Takedown Report

College Wrestlers’ Awards

Lee named InterMat Wrestler of the Year
Spencer Lee — University of Iowa junior who was crowned 2020 Big Ten champion at 125 pounds (and named 2020 Big Ten Wrestler of the Year at the conference championships) — has been named the 2020 InterMat Wrestler of the Year, the amateur wrestling website announced Monday. Presented each year since 2006 to the best collegiate wrestler in all divisions, the award is based exclusively on the balloting of writers at InterMat. Each writer is asked to select five wrestlers and rank them from first to fifth. Point values are assigned to each placement, ranging from one point to a wrestler listed fifth on a voter’s ballot, up to nine points for a first-place vote. Spencer Lee received all ten first-place votes from InterMat writers, to garner a total of 90 points to run away with 2020 InterMat Wrestler of the Year honors. Lee just completed his third season wrestling for the Iowa Hawkeyes, where he tallied a perfect 18-0 record. As impressive as that statistic is, it doesn’t reveal all its dimensions behind it. Lee outscored his 18 opponents by a mind-blowing 234-18, putting an NCAA best 5.0 average team points in each match. He earned bonus points in all but two of his matches, racking up four pins (all in the first period) … nine technical falls (four of those in the first period)… and a team-high 58 dual points for the season. For all these accomplishments, Spencer Lee found himself ranked as the No. 1 wrestler in the 125-pound weight class the entire season. In his first two seasons at Iowa, Spencer Lee managed to make his presence felt in collegiate wrestling. He won back-to-back 125-pound titles at the 2018 and 2019 NCAAs ….. story at https://intermatwrestle.com/articles/23471?fbclid=IwAR0KIIUolY1jnxOact5NrHtUrkJo4uqGiW6LwuBT896fC7LsOXPhjRd5HDg

Hodge Trophy Fan Vote
While the wrestling community remains disappointed that the NCAA was forced to cancel the Championships on all three divisional levels, fans will still get a chance to be part of the voting process in determining the 2020 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy winner. Between March 23-27, fans will be invited to go to WIN-Magazine to vote for, among several finalists yet to be determined, this year’s award that has been presented annually to the nation’s most dominant collegiate wrestler. The winner of the fan vote will earn two first-place votes among the total ballots from a group of formal voters, which includes each former Hodge Trophy winner, national media, representatives of national wrestling organizations and retired former college coaches from different regions. …. story at https://www.win-magazine.com/2020/03/hodge-trophy-fan-vote-march-23-27/?mc_cid=143786004c&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

NWCA 2019-2020 NJCAA Scholar All-American Awards
Manheim, PA – On Thursday, the National Wrestling Coaches Association announced the full slate of 2019-2020 Scholar All-American honorees for the NJCAA with awards going to 94 individuals representing 28 institutions. LINK: Individual Scholar All-Americans
“On behalf of the NWCA and our Board of Directors, I am excited to honor the amazing academic achievement demonstrated by this year’s Scholar All-Americans,” said NWCA Executive Director Mike Moyer. “We are proud to work with our NJCAA member coaches to honor outstanding student-athletes from across the country.” The West Central District paced the field, with 27 individuals receiving honors …. story at https://portal.nwcaonline.com/articles/NWCA_News/NWCA-2019-2020-NJCAA-Scholar-26-3-2020

Gliva named NCAA Elite 90 honoree for third year in a row
MINNEAPOLIS – For the third straight year, Augsburg University men’s wrestler Victor Gliva (SR, Farmington, Minn./Farmington HS) was named as the recipient of the NCAA Elite 90 Award as the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average scheduled to compete at the NCAA Division III National Championships, it was announced recently.  The award was scheduled to be presented prior to the final round of the championships on Saturday, but the tournament was canceled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Since the competitors were already on-site in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Thursday prior to the championships, the award could be given out, according to the NCAA.
According to the NCAA: “The Elite 90, an award founded by the NCAA, recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The Elite 90 is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s championships. …. story at https://athletics.augsburg.edu/news/2020/3/16/mwr031620.aspx?mc_cid=f6e5f3ba8d&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

College wrestling standings update: Most falls and tech falls heading into national championships
INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA has released updated standings for the 2020 NCAA Wrestling Awards that will be awarded in March at the respective Division I, II and III Wrestling Championships. The inaugural NCAA Wrestling Awards were presented at the 2012 wrestling championships. The three awards, given in each division, honor the Most Dominant Wrestler as well as the student-athletes that have accumulated the most falls and the most technical falls throughout the course of the regular and postseasons. Division I did not compete last week in preparations for this weekend’s conference tournaments, but regional competition took place in Divisions II and III as wrestlers competed to qualify for the national championships.
POLL: Check out the latest NWCA rankings
Greg Hilliard of Belmont Abbey earned the fall in all three of his matches to win the 165-pound championship at NCAA Division II Super Regional II and take the lead in the race for most dominant with 4.74 team points per match. Heavyweight Jared Campbell of Notre Dame (Ohio) won his own regional championship and moved to second with 4.70 points, while regional champion Chris Eddins, Jr., of Pittsburgh-Johnstown is third with 4.64. …. story at https://www.ncaa.com/news/article/2020-03-04/college-wrestling-standings-update-most-falls-and-tech-falls-heading?mc_cid=178e8cf0d6&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Kelvington Wins Elite 90 Award for NCAA Division II Wrestling
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Ben Kelvington, a senior at Augustana, is the recipient of the Elite 90 award for the 2020 NCAA Division II Championship. Kelvington, majoring in biochemistry, currently carries a 3.99 GPA. Kelvington qualified for the Division II Championships with a consolation championship in Super Region 5 and was to enter the championship bouts ranked No. 9 in the nation at 174 pounds. The Jordan, Minnesota, native tallied a 15-5 record in the 2019-20 season. …. story at https://theguillotine.com/2020/03/kelvington-wins-elite-90-award-for-ncaa-division-ii-wrestling/?mc_cid=dd3ca5e7e5&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

 2019-2020 NWCA Division III Scholar All-American Awards
Manheim, PA – On Friday, the National Wrestling Coaches Association announced the full slate of 2019-2020 Scholar All-American Team and Individual honorees for NCAA Division III with awards going to 283 individuals representing 80 institutions.
LINK: Top 25 Scholar All-American Teams
LINK: Individual Scholar All-Americans
“On behalf of the NWCA and our Board of Directors, I am excited to honor the amazing academic achievement demonstrated by this year’s Scholar All-American teams and individuals,” said NWCA Executive Director Mike Moyer. “Once again, NCAA Division III institutions have demonstrated their commitment to academic excellence with such a high number of individual honorees and schools being represented. In the team race, Case Western Reserve University finished atop of the field with a 3.817 GPA …. story at http://www.nwcaonline.com/2019-2020-nwca-division-iii-scholar-all-america-awards/?mc_cid=dd3ca5e7e5&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

April 3, 2020 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized