old Dominion SR 29-5 CAA 11 Bond Patrick Illinois RSSR 16-11 Big Ten 12 Haynes Brent Missouri RSFR 25-13 Big 12 285: 1 Zabriskie David Iowa State SR 21-2 Big 12 2 Rosholt Jared Oklahoma State RSSR 30-2 Big 12 3 Rey Zachery Lehigh RSSO 28-4 EIWA 4 Dudziak Konrad Duke RSSR 14-0 ACC 5 Erekson Daniel Iowa RSSR 12-0 Big Ten 6 Everhart Nathan Indiana SR 35-1 Big Ten 7 Trice Jarod Central Michigan RSSO 23-2 MAC 8 Tomei Ryan Pittsburgh RSJR 32-5 EWL 9 Ellis Mark Missouri SR 18-10 Big 12 10 Russo Dominick Rutgers RSJR 29-6 EIWA 11 Monteiro Mitchell Cal State Bakersfield RSSR 16-5 Pac-10 12 Steele Scott Navy SR 14-3 EIWA

INDIANAPOLIS -- The NCAA announced the 50 at-large selections for the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. These wrestlers listed in alphabetical order by weight class join the 280 student-athletes that qualified automatically through the conference and regional qualifying tournaments over the past two weekends. It should be noted that there were originally 284 allocations provide to the qualifying tournaments on February 25, however, four allocations reverted back to the at-large pool following the qualifying tournaments based on the elements of the selection criteria. The at-large selections were made by the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee using the selection criteria without priority order, which consists of head-to-head competition, qualifying event placement, quality wins, results against common opponents, winning percentage, rating percentage index, coaches ranking and number of matches contested at that weight class. Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 125 Allen Bartelli Boise St. Pac-10 125 Aaron Kalil Navy EIWA 125 Frank Lomas Cal St. Bakersfield Pac-10 125 Eric Morrill Edinboro EWL Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 133 William Ashnault Rutgers EIWA 133 Akif Eren Purdue Big Ten 133 Jimmy Kirchner Rider CAA 133 Kendric Maple Oklahoma Big 12 133 Justin Paulsen Stanford Pac-10 133 Zac Stevens Michigan Big Ten 133 Cory VomBaur Wyoming West Regional Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 141 Seth Ciasulli Lehigh EIWA 141 Levi Jones Boise St. Pac-10 141 Mike Koehnlein Nebraska Big 12 141 Germane Lindsey Ohio MAC 141 Trevor Melde Rutgers EIWA 141 Cole Schmitt Wisconsin Big Ten Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 149 Eric Albright Pittsburgh EWL 149 Kyle Borshoff American EIWA 149 Anthony D’Alie Central Michigan MAC 149 Bobby Ward North Carolina St. ACC Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 157 Keegan Davis Oregon St. Pac-10 157 Bryan Deutsch Northern Ill. MAC 157 Justin Gaethje Northern Colo. West Regional 157 Kurt Kinser Indiana Big Ten 157 Tyson Reiner UNI West Regional 157 Dustin Schlatter Minnesota Big Ten Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 165 Kyle Bounds Michigan St. Big Ten 165 John-Martin Cannon Buffalo MAC 165 Matt Kaylor Binghamton CAA 165 Rob Morrison Rider CAA 165 Cody Yohn Minnesota Big Ten Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 174 Nathan Graham Bloomsburg EWL 174 Jacob Ison Ohio MAC 174 David Rella Ohio St. Big Ten 174 Jim Resnick Rider CAA 174 Daniel Rinaldi Rutgers EIWA Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 184 Eric Cameron Indiana Big Ten 184 Zack Giesen Stanford Pac-10 184 Jason McCroskey Chattanooga Southern 184 Nick Palmieri Michigan St. Big Ten 184 Andrew Saunders UNC Greensboro Southern 184 Jerome Ward Iowa St. Big 12 Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 197 Lamar Brown Rutgers EIWA 197 Joseph Kennedy Lehigh EIWA 197 Cody Magrum Ohio St. Big Ten 197 Tyler Smith Rider CAA Weight Name Institution Qualifying Tournament 285 Eric Nye Arizona St. Pac-10 285 Scott Steele Navy EIWA 285 Jarod Trice Central Michigan MAC A full description of the entire selection criteria is available in Appendix C of the 2010 Division I Wrestling Championships Handbook which is available at http://web1.ncaa.org/web_files/champ_handbooks/wrestling/2010/10_1_wrestling.pdf. A full listing of all 330 qualifiers is available at www.ncaa.com.

Dave Malecek, head wrestling coach at Wisconsin-La Crosse and Mark Matzek, head wrestling coach at Augsburg, will go "On the Mat" this Wednesday, March 10. “On the Mat" is a presentation of the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum. The show can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa each Wednesday from 5:00-6:00 p.m. CST on AM 1650, The Fan. E-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with any questions or comments about the show. Malecek is the current head wrestling coach at Wisconsin-La Crosse, a position he has held the past four seasons. His team recently placed second at the Division III NCAA championships with three NCAA champions, the most at any school at the tournament. Malacek served as an assistant coach at Wartburg from 2000 to 2006 and was an All-American for Northern Iowa in 1994. Matzek is in his second season as the head wrestling coach at Augsburg College. Matzek led the Auggies to a Division III NCAA championship this season and, at age 27, becoming the youngest coach to win a title. He was also a two-time NCAA champion for Augsburg in 2004 and 2005.

Tom Borrelli

Mark Branch

Joel Greenlee

Mack Lewnes

Dan Laurent

Dave Malecek

Tim Fader

The Great Debate After Graham, OH upset Blair Academy, NJ 36-20 at home in a late January dual meet, there emerged the great debate about who was the number one team in the country this season. Was it Graham -- who had beaten Blair in a dual meet, but finished second to them in a tournament; or was it Apple Valley, MN -- with its very talented lineup that had dominated all comers at the Cheesehead Invitational and Clash Duals. Both teams concluded their seasons in dominating fashion this past weekend. Apple Valley steals show at Xcel Energy Center The Gopher State stages both its individual and dual meet state championships concurrently each year in St. Paul, MN at Xcel Energy Center -- the home of the NHL's Minnesota Wild. The Eagles from Apple Valley were the dominating force in the big-school division in both tournaments. During the dual meet competition, Apple Valley went 35-7 in its matches with 27 of those victories either by pin or technical fall. The Eagles defeated White Bear Lake 71-12 in the quarterfinal, Eden Prairie 64-10 in the semifinal, and St. Michael-Albertville 54-12 in the championship final. Dual Meet Brackets: http://mshsl.org/mshsl/showXMLbrackets.asp?tournid=2555&bracket=5021 In the Class AAA (big-school) individual state tournament, Apple Valley qualified 12 individuals for the competition with 11 of them placing inside the top six. Nine of these wrestlers appeared in the championship final with seven winning championships -- Dakota Trom (119), No. 19 Matt Kelliher (125), Daniel Woiwor (130), No. 12 Brandon Kingsley (135), Devin Scott (140), No. 2 Destin McCauley (152), and No. 19 Steven Keogh (160). No. 17 Jordan Kingsley was lost in an upset by fall during the semifinals at 103 pounds prior to finishing third; Nate Bruner finished second at 145 pounds; No. 18 Jake Waste was upset by defending state champion Zak Coates, from Henry Sibley, 3-1 in the finals at 171 pounds; Matt Hechsel finished fifth at 189 pounds; while Luke Schmidt fell short of placement at 215 pounds finishing 2-2 in the tournament. Other champions in Class AA tournament were No. 14 Sam Brancale (103) from Eden Prairie, who finished an undefeated season; Mitch Bengtson (112) from St. Cloud Apollo, also finishing an undefeated season; No. 2 Dylan Ness (145) from Bloomington-Kennedy, also finishing an undefeated season; Coates at 171; Dalton Henderson (189) from Owatonna; Mitch Hrovat (215) from Centennial; and No. 12 Donny Longendyke (285) from White Bear Lake, also finishing an undefeated season. Individual Tournament Bracket: http://mshsl.org/mshsl/upload/MSHSL185250wrAAA10.htm Graham wins 10th consecutive at Schott Likewise Graham dominated its state championships in Ohio, winning the Division II (medium-school) state championship with 223 points coming from six state champions, two other state finalists, and 11 total qualifiers. Winning titles for the Falcons were No. 18 Ryan Taylor (103), No. 17 Bo Jordan (130), Isaac Jordan (135), No. 7 Felipe Martinez (140), Huston Evans (171), and No. 5 Max Thomusseit (189). No. 5 Nick Brascetta lost in the final 7-4 to No. 7 Ty Mitch from Aurora at 119 pounds, while Huston Evans lost 2-1 in the final to No. 18 Brad Wukie of University School. Bo Jordan defeated No. 15 Nate Skonieczny of Walsh Jesuit by a 3-1 score in the semifinal at 130 pounds, as Skonieczny ended up taking third place. Martinez defeated No. 11 Tucker Armstrong of Kenton Ridge 7-1 in the final at 140 pounds for the fourth consecutive weekend, and sixth time overall on the season. Matt Stephens (145) placed third, Sheldon Kegley (125) placed seventh, and Cory Casady (112) went two-and-out to round out the Graham performance at state. Mitch and No. 15 Harrison Hightower (152) of University School won third state titles in Division II, while No. 15 Johnni DiJulius (125) of Walsh Jesuit joined Martinez and Thomusseit as repeat state champions. Additional state champions were BJ Miller (112) of Defiance, Ian Miller (145) of Oak Harbor, Wukie, Logan Erb (215) of Wapakoneta, and Andrew Carpenter (285) of Sheridan. Oak Harbor was second place in the tournament with 78-1/2 points, anchored by Ian Miller's state championship -- along with runner-up finishes from Konner Witt (152) and for a second consecutive year by Drew Stone (125). Link to results: http://www.ohsaa.org/sports/wr/boys/2010/bd2rslt10.htm The Giant is slayed While Graham was taking care of business in Division II, there was a superlative team race -- one unseen in the big-school classification (Division I) since the last time a public school had won the title in 1977. Only two times since had the margin been ten points or less -- in 1988 when St. Ignatius upended North Olmsted 77-1/2 to 70-1/2, and in 1990 when Cleveland St. Joseph defeated Walsh Jesuit 101 to 91. In that 1977 championship won by Nordonia, they outlasted Maple Hts by a score of 58-56. This season, two of the nation's top ten teams St. Edward and Wadsworth set off a show unseen in Division I, as both teams lapped the field with four champions and a pair of runners-up. The Grizzlies from Wadsworth outlasted the thirteen-time defending state champions St. Edward by a 172 to 167-1/2 point score. Champions for Wadsworth were Louden Gordon (135), No. 5 Brad Squire (145), Nick Tavanello (215), and Ben Buzzelli (Wadsworth). Each wrestler had to score very late in their match to secure the victory. Gordon and Squire both knocked off St. Edward wrestlers in the finals -- Gordon with a pin in 5:59 over Mark Martin, and Squire with a 3-2 victory over No. 15 Anthony Salupo. Finishing second for the Grizzlies were No. 17 Kagan Squire (119), losing 8-3 to No. 6 Jerome Robinson of St. Ignatius), and Caleb Busson (189). St. Edward was anchored by titles coming from No. 8 Dean Heil (103), Gus Sako (125), No. 1 Jamie Clark (130), and No. 3 Nick Sulzer (160); while Martin and Salupo finished as runners-up. The Eagles had a pair of additional place winners in Ben Kuhar (285), who finished fourth, and Edgar Bright (112) finishing sixth; while Dominic Abounader (152) went 1-2 to finish short of placement, and Matt Van Curen (140) and Ty Walz (215) went two-and-out. Three additional Wadsworth wrestlers finished inside the top six -- Alfredo Gray (112) and Sheldon Brandenburg (160) finished fifth, and Nate Ball (140) took home sixth. The three other Grizzly qualifiers each finished short of placement, but did win a match during the tournament -- Brandon Jones (103), Clay Wenger (152), and Bart Randolph (171). Rounding out the state champions in the big-school division were Kory Mines (112) of Maple Hts, Robinson, Randy Languis (140) of Dublin Scioto, Waquiem Comar (152) of Twinsburg, No. 5 Josh Demas (171) of Westerville North, and Nick Miller (189) of Centerville. The next three teams in the standings were far back of Wadsworth and St. Edward but relatively bunched together -- Massillon Perry with 66, Marysville with 64-1/2, and St. Ignatius with 63-1/2 rounded out the top five. Link to results: http://www.ohsaa.org/sports/wr/boys/2010/bd1rslt10.htm Youth rules day in Golden State Bakersfield emerged as champions of the single-class California Interscholastic Federation state wrestling championships with 126 points. Of their 11 state qualifiers, only two were seniors -- with Brian Schoene, third at 215 pounds, the only non-underclassman to earn a placement finish. Other placers for Bakersfield were junior state champion No. 15 Bryce Hammond (160), freshman Coleman Hammond (145) finishing fourth, sophomore Natrelle Demison (130) finishing fifth, and junior Ian Nickell (103) taking seventh. On the way to a state title, Hammond defeated fellow ranked wrestler No. 17 Dominic Kastl (Gilroy) 4-3 in the semifinal round. Second among teams at the state championships were the Selma Bears with 113-1/2 points, with no seniors among the five wrestlers to qualify to state. Sophmore Alex Cisneros (112) -- ranked third nationally -- earned a second consecutive state title; while junior Nick Pena (130) -- ranked 11th -- won his first title after placing the prior two years. In the state final, Pena defeated No. 18 Bobby Morales of Laguna Hills 7-4 to avenge a loss that occurred at the Five Counties Invitational. Also placing for the Bears were juniors Nathan Zarate, second at 140, and Justin Lozano, fifth at 160. Despite a tournament-high 12 state qualifiers, Clovis was only able to place three wrestlers in finishing third with 97 points. Senior Tommy Burriel, ranked 16th nationally, lost in the state final to No. 3 Morgan McIntosh from Calvary Chapel 3-1 at 189 pounds. Sophomores Zach Nevills (171) and Daniel Gaytan (112) finished in second and third place respectively. In winning the championship at 125 pounds, Chris Martinez of Clovis West defeated a pair of ranked wrestlers 3-1 in overtime; No. 18 Vince Rodriguez of Clovis North in the final, and No. 12 at 119 Chris Mecate from Redlands East Valley in the semifinal. Also at that weight class, No. 16 Jesse Delgado of Gilroy earned a fourth state placement with a fourth-place medal; Reno ToC champion freshman Isaiah Martinez of Lemoore finished third; while Mecate took home fifth. The other head-on battle of ranked wrestlers took place at 103 pounds, where No. 12 Nashon Garrett of Chico defeated No. 20 Micah Perez of Central Union 1-0 in the quarterfinal; Garrett won the weight class, while Perez took third. Two upsets of nationally ranked wrestlers took place in the championship final round, with Tyler Johnson (145) of Vacaville defeating No. 17 Cody Rodebaugh of San Lorenzo Valley 13-7 and Lefi Letuligasenoa of Elk Grove defeating No. 6 Drew Meulman of St. Francis 3-2. Rounding out the state champions were Bryan Grubbs (119) of La Costa Canyon, David Ferry (135) of Modesto Central Catholic, Frank Martinez (140) of Northview, Nick Sierra (152) of Lemoore, James Cook (171) of Madera, McIntosh, and No. 8 Tank Knowles (215) of Calvary Chapel. Link to results: http://www.trackwrestling.com/predefinedtournaments/VerifyPassword.jsp?tournamentId=1145009 Upsets abound in Atlantic City With team titles determined in the month of February, and only the mythical overall No. 1 team to be determined by The Star-Ledger this morning, it was all about the individuals this past weekend at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City as the Garden State decided its state champions. The upsets started in the opening weight class, as freshman Anthony Ashnault (South Plainfield) cemented an undefeated season with a 6-5 victory over No. 2 Tyler Fraley (Colts Neck) in the state final at 103 pounds. A second South Plainfield wrestler came through with an upset in the semifinal round, as Mike Wagner defeated No. 13 Billy George (Long Branch) 3-2 in the semifinal round at 189 pounds; however, Wagner could not get a second upsets, as No. 3 Andrew Campolattano (Bound Brook) won his third consecutive state title with a 9-4 victory in the final. On the way to an undefeated state championship, sophomore Alex Shaffer (Hunterdon Central) defeated No. 15 Robert Deutsch (Eastern Regional) 3-2 in the semifinal round at 119 pounds. No. 10 Joe Duca (Paulsboro) and No. 2 Frank Cagnina (Queen of Peace) made it three consecutive weights -- and three of the first four -- with an undefeated state champion, as each dominated their brackets at 125 and 130 pounds. In fact, Cagnina defeated the previously undefeated Tyler Scotton (Willingboro) 7-0 in the final at 130. In the next two weight classes, five undefeated wrestlers prior to the state tournament were not able to exit Atlantic City still undefeated. No. 4 Mike Morales (Brick Memorial), a defending state champion, saw his undefeated season come to an end against Scott Festejo (Long Branch) in the finals with a 7-6 loss. Also at 135 pounds, Nick Heilmann (South Plainfield) lost 5-3 in overtime against Festejo, before losing by fall in 3:59 against Sam Emburgia (Monroe Township) for third place. Ranked seventh in the country heading into the state tournament, Vinny Fava (Elmwood Park) finished seventh in the state bracket at 135. The 140 pound bracket had three nationally ranked wrestlers, two of whom were undefeated; and also an additional undefeated wrestler. No. 17 Hank Stinson (Eastern Regional) earned the state championship with a pin in 3:16 over previously undefeated Mike Bakuckas (Hammonton) in the semifinal, before upending James Green (Willingboro) 7-5 in the championship final. No. 13 Jordan Beverly (Point Pleasant Boro) and No. 14 Ryan Dunphy (Passaic Valley) both entered the tournament undefeated. However, Dunphy saw his string end in the round of 16 with a 3-1 overtime loss to Kurtis Becker (Kingsway Regional), and two matches later, his state tournament ended outside of placement. Beverly advanced to the semifinal with a pin and 12-0 major decision, before losing by fall in 5:44 against Green; he was then able to finish third, knocking off Bakuckas with a fall in 1:31 in the placement match. Defending state champion, No. 7 Taylor Walsh (Camden Catholic) repeated as champion with an 8-2 victory in the final over the previously undefeated Frank Crocco (Passaic Valley) at 145 pounds. Earlier in the tournament, Crocco had upended two-time defending state champion No. 4 Anthony Baldosaro (Eastern Regional) by a 9-5 score. Baldosaro lost his next match by fall to Micah Blair (Sommerville), who had been undefeated prior to the state tournament, to fail to finish in a placing position. The 160 pound weight class saw defending state champion No. 6 Nick Visicaro (Long Branch) defeat No. 14 Preston Keiffer (Eastern Regional) 7-1 in the state championship match. However, earlier in the tournament, Keiffer had defeated No. 12 John Guzzo (High Point) 6-5 in the semifinal round. The last of the notable upsets came in the championship match at 215 pounds, as No. 19 Zach Greenwald (Paulsboro) defeated No. 17 Kevin Innis (St. Peter's Prep) 3-1 in overtime to avenge an earlier in the season loss. Rounding out the state champions were a pair of High Point wrestlers -- Nick Francavilla (112) and Ethan Orr (152); undefeated No. 7 Ryan Callahan (171) of Walkill Valley; and undefeated No. 2 Jimmy Lawson (285) of Manchester, who was named Outstanding Wrestler with four first period pins lasting just under an aggregate of four minutes. Link to results: http://test.escapesports.com/Results/2010/2010NJSIAA.pdf Other state championships this past weekend: Minnesota (Dual Meet): (Class A) http://mshsl.org/mshsl/showXMLbrackets.asp?tournid=2555&bracket=5019 (Class AA) http://mshsl.org/mshsl/showXMLbrackets.asp?tournid=2555&bracket=5020 Minnesota (Individual): (Class A) http://mshsl.org/mshsl/upload/MSHSL185222wrA10.htm (Class AA) http://mshsl.org/mshsl/upload/MSHSL185235wrAA10.htm Ohio (Division III): http://www.ohsaa.org/sports/wr/boys/2010/bd3rslt10.htm Michigan: (Division I) http://www.mhsaa.com/wrfiles/D1/10d1home.htm (Division 2) http://www.mhsaa.com/wrfiles/D2/10d2home.htm (Division 3) http://www.mhsaa.com/wrfiles/D3/10d3home.htm (Division 4) http://www.mhsaa.com/wrfiles/D4/10d4home.htm New England Regional: http://www.newenglandsports.com/documents/cnesspa/2010-Wrestling-Brackets-Final.pdf (Team Scores) http://www.newenglandsports.com/documents/cnesspa/2010-Wrestling-Team-Scores-Final.pdf Maryland: (3A/4A) http://www.mpssaa.org/assets/wintersports/wrestling/3a4abrackets.pdf (1A/2A) http://www.mpssaa.org/assets/wintersports/wrestling/1a2abrackets.pdf Wisconsin (Dual Meet): http://www.trackwrestling.com/teamtournaments/VerifyPassword.jsp?tournamentId=352009 This coming week marks the conclusion of the state championship season with the Pennsylvania State Wrestling Championships to be held in Hershey, PA at the GIANT Center. It is a fitting conclusion to the season, with the most rigorous state tournaments being held last. Individual weight class rankings are projected to be published next week prior to the start of the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships to reflect the happenings of state tournaments across the country. The last rankings of the season will be in mid-April and will reflect results from the major postseason events; both weight class and graduating class rankings to be completed at that time.

DES MOINES, Iowa -- The conference tournaments are over. Lots of discussion is going on across America as to what the finishes and scoring of these events mean to the brackets for the D1 Championships. This Wednesday, in cooperation with the NCAA, Takedown Wrestling Media will host the first NCAA Championship Preview Special on radio and Internet. The NCAA will announce 36 at-large selections to round out the field of 320 wrestlers who will compete at the 2010 NCAA Championships in Omaha, Neb. From California to Pennsylvania, Oklahoma to Minnesota, and everywhere in between, all things wrestling will be up for debate. Now there is a place where the opinions of distinguished members of the National Hall of Fame & Museum, the wrestling media and you, the fan, can discuss everything related to the upcoming championships. On Wednesday, March 10, from 7-10 p.m. (CST), from its radio studios in Des Moines, Iowa Takedown Wrestling Media will host the first NCAA Wrestling Championship Preview Show live on-line at http://www.livesportsvideo.com/golive/goliveevents.asp?q=takedownradio. There will be a panel discussion between various members of the wrestling community and questions from fans will also be included. Send your questions now to wrestle1435@aol.com or you can call in to the show at 866-333-5966 or 515-284-5966 Scott Casber, from Takedown Wrestling Media, will host the show. Scheduled guests include: NCAA champions and Hall of Famers Wade Schalles and Nate Carr; Brad Traviolia and Jim Gibbons from the Big Ten Network; Steve Foster and Jeff Murphy from Takedown Wrestling Media; Chad Wiltsey from theWrestlingtalk.com; NCAA.com blogger and Oklahoma State radio analyst Roger Moore; Jeff Byers from Penn State Radio; Andrew Hipps from Intermatwrestle.com; Kevin Schlosser of Buckeyewrestling.com; Bryan Van Kley and Mike Finn from WIN Magazine; Jim Hochstrasser from the PAC and Gary Abbott from USA Wrestling and theMat.com will round out the panel. Want to ask Schalles about “The Spladle?” Have a question about Kenny Monday for Carr? Finals of the Big 10, 12 or the MAC still got ya puzzled? Maybe you want to discuss the 165-pound weight class in Omaha, this is the show for you. What do the Buckeye's bring to the table? What about the Hawkeyes? This Wednesday you can be heard or just listen in to the first NCAA Championship Preview Special. You can also hang out in the chat room and talk with others, ask questions or just listen in as Britt Malinsky mans the room. Be a part of wrestling history with the first show of its kind, LIVE! NCAA Championship Preview Special- Wednesday March 10th 2010 from 7 PM to 10 PM CST at: Takedownradio.com or http://www.livesportsvideo.com/golive/goliveevents.asp?q=takedownradio.

The NCAA will announce the 330 student-athletes set participate in the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships via a Web stream selection show on NCAA.com on Wednesday, March 10 at 6 p.m. ET. NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee chair, Brad Traviolia, will provide the show’s introduction while Pat Tocci, Director of Administration and Public Relations for the National Wrestling Coaches Association, will serve as the host as he unveils each of the 10 brackets in the championships field. Fans wishing to view the show can do so at the link below: http://www.ncaa.com/sports/m-wrestl/champpage/inc/div1/m-wrestl-div1-announcements.html Complete printable brackets will be available on NCAA.com at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 10.

MOUNT PLEASANT -- Central Michigan claimed individual championships in five weight classes on its way to a ninth consecutive Mid-American Conference Wrestling Championships title on Sunday. The Chippewas topped the team standings with 94 points. Finishing runner-up was Kent State with 73 points, while Ohio was third with 62. Kent State's Danny Mitcheff, who won his second consecutive title at 133 pounds, was named the tournament's most outstanding wrestler. Winning individual titles for CMU were Matt Steintrager (125), Conor Beebe (141), Steve Brown (157), Tyler Grayson (165) and Ben Bennett (174). Eight Chippewas earned automatic bids to the NCAA Championships based on their placement at the MAC Championships. Earning automatic bids were the five weight class champions, Scotti Sentes (133), Mike Miller (184) and Eric Simaz (197). CMU entered Sunday's championship with seven individuals in the finals and three others still alive in the consolation bracket. Of the five Chippewas who won individual titles, four were first-time champions. Steintrager was the first Chippewa to advance to the national tournament, earning a medical forfeit victory at 125 pounds. The conference championship was the first of his career. Beebe also won his first career conference title at 141 pounds. Beebe defeated 2008 MAC champion Pat McLemore (Northern Illinois), 6-2, in the championship match. Brown, Grayson and Bennett strung together three straight titles for the Chippewas at 157, 165 and 174 pounds. Brown's 8-5 decision over NIU's Bryan Deutsch secured his third consecutive conference championship, making him just the ninth Chippewa to win at least three individual MAC titles. Grayson, a senior, and Bennett, a redshirt freshman, were both first-time champions. Grayson posted a 7-2 decision over Buffalo's John-Martin Cannon in the 165-pound finals, while Bennett was dominant in a 15-0 technical fall against Kent State's Keith Witt. CMU's other finalists, Sentes at 133 pounds and Jarod Trice at heavyweight, both finished third after losing in the championship match and forfeiting their true-second matches. Trice and Kent State's Brendan Barlow battled through three tiebreakers in the heavyweight final before Barlow earned the decision based on riding time. The loss snapped a 20-match winning streak for Trice, tied for the second longest in school history. Trice and Tony D'Alie, who placed third at 149 pounds, will be considered for at-large berths to the NCAA Championships. The NCAA will announce at-large qualifiers on Wednesday, March 10.

MORGANTOWN, WV -- The Edinboro wrestling team may have entered the 2010 Eastern Wrestling League Championships in the rare form of underdog, but somebody forgot to tell them With an incredible run in the second and third sessions that featured 16 straight wins, Edinboro rallied for its eighth straight EWL Championship, outdistancing Pittsburgh 135.5 points to 121.5 points. Clarion came in third with 111 points. Pittsburgh had claimed the regular season crown and came in as the favorite to unseat the Fighting Scots. The Panthers had a strong showing, including four champions, but they were no match for an Edinboro squad which finished with all ten of its wrestlers finishing in the top ten. That included four winners and seven third place finishers. Pittsburgh’s Ryan Tomei was named the EWL Championships Outstanding Wrestler. Edinboro was in second place after the first session, trailing the Panthers by 18.5 points. Head coach Tim Flynn has always preached that you can win championships in the consolation round, and the Fighting Scots definitely picked up steam with six straight wins. Then came the finals, with the Fighting Scots running off wins in an incredible all ten bouts. Torsten Gillespie (149 lbs.), Jarrod King (165 lbs.), Phil Moricone (174 lbs.) and Pat Bradshaw (184 lbs.) came away with championships. It marked the third straight title for King at 165 lbs. although he was scheduled to face West Virginia’s Donnie Jones for the third straight year, only to see Jones forfeit the match. King now heads to Nationals for the third time looking to defend his 165 lb. championship. Bradshaw will make his third trip to Nationals after winning his second straight EWL title. After winning the 197 lb. weight class last year, he moved down and prevailed by a 3-2 decision over Zac Thomusseit of Pittsburgh in the finals at 184 lbs. despite wrestling with an injured finger on his left hand. Gillespie made an incredible turnaround after losing all three of his matches a year ago at 149 lbs. He won a 4-0 decision over Clarion’s James Fleming, who came in ranked 15th, to join his brother Gregor as an EWL champion. Gregor won three EWL titles. Moricone made his return for a sixth year worthwhile. After missing over a year of competition with neck and knee injuries, he is headed for his third trip to Nationals after winning the title at 174 lbs. He was a 6-1 winner over Nate Graham of Bloomsburg. Edinboro’s four champions earned automatic berths to the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships set for March 18-20 in Omaha, Neb. In addition, Chris Birchler’s third place finish at heavyweight earned him one of the EWL’s 19 automatic bids. He makes his second trip to Nationals after representing East Stroudsburg last year. Eric Morrill came in ranked ninth by Amateur Wrestling News and 17th by InterMat before at 125 lbs., but his third place finish means he must wait until March 10 to see if he is one of 46 wrestlers awarded bids by the NCAA. Shawn Fendone was on the bubble at 197 lbs. and his third place finish could put him under consideration, although the EWL received just one automatic bid at that weight class.

BETHLEHEM, PA -- It may be a new decade, but the winner of the team race was old hat at the 106th annual Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) Championships hosted by Lehigh University. Cornell crowned five individual champions and earned eight automatic entries to nationals as they won their fourth straight EIWA team title with 160.5 points, easily outpacing second-place Penn (113) by over 47 points. "Well, I'm really thrilled for guys like [Justin] Kerber, [Steve] Bosak and [Josh] Arnone -- not the superstars, but guys that people don't hear a lot about." said Cornell Coach Rob Koll, who was named 2010 EIWA Coach of the Year during the tournament. "I know they can do damage [in Omaha], and if we want to do what we want to do at nationals, those are the guys who are going to have to step up and surprise some people. I expected the No. 1 seeds to wrestle to their seeds, and they did." It was a tournament in which the finals were largely devoid of upsets. Every No. 1 seed advanced to the tournament final, all but one captured their bracket title, and the exception (Army's Matthew Kyler at 149-pounder) was a 2008 EIWA champ. With Cornell cruising to a big lead from the jump, the race quickly became for the second place. In the end, just 9.5 points separated Penn, Lehigh and Bucknell from second, third and fourth places, respectively. "The guys are coming together as a team, and I think we fed off of the energy that each kid had during these matches," Penn Coach Rob Eiter said afterwards. "I'm real proud of the way the guys responded to the adversity that we went through this year with injuries and constantly juggling the lineup." The second day began with consolation semifinals, which were significant because for most weight classes, a loss meant no automatic qualifier. No. 2 seed and 13th-ranked senior Seth Ciasulli (Lehigh) suffered a tough defeat to No. 4 seed Zack Kemmerer (Penn). The 2009 EIWA champion 141 pounds had to settle for fifth place after Kemmerer used a takedown in the second and scored off a nice counter with :20 seconds left to seal a 6-3 decision and stun the hometown favorite. Also going home early will be No. 2 seed and 10th-ranked Kyle Borshoff at 149 pounds. He had a tough draw in a deep weight class, and lost in the quarters by a 3-2 decision to former EIWA champ Cesar Grejales (Penn). Then in the cons semis, Glenn Shober (Navy) held off Borshoff by a 4-3 decision to send the senior to the fifth place match. At 184, Lehigh's David Craig ended his home career in Bethlehem nicely with a thrilling 8-5 win over Cornell's Steve Bosak. Trailing 5-4 with the ride time advantage and :10 seconds on the clock, Craig reversed Bosak, locked up a cradle and put him to his back for a two-point near fall as time expired for an 8-5 decision to take third place and advance to his third NCAAs. Navy senior heavyweight Scott Steele has been battling a high left ankle sprain all year, and though he gamely tried to shake off the pain and swelling, he was unable to wrestle his accustomed open style this weekend. He then rolled it twice in his semifinal loss to DJ Russo (Rutgers), forcing him to medically forfeit out of the tournament. He'll now have to hope for a wild card berth to Omaha. Finals Recap 125: An interesting matchup here between Garrett Frey (Princeton) and Cornell's Troy Nickerson, who Garrett has known for years since Troy and Adam Frey were once teammates on the Big Red. To his credit, Garrett Frey tried to wrestle. He took his shots, but Nickerson had quick counters to all of them. In the first, Nickerson took him down and used a turk with a crossface for three near fall points and to hold him down for the rest of the period and Nickerson began the second with a 5-0 lead, and after riding Frey out the entire second period, he and Nickerson went neutral to start the third. Frey tried a throw, and after Nickerson grabbed a leg to counter, Frey tried to roll through. That move was a true freshman mistake, as Nickerson caught and pinned him early in the third period. "Garrett did an amazing job just to get to the finals of this very difficult tournament," Koll said. "He should be very proud of that ... and he's not the only one to [ever] get caught and pinned by Troy." 133: A match that had a weird flow because of blood time for Fisk, Grey was in control and up 3-0 after two periods. Fisk made things interesting with an explosive takedown right off the whistle at the start of the third to make it 3-2. But Grey regained controlled with an escape and a takedown of his own, eventually winning a 7-2 decision for his first EIWA title. 141: The Big Red made it three titles in a row to start finals as No. 1 seed and top-ranked Kyle Dake (Cornell) ended No. 7 seed Jordan Lipp's (American) upset run with a 9-2 decision in the final. Lipp got in deep on a few high-crotch singles during the match, but Dake was able to use under hooks and impressive strength to ward them off and score takedowns on a couple go-behinds. Leading 7-0 early in the third, Dake tweaked his ankle a bit and Lipp was able to finish off a gorgeous high single. But he could get no closer, and the true freshman won comfortably, 9-2. 149: Looking to avenge one of his only losses this season to top seed Kevin LeValley (Bucknell), Army's No. 9-ranked Matt Kyler used a couple textbook takedowns in the first and second periods to lead 4-3 heading into the third. LeValley chose to ride Kyler out for much of the third period, believing that he could turn the four-time finalist for back points. The two wrestlers kept going out-of-bounds, however, and Kyler avenged his finals loss at 149 last season with a 5-3 decision. 157: A pair of returning All-Americans squared off here. Top seed and top-ranked J.P. O'Connor and No. 3 seed Bryce Saddoris (Navy) went scoreless through the first period, then O'Connor countered a Saddoris shot attempt for a takedown to lead 3-0 into the third. Despite allowing an escape early in the third, O'Connor wrestled smartly and came away a 3-1 victor. 165: Great scrambling in the first period results in top seed Andy Rendos (Bucknell) locking up No. 3 Brandon Hatchett (Lehigh) in a cradle for a five point move. Rendos started the second period down, but he quickly reversed Hatchett for a 7-0 lead. The runner-up last year at this weight class, Rendos's 8-2 win made him the first EIWA champion in Bucknell history. 174: Top ranked and No. 1 seed Mack Lewnes (Cornell) earned his second straight EIWA title and well-deserved OW honors with a dominating performance in the finals against No. 2 Scott Giffin (Penn). He was workmanlike, notching takedowns in all three periods and staying on the offensive in a 9-2 decision. "I wanted to be aggressive, and I felt like I was," Lewnes said. "Being [the No. 1 seed at nationals] and losing twice last year really showed me that the worst thing that could have happened already did. It takes away the pressure ... it doesn't matter what seed I am, I just have to go out there and wrestle." 184: Despite his rhythm being disrupted by a constant bloody nose, Mike Cannon (American) continued to do the same thing that he did last year at 174 pounds: win. The No. 4 senior had a tough match-up against No. 8 Louis Caputo (Harvard), but ultimately prevailed 5-1, thanks to takedowns in the first and second, and accumulated riding time throughout. "This being my senior year, I wanted to come in and just have fun," Cannon said. "I've put a lot of pressure on myself these last couple years. I remembered before this tournament how much I love this sport – so I had a good time and wrestled real well." 197: No. 1 seed Cam Simaz wanted to defend his title at 197 from 2009, so he came out and got an almost immediate takedown of Micah Burak (Penn). The 20-year-old freshman from Colorado Springs settled in after that, however, and gave Simaz all he could handle in a physical matchup before Simaz eventually prevailed, 3-1. 285: The home crowd was finally given something to cheer about in the finals when top-seeded sophomore Zach Rey (Lehigh) beat DJ Russo (Rutgers) to win his first EIWA title. Both registered escapes and took plenty of half shots during regulation. In the tie breaker, got an escape, then hung on to seal the deal and register his third close win over Russo on the season. Meanwhile, for non-Big Red EIWA fans hoping to see a different team champion, the wait continues. And the beat will go on, with Rob Koll directing the band. "We've been building for a long time, and it doesn't happen overnight," Koll said. "We're excited about being able to dominate, but we're more excited about the fact that we expect next year's team to be even better."

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- To many it was a foregone conclusion that Iowa would win its third straight Big Ten title at the 2010 Big Ten Championships with a dominating performance. When the dust settled on Sunday in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Iowa did in fact capture its third straight Big Ten title with 156.5 points, finishing 37 points ahead of runner-up Minnesota. But despite the large margin of victory, the word 'dominating' was not used throughout Crisler Arena to describe the Hawkeyes' performance after four of Iowa's six finalists lost. "You have some explaining to do as a coach and a coaching staff," said Iowa coach Tom Brands, who was named Big Ten Coach of the Year. "The ready state ... and we weren't ready. You think you're ready, but you think ... and funny things happen when you're thinking. You've got to know you're ready and you've got to go out there and you've got to execute." Perhaps the biggest blow to Iowa came at 149 pounds when the Hawkeyes' leader, Brent Metcalf, fell to Ohio State's Lance Palmer, 9-3. Metcalf opened the match with a takedown to go up 2-0, but Palmer hung around and trailed just 3-1 heading into the third period. After clasping call against Metcalf and an escape by Palmer, the match was knotted at 3-3. After a wild scramble, Palmer not only came out on top for the takedown, but also put Metcalf to his back, which all but sealed the deal for the Buckeye senior as he picked up three nearfall points and added riding time. Palmer, who entered the event ranked second nationally, was previously 0-4 in his collegiate career against Metcalf. "To me, I don't feel like I'm an underdog," said Palmer, who was named Outstanding Wrestler of the event. "I feel like I should be No. 1. That's the mentality that I've had every time I've wrestled him ... this year a little different than the others." Palmer, a three-time All-American who has placed fourth twice and eighth once, knows that what matters most is the NCAA Championships in less than two weeks. "It feels good to beat him, but it's not really about me and him," said Palmer. "It's about winning a national title, I think. That's the bigger picture that I look at. It's cool to be a Big Ten champ, but it doesn't mean anything if you can't win a national title in two weeks. Four of the 10 champions crowded on Sunday were multiple-time winners, including Indiana's Angel Escboedo, who won his third straight conference title at 125 pounds. Both Escobedo, a senior, and Iowa's Mike McDonough, a freshman, entered the match undefeated. Escobedo led 1-0 after two periods, but eventually secured the match with two takedowns in the third period to win 6-4. "Three Big Ten titles in a row is a tough feat to overcome," said Escobedo. "I had a tremendous freshman out there pushing me to the limits. That was just great for college wrestling to see that he has four more years and that I'm graduating. Two have those two clash ... It was a great experience out there." Minnesota had back-to-back champions at 133 pounds and 141 pounds in Jayson Ness and Mike Thorn. Ness captured his second Big Ten title with a 9-3 victory over Iowa's Daniel Dennis at 133 pounds. The Gopher senior captain led 7-0 in the third period, but Dennis added a late escape and a takedown. Ness' first Big Ten title came when he was a freshman in 2007 at 125 pounds. Despite being undefeated, ranked No. 1, and without an NCAA title, Ness, a three-time All-American, feels no pressure heading into his final NCAA Championships. "I don't feel any pressure," said Ness, who was also named Big Ten Wrestler of the Year. "I've started just relying on the Lord a lot more. All I can do is wrestle hard seven minutes. Whatever happens, it doesn't matter because I gave it my full effort. That's the only way I can look at it. It takes a lot of the pressure off." Thorn, who entered the event ranked eighth nationally at 141 pounds, avenged a loss from earlier this season by defeating second-ranked Reece Humphrey of Ohio State, 3-1. "I'm really enjoying it," said Thorn. "I had a lot of fun this tournament. Man, there's a lot of good wrestling from all teams." Thorn's focus will now turn towards Omaha and the NCAA Championships. "I'm just going to get to the NCAA tournament and take it one match at a time," said Thorn. "I think if I keep wrestling like this, I should end up in the finals and give myself a shot at winning an NCAA title. It's just exciting." At 157 pounds, Penn State's Cyler Sanderson captured his first Big Ten title with an 8-4 decision over Colton Salazar of Purdue. Sanderson and Salazar grew up together in Utah, wrestled in the same kids club, and were high school teammates at Wasatch High School in Heber City. "It was kind of weird," said Sanderson of wrestling Salazar. "It's a little bit like wrestling your brother. You've got to wrestle whoever shows up. He's done real well. He had a real good tournament. He's going to do great at the NCAAs." Wisconsin's Andrew Howe, who is undefeated and ranked No. 1, captured his second straight Big Ten title at 165 pounds with a 4-2 decision over Colt Sponseller of Ohio State. The match was tied 1-1 in the third period with just over a minute to go in the match when Howe scored the go-ahead takedown, which propelled him to the victory. So what was the key for Howe in his finals match? "Staying in good position the whole time, not giving him a lot of opportunities," said Howe. "That takedown in the third period pretty much sealed the deal." Jay Borschel put a halt to Iowa's three-match losing streak in the finals with a dominating 8-1 victory over Scott Glasser of Minnesota at 174 pounds. "It's great," said Borschel. "It was the next event on the calendar. We had a lot of focus on it, but I can't really think about anything else but what's next in two weeks here. That's kind of what your career and everything is defined by is winning a championship. It's good to win these championships and these tournaments. But that's why we wrestle is just for the next two weeks here at the national tournament." At 184 pounds, John Dergo of Illinois defeated Phil Keddy of Iowa, 5-3, to capture his first Big Ten title of his career. After a scoreless first period, Dergo, who is ranked second nationally, registered a takedown in each of the next two periods, which helped pace him to the victory. Dergo will be making his fourth appearance at the NCAA Championships. He has a 7-6 career record at the NCAA Championships, but is still in search of his first All-American medal. "I'm going in there and I'm going to worry about one match a time," said Dergo. "I feel if I wrestle my best, there's no one that can beat me right now. Wisconsin's Trevor Brandvold, who has not suffered a defeat since January 9, won a hard-fought match, 3-1, over Minnesota's Sonny Yohn at 197 pounds. The two wrestlers battled to a 0-0 tie after one period. In the second period, Brandvold picked up a reversal, which proved to be the difference in the match. "Sonny and I have wrestled before," said Brandvold, who won 5-3 over Yohn earlier this season. "He's really hard for me to score on when on the feet, so my strategy was to take only smart shots. I'm really comfortable on top, so I knew I could probably ride him and get out from the bottom. So that was the strategy." In a battle of undefeated heavyweights, Iowa's Dan Erekson used a takedown and cradle right off the bat to go up 5-0 against Indiana's Nathan Everhart, which helped pace him to a 9-6 victory. "You want to strong," said Erekson, who captured his second straight Big Ten title. "I want to finish strong too. That first takedown and to be able to turn him like that, that was really big." Finals Results 125: No. 1 Angel Escobedo (Indiana) dec. No. 3 Matt McDonough (Iowa), 6-4 133: No. 1 Jayson Ness (Minnesota) vs. No. 3 Daniel Dennis (Iowa), 9-3 141: No. 8 Mike Thorn (Minnesota) dec. No. 2 Reece Humphrey (Ohio State), 3-1 149: No. 2 Lance Palmer (Ohio State) dec. No. 1 Brent Metcalf (Iowa), 9-3 157: No. 6 Cyler Sanderson (Penn State) dec. Colton Salazar (Purdue), 8-4 165: No. 1 Andrew Howe (Wisconsin) dec. No. 6 Colt Sponseller (Ohio State), 4-2 174: No. 2 Jay Borschel (Iowa) dec. No. 7 Scott Glasser (Minnesota), 8-1 184: No. 2 John Dergo (Illinois) dec. No. 10 Phil Keddy (Iowa), 5-3 197: No. 7 Trevor Brandvold (Wisconsin) dec. No. 13 Sonny Yohn (Minnesota), 3-1 285: No. 10 Dan Erekson (Iowa) dec. No. 2 Nathan Everhart (Indiana), 9-6 Final Team Standings 1. Iowa 156.5 2. Minnesota 119.5 3. Wisconsin 109 4. Ohio State 102.5 5. Penn State 91 6. Purdue 76 7. Michigan State 68.5 8. Illinois 64 8. Indiana 64 10. Michigan 57.5 11. Northwestern 20 Individual Award Winners Outstanding Wrestler of the Championships: Lance Palmer, Ohio State Freshman of the Year: Matt McDonough, Iowa Wrestler of the Year: Jayson Ness, Minnesota Coach of the Year: Tom Brands, Iowa

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The finals matchups are set for the 2010 Big Ten Championships and will be aired live on the Big Ten Network at 2:05 p.m. ET. Below is a breakdown of each finals matchup. 125: No. 1 Angel Escobedo (Indiana) vs. No. 3 Matt McDonough (Iowa) A battle of undefeated wrestlers. Escobedo, the two-time defending Big Ten champion at this weight class, has been dominant all season long. He has picked up bonus points in his last nine matches. Escobedo was untested on Saturday, registering victories Sean Boyle of Michigan (pin) and No. 12 Brad Pataky of Penn State (14-1). The fact that McDonough made it through the entire regular season of his redshirt freshman season undefeated -- and then reached the Big Ten finals -- tells you what kind of talent he is. He is tenacious competitor who is very difficult to score on. His length also causes matchup problem for many of his shorter 125-pound opponents. Like Escobedo, McDonough is on a roll. He has picked up bonus points in his last seven matches. His road to the Big Ten finals included two major decision victories, one coming against returning All-American Zach Sanders of Minnesota. Match History: These two wrestlers have never met during their college wrestling careers. 133: No. 1 Jayson Ness (Minnesota) vs. No. 3 Daniel Dennis (Iowa) Ness, a three-time All-American, has put together one of the finest seasons ever in Gopher wrestling history. He is currently 25-0 with 18 pins. He stands just two pins away from tying, and three from breaking, his own school record for pins in a single season. He will be making his third trip to the finals of the Big Ten Championships. He was a Big Ten champion as a freshman (125), runner-up as a sophomore (125), and placed fourth (133) last season. His route to the Big Ten finals includes victories over Akif Eren of Purdue (pin) and No. 6 Tyler Graff of Wisconsin (11-4). Dennis, a returning All-American, missed over a month of the season because of an ankle injury, which kept him out of both the Midlands and the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. He has suffered only two defeats this season ... one to fifth-ranked Jordan Oliver of Oklahoma State, in his first match back from his injury, and one to Ness. He has two wins this season over defending NCAA champion and two-time Big Ten champion Franklin Gomez of Michigan State, including a victory in the Big Ten semifinals on Saturday night. Match History: Dennis defeated Ness twice last season (6-4, 9-7). Ness defeated Dennis this season on February 14 by a score of 8-4. 141: No. 2 Reece Humphrey (Ohio State) vs. No. 8 Mike Thorn (Minnesota) Humphrey, an NCAA runner-up last season at 133 pounds, is one bad day away from being undefeated on the season. At the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals on January 9, the Buckeye senior dropped matches to No. 12 Chris Drouin of Arizona State and No 1 Kyle Dake of Cornell ... but has otherwise been perfect this season. On Saturday, he was pushed hard in first round match against Cole Schmitt of Wisconsin, but prevailed for the 6-4 victory. He dominated Penn State's Adam Lynch, 14-4, in the semifinals. Thorn has been one of the most consistent performers on the Minnesota team this season. After a disappointing finish to his sophomore season when he went 0-2 at the NCAA Championships, Thorn got bigger and stronger in the offseason and grew into a full-sized 141-pounder ... and it has paid off. He has not only defeated several ranked opponents this season, but dominated them, picking up bonus points in virtually all of his wins over ranked opponents. He lost by major decision to Montell Marion on February 14 (after pinning him at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals), but came back on Saturday to hammer him, 12-3, in the semifinals. Match History: Humphrey defeated Thorn, 5-3, earlier this season at the NWCA/Cliff Keen Nationals Duals on January 9. (Humphrey also defeated Thorn at University Nationals in freestyle last April) 149: No. 1 Brent Metcalf (Iowa) vs. No. 2 Lance Palmer (Ohio State) Metcalf, a two-time NCAA finalist and 2008 NCAA champion, will be vying for his third straight Big Ten championship. He is 31-0 on the season and coming off a dominating 12-3 major decision victory in the semifinals over All-American Frank Molinaro of Penn State. Palmer, a three-time All-American, avenged one of his two regular season losses this season in the semifinals when he defeated Wisconsin's Kyle Ruschell, 2-1, to advance to the finals. He will now get the opportunity to avenge his only other loss, which came to Metcalf. Match History: These two have met four times throughout their college careers ... with Metcalf winning all four meetings. Metcalf defeated Palmer earlier this season, 3-1, on February 19. 157: No. 6 Cyler Sanderson (Penn State) vs. Colton Salazar (Purdue) With Minnesota's Dustin Schlatter unable to compete because of an injury, it left this weight class wide open. Interestingly, Salazar received the No. 1 seed despite not being ranked nationally. He is a two-time NCAA qualifier, but has been struggled with consistency this season. He has some quality wins, but also some head-scratching losses. After winning by default (over Schlatter) in the opening round, he dominated Wisconsin's Greg Burke, 13-4, in the quarterfinals, and then registered a 6-2 victory over Iowa's Jake Kerr in the semifinals. Sanderson, who transferred to Penn State from Iowa State for his senior season, has gone 27-4 ... with three of those losses coming to wrestlers ranked in the top five. He was pushed in his first match on Saturday against Clinton Arlis of Illinois, but escaped with a 9-7 victory. In the semifinals, Sanderson blanked Anthony Jones of Michigan State, 6-0. An interesting side note on this matchup ... Sanderson and Salazar were high school teammates at Wasatch High School in Heber City, Utah. Match History: These two wrestlers have never met during their college wrestling careers. 165: No. 1 Andrew Howe (Wisconsin) vs. No. 6 Colt Sponseller (Ohio State) Howe, the defending Big Ten champion and NCAA runner-up at this weight class, has yet to suffer a loss this season and has defeated six of the seven wrestlers ranked directly below him, including Sponseller. He is coming off a hard-fought 3-1 victory over Dan Vallimont of Penn State in the semifinals. Sponseller finally got over the mental hurdle of beating Iowa's Ryan Morningstar, a wrestler who defeated him in three previous meetings, in the semifinals on Saturday night. His only losses this season have come to wrestlers ranked in the top four. Sponseller has proven over the past three seasons that he is one of the nation's top 165-pounders, but he has never been able to put it together in March when it matters most. As a freshman, he failed to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Last season, as a sophomore, he failed to earn All-American honors after he entered the event as the No. 6 seed. Match History: These two have met twice in their college careers, once last season and once this season ... with Howe winning both meetings. Howe's most recent victory over Sponseller came earlier this season in the finals of the Cliff Keen Nationals Duals, 6-3, on December 4. 174: No. 2 Jay Borschel (Iowa) vs. No. 7 Scott Glasser (Minnesota) Borschel is one of four undefeated Hawkeyes. He was a Midlands champion in December and was named Outstanding Wrestler at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. During the Big Ten season, Borschel went 9-0 ... with seven of those wins coming with bonus points. Glasser, who moved up this season from 165 pounds, has been on fire during the second half of the season. He has won 19 of his last 21 matches ... with both losses during the span coming to Borschel. Last season, Glasser dropped 15 of his last 19 matches and went 0-2 at the Big Ten Championships. This season he looks like a completely different wrestler. Match History: These two have wrestled twice this season ... with Borschel winning both matches by major decision. Their most recent match occurred on February 14 -- a match Borschel won 14-2. 184: No. 2 John Dergo (Illinois) vs. No. 10 Phil Keddy (Iowa) Dergo, a three-time NCAA qualifier, competed at 174 pounds the past two seasons before moving up to 184 pounds for his senior campaign. He is 30-2 on the season and coming off an impressive 13-6 semifinal victory over three-time All-American and 2008 NCAA champion Mike Pucillo of Ohio State. His only losses this season have come to Missouri's Max Askren (a loss he later avenged) and No. 1 Kirk Smith of Boise State. Keddy, a two-time All-American, has struggled at times this season, but seems to be hitting his stride at the right time. He has won nine of his last 10 matches ... and avenged the only loss during that span on Saturday night in the semifinals, which came to Penn State's ninth-ranked David Erwin. Match History: Dergo defeated Keddy, 9-8, at the 2007 Big Ten Championships. 197: No. 7 Trevor Brandvold (Wisconsin) vs. No. 13 Sonny Yohn (Minnesota) Brandvold missed the first month of the season due to injury, but competed at the Midlands in December, where he finished fourth. He dropped a match to fifth-ranked Cam Simaz of Cornell at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals on January 9, but has since reeled off 12 straight victories. He is coming off a 3-1 victory over eighth-ranked Anthony Biondo of Michigan in the semifinals. Yohn, who moved up from 184 pounds, dropped three conference matches this season, but has put together a solid Big Ten Championships. He avenged a loss Patrick Bond of Illinois before upsetting top-seeded Chad Beatty of Iowa. Match History: Brandvold defeated Yohn, 4-2, earlier this season on January 29. 285: No. 2 Nate Everhart (Indiana) vs. No. 10 Dan Erekson (Iowa) Everhart started his college career at 197 pounds before moving up to heavyweight as a sophomore. He has been one of the most improved wrestlers in the country this season. After losing 17 matches as a junior, the Indiana big man has yet to suffer a single defeat this season. He has established himself as one of the top contenders to win the heavyweight title in Omaha. Everhart outscored his three opponents on Saturday, 24-5, to en route to reaching the finals. Erekson, a returning All-American, missed the first two months of the season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle suffered during an early-season practice. Since returning to the mat on January 24, the Hawkeye heavyweight has gone a perfect 11-0. He is coming off a 5-2 victory over 17th-ranked Cameron Wade of Penn State in the semifinals. Match History: These two wrestlers have never met during their college wrestling careers.

BROOKINGS, S.D. -- In unusual and exciting fashion, the University of Wyoming Wrestling team qualified three individuals for the upcoming national championships and won the NCAA West Regional title on Saturday in Brookings. A trio of UW sophomores won their brackets and earned automatic bids to the 2010 NCAA DI Wrestling Championships. Michael Martinez was the victor at 125 pounds, Shane Onufer at 165 and Joe LeBlanc at 184. The Cowboys also got a second-place finish from Cory VomBaur (133) and three third-place winners: Jimmy Belleville (157), Alfonso Hernandez (197) and L.J. Helbig (Hwt.). As a team, the `Pokes came from behind and won the West Regional team title by a half point over the 24-time defending champion Northern Iowa Panthers. It is Wyoming's first-ever West Regional team title and UW's first tournament conference championship team since 1992. The Cowboys concluded the event with 75 points, Northern Iowa had 74.5, North Dakota State (44.5) was third, followed by Utah Valley (43.5), Air Force (37.5), South Dakota State (29.5) and Northern Colorado (18.5). All seven Western Wrestling Conference teams competed at the event, making it in effect the league's championship tournament. Entering the final matches in the heavyweight division, the `Pokes trailed the Panthers by a half point. UNI's Christian Brantley won his match, but so did UW's Helbig, only Helbig pinned his opponent which gave Wyoming the necessary bonus points to jump in front of Northern Iowa to end the night. The Cowboys and Panthers did battle all day long, with four head-to-head match-ups in the semifinals, two others for first place and one for third place. UW was 5-2 in those matches. Those bouts, along with some key consolation bracket wins and bonus points, helped Wyoming come from down 15 points after the semifinals and seven and a half points to UNI heading into the finals. UW was hurt by some key losses to some of their high seeds in early matches, but also benefited from a penalty point deducted from UNI for poor sportsmanship after the 157-pound final. "This is a bitter-sweet day," Wyoming head coach Mark Branch said. "I feel that we wrestled about as poor as we could today and that is the reality. The good thing is that we walk away with the team championship, which was one of our goals this year. It is hard though, because I don't believe we deserved it with our performance. I would trade the team title for a few more guys going to the NCAA Championships. "The way that we train and my philosophy as a coach is to perform well on this weekend. Everything points towards that. To come out and wrestle poorly is disappointing. We trained too hard and too smart to let our opponents dictate the outcome the way they did today. "There were some performances on our team that deserve thanks for getting this team over the hump and earning the West Regional trophy. Guys like Fonz (Hernandez), Jimmy and L.J. all showed some heart with the way they came back through the back-draw, earned bonus points and got some big wins." Martinez, the No. 2 seed at 125 pounds, faced Andrew Zwirlein from Air Force for the second straight year in the opening round. In a low-scoring match, Martinez won 3-2. Next, the Cowboy sophomore had Caleb Flores of UNI and the two had to go to a second sudden victory period before Martinez won the match in extra time with a takedown, 4-2. In the finals, he would face No. 1 seeded Ben Kjar from Utah Valley for the third time this season. The pair had split their two previous meetings. Like their match at the Cowboy Open in November, No. 9-ranked Kjar and No. 11-ranked Martinez needed extra time to determine a champion, and just like that earlier match Martinez used a takedown in the first sudden victory period to win 7-3. With the win Martinez won his second straight 125-pound West Regional title and took one of the league's two automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament. His overall record is now 30-7. Seeded No. 1 in the 133-pound weight class, VomBaur had a first-round bye and then faced No. 4 seed Ryan Jauch from Northern Iowa in the semifinals. He recorded an early first-period takedown, racked up riding time over Jauch and then held on for a 5-3 decision. In the finals, against No. 3 seed Flint Ray (UVU), VomBaur lost 8-3 and must now hope for an at-large NCAA bid. VomBaur wrestled the event on a sore knee, after a staph infection had caused his knee to swell over the past two weeks. He will now wait for the NCAA at-large selections next Wednesday to see if he will attend his fourth national championships. At 141 pounds, Chase Smith was pinned in his opening match and lost a decision in the wrestlebacks, the only Cowboy to go 0-2 on the day. Starting as the No. 3 seed at 149 pounds, Cole Dallaserra controlled his first-round match with Nick Hagar (SDSU) and won 6-0. He then had trouble creating any offense against No. 2 seed Andrey Patselov (NDSU) and lost 6-2. That dropped Dallaserra into the consolation bracket where he would face Gabe Martinez of Air Force. He would need extra time to beat Martinez, but did manage get revenge for a recent dual loss by winning in a second sudden victory period, 3-1. Dallaserra then wrestled No. 4 seed Justin Morrill (UVU) in the third place bout, losing 9-4 and taking fourth place. UW freshman Belleville was seeded No. 4 at 157 pounds and opened his tournament by avenging a recent dual loss to Alec Williams of Air Force. Belleville never trailed and beat Williams 9-3. No. 1 seed Tyson Reiner (UNI) was his next opponent and he would lose a major decision 14-4. In the back draw, Belleville first saw Nick Flynn from SDSU, winning 8-2 before meeting No. 2 seed Justin Gaethje (UNCo) for third place. In an exciting match that was back-and-forth for a full seven minutes, Belleville won 11-10 thanks to a late takedown. He finished his freshman campaign with a 31-8 record. No. 9-ranked Onufer was the No. 1 seed at 165 pounds and got an 11-2 major decision against Kevin O'Brien from Northern Colorado in his first match, followed by another major decision, 13-5, against No. 4 seed Tyler Johnson (NDSU). His finals' opponent was the No. 3 seed David Bonin (UNI). Onufer pushed the pace, scored two takedowns and won the Regional title match by a score of 6-2. He was awarded the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament for his efforts, his second-straight trip to nationals. Onufer now has a 27-5 season record. Also a No. 1 seed, Brock Smith drew a first-round bye and then faced No. 4 seed Tyler French (AFA) for the third time this season. Each wrestler had one head-to-head win over the other, but French tilted the season scorecard in his favor by beating Smith this time 5-2. Mac Stoll from NDSU was next for Smith, whom he beat 10-5, setting up a third place match with Utah Valley's No. 2 seed Brad Darrington. Smith had beaten Darrington earlier this season, but this time was forced to wrestle with a foot injury he sustained in an earlier match. He lost the match 6-1. LeBlanc, nationally ranked No. 8 at 184 pounds, lived up to his No. 1 seed by earning a technical fall in his opener against Patrick Prentice (UNCo). Wyoming's All-American took a 14-1 first-period lead and then ended the match quickly at 3:13 by a 17-1 margin. It was LeBlanc's 12th technical fall victory this season. Equally as dominant was LeBlanc's next match, in which he pinned James Ciccone from Air Force at 1:49. The fall was his 12th win in that fashion this season. It would then be No. 3 seed Andy O'Loughlin (UNI) whom LeBlanc would fight in the finals and despite his opponents' defensive approach, he would win 9-2. LeBlanc rolled up over four minutes in riding time in the match. It was also his second consecutive West Regional crown and he will return to the NCAA Tournament via an automatic bid. LeBlanc's season record is now 35-4. He was named the event's Outstanding Wrestler as voted by the coaches. In a big blow against the Cowboy team, 197-pounder Alfonso Hernandez, who was seeded No. 2, was pinned by Drew Ross of North Dakota State in the opening round. He battled back in the consolation bracket with a pin of his own, his first this season, over Edward Matthews (UNCo) at 2:36, then followed that up with his second win by fall of the year, this time at 2:58 over No. 4 seed Josh Wood (UVU). Having seen his chances of qualifying for nationals go south in the first round, a frustrated Hernandez then beat No. 3 seed Dustin Bauman (UNI) by decision, 9-3. He placed third with the win and won the tournament's Most Pins award. L.J. Helbig was the No. 4 seed at heavyweight and drew a first-round bye before matching up with No. 1 seed Christian Brantley of UNI. Brantley proved to be too much for Helbig, winning 6-2, however, in his next match UW's redshirt freshman beat Joe Arthur from NDSU, 7-3. He now faced Kevin Kelly (SDSU) for third place and with the `Pokes team title hopes on the line. Helbig came through in the clutch for his team by pinning Kelly with just a second remaining in period number two and sealing the West Regional team title for Wyoming. LeBlanc, Martinez and Onufer will now begin training for the NCAA Championships which will be held in Omaha, Neb., March 18-20 at the Qwest Center Omaha. VomBaur will have to wait until after all of the qualifying events have concluded and the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee meets in-person to select the remaining 46 at-large qualifiers, which will be announced on March 10.