NCAA Div. II preview: Unbeaten St. Cloud State looking to repeat as national champions
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by JD Rader, USA Wrestling
Action image courtesy of SCSUHuskies.com
There will be 56 teams sending wrestlers to the NCAA Division II National Wrestling Championships at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, Ohio, this weekend. Take a look at what to expect from the team race and each individual weights below.
This year’s DII tournament is a little different from years past with 18 qualifiers in each bracket instead of 16. Brackets this year will be 16-man brackets with two pigtail matches.
The top-eight wrestlers have already been seeded and the 10 unseeded wrestlers received a random draw in. You can find full brackets here.
Wrestling begins Friday, March 8, at 11 a.m. ET and will be streamed live on trackwrestling.com.
Team preview
St. Cloud State is the heavy odds-on-favorite to win this year’s Div. II NCAA tournament. The Huskies finished the regular season with a perfect 20-0 dual record, which included a National Duals title. St. Cloud State also won a regional title, qualifying nine weights for the national tournament. The Huskies have won the NCAA DII team title three of the past four years, and it’s going to take a strong performance from any other team to stop St. Cloud.
Also in the hunt for a team title is Nebraska-Kearney, Notre Dame, Wheeling Jesuit and McKendree.
Nebraska-Kearney qualified six wrestlers for to Cleveland, five of whom are former All-Americans, including top-seeded Matt Malcom at 157 pounds and third-seeded Josh Portillo at 125 pounds.
Notre Dame is the returning team runner-up and won a title in 2017. Of its seven national qualifiers, five are first-time NCAA participants. However, the two returning national qualifiers have both earned All-American honors as heavyweight Kameron Teacher is a two-time finalist and 184-pounder Tony Vezzetti finished eighth last year.
Wheeling Jesuit qualified six wrestlers to the national tournament, including two All-Americans and top seeds this year in Tyler Warner at 133 pounds and Terrance Fanning at heavyweight.
McKendree won its regional tournament, which included tough teams Lindenwood and Maryville, qualifying seven wrestlers to Cleveland in the process. With three returning All-Americans in Marcus Povlick at 125 pounds, Isiah Kemper at 149 pounds, and Nick Foster at 174 pounds as well as NAIA national champion transfer Michael Pixley at 184 pounds, this team will make an impact.
125 pounds
125 is a deep weight class. For reference, returning finalist Maleek Williams from Upper Iowa received the No. 8 seed. Receiving the top seed was Lindenwood junior Carlos Jacquez. He holds an undefeated record of 26-0 with wins over the Nos. 3-8 seeds.
2016 NCAA DII champion at 125 pounds, Brett Velasquez of St. Cloud State, received the second seed. Since winning his freshman year, Velasquez has finished fourth and third. Nebraska-Kearney’s Josh Portillo, a transfer from South Dakota State and returning All-American, received the fourth seed.
133 pounds
A 2018 NCAA qualifier at 141 pounds last year, Tyler Warner of Wheeling Jesuit will be the top seed at 133 pounds this year.
A two-time NJCAA All-American for Iowa Western, D’Andre Brumfield, now wrestling at CSU-Pueblo, received the No. 2 seed. Brumfield pinned seventh-seeded Wesley Dawkins of Nebraska-Kearney in the regional championship.
141 pounds
Junior Brandon Ball will look to become Fort Hays State’s first national champion this weekend as he earned the No. 1 seed.
There is potential for an exciting semifinals match on the bottom side of the bracket between LIU-Post senior Joseph Calderone and Pitt-Johnstown senior Joey Alessandro. Calderone placed fifth last year and Alessandro took second in 2016. The two have split matches this year with Alessandro winning the latest matchup by fall at the regional championships.
149 pounds
After winning the 141 pounds title last year, Pitt-Johnstown junior Chris Eddins, Jr. bumped up to 149 pounds and has had no problems. He is the 20-0 with an 80 percent bonus rate, receiving the top seed.
Returning 149 pounds runner-up James Pleski of St. Cloud State received the No. 2 seed. However, he will be facing the only wrestler to give him a loss this year in the first round when he takes on Chadron State junior Chase Clasen.
157 pounds
With last year’s top-three finishers at the national tournament finishing up their eligibility, 157 pounds opened up for Nebraska-Kearney sophomore and 2018 All-American Matt Malcom, who is the No. 1 seed at the weight. The Iowa native spent one year at the University of Iowa before transferring to UNK. He’ll be taking a 25-5 record with him to Cleveland with four of those losses coming to Division I competition.
165 pounds
165 pounds is one of the deepest weight classes at this year’s NCAA DII Championships and will lead to some exciting quarterfinal and semifinal matchups. Returning 165-pound champion, Bret Romanzak of Ashland will be slotted at the No. 5 seed spot. Romanzak will have a tough one right off the bat as he drew unseeded Devin Austin, a returning All-American for Pitt-Johnstown. Receiving the No. 2 seed is Rodney Shepard of North Carolina-Pembroke.
174 pounds
Western Colorado State’s senior Brandon Supernaw, a four-time NCAA qualifier and third-place finisher in 2018, earned the top seed at 174 pounds. Supernaw has been dominant this season, going 16-0 with five pins, two tech falls and six major decisions. If seeds prove true, Supernaw will take on 2017 All-American and undefeated senior TC Warner from Kutztown.
The bottom side of the bracket will feature one of the best first-round matches of the tournament when second-seeded St. Cloud State junior Kolton Eischens takes on unseeded Zach Stodden, a two-time All-American at Nebraska-Kearney.
184 pounds
The 184-pound bracket has opened wide up this year. The only two returning All-Americans from 2018 are fifth-place finisher Jeff Reimel of Kutztown and eight-place finisher Tony Vezzetti of Notre Dame. Reimel will be the top seed this year. He’ll be taking an undefeated record of 16-0 to Cleveland for his final NCAA tournament.
Taking the No. 2 seed was Central Oklahoma sophomore Heath Gray. Earning the fourth seed is two-time NAIA All-American and 2017 NAIA wrestler of the year Michael Pixley of McKendree, who transferred from Grandview University in January.
197 pounds
Returning runner-up Vince Dietz of St. Cloud State rightfully earned the top seed at 197 pounds. He’s 28-0 with 10 pins this year.
Earning the No. 2 seed is Pitt-Johnstown junior Levi Niebauer. Also undefeated, Niebauer is 11-0 this season. Ethan Sheretz of Maryville was ranked No. 2 but had to medically forfeit in his regional finals match, causing him to earn the fifth seed. It is unclear how serious his injury is at this time.
285 pounds
Heavyweight is setting up to be a rematch of last year’s final with both wrestlers returning as the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds. Terrance Fanning of Wheeling Jesuit beat Kameron Teacher of Notre Dame, 8-2, in last year’s finals. This year, however, the two have split matches with Teacher winning, 11-0, in November and Fanning winning, 12-8, at regionals. Fanning was awarded the top seed after his regional victory.
The only other returning All-American wrestling at heavyweight in Cleveland will be Jarrod Hinrichs of Nebraska-Kearney, who earned the fifth seed this year. Hinrichs was eighth at the 2018 NCAA DII tournament.
Event Schedule
Friday, March 8
11 a.m. - Session I
5 p.m. - Session II
Saturday, March 9
10 a.m. - Session III
7 p.m. - Session IV
There will be 56 teams sending wrestlers to the NCAA Division II National Wrestling Championships at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, Ohio, this weekend. Take a look at what to expect from the team race and each individual weights below.
This year’s DII tournament is a little different from years past with 18 qualifiers in each bracket instead of 16. Brackets this year will be 16-man brackets with two pigtail matches.
The top-eight wrestlers have already been seeded and the 10 unseeded wrestlers received a random draw in. You can find full brackets here.
Wrestling begins Friday, March 8, at 11 a.m. ET and will be streamed live on trackwrestling.com.
Team preview
St. Cloud State is the heavy odds-on-favorite to win this year’s Div. II NCAA tournament. The Huskies finished the regular season with a perfect 20-0 dual record, which included a National Duals title. St. Cloud State also won a regional title, qualifying nine weights for the national tournament. The Huskies have won the NCAA DII team title three of the past four years, and it’s going to take a strong performance from any other team to stop St. Cloud.
Also in the hunt for a team title is Nebraska-Kearney, Notre Dame, Wheeling Jesuit and McKendree.
Nebraska-Kearney qualified six wrestlers for to Cleveland, five of whom are former All-Americans, including top-seeded Matt Malcom at 157 pounds and third-seeded Josh Portillo at 125 pounds.
Notre Dame is the returning team runner-up and won a title in 2017. Of its seven national qualifiers, five are first-time NCAA participants. However, the two returning national qualifiers have both earned All-American honors as heavyweight Kameron Teacher is a two-time finalist and 184-pounder Tony Vezzetti finished eighth last year.
Wheeling Jesuit qualified six wrestlers to the national tournament, including two All-Americans and top seeds this year in Tyler Warner at 133 pounds and Terrance Fanning at heavyweight.
McKendree won its regional tournament, which included tough teams Lindenwood and Maryville, qualifying seven wrestlers to Cleveland in the process. With three returning All-Americans in Marcus Povlick at 125 pounds, Isiah Kemper at 149 pounds, and Nick Foster at 174 pounds as well as NAIA national champion transfer Michael Pixley at 184 pounds, this team will make an impact.
125 pounds
125 is a deep weight class. For reference, returning finalist Maleek Williams from Upper Iowa received the No. 8 seed. Receiving the top seed was Lindenwood junior Carlos Jacquez. He holds an undefeated record of 26-0 with wins over the Nos. 3-8 seeds.
2016 NCAA DII champion at 125 pounds, Brett Velasquez of St. Cloud State, received the second seed. Since winning his freshman year, Velasquez has finished fourth and third. Nebraska-Kearney’s Josh Portillo, a transfer from South Dakota State and returning All-American, received the fourth seed.
133 pounds
A 2018 NCAA qualifier at 141 pounds last year, Tyler Warner of Wheeling Jesuit will be the top seed at 133 pounds this year.
A two-time NJCAA All-American for Iowa Western, D’Andre Brumfield, now wrestling at CSU-Pueblo, received the No. 2 seed. Brumfield pinned seventh-seeded Wesley Dawkins of Nebraska-Kearney in the regional championship.
141 pounds
Junior Brandon Ball will look to become Fort Hays State’s first national champion this weekend as he earned the No. 1 seed.
There is potential for an exciting semifinals match on the bottom side of the bracket between LIU-Post senior Joseph Calderone and Pitt-Johnstown senior Joey Alessandro. Calderone placed fifth last year and Alessandro took second in 2016. The two have split matches this year with Alessandro winning the latest matchup by fall at the regional championships.
149 pounds
After winning the 141 pounds title last year, Pitt-Johnstown junior Chris Eddins, Jr. bumped up to 149 pounds and has had no problems. He is the 20-0 with an 80 percent bonus rate, receiving the top seed.
Returning 149 pounds runner-up James Pleski of St. Cloud State received the No. 2 seed. However, he will be facing the only wrestler to give him a loss this year in the first round when he takes on Chadron State junior Chase Clasen.
157 pounds
With last year’s top-three finishers at the national tournament finishing up their eligibility, 157 pounds opened up for Nebraska-Kearney sophomore and 2018 All-American Matt Malcom, who is the No. 1 seed at the weight. The Iowa native spent one year at the University of Iowa before transferring to UNK. He’ll be taking a 25-5 record with him to Cleveland with four of those losses coming to Division I competition.
165 pounds
165 pounds is one of the deepest weight classes at this year’s NCAA DII Championships and will lead to some exciting quarterfinal and semifinal matchups. Returning 165-pound champion, Bret Romanzak of Ashland will be slotted at the No. 5 seed spot. Romanzak will have a tough one right off the bat as he drew unseeded Devin Austin, a returning All-American for Pitt-Johnstown. Receiving the No. 2 seed is Rodney Shepard of North Carolina-Pembroke.
174 pounds
Western Colorado State’s senior Brandon Supernaw, a four-time NCAA qualifier and third-place finisher in 2018, earned the top seed at 174 pounds. Supernaw has been dominant this season, going 16-0 with five pins, two tech falls and six major decisions. If seeds prove true, Supernaw will take on 2017 All-American and undefeated senior TC Warner from Kutztown.
The bottom side of the bracket will feature one of the best first-round matches of the tournament when second-seeded St. Cloud State junior Kolton Eischens takes on unseeded Zach Stodden, a two-time All-American at Nebraska-Kearney.
184 pounds
The 184-pound bracket has opened wide up this year. The only two returning All-Americans from 2018 are fifth-place finisher Jeff Reimel of Kutztown and eight-place finisher Tony Vezzetti of Notre Dame. Reimel will be the top seed this year. He’ll be taking an undefeated record of 16-0 to Cleveland for his final NCAA tournament.
Taking the No. 2 seed was Central Oklahoma sophomore Heath Gray. Earning the fourth seed is two-time NAIA All-American and 2017 NAIA wrestler of the year Michael Pixley of McKendree, who transferred from Grandview University in January.
197 pounds
Returning runner-up Vince Dietz of St. Cloud State rightfully earned the top seed at 197 pounds. He’s 28-0 with 10 pins this year.
Earning the No. 2 seed is Pitt-Johnstown junior Levi Niebauer. Also undefeated, Niebauer is 11-0 this season. Ethan Sheretz of Maryville was ranked No. 2 but had to medically forfeit in his regional finals match, causing him to earn the fifth seed. It is unclear how serious his injury is at this time.
285 pounds
Heavyweight is setting up to be a rematch of last year’s final with both wrestlers returning as the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds. Terrance Fanning of Wheeling Jesuit beat Kameron Teacher of Notre Dame, 8-2, in last year’s finals. This year, however, the two have split matches with Teacher winning, 11-0, in November and Fanning winning, 12-8, at regionals. Fanning was awarded the top seed after his regional victory.
The only other returning All-American wrestling at heavyweight in Cleveland will be Jarrod Hinrichs of Nebraska-Kearney, who earned the fifth seed this year. Hinrichs was eighth at the 2018 NCAA DII tournament.
Event Schedule
Friday, March 8
11 a.m. - Session I
5 p.m. - Session II
Saturday, March 9
10 a.m. - Session III
7 p.m. - Session IV
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