Takedown Report

NAIA College News

#8 Braves Captured their Fourth Straight KCAC Tournament Title on Saturday
YORK, Neb. – The #8 Ottawa University men’s wrestling team secured the KCAC Tournament title on Saturday in York, Nebraska. This is the fourth consecutive title for the Braves and Coach Colby Crank. Ottawa had eight wrestlers who qualified for NAIA Nationals on Saturday, Bobby Robinson, Irish Furthmyre, Francis Morrissey, Kevon Freeman, Dayton Hill, Braden Anderson, JD Perez and Tucker Tomlinson. There may be some other additional wrestlers that can qualify for NAIA Nationals and that information will be released by the NAIA next week.
Braden Ledford won two matches in the 133lb weight division and earned fourth place. Bobby Robinson secured his spot to Nationals by winning three matches in the 133lb weight class as well.
A first place finish for Irish Furthmyre in the 149lb weight class earns him a spot to NAIA Natioals, Furthmyre won his matches by a fall, major decision and technical fall. Brandon Bollinger placed fourth with two in the 149lb weight division.
Francis Morrissey also placed first in his weight division of 157lb and a trip to Nationals, Morrissey won by technical fall and a 4-2 decision. Ben Mitchell wrestled in the 157 and placed fourth overall.
Kevon Freeman and Dayton Hill both qualified for Nationals, Freeman earned first place and Hill secured second in the 165lb weight division. Freeman won three matches on the day and Hill won two.
In the 174lb weight division, Braden Anderson defeated two opponents on the mats to take home first place and a trip to Park City. JD Perez won the 184lb weight division and also qualified for Nationals, Perez won three matches on the day, two by falls and one by decision. Jordan Lomeli defeated two opponents and earned fourth in the 184lb as well. … story at … Ottawabraves.com/Wrestling-8-braves-captured-their-fourth-straight-kcac-tournament-title
And …

Life’s Men’s Wrestling Dominate the AAC Tournament Claiming Nine of Ten Weight Classes
LAKELAND, Fla. — The Life University men’s wrestling team held an incredible hitting percentage Saturday, having nine Running Eagles claim individual titles out of the 10 weight classes as the team pulled away for the Appalachian Athletic Conference Championship.
The one-day tournament was held at Southeastern in Lakeland, Fla. The Running Eagles tallied 217 points to edge second-place Southeastern (180 points). Reinhardt finished third with 161 points with St. Thomas (79.5 points) and Montreat (52 points) rounding out the top five. Making up the rest of the field are Brewton-Parker (50) in sixth, Truett McConnell (32.5) in seventh, WVU Tech (31.5) in eighth, St. Andrews (15) in ninth, Keiser (11.5) in 10th, Pikeville (10) in 11th, and Bluefield (0) in 12th.
Brevin Balmeceda was named the AAC Wrestler of the Year, Omi Acosta was named the AAC Coach of the Year, and Cole Manion was crowned the AAC Assistant Coach of the Year. … story at … Liferunningeagles.com/Mens-wrestling-dominate-the-aac-tournament-claiming-nine-of-ten-weights
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Grand View University Vikings Collect 9th Straight Conference Title
OSKALOOSA, IOWA – NO. 1 Grand View University Vikings stormed Oskaloosa to claim the 2024 Heart of America Conference Championship, winning the school’s ninth straight conference title. 10 Grand View wrestlers earned individual titles as well, four of which are co-champions at 133 and 174. The Vikings won the team race with 212 points, ahead of second-place Graceland University with 148.5 points. Grand View also auto-qualified eleven individuals for the 2024 NAIA Championships in two weeks.   
This is Grand View’s 9^th consecutive conference title, having also won in 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016* (*Dual Tournament). In the last six years, the Vikings have earned 49 total Heart individual champions. The Vikings tied their own record by sending 12 to the semifinals and 10 to the finals. 10 wrestlers emerged victorious, with four being considered co-champions (Carson Taylor (133), Jackson Cockrell (133), Isaiah Luellen (184), and Jameel Coles (184).
Aden Reeves earned an individual title for the Vikings by picking up a 20-6 major decision over Jose Gonzalez from Dickinson State at 125lbs. The team had two Co-Champions – Carson Taylor and Jackson Cockrell, who solidified their position following a forfeit. Similarly, Isaiah Luellen and Jameel Coles also became Co-Champions due to a forfeit. No. 1 Blake Gonzalez had his toughest match of the weekend in the finals, but he earned his title by a 6-2 decision over 3rd-ranked MoVal wrestler Zollman. True freshman Dylan Whitt won his first title by winning a 3-0 decision over a CMU Eagle. Alex Reynolds earned his second title in his career by pinning his opponent in the final match. Braungardt won his back-to-back title by a 7-3 decision after a late takedown against Karibo. Greg Hagan was unstoppable … story at … GVvikings.com/Vikings-collect-9th-straight-conference-title
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2023-24 Daktronics NAIA Men’s Wrestling Scholar-Athletes Released
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) released the 2023-24 Daktronics NAIA Men’s Wrestling Scholar-Athletes on Wednesday. Life (Ga.) has the most nationally with 18 followed by Grand View (Iowa) with 14. Cumberland (Tenn.) and Cumberlands (Ky.) are tied for third with 12 each. 
The 2023-24 list features 253 student-athletes from across 54 institutions, who achieved at least a 3.5 cumulative grade point average (GPA) at their institution. In order to be nominated by an institution’s head coach or sports information director, a student-athlete must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale, must appear on the eligibility certificate for the sport and have attended one full year at said institution.
For full list of honorees, CLICK HERE. … story at … https://www.naia.org/sports/mwrest/2023-24/Releases/Scholar_Athlete

February 28, 2024 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized