NWCA NCAA DII Rankings – December 4, 2023

Lander holds atop Division II Men’s Coaches Poll

MANHEIM, PA – The Lander Bearcats held on to the number one spot in the newest edition of the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division II Men’s Coaches Poll, released Monday afternoon.

Lander stayed atop the poll with 81 total points behind a poll-high seven ranked wrestlers. West Liberty stayed in the #2 spot with 71 points, with Indianapolis (65 points), Central Oklahoma (59 points), St. cloud State (52 points) and UMary (52 points) rounding out the Top 5.

Both West Liberty and Indianapolis also feature seven ranked wrestlers, with both the Hilltoppers and Greyhounds featuring a top-ranked wrestler. None of the number one wrestlers changed in the newest edition of the ranking.

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Cha, Wasley Win at Jim Koch Wisconsin Open

MINNEAPOLIS — In addition to its two titles at the Cougar Clash, Minnesota wrestling also brought home a pair of titles Saturday at the Jim Koch Wisconsin Open in Kenosha, Wis.

The Golden Gophers sent a six-man contingent to the event, hosted by UW-Parkside. Redshirt junior Theo Cha won the 149-pound title, while redshirt freshman Devin Wasley captured first place at 174 pounds.

Cha opened his run with three straight wins over UW-Parkside wrestlers, winning first by a 16-1 tech fall and then multiple decisions. In the finals, he faced off with Northern Iowa’s Cael Rahnavardi, and Cha captured his first individual title with a pin at 5:59.

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2 Championships & A Boatload Of Hardware At MSUM Open

MOORHEAD, Minn. — All-American Ty Bisek and senior Gabe Zierden led Concordia across 8th street and helped the Cobbers return with a boatload of hardware from the MSU Moorhead Dragon Open.

Bisek and Zierden won individual weight class championships and were a part of a group of 12 athletes who all finished in the Top 6 at the meet.

Concordia head coach Quincy Osborn took 22 wrestlers to the Dragon Open, and Bisek and Zierden proved that the Cobbers have one of the top college programs in the area.

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Augsburg drops pair of duals in Sioux Falls

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — The Augsburg University women’s wrestling team dropped a pair of dual meets in a triangular meet at the University of Sioux Falls on Sunday afternoon, falling 24-13 to Morningside University and 38-10 to the host Cougars.

Augsburg, ranked No. 17 in the latest NWCA women’s national rankings for NCAA teams, scored two victories on the mat and one by forfeit in the dual against Morningside, and had a win on the mat and a win by forfeit against Sioux Falls.

Nina Makem (JR, Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee HS), ranked No. 5 nationally at 155 pounds, claimed a 10-0, 1:03 technical fall in her bout against Markael Zeleny of Morningside, then scored a 16-second pin of Brinley Green of Sioux Falls, her fourth pin of under 60 seconds this season and 10th sub-60-second pin of her career. The 16-second pin tied the fastest pin of her career. Makem is now 66-13 in her collegiate career, with 15 pins and 37 technical falls among her career wins.

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Three Jacks place at Patriot Open

FAIRFAX, Va. — Three South Dakota State wrestlers recorded top-six finishes Sunday at the A Better Way Athletics Patriot Open hosted by George Mason University.

Leading the Jackrabbit trio was Bennett Berge with a runner-up finish in the 184-pound weight class. A redshirt freshman from Mantorville, Minnesota, Berge posted a 4-1 record on the day, with two wins each by major decision and technical fall. His major decisions came against Navy’s Daniel Williams (14-3) in the opening round and versus Kevin Makosy of Maryland (11-2) in the quarterfinals, while his tech falls were recorded against Dalton Battle of Appalachian State (21-6) in the Round of 16 and Isaac Dean of Rider (17-1) in the semifinals.

In the finals, the 19th-ranked Berge was matched up against Brock Delsignore of North Carolina State and dropped an 11-3 major decision.

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Underclassmen Lead SJU at Dragon Open

MOORHEAD, Minn. – Four Saint John’s wrestlers won multiple matches in the White Division at Division II MSU-Moorhead’s Dragon Open on Sunday, Dec. 3.

The Johnnies and Concordia-Moorhead were the lone Division III representatives in the tournament, and were joined by the host Dragons, Division II Augustana (S.D.), NAIA Jamestown (N.D.), Division II Mary (N.D.), Minnesota North-Itasca, Division II Minot State (N.D.), Division I North Dakota State, Division II Northern State (S.D.), Northland C.T.C., Ridgewater, Division II St. Cloud State, Division I South Dakota State and Division II Southwest Minnesota State.

Sophomore Andy Johnson (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech) led SJU with a third-place finish – a 3-1 record – at 174 pounds. Following a first-round bye, Johnson posted a 15-3 major decision in his first match, but fell to Treytin Byers of Minnesota North-Itasca by a narrow 9-7 decision in the semifinal. He bounced back with another major decision (8-0) and edged Ridgewater’s Cody Brott 6-5 in the third-place match. Johnson is now 8-3 so far this season.

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