Takedown Report

NCAA Division II Championships – 2024

Hixenbaugh Completes Historic Season, Wins 133-Pound National Championship
Hixenbaugh’s Win is the First Ever in Program History, and in NCAA Divison II history for all of Montevallo Athletics
PARK CITY, Kan. –  For the first time in the NCAA Division II era, the Falcons are National Champions.
Gabe Hixenbaugh won the 133-pound NCAA Division II Wrestling National Championship, 4-1, over No. 3 and defending National Champion Gavin Quiocho of Glenville State, Saturday, at Hartman Arena.
The win makes Hixenbaugh the first-ever National Champion of any sport in Division II history at Montevallo, doing so in the first year of the wrestling program.
In the championship match, Hixenbaugh weathered the storm early before recording a three-point takedown toward the end of the first period. Quiocho grabbed an escape point for the lone point of the second period as Hixenbaugh led 3-1 with two minutes to go.
In the final period, Hixenbaugh opened with an escape to go up 4-1. For the remaining 1:55, Hixenbaugh displayed exceptional defense while remaining aggressive, resulting in the 4-1 win and the national title.
Hixenbaugh’s historic season comes to an end with a 31-0 record, 14 ranked wins, and the National Championship. Throughout 31 matches, Hixenbaugh was only taken down twice.
The path to the finals for Hixenbaugh saw a tech fall win in the first round, a major decision in the quarterfinals, a buzzer-beating decision win in the semis, and a win by decision in the final. In addition to being the first National Champion in the history of the wrestling program and the entire athletic department, Hixenbaugh is also the first wrestling National Champion in the history of Conference Carolinas.  … story at … Montevallofalcons.com/Hixenbaugh-completes-historic-season-wins-133-pound-national-championship
And …

Josh Kenny Claims Wrestling National Championship At 174 Pounds
Kenny won by pin and tallied three bonus point wins in four matches
The Grand Valley State men’s wrestling program continued to check boxes in the first year of reinstatement. After a 32-year hiatus, the Lakers qualified four wrestlers for the 2024 NCAA DII National Championships, secured an All-American (actually two), claimed an individual National Champion and finished 13^th in the team standings with 31 points. Not a bad first year.
Josh Kenny secured an All-American honor Friday with a quarterfinal win, but that was not the final destination for the sophomore from Grandville, Michigan. Kenny dominated his semifinal match Saturday morning, claiming a 17-2 technical fall win over Brody Hemauer from Wisconsin Parkside. With the win Kenny became the first GVSU wrestler to reach the title match since 1988.
In the finale, Kenny and Central Oklahoma’s  Anthony Des Vigne wrestled to a scoreless first period. Des Vigne took down to start the second period and it proved to be a decision he would regret. After a solid mat return, Kenny dominated with two 4-point near falls, … story at … GVSulakers.com/Josh-kenny-claims-wrestling-national-championship-at-174-pounds
And …

Leija named All-American, writes history in NCAA Wrestling Championships
First Panther to receive All-American honors for DU wrestling
PARK CITY, Kansas – In a emphatic run in a Panther uniform, Manuel Leija set Davenport University wrestling history as the program’s first-ever All-American recipient. Leija competed in the 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships between March 15-16 and secured a top-ten finish in eighth overall. Going into the tournament as a top-ranked wrestler for the 125-weight class, Leija showcased grit against top-ranked opponents in his respective bracket. Matched up against who would ultimately be the 125 title champion, Leija faced third-seeded Christian Meija (McKendree) and fell in an 8-1 decision to the national champion. Even so, Leija managed to shake off a less-than-desirable start to the tournament by piecing together a victory over Zach Schupp (Newberry) in an 11-4 decision and followed it up with an 8-5 sudden victory over Dayson Torgerson (Colorado Mesa). … story at … DUpanthers.com/Teija-named-all-american-writes-history-in-ncaa-wrestling-championships
And …

Parks picks up two more wins on Saturday to earn fourth place in Division II
PARK CITY, Kansas – La’Ron Parks won two more matches on Saturday to take fourth place in the country. Entering the NCAA Division II Tournament as an unranked wrestler, he finished the two-day event with a 5-2 record, upsetting three opponents who were ranked in the top-7 in the country. Parks also became an All-American for the first time in his career.
To read about Parks’ performance on Friday, click here.
Getting back on the mat Saturday morning, the Falcons’ heavyweight went up against No. 6 ranked Ryan Herman, from Maryville. Parks won the third round of the consolation bracket in a high scoring 12-5 decision. Herman was the third nationally-ranked wrestler that Parks defeated this weekend, to go along with No. 7 Luke Tweeton and No. 1 Francesco Borsellino.
Parks then moved past Zach Peterson, of Augustana, with a 5-1 decision … story at … Notredamefalcons.com/Parks-picks-up-two-more-wins-on-saturday-to-earn-fourth-place-in-division-ii
And …

Future is Bright as Lopers Finish Third; James Goes Out as National Runner Up
Kearney, Neb. – The fourth-ranked Nebraska-Kearney wrestling team finished in third place and fifth-year senior Nick James was the 141-pound national runner up Saturday at the 2024 NCAA Division II Championships in Wichita. 
MIAA-member Central Oklahoma (110.0) defended its national title with Lander (S.C.) University tallying 86.5 points to come in ahead of the Lopers (77.5). This marks UNK’s 22^nd top eight finish at this tournament; that includes 13 top three efforts (four first, six second and three third).
The Lopers had a solid Saturday as they “upset” six-higher seeded opponents. James (Kearney) is UNK’s 22nd National Runner up and was joined as an All-American by Omaha fifth-year senior Billy Higgins (3rd/184 lbs.), Iowa redshirt sophomore Crew Howard (3rd/285 lbs.), … story at … Lopers.com/Future-is-bright-as-lopers-finish-third-james-goes-out-as-national-runner-up
And …

