Takedown Report

WIN’s first ranks of 2024 including 14 newcomers

NEWTON, Iowa — The calendar has turned to 2024, the holiday tournaments are over and NCAA Division I programs are solidifying their lineups as they prepare for their conference dual-meet season. Among the schools that are expected to make notable changes in their lineups are Michigan, where past All-Americans Dylan Ragusin (133) and Austin Gomez (149) have moved into WIN’s rankings, and Iowa, where sophomore Caleb Rathjen, is now ranked at 149 pounds after beating his teammate Victor Voinovich in the recent Soldier Salute Tournament.
Other newcomers to WIN’s latest rankings are Air Force’s Giano Petrucelli (165), Bucknell’s Kurt Phipps (133) and Noah Mulvaney (165), Cal Baptist’s Elijah Griffin (125), Cal Poly’s Zeth Romney (133), Indiana’s Jacob Bullock (Hwt), Minnesota’s Vance VomBaur (141), Navy’s David Key (184), Northern Colorado’s Dominic Serrano (133), Virginia Tech’s Tom Crook (141) and West Virginia’s Jordan Titus (141).
Penn State (2-0) remains No. 1 in both WIN’s dual rankings and Tournament Power Index (131 points), presented by Cliff Keen Athletic. The Nittany Lions are followed by Missouri, Iowa, NC State and Cornell as the remaining Top-5 teams in the dual rankings, while Nebraska is rated No. 2 in the TPI, followed by Missouri, NC State and Cornell.
WIN’s TPI predicts how high a team would finish in this year’s NCAA Division I Championships based on a point total associated with individual placement and advancement points that could be scored at the 2024 NCAAs.
The following is a breakdown of those points: 20 for 1st place, 16 for 2nd, 13.5 for 3rd, 12.5 for 4th, 10 for 5th, 9 for 6th, 6.5 for 7th and 5.5 for 8th. Wrestlers ranked 9-12 earn two points each, followed by one and a half points for wrestlers ranked 13-16 and one point for those ranked 17-20.
Also, it should be noted that WIN’s individual rankings are not necessarily simply an update of recent wins and losses, but more of a prediction at this point in the season of where wrestlers would be seeded at the 2024 NCAAs, which will be held in Kansas City, Mo., in March, if that event was held now.
Penn State also features four top-ranked wrestlers: Levi Haines (157), Carter Starocci (174), Aaron Brooks (197) and Greg Kerkvliet (Hwt). The other No. 1-rated wrestlers are Lock Haven’s Anthony Noto (125), Cornell’s Vito Arujau (133), Iowa’s Real Woods (141), Nebraska’s Ridge Lovett (149), Missouri’s Keegan O’Toole (165) and Northern Iowa’s Parker Keckeisen. … story at … WIN-magazine.com/First-ranks-of-2024-including-14-newcomers

January 14, 2024 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized