Takedown Report

NJCAA Junior College News (2021) – # 2

TDR Editor’s Notes ; The Junior colleges in California cancelled their fall season at all schools due to the CoVid pandemic. Most of the other junior college teams did complete their seasons after they postponed the season and championship to the Spring Semester. The following are a collection of articles about that season and some news from the summer. Keep wrestling onward. Contact us at the Editor’s office at martinkfleming@gmail.com
Blog # 2969 (8/22/21)
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1 } – NIACC’s Minto follows in brother’s footsteps
Donning a NIACC blue and gold singlet has been a family tradition for the Minto family. Basil Minto was a two-time All-American for the Trojans from 2012-13 at 184-pounds. He compiled a record of 52-9 and finished fifth at the NJCAA National Tournament in both seasons. Christian Minto has already one-upped big brother. One year after placing runner-up at 165 pounds, Christian completed an undefeated season with a national title at the same weight over the weekend in Council Bluffs. “Coach just told me to keep my foot on the gas, keep moving,” Christian said. “I knew what days to get my weight down, I knew what to eat, I knew what I was getting myself in to. It felt amazing.” The Cape Coral, Florida, native and the co-ICCAC Wrestler of the Year compiled two major decision victories in the semifinals and championship matches, outscoring his two opponents 28-7. It wasn’t any type of catch and release that spurred Christian to dominant performances. Rather, it was strong mat returns and his size that allowed him to wear down his competition. “The kid is just so powerful,” NIACC head coach Steve Kelly said. “Him able to do those hard mat returns in the third period and hard doubles, it shows what kind of wrestler he is.” Christian agrees that being stronger on top, combined with shutting out a narrow-minded strategy, allowed him to flourish on the big stage. “Just non-stop pressure, keep moving forward,” he said. “My teammates push me every day in the room.”
When Basil was in high school, he introduced the sport of wrestling to Christian. At the time, the younger Minto was 11 years old and competed in his first ever wrestling tournament. He lost every match. Now, he’s only suffered one loss in his two years as a Trojan. … rest of story at https://globegazette.com/sports/college/niaccs-minto-follows-in-brothers-footsteps/article_03c39a7b-8ad5-5df1-b69a-6f7e3315b736.html?mc_cid=c1dee7f2bb&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

2 } – Wrestling success pouring in for Wilson grad Branford
Marckis Branford enjoys everything about the West Coast so much he may well stay there for another year. Well, almost everything. “I definitely don’t like the rain,” said the 2019 Wilson graduate. But downpours are a fact of life along the Pacific Northwest’s coasts and in the green valley outside of Portland, Oregon where Branford has made quite a successful wrestling career at Clackamas Community College. Branford brought All-America honors back to Clackamas for the second year in a row, finishing third at 141 pounds at last week’s NJCAA championship at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
Branford may be able to make it three years in a row. He could transfer now to a four-year school, but the COVID-19 pandemic offered another option. “Because of COVID we get an extra year of eligibility,” Branford said. “I am talking to a few four-year schools at the moment, and there’s a few schools I have on my mind, but I am leaning towards staying.” That’s because Branford sees Clackamas as a place where he can make more progress as a wrestler while in an environment he prospers in. “I can still grow being here another year,” he said. “I want to go to a place with a family feeling like we have here, where we don’t just compete for ourselves but for each other. The coaches here are great, the best coaches I have ever had. … rest of story at https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/highschoolsports/2021/04/wrestling-success-pouring-in-for-wilson-grad-branford.html?mc_cid=db281dc0f1&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

3 } – Triton’s Longtime Athletic Director McGinnis Announces Retirement
During his 29 seasons as Triton College’s head wrestling coach, Harry McGinnis had to get “down and dirty” on the mat to show his athletes the right techniques and mental toughness all rolled up into one. “You have to win with technique and control your emotions,” McGinnis said. “One of things that bothered me is coaches tell you what to do and not show you. I went to clinics to glean from the experts. Everyone has a different style and different body type. I would tell them during the season, this is the time (in practice) to make mistakes. “In the tourney, the team that wins is the one that makes the least amount of mistakes. Learn, and try to eliminate the mistakes. At (the) end of the season, you’re competing at the highest level you can. So I had to show them.”
Grappling with his players even deep into middle age was no tall story by McGinnis. “I’ve seen him wrestle with his players,” Triton head softball coach Christina Christopher said. “He put his money where his mouth is. He can hang with college athletes.” McGinnis added another job to his resume in 2004, after 16 years as the wrestling head coach, when he took over the school’s athletic director position. This time, McGinnis had to be chief vocal backer for all sports, manager of budgets and facilities, be an ambassador and advocate with the college administration. “The athletic director needs to be (a) cheerleader for all sports, not just his own,” McGinnis said. “I’m out there for all the sports. The one sport that did suffer was my own. I’d have to be setting up basketball and volleyball games, and miss part of my practice. You need a good assistant (wrestling) coach who could take over while you do other things. You have to do what you got to do. “The position was open. I felt I had the ability, I felt I had the knowledge to step in and also be a coach of a secondary sport.”
McGinnis, 67, who passed the duties as wrestling head coach over to Tim Duggan three years ago, is retiring full-bore after a memorable run as athletic director. He leaves the Triton athletic program in better shape than when he started. Men’s basketball is established at an elite level, before and after its 2018 national championship. Softball, women’s basketball and women’s volleyball are becoming consistent winners. Men’s soccer has won several regional championships. Baseball, an age-old Triton tradition, is always a contender. Wrestling continues to produce All-Americans. … rest of story at https://www.journal-topics.com/articles/tritons-longtime-athletic-director-mcginnis-announces-retirement/?mc_cid=ce60503c93&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

4 } – INDIAN HILLS CC GOES 4-0 TO WIN JCNC NATIONAL DUALS TITLE, ADDING TO TEAM TITLE IN FRIDAY’S INDIVIDUAL TOURNAMENT
ROSEBURG, Ore. – Indian Hills CC of Iowa won its second national title this weekend, adding the Junior College National Championships for women’s wrestling dual meet title on Saturday to the team title won at the national individual tournament on Friday. This was the first women’s wrestling national tournament for Junior College athletes in history.
Indian Hills finished with a 4-0 record, with comfortable margins of victory over all of the other four teams in the tournament. Included was a 45-9 win over Big Bend CC of Washington, which finished with a 3-1 record to place second in the tournament. Each team wrestled the other four teams in a round-robin format. The other three teams in the draw finished with 1-3 records. According to event rules, Southwestern Oregon CC finished in third, Umpqua CC of Oregon finished fourth and Gray Harbor College of Washington placed fifth.
Seven different Indian Hills wrestlers went without a loss. In some cases, Indian Hills put different wrestlers in certain weight classes to get matches for additional wrestlers. The Warriors without a loss today were Annaliz Duran (101), Heaven-Leigh Jackson (109), Mya Turnmire (109), Nani-Marie McFadden (123), Alondra Rosado-Martinez (136) and Annalese Barraza (191).
Indian Hills coach Cole Spree was named Coach of the Year. Jennifer Tongi of Grays Harbor College (155) was named Outstanding Wrestler, based upon both days of JCNC competition. Tongi had a great performance at the USA Wrestling Women’s Nationals a week ago, placing fifth in both the U23 Nationals and the UWW Junior Nationals. The Academic All-Americans were Kayla Rogers of Big Bend CC, Abe Jolley of Umpqua, Aliya Yates of Big Bend CC, Nani-Marie McFadden of Indian Hills CC and Evangelina Toruno of Southwestern Oregon CC.
JUNIOR COLLEGE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR WOMEN (JCNC)
At Roseburg, Oregon, May 15
Dual Meet Nationals Team Standings
1. Indian Hills Community College, 4-0 record
2. Big Bend Community College, 3-1 record
3. Southwestern Oregon Community College, 1-3 record
4. Umpqua Community College, 1-3 record
5. Grays Harbor College, 1-3 record … rest of story at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2021/May/15/Indian-Hills-CC-wins-JCNC-womens-dual-meet-title?mc_cid=73bee40328&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

5 } – Arizona Christian To Acquire Glendale/Peoria YMCA Property
Arizona Christian University is growing again! Just two years after the University’s move to its new 68-acre campus in Glendale, ACU is expanding again this summer with the planned acquisition of the former Glendale/Peoria YMCA facility, located just across the street and south of the main campus entrance at 59th Avenue and Country Gables. Fueled by the most successful fundraising year in University history – capped by a recent major gift from the Green Fund (David and Barbara Green and family) – ACU has entered into an agreement to purchase the 5-acre property, which includes a gymnasium, fitness center, locker rooms, group workout area, lap pool and accompanying paved parking for the use and enjoyment of the growing Firestorm community. With this acquisition, ACU’s footprint will grow to more than 73 acres. “God’s hand of blessing on ACU is quite evident in this season, and we are so grateful for the incredible support we are receiving from donors who are excited about what God is doing at Arizona Christian University,” said ACU President Len Munsil. “We are especially grateful to have the support of the Green family, whose generosity to Kingdom work for the body of Christ is simply breathtaking in its size and scope. To God be the glory!” The gymnasium will allow ACU to host men’s and women’s volleyball practice and games, men’s and women’s basketball practices, wrestling matches, intramural sports and much more. In addition, students, staff and faculty will have access to the on-site lap pool and well-equipped fitness center, which includes strength and cardio athletic training equipment. … rest of story at http://www.victorysportsnetwork.com/Clip/news/arizona-christian-to-acquire-glendale-peoria-ymca-property.htm?mc_cid=73bee40328&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

6 } – SMC to Add Basketball, Volleyball and Wrestling for Fall 2022
In keeping with its ongoing mission of providing affordable, high-quality education, including the total college life experience, the Southwestern Michigan College Board of Trustees, during its regular meeting on May 12, unanimously authorized the SMC administration to revive four additional intercollegiate sports for Fall 2022: Men’s and Women’s Basketball, Women’s Volleyball and Men’s Wrestling.
In the summer of 2020, SMC announced that after a 25-year hiatus, it had revived its men’s and women’s cross country programs. The College has been signing runners, momentum is building and excitement is in the air for the return of competition this fall.  SMC’s performance in cross country is legendary, with five team national championships, three individual national champions, and 41 All-Americans, but the College also has a rich legacy in other sports, including 11 volleyball All-Americans, four basketball All-Americans, a two-time wrestling All-American and a Women’s Basketball Division II team national championship. The College will immediately apply to expand its participation in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), plus apply for reinstatement to the Michigan Community College Athletic Association (MCCAA), and renew rivalries with the five other nearby colleges that all currently provide athletics.  “Building a robust athletics program will help SMC and the College district in so many ways,” … rest of story at https://swmich.edu/news/smc-to-add-basketball-volleyball-and-wrestling-for-fall-2022.html?mc_cid=ad9587b873&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

7 } – Missouri wrestling returns to the Big 12; Clackamas wins third straight NJCAA title
Clackamas won its third straight NJCAA national championship on Thursday night after a huge fall by 133-pound champion Zeth Brower gave the Cougars the points they needed to get past Western Wyoming 152.5-147. Western Wyoming and head coach Art Castillo picked up 10 place winners, the first time in NJCAA history a team has had 10 place in the championships. Iowa Central was third, Pratt was fourth and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M was fifth.  Mike Spangler of Pratt (125) and Isaiah Crosby (157) of Iowa Western finished as two-time NJCAA champions. Zach Ferris of Cloud County (197) became that school’s first NJCAA individual champion.  The second part of the show hits the big news that Missouri wrestling is headed back to the Big 12 after a nine-year run in the Mid-American Conference. Those nine years saw Missouri win all nine MAC championships. The audio today is from Missouri’s press conference. … rest of story and link at https://www.mattalkonline.com/podcast/short-time/missouri-wrestling-returns-to-the-big-12-clackamas-wins-third-straight-njcaa-title/?mc_cid=a0d7657398&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

8 } – Carl Albert State College Signs Their First Four Wrestlers
Historic times for Oklahoma’s newest college wrestling program as Carl Albert State College has signed four of the programs first wrestlers. Gavin Daniels, Cooper Evans, and RJ Jones all signed with Head Coach Jake Lords and Carl Albert State College last month. The group came together and did a public signing at Westmoore High School this past week. Evans and Jones were both All-State team members out of Westmoore and Gavin Daniels is a two-sport athlete from Moore that also played football. The program’s first signee, and possibly most significant, was two-time state champion Jaxson Roney. Roney was originally from Ardmore(Plainview HS) and started out his college career at Iowa Central Community College. Iowa Central finished third at last season’s NJCAA tournament. The veteran Roney will likely be leaned on heavily early in this brand new college program. … rest of story at https://owrestle.com/carl-albert-state-college-signs-their-first-four-wrestlers/

9} – NJCAA lightens sanctions against NWC wrestlers
NJCAA sanctions against Northwest College wrestling have been eased. College officials announced Thursday that the 10 Trapper wrestlers who used an off-campus sauna in March will not be forced to miss time next year and can instead return to competition. Though saunas can be used for therapeutic purposes, collegiate wrestling rules prohibit their use “at any time and for any purpose” during the season. The blanket ban stems from a 1998 NCAA ruling aimed at eliminating unsafe weight-loss practices within the sport. The NJCAA called the Trappers’ mid-season sauna use — which was self-reported by NWC officials — a “severe weigh-in violation.” Initially, the NJCAA suspended the 10 student athletes and head coach Jim Zeigler for their next eight scheduled matches. The sanctions forced the Trapper wrestlers to miss their last regular-season match of the season plus postseason duals — and the punishment was set to continue into the 2021-22 campaign. However, NWC officials appealed the student-athletes’ suspensions, citing “insufficient or incomplete training on the policy,” and the NJCAA recently agreed to lighten their punishments. … rest of story at https://www.powelltribune.com/stories/njcaa-lightens-sanctions-against-nwc-wrestling,32570?mc_cid=4a8e8b94a2&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

10 } – Two-time All-American Dan Baker to Return to NEO For Another Season
NEO heavyweight and two-time All-American Dan Baker will return to NEO for an additional season. Baker, who was a two-time state champion out of Sulphur, OK, finished third at the NJCAA National tournament as a freshman and sophomore. The NJCAA, like all other college athletic divisions, has announced that athletes will be allowed to return for an additional season due to COVID, and Baker will be utilizing that option. Baker was widely regarded as the top NJCAA heavyweight in the country for much of the season and entered the National tournament as the #1 seed. He was upset in the Round of 16, but bounced back and pinned his way through the tournament to finish third. Baker was given the Bruce Traphagen Award for Most Falls in the least amount of time at the National tournament. This is a significant boost for NEO as Baker will arguably be the favorite to win the NJCAA title at heavyweight next season and has a penchant for going big and scoring a lot of bonus points. The Norseman finished in fifth place at the NJCAA National Tournament last season with seven All-Americans. … rest of story at https://owrestle.com/dan-baker-to-return-to-neo-for-another-season/

11 } – Unprecedented Circumstances at Clackamas
Clackamas Takes on COVID and Nature to Secure Third Consecutive Title
Unprecedented times took on a new meaning this past wrestling season. Overlooked are the unimaginable circumstances that piled on for the Clackamas Community College Cougars. “In true Oregon fashion,” Clackamas head coach Josh Rhoden said. “We [were] going to be super conservative on the COVID side compared to the states that our competitors are in.” Move-in week for the Cougars was at the end of August 2020. Routinely, fall camp would start around a month later, at the end of September. COVID and local forest fires as close as 17 miles away caused the team to evacuate campus. Having lost multiple recruits over COVID and forest fire concerns, October seemed to look promising as the team was able to participate in outdoor weights and cardio training. “We were just trying to keep everyone on the same page, all along knowing good and well we may not wrestle this year,” Rhoden said. The national tournament was scheduled for April 21-22, where the Cougars planned to compete for their third team title in a row. Behind closed doors, conversations centered around concerns of having a season on the mat continued. Rhoden opened up communication with Nick Mitchell at NAIA power Grand View in Iowa, in hopes of using Grand View’s facilities for his team to train. In the midst of attempting to find an alternative training plan, a COVID outbreak shut down the Clackamas athletic programs for the remainder of the quarter, followed by a January ice storm that removed all power from campus. Come February, the team was granted permission to use North Idaho College’s training facilities twice with proper quarantine, but the request to train in Iowa in a “bubble” setup was denied. “We have social media. So it’s easy to see that Western Wyoming and Iowa Central and all of these places are wrestling,” Rhoden said. At the end of March, COVID regulations finally allowed the Cougars to use their training facilities, less than one month before the team would claim their third team title in a row. “We got the lead at 133 with Zeth’s win,” Rhoden said. “You go from maybe not even being in the venue to [getting to] compete for a chance to win a third title in a row, to securing a third title in the most dramatic fashion.” The Cougars finished the season … rest of story at https://intermatwrestle.com/articles/24710?mc_cid=43f68cbfb0&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

12 } – MAJOR COLLEGE WRESTLING RETURNS WITH NJCAA NATIONALS SET FOR WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY IN COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA
The crazy 2021 college wrestling season continues with the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Championships at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Wednesday April 20 and Thursday, April 21. The top wrestlers from the two-year colleges affiliated with the NJCAA will battle for national titles and All-American honors. The event will be broadcast by FloWrestling. The 2020 NJCAA Nationals was held just prior to the pandemic shutdown. Clackamas is the defending national champion, with the top five from the 2020 NJCAA Nationals including runner-up Northeasterm Oklahoma, third-place Iowa Western, fourth-place Rochester and fifth-place Ellsworth.
The most recent NJCAA national ranking in late March had Clackamas at No. 1, followed by No. 2 Pratt, No. 3 Western Wyoming, No. 4 Northeastern Oklahoma and No. 5 Rochester.
The brackets for the 2021 NJCAA Nationals were released on April 16, with the following athletes holding No. 1 seeds: Michael Spangler of Pratt (125), Zeth Brower of Clackamas (133), Blake Gonzalez of NE Oklahoma (141), Jake Beeson of Pratt (149), Isaiah Crosby of Iowa Western (157), Christian Minto of North Iowa Area (165), Jose Rodriguez of Iowa Central (174), Deron Pulliam of Indian Hills (184), Tarik Sutkovic of Clackamas (197) and Dan Baker of NE Oklahoma (285). There are three returning national champions, all with No. 1 seeds: Michael Spangler of Pratt (125), Blake Gonzalez of NE Oklahoma (141) and Jake Beeson of Pratt (149). … rest of story at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2021/April/20/NJCAA-advance?mc_cid=1a96ae13a8&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

August 23, 2021 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized