LA CROSSE, Wis. — Augsburg College’s Donny Longendyke (SR, Vadnais Heights, Minn./White Bear Lake HS) finished as national runner-up at heavyweight, as his Augsburg wrestling team claimed a second-place finish at the NCAA Division III National Championships, completed on Saturday at the La Crosse Center.
In a rematch of last year’s heavyweight national title bout, Zachery Roseberry of Delaware Valley (Pa.) repeated as titlist, converting a takedown with 46 seconds left in the third period to break a 1-1 tie. Longendyke scored an escape with six seconds left, but was unable to overcome Roseberry in the final seconds.
In the semifinals, Longendyke avenged two earlier losses this season to Lance Evans of Wartburg (Iowa), dominating in a 10-1, major-decision victory. He scored 10 straight points after surrendering a second-period escape, converting a deep dive for a takedown into a four-point near-fall halfway through the second period, then claiming a takedown, earning a penalty point on a stalling call and collecting 3:05 riding time.
The 2015 Division III heavyweight national champion, Longendyke is the 42nd Auggie wrestler to ever earn three All-American honors. He finished his senior season at 27-4 with 20 bonus-point wins (16 pins, four major decisions), 151-30 in his collegiate career with 113 bonus-point wins (85 pins, four technical falls, 24 major decisions), and 109-9 with 83 bonus-point wins (62 pins, four technical falls, 17 major decisions) in three seasons at Augsburg. Longendyke transferred to Augsburg after competing his first year at Division I Nebraska.
As a team, Augsburg finished in second place with 79.0 points, while Wartburg (Iowa) won the title for the second straight year, scoring 129.5 points. Wabash (Ind.) finished in third with 62.5 points, and Johnson & Wales (R.I.) finished fourth with 61.5 points.
Augsburg has finished among the top two teams in national competition 24 times since 1975, winning national titles 12 times in NCAA Division III competition and earning runner-up honors 12 times (11 in Division III, once in NAIA). Augsburg has finished among the top 20 teams nationally every year since 1971, and among the top 10 teams nationally every year since 1988.
Since 1995, Wartburg and Augsburg have claimed every Division III wrestling national title, with Wartburg now winning a record 13 Division III national crowns.
Earlier on Saturday, three Augsburg wrestlers finished in third place in their weight classes, while another Augsburg wrestler finished in eighth place. The five All-Americans — four of them first-year wrestlers– bring Augsburg’s all-time total to 237 in school history (since 1969; 201 in NCAA competition, 36 in NAIA competition). Augsburg has had at least one All-American in national wrestling competition (NAIA and NCAA) every season since 1977, and has recorded five or more All-Americans 29 times in program history.
Owen Webster (FY, Shakopee, Minn.) placed third at 184 pounds, finishing his first collegiate season at 33-2, with 23 bonus-point victories (10 major decisions, four technical falls, nine pins), and a 24-1 record against NCAA Division III opponents.
David Flynn (FY, Jordan, Minn./Scott West) placed third at 141 pounds for the Auggies. A mid-season transfer from Division I North Dakota State, Flynn finished 34-9 on the season (25-5 at Augsburg) with 19 bonus-point wins (14 pins, two technical falls, three major decisions). He is now 53-19 in his collegiate career.
Lucas Jeske (FY, St. Michael, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville HS) placed third at 165 pounds. He finished his first collegiate season at 26-8, with 15 bonus-point wins (eight pins, three technical falls, four major decisions).
Victor Gliva (FY, Farmington, Minn.) finished in eighth place at 125. He finished 32-7 on the season with 17 bonus-point wins (seven major decisions, four technical falls, six pins) in his first collegiate campaign.
TOP 10 TEAM SCORES – FINAL:
1. Wartburg (Iowa) 129.5, 2. Augsburg (Minn.) 79.0, 3. Wabash (Ind.) 62.5, 4. Johnson & Wales (R.I.) 61.5, 5. Messiah (Pa.) 56.0, 6. Loras (Iowa) 46.5, 7. Cortland State (N.Y.) 45.0, 8. Brockport State (N.Y.) 35.0, 9. Ithaca (N.Y.) 34.5, 10. Stevens Tech (N.J.) 32.5. Other Minnesota schools: 37t. Concordia-Moorhead 5.5, 58t. Saint John’s 0.0.
SATURDAY’S AUGSBURG RESULTS:
- 125 — C.J. Pestano (Central) dec. Victor Gliva (Augsburg) 5-3. Seventh-place match: Bobby Jordan (Johnson & Wales) dec. Gliva 4-3.
- 141 — Dustin Weinmann (Wisconsin-La Crosse) dec. David Flynn (Augsburg) 3-0; Flynn pinned Clint Lembeck (Loras) 2:20. Third-place match: Flynn dec. Devin Broukal (Wabash) 12-9.
- 165 — Lucas Jeske (Augsburg) tech. fall Davon Jackson (Olivet) 16-0 at 4:48; Jeske tech. fall Anthony Arroyo (Baldwin-Wallace) 21-6 at 7:00. Third-place match: Jeske pinned Larry Cannon (Messiah) 1:29.
- 184 — Justin Kreiter (Luther) dec. Owen Webster (Augsburg) 5-3; Webster dec. Bryan Levsen (Wartburg) 6-2. Third-place match: Webster dec. Jordan Bushey (Oswego State) 4-1.
- HWT — Donny Longendyke (Augsburg) maj. dec. Lance Evans (Wartburg) 10-1. National championship match: Zachery Roseberry (Delaware Valley) dec. Longendyke 3-2.
Visit The Guillotine College Tournament Time Page for brackets, results, and live video links.