Notes on NWCA Div. I National Duals Regionals for this weekend
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by Jason Bryant NWCA
Link: www.nationalduals.com
Historically speaking
The Division I National Duals was founded as part of the Virginia Duals in Hampton, Virginia in 1989 as the National Dual Meet Championships. In 1991, the event began to rotate around the country with the oversight of the National Duals handled by the National Wrestling Coaches Association. Since 1989, 10 different cities have hosted the championships entirely or served as a championship finals site. Cedar Falls, Iowa had the longest consecutive run of hosting championships, with six straight years from 2006-2011. This year’s final host, Iowa City, has hosted the event previously in 1998 and 1999.
Over the past 26 years, the team championship trophy has only been hoisted by six programs – Oklahoma State (8 titles), Minnesota (8), Iowa (6), Penn State (2), Cornell (1) and Iowa State (1). Iowa, Minnesota and Cornell all look to win another dual team championship this season.
The Format
This year’s format melds a regional concept born a few seasons ago with a championship weekend site to fully expand the reach of the event. Eight regional sites will host play-in matches on Feb. 14-15, while the winners of those eight duals will go to Iowa City on Feb. 21-22 and then compete in the championship round. The eight teams advancing will be reseeded according to their ranking by the USA Today/NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll. No draws are pre-determined based on first-round matches. Quarterfinals and Semifinals will take place in Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa on February 21 with the finals and third-place dual on February 22. The semifinals and finals will be shown live on the Big Ten Network.
Team Rankings
Ten of the 16 teams in the 2015 Division I field are ranked in the Top 15 according to the USA Today/NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll including five of the top six. Iowa, Missouri, Ohio State, Minnesota and Cornell are ranked in the top six (as of February 10), while other ranked teams include Lehigh, Illinois, Virginia, Edinboro and North Dakota State. Chattanooga and Oklahoma have all spent time in the Top 25 this season.
First Round Matches (rankings as of Feb. 10 Coaches Poll)
Rankings will likely change prior to Feb. 14-15 competition
February 14
All times Eastern
George Mason at #11 Lehigh, 7 p.m.
February 15
All Times Eastern
American at #2 Missouri, 1 p.m.
#3 Ohio State at #15 Edinboro, 1 p.m.
Drexel at #6 Cornell, 2 p.m.
#13 Virginia at #1 Iowa, 2 p.m.
Kent State at #12 Illinois, 2 p.m.
Oklahoma at Chattanooga, 2 p.m.
#4 Minnesota at #23 North Dakota State, 3 p.m.
By the Numbers
With the ten nationally-ranked teams in the field, the event will also showcase 85 nationally-ranked wrestlers. Three returning national champions will compete – Illinois Jesse Delgado at 125 pounds, three-time champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State at 141 pounds and J’Den Cox of Missouri at 197 pounds. The field will also contain 25 total returning Division I All-Americans and 37 additional wrestlers with NCAA post-season championship experience.
Iowa and Ohio State each bring a lineup entirely comprised of nationally-ranked wrestlers. Both the Hawkeyes and Buckeyes have all 10 starting wrestlers ranked by the various ranking services. Missouri has nine individual wrestlers ranked, while Minnesota has eight, Cornell and Illinois have seven each, while Edinboro and Virginia have six each.
First Round Matches of Note
Each dual will bring some intriguing matchups, whether it be from a rankings standpoint or just general intrigue.
George Mason at #11 Lehigh
At 141 pounds, one of George Mason’s top wrestlers, Sahid Kargbo, will face off with past NCAA qualifier Randy Cruz. Kargbo only started wrestling as a sophomore in high school at Hayfield Secondary in Lorton, Virginia and was a representative of Team USA at the 2013 Junior World Championships in Greco-Roman. At heavyweight, 2012 Olympic Trials qualifier Jake Kettler of George Mason will face off with Doug Vollaro.
American at #2 Missouri
The best match of the dual should be the one we see right away as Missouri’s Alan Waters, an All-American in 2013, will face Hawaii native David Terao of American. Joey LaVallee of Missouri should get a tough test from American’s John Boyle at 157 pounds. At 184 pounds, American’s Jason Grimes has been wrestling well recently and should give Missouri’s Willie Milkus a test.
#3 Ohio State at #15 Edinboro
The best first-round matchup in terms of ranking should also feature six of the 10 matchups with nationally-ranked wrestlers hitting head-to-head. The most obvious pits three-time NCAA champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State against two-time All-American and 2013 finalist Mitchell Port of Edinboro. The two came into last year’s NCAA championship seeded 1-2, but Port was upset in the quarters and we never got to see the two tangle last season. At 149 pounds, All-Americans Hunter Stieber of Ohio State and David Habat of Edinboro should meet up in what could be a highly entertaining bout.
#13 Virginia at #1 Iowa
With five potential head-to-head matches between ranked opponents, Virginia could give the Hawkeyes a pretty good fight, but most will be looking to 174 pounds as a top-five matchup unfolds with two-time All-American Mike Evans of Iowa taking on Blaise Butler of Virginia. Butler moved up two weights this year and has performed exceptionally. Two more to keep an eye on are at 133 where George DiCamillo of Virginia will face returning All-American Cory Clark of Iowa. Clark placed at 125 pounds last year, while DiCamillo finished in the Round of 12 as a true freshman in 2013.
Kent State at #12 Illinois
Fans attending the regional matchup in Champagin, Illinois should be in for a treat as two of the highest scoring wrestlers in the nation will square off at 157 pounds. Returning All-American Ian Miller placed fourth last year and is known for his high-octane offense, while Illinois freshman Isaiah Martinez has put up buckets of points this season.
Oklahoma at Chattanooga
The most balanced of the opening-round duals will see Oklahoma head east to face Heath Eslinger’s Mocs of Chattanooga. Chattanooga is solid down low with the nationally-ranked tandem of Sean Boyle at 125 pounds and Nick Soto at 133 pounds. Returning All-American Cody Brewer of Oklahoma will get a stiff test with Soto, who has picked off several highly-ranked wrestlers during his career.
#4 Minnesota at #23 North Dakota State
With North Dakota State coaches Roger Kish and Manny Rivera alums of the University of Minnesota, this dual brings on a regional flare and a personal one. The Bison have a large presence within Minnesota and should draw well. The top individual match should come at 184 pounds as North Dakota State’s Hayden Zillmer will face Minnesota’s Brett Pfarr. The two met earlier this season with Zillmer taking a victory in overtime. Heavyweights Evan Knutson of North Dakota State and Michael Kroells of Minnesota should also be highly competitive.
Drexel at #6 Cornell
Drexel head coach Matt Azevedo was an assistant at one time under Cornell coach Rob Koll. With both teams in the EIWA but not scheduled to meet this season, this dual serves a dual purpose. The top individual matchup will come at 133 pounds as Drexel’s nationally-ranked Kevin Devoy will face off with Cornell’s Mark Grey in a battle of NCAA qualifier. Devoy upended Grey at last year’s EIWA championships.
Fast Facts
American is situated right in the heart of Washington, D.C. Coached by past NCAA champion Teague Moore, the Eagles program was resurrected under the leadership of now-Oklahoma coach Mark Cody. The school’s only NCAA champion is Josh Glenn, who won the championship at 197 pounds in 2007.
Since 1978, no team in the Southern Conference has been as dominant as Chattanooga. Overall the program has won 28 conference titles in the past 37 years. The Mocs have won the last four in a row and nine of the last 10.
Cornell is one of four EIWA teams in the event and the only EIWA school to have won a National Duals championship. The Big Red defeated Virginia Tech in the finals of the 2011 National Duals 25-10.
Drexel head coach Matt Azevedo is only the eighth head coach in program history, but just the second in the last 38 years. The school started wrestling in 1947 and went through six coaches through 1974. Jack Childs then led the program for the next 35 years before retiring in 2011.
Edinboro is one of the more unique wrestling programs in Division I wrestling. The school, which is in Northwestern Pennsylvania, is a Division II school in every other sport and is grandfathered in to compete up at the Division I level. Their Athletic Director is also four-time Olympic medalist Bruce Baumgartner.
George Mason head coach Joe Russell is in his third year at the helm at the Fairfax, Virginia school. The Patriots have three All-Americans in school history including two-time All-American Johnny Curtis, who placed in 1992 and 1993.
Illinois finished second in the National Duals back in 2005 in Cleveland, Ohio. It’s the only time in school history the Fighting Illini have made a championship final in the event.
The largest margin of victory by any team in the National Duals came in 1991 when Iowa shutout Division III Ithaca 55-0. During that era, top programs from Division II and Division III were invited to compete at the National Duals, then held in Hampton, Virginia.
Kent State head wrestling coach Jim Andrassy competed for the Golden Flashes from 1990-1994 and sits 13th in the school’s all-time win category with 106 career victories. He also ranks 13th in career falls with 20. One of the most notable Kent State wrestling alums is current WWE superstar Nick Nemeth, who goes by the stage name Dolph Ziggler.
Wrestling is clearly Lehigh’s signature sport. Their wrestling excellence began in the 1930’s and the small “engineering” school in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania lays claim to 39 Top 10 finishes and 27 individual NCAA championships won by 21 wrestlers. The first came in 1931 at 118 pounds by John Engel.
Minnesota will try to set a National Duals record with a fourth consecutive championship. Oklahoma State, Iowa and Minnesota all have won three straight titles during the history of the event, but no team has won four in a row.
Returning Missouri NCAA champion J’Den Cox didn’t have to go far to attend college. He hails from Columbia, Missouri and attended Hickman High School, which is just over a mile away from the campus.
Before moving to Division I, North Dakota State was a powerhouse in Division II wrestling. Led by then-coach Bucky Maughan, the Bison won four national championships and finished runners-up four more times between 1982-2004.
The only time Ohio State reached the championship finals of the National Duals came in 2002 when the event was hosted in Columbus. The Buckeyes fell to Minnesota 26-8.
Bedlam ensued in the finals of the 2003 National Duals as Oklahoma faced rival Oklahoma State. While it was the Cowboys who won the dual, the individual matchups featured some great talent. The dual would showcase seven eventual NCAA individual championships including a thriller at 141 pounds between freshmen Teyon Ware and Zack Esposito.
Virginia will compete for only the second time in the National Duals. The Cavaliers first appearance came in regional competition in Ithaca, N.Y. where they beat Hofstra 21-15 but fell to Nebraska 28-8.
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About the NWCA
Founded in 1928, the NWCA strives to promote and provide leadership for the advancement of amateur wrestling, primarily at the scholastic and collegiate levels. The association is headquartered in Manheim, Pa. The three core competencies are coaching development, student-wrestler welfare, and promotion/advocacy. The NWCA has 10,000 members and educational programs that serve 230,000 students each year.
Historically speaking
The Division I National Duals was founded as part of the Virginia Duals in Hampton, Virginia in 1989 as the National Dual Meet Championships. In 1991, the event began to rotate around the country with the oversight of the National Duals handled by the National Wrestling Coaches Association. Since 1989, 10 different cities have hosted the championships entirely or served as a championship finals site. Cedar Falls, Iowa had the longest consecutive run of hosting championships, with six straight years from 2006-2011. This year’s final host, Iowa City, has hosted the event previously in 1998 and 1999.
Over the past 26 years, the team championship trophy has only been hoisted by six programs – Oklahoma State (8 titles), Minnesota (8), Iowa (6), Penn State (2), Cornell (1) and Iowa State (1). Iowa, Minnesota and Cornell all look to win another dual team championship this season.
The Format
This year’s format melds a regional concept born a few seasons ago with a championship weekend site to fully expand the reach of the event. Eight regional sites will host play-in matches on Feb. 14-15, while the winners of those eight duals will go to Iowa City on Feb. 21-22 and then compete in the championship round. The eight teams advancing will be reseeded according to their ranking by the USA Today/NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll. No draws are pre-determined based on first-round matches. Quarterfinals and Semifinals will take place in Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa on February 21 with the finals and third-place dual on February 22. The semifinals and finals will be shown live on the Big Ten Network.
Team Rankings
Ten of the 16 teams in the 2015 Division I field are ranked in the Top 15 according to the USA Today/NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll including five of the top six. Iowa, Missouri, Ohio State, Minnesota and Cornell are ranked in the top six (as of February 10), while other ranked teams include Lehigh, Illinois, Virginia, Edinboro and North Dakota State. Chattanooga and Oklahoma have all spent time in the Top 25 this season.
First Round Matches (rankings as of Feb. 10 Coaches Poll)
Rankings will likely change prior to Feb. 14-15 competition
February 14
All times Eastern
George Mason at #11 Lehigh, 7 p.m.
February 15
All Times Eastern
American at #2 Missouri, 1 p.m.
#3 Ohio State at #15 Edinboro, 1 p.m.
Drexel at #6 Cornell, 2 p.m.
#13 Virginia at #1 Iowa, 2 p.m.
Kent State at #12 Illinois, 2 p.m.
Oklahoma at Chattanooga, 2 p.m.
#4 Minnesota at #23 North Dakota State, 3 p.m.
By the Numbers
With the ten nationally-ranked teams in the field, the event will also showcase 85 nationally-ranked wrestlers. Three returning national champions will compete – Illinois Jesse Delgado at 125 pounds, three-time champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State at 141 pounds and J’Den Cox of Missouri at 197 pounds. The field will also contain 25 total returning Division I All-Americans and 37 additional wrestlers with NCAA post-season championship experience.
Iowa and Ohio State each bring a lineup entirely comprised of nationally-ranked wrestlers. Both the Hawkeyes and Buckeyes have all 10 starting wrestlers ranked by the various ranking services. Missouri has nine individual wrestlers ranked, while Minnesota has eight, Cornell and Illinois have seven each, while Edinboro and Virginia have six each.
First Round Matches of Note
Each dual will bring some intriguing matchups, whether it be from a rankings standpoint or just general intrigue.
George Mason at #11 Lehigh
At 141 pounds, one of George Mason’s top wrestlers, Sahid Kargbo, will face off with past NCAA qualifier Randy Cruz. Kargbo only started wrestling as a sophomore in high school at Hayfield Secondary in Lorton, Virginia and was a representative of Team USA at the 2013 Junior World Championships in Greco-Roman. At heavyweight, 2012 Olympic Trials qualifier Jake Kettler of George Mason will face off with Doug Vollaro.
American at #2 Missouri
The best match of the dual should be the one we see right away as Missouri’s Alan Waters, an All-American in 2013, will face Hawaii native David Terao of American. Joey LaVallee of Missouri should get a tough test from American’s John Boyle at 157 pounds. At 184 pounds, American’s Jason Grimes has been wrestling well recently and should give Missouri’s Willie Milkus a test.
#3 Ohio State at #15 Edinboro
The best first-round matchup in terms of ranking should also feature six of the 10 matchups with nationally-ranked wrestlers hitting head-to-head. The most obvious pits three-time NCAA champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State against two-time All-American and 2013 finalist Mitchell Port of Edinboro. The two came into last year’s NCAA championship seeded 1-2, but Port was upset in the quarters and we never got to see the two tangle last season. At 149 pounds, All-Americans Hunter Stieber of Ohio State and David Habat of Edinboro should meet up in what could be a highly entertaining bout.
#13 Virginia at #1 Iowa
With five potential head-to-head matches between ranked opponents, Virginia could give the Hawkeyes a pretty good fight, but most will be looking to 174 pounds as a top-five matchup unfolds with two-time All-American Mike Evans of Iowa taking on Blaise Butler of Virginia. Butler moved up two weights this year and has performed exceptionally. Two more to keep an eye on are at 133 where George DiCamillo of Virginia will face returning All-American Cory Clark of Iowa. Clark placed at 125 pounds last year, while DiCamillo finished in the Round of 12 as a true freshman in 2013.
Kent State at #12 Illinois
Fans attending the regional matchup in Champagin, Illinois should be in for a treat as two of the highest scoring wrestlers in the nation will square off at 157 pounds. Returning All-American Ian Miller placed fourth last year and is known for his high-octane offense, while Illinois freshman Isaiah Martinez has put up buckets of points this season.
Oklahoma at Chattanooga
The most balanced of the opening-round duals will see Oklahoma head east to face Heath Eslinger’s Mocs of Chattanooga. Chattanooga is solid down low with the nationally-ranked tandem of Sean Boyle at 125 pounds and Nick Soto at 133 pounds. Returning All-American Cody Brewer of Oklahoma will get a stiff test with Soto, who has picked off several highly-ranked wrestlers during his career.
#4 Minnesota at #23 North Dakota State
With North Dakota State coaches Roger Kish and Manny Rivera alums of the University of Minnesota, this dual brings on a regional flare and a personal one. The Bison have a large presence within Minnesota and should draw well. The top individual match should come at 184 pounds as North Dakota State’s Hayden Zillmer will face Minnesota’s Brett Pfarr. The two met earlier this season with Zillmer taking a victory in overtime. Heavyweights Evan Knutson of North Dakota State and Michael Kroells of Minnesota should also be highly competitive.
Drexel at #6 Cornell
Drexel head coach Matt Azevedo was an assistant at one time under Cornell coach Rob Koll. With both teams in the EIWA but not scheduled to meet this season, this dual serves a dual purpose. The top individual matchup will come at 133 pounds as Drexel’s nationally-ranked Kevin Devoy will face off with Cornell’s Mark Grey in a battle of NCAA qualifier. Devoy upended Grey at last year’s EIWA championships.
Fast Facts
American is situated right in the heart of Washington, D.C. Coached by past NCAA champion Teague Moore, the Eagles program was resurrected under the leadership of now-Oklahoma coach Mark Cody. The school’s only NCAA champion is Josh Glenn, who won the championship at 197 pounds in 2007.
Since 1978, no team in the Southern Conference has been as dominant as Chattanooga. Overall the program has won 28 conference titles in the past 37 years. The Mocs have won the last four in a row and nine of the last 10.
Cornell is one of four EIWA teams in the event and the only EIWA school to have won a National Duals championship. The Big Red defeated Virginia Tech in the finals of the 2011 National Duals 25-10.
Drexel head coach Matt Azevedo is only the eighth head coach in program history, but just the second in the last 38 years. The school started wrestling in 1947 and went through six coaches through 1974. Jack Childs then led the program for the next 35 years before retiring in 2011.
Edinboro is one of the more unique wrestling programs in Division I wrestling. The school, which is in Northwestern Pennsylvania, is a Division II school in every other sport and is grandfathered in to compete up at the Division I level. Their Athletic Director is also four-time Olympic medalist Bruce Baumgartner.
George Mason head coach Joe Russell is in his third year at the helm at the Fairfax, Virginia school. The Patriots have three All-Americans in school history including two-time All-American Johnny Curtis, who placed in 1992 and 1993.
Illinois finished second in the National Duals back in 2005 in Cleveland, Ohio. It’s the only time in school history the Fighting Illini have made a championship final in the event.
The largest margin of victory by any team in the National Duals came in 1991 when Iowa shutout Division III Ithaca 55-0. During that era, top programs from Division II and Division III were invited to compete at the National Duals, then held in Hampton, Virginia.
Kent State head wrestling coach Jim Andrassy competed for the Golden Flashes from 1990-1994 and sits 13th in the school’s all-time win category with 106 career victories. He also ranks 13th in career falls with 20. One of the most notable Kent State wrestling alums is current WWE superstar Nick Nemeth, who goes by the stage name Dolph Ziggler.
Wrestling is clearly Lehigh’s signature sport. Their wrestling excellence began in the 1930’s and the small “engineering” school in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania lays claim to 39 Top 10 finishes and 27 individual NCAA championships won by 21 wrestlers. The first came in 1931 at 118 pounds by John Engel.
Minnesota will try to set a National Duals record with a fourth consecutive championship. Oklahoma State, Iowa and Minnesota all have won three straight titles during the history of the event, but no team has won four in a row.
Returning Missouri NCAA champion J’Den Cox didn’t have to go far to attend college. He hails from Columbia, Missouri and attended Hickman High School, which is just over a mile away from the campus.
Before moving to Division I, North Dakota State was a powerhouse in Division II wrestling. Led by then-coach Bucky Maughan, the Bison won four national championships and finished runners-up four more times between 1982-2004.
The only time Ohio State reached the championship finals of the National Duals came in 2002 when the event was hosted in Columbus. The Buckeyes fell to Minnesota 26-8.
Bedlam ensued in the finals of the 2003 National Duals as Oklahoma faced rival Oklahoma State. While it was the Cowboys who won the dual, the individual matchups featured some great talent. The dual would showcase seven eventual NCAA individual championships including a thriller at 141 pounds between freshmen Teyon Ware and Zack Esposito.
Virginia will compete for only the second time in the National Duals. The Cavaliers first appearance came in regional competition in Ithaca, N.Y. where they beat Hofstra 21-15 but fell to Nebraska 28-8.
--
About the NWCA
Founded in 1928, the NWCA strives to promote and provide leadership for the advancement of amateur wrestling, primarily at the scholastic and collegiate levels. The association is headquartered in Manheim, Pa. The three core competencies are coaching development, student-wrestler welfare, and promotion/advocacy. The NWCA has 10,000 members and educational programs that serve 230,000 students each year.
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