Hunsberger Wins National Title as Lander Takes Second at NCAA Championship
PARK CITY, Kan. – Sophomore, David Hunsberger, became the Lander Wrestling team’s second-ever national champion as he won the 165-pound National Championship and helped the Bearcats to their second consecutive National Runner-Up finish at the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships inside Hartman Arena on Saturday. Lander finished with 86.5 points, 23.5 behind Central Oklahoma, who claimed their second consecutive National Title.
Session III:
James Joplin led off the session in the semifinals for the Bearcats against Jaxson Rohman, the national-runner up in 2023. Both wrestlers traded takedowns and escapes to end the first period. In the second period, Joplin secured an escape from bottom but was charged with the first of a series of controversial stalling calls. In the third, as he tried to see out the match he was hit for his second stalling call, tying the match and sending it to sudden victory where Joplin was hit with a third stall call, ending the match and sending him to the consolation bracket. Elijah Lusk was next on the mat and got a takedown in each of the first two periods … story at … Landerbearcats.com/Hunsberger-wins-national-title-as-lander-takes-second-at-ncaa-championship
And …

NATIONAL CHAMPIONS … AGAIN
WICHITA, Kan. – Back-to-back!
Dalton Abney moved into the 197-pound finals for the fourth straight year and was joined by a trio of teammates as top-ranked Central Oklahoma broke away from a tight team battle to wrap up its second consecutive NCAA Division II national championship Saturday afternoon. Gabe Johnson (157), Anthony DesVigne (174) and Shawn Streck (Hvy) will also wrestle in tonight’s 7 p.m. finals at Hartman Area, while 165 Hunter Jump placed third, 149 Dylan Brown fourth and 184 Garrett Wells sixth.  
The Bronchos finished the marathon third session with 102 points in clinching the 17th title in the program’s illustrious history. No. 2 Lander is second headed to the finals with 82.5 points, followed by No. 4 Nebraska-Kearney (76.5), No. 5 McKendree (69) and No. 3 St. Cloud State (64). “We’ve preached consistency in everything we do and it showed up this weekend,” head coach Todd Steidley said. “Every day we strive to get better and improve and I feel like we’ve done that. … story at … Bronchosports.com/National-champions-again
And …

Central Oklahoma Pulls Away To Win Second Straight NCAA D2 Wrestling Title
With seven All-Americans, four finalists and two champions, Central Oklahoma pulled away Saturday en route to its second straight Division II NCAA title.
Central Oklahoma entered the season as the prohibitive favorite in the Division II title chase.  The Bronchos finished the season as the clear front-runner, too.  Central Oklahoma pulled away Saturday to secure its second straight national title and ninth in program history. 
With seven All-Americans, four finalists and two champions, the Bronchos piled up 110 points to finish 23.5 ahead of second-place Lander. Nebraska-Kearney finished third with 77.5 points, followed by McKendree (73) and St. Cloud State (64).  Central Oklahoma entered Saturday with a five-point advantage over Lander, but the Bronchos stretched the lead when they went 4-2 in the semifinals.  Gabe Johnson and Shawn Streck won titles for Central Oklahoma. Johnson knocked off returning champion Nick Novak of St. Cloud State 10-7 in the finals at 157, while Streck scored a 7-4 win in the finals against Lander’s Juan Edmond-Holmes.  Streck was one of seven 2023 champions who reached the finals again Saturday, but only three repeated. … story at … Flowrestling.org/Central-oklahoma-pulls-away-to-win-second-straight-ncaa-d2-wrestling-title
And …

Johnson, Streck win individual titles, help Central Oklahoma to DII National team title
Mar. 17, 2024, 12:24 AM (ET) by Savannah Asmann, USA Wrestling
The 2024 NCAA DII National Championships came to a close on Saturday night, as all ten champions were crowned and the Central Oklahoma Bronchos earned the team trophy.
Central Oklahoma captured its second-straight team title with 110.0 points, followed by Lander in second with 86.5 points, and Nebraska-Kearney in third with 77.5 points. McKendree and St. Cloud State trailed closely behind in fourth and fifth place with 73.0 and 64.0 points respectively.
In the final at 125 pounds, Rohman was all over the legs of Mejia, who received a stall warning with one minute left in the period. The first came to a close with no score, as it was Rohman that got to the legs of Mejia four times in the first few minutes. Rohman started the second on top, but Mejia worked to a quick escape to lead 1-0. The Bearcat was able to get Rohman to the mat for three to take a 4-0 lead. The lead was cut to two after an escape and Mejia was caught for stalling, giving Rohman another point. Mejia worked his way to over a minute of riding time after starting the third period on top, which proved to be the difference maker in the match as Christian Mejia was crowned the National Champion at 125 pounds. History was made at 133 pounds as Gabe Hixenbaugh of Montevallo became not only the first wrestling National Champion, but the first ever National Champion for Montevallo in any sport. Hixenbaugh initiated control after a single leg takedown, closing out the first period on top. Defending national champion Gavin Quiocho earned the one point escape after Hixenbaugh started on top for the second period. In the third, Hixenbaugh added an escape to lead 4-1 and ultimately get the victory. At 141 pounds, Zackary Donathan of Tiffin became a two-time national champion after defeating Nick James of Nebraska-Kearney. … story at … Themat.com/Johnson-streck-win-individual-titles-help-central-oklahoma-to-dii-national-team-title

March 18, 2024 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized