Takedown Report

Five Things You Need To Know About NAIA Wrestling This Season

Grand View and Life are set to stage another battle, a collection of top stars return, several top newcomers are joining the NAIA wrestling mix this season.
NAIA wrestling is back with a lot of familiar storylines heading into the season. Grand View and Life University are set to stage another championship battle, a collection of top stars are back, several decorated newcomers are joining the mix and some new programs are debuting this season. 
Here’s a look at what to watch this season:  

Team To Beat 

Grand View won its 11th national title in 12 years in March, and while the Vikings remain the favorite, this could be one of the tightest team races in NAIA history this year. Grand View returns six starters, including national champions Owen Braungardt at 197 and Greg Hagan at 285. The Vikings have three other wrestlers who placed third or better at the national tournament coming back, including national finalists Carson Taylor at 133 and Isaiah Luellen, who is moving up from 174 to 184.  “We’re looking forward to finding out what’s unique about this team,” Grand View coach Nick Mitchell said. “After graduating a lot of seniors from last year’s team, it will be fun to see who steps up as leaders for us in all aspects.”

Top Contenders

With the current projected starters, Life University is neck-and-neck with Grand View, although that is likely to change for both teams by the second semester. Life is led by returning national champion Brevin Balmeceda at 149 and 2022 national champion Zane Lanham at 197. Along with those two, the Running Eagles return five other returning or former All-Americans. Life tested itself at the always-tough Southeast Open to start their season.  “Our guys fought hard and had some good moments, but we also had some moments that opened our eyes,” Life coach Omi Acosta said. “I have high expectations for this team and we still have a long way to go to reach our goals.” 
Several other teams are in the trophy chase, along with Grand View and Life. Southeastern and Menlo — which finished third and fourth, respectively, at the NAIA Championships in March, will be in the hunt again. Campbellsville, Morningside, and Ottawa each have balanced teams, which will require all starters to pull their weight to earn a trophy. Lindsey Wilson, Montana State-Northern, Doane, and Cumberland each have a few big hitters who can help win a team trophy if they reach their potential.

Top Returning Stars 

There’s no shortage of returning stars at the NAIA level this season. … rest of story at … Flowrestling.org/Five-things-you-need-to-know-about-naia-wrestling-this-season

And
2023-24 NAIA Women’s Wrestling Coaches’ Top 20 – No. 1 (November 9)
Nov 09, 2023
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Life (Ga.) claimed the No. 1 spot in the first regular season NAIA Women’s Wrestling Coaches’ Top 20 rating. Menlo (Calif.) and Grand View (Iowa) both sit at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively. Southern Oregon climbed this week, up two spots to No. 4 as William Penn (Iowa) hangs onto the fifth spot. Four new teams joined the top 20 this week with Vanguard (Calif.) in at No. 14, Missouri Valley in at No. 15, Ottawa (Kan.) at No. 17, and Lourdes (Ohio) at No. 20.

Rating Methodology

• The ratings were voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the five conferences.
• Two days prior to the national rating, each qualifying group rater submits the top 10 individuals from each weight class in the conference into the system. Only wrestlers listed on a conference ballot are considered for the national ballot.
• The top 20 individuals in each weight class is based on how each voter ranks the best individuals. An individual receives 20 points for each first place vote, 19 for second place and so on through the list. This same point system is used to determine the team ranking.
• The highest and lowest ranking for each team (a non-rating is considered a low rating) is removed and the team’s ranking will be recalculated with an additional point added to each team for every ballot
• Teams that receive only one point in the ballot are not considered “receiving votes.”
• For the complete Top 20 calendar, click here.

RANK	LAST TIME	TEAM	POINTS
1	2	Life (Ga.)	197
2	1	Menlo (Calif.)	191
3	3	Grand View (Iowa)	179
4	6	Southern Oregon	169
5	4	William Penn (Iowa)	153

And
2023-24 NAIA Men’s Wrestling Coaches’ Top 20 – No. 1 (November 9)
Nov 09, 2023
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – In the first regular season NAIA Men’s Wrestling Coaches’ Top 20, Grand View (Iowa) found themselves in a similar position leading the nation. Life (Ga.) continued in second place followed by Southeastern (Fla.) in third and Menlo (Calif.) in fourth. Morningside (Iowa) moved into the Top 5, edging out Doane (Neb.) who moved up five spots. Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) and Marian (Ind.) also leaped up the standings with Saint Mary (Kan.) being ranked for the first time this year. 

Rating Methodology

• The rating was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the eight conferences/groups.
• Two days prior to the national rating, each qualifying group rater submits the top 10 individuals from each weight class in his conference into the system. Only wrestlers listed on a conference ballot are considered for the national ballot.
• The top 25 individuals in each weight class is based on how each voter ranks the best individuals. An individual receives 25 points for each first place vote, 24 for second place and so on through the list. This same point system is used to determine the team ranking.
• The highest and lowest ranking for each team (a non-rating is considered a low rating) is removed and the team’s ranking will be recalculated with an additional point added to each team for every ballot
• For the complete Top 20 calendar, click here.

Rank	Last Time	Team	Points
1	1	Grand View (Iowa)	239
2	2	Life (Ga.)	217
3	3	Southeastern (Fla.)	169
4	4	Menlo (Calif.)	148
5	6	Morningside (Iowa)	136

November 11, 2023 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized