WIN’s First Regular-Season Rankings include 34 Newcomers, 9 Freshmen
NEWTON, Iowa — The college season has been going on for two weeks and opened the door for 34 wrestlers to join WIN Magazine’s Nov. 11 NCAA Division I Individual Rankings and Tournament Power Index, presented by Cliff Keen Athletic.
Among those newcomers are six who are ranked in the Top 10 of their weight classes: Chris Cannon (Northwestern) and Tyler Knox (Stanford) at 133; Casey Swiderski (Iowa State) at 141; Lorenzo Norman (Stanford) and Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) at 174; and Gabe Arnold (Iowa) at 184.
Knox, Norman and Arnold are also among nine freshmen in WIN’s first weekly rankings. The others include Illinois’ Kannon Webster and Penn’s Cross Wasilewski at 149 pounds, Cornell’s Simon Ruiz at 174, Minnesota’s Max McEnelly at 184, Iowa State’s Christian Carroll at 197 and Iowa’s Ben Kueter at heavyweight.
All wrestlers, ranked No. 1 at their weight in WIN’s preseason ranking, remain on top at their weights. That includes former national champs Richard Figueroa (125) of Arizona State, Jesse Mendez (141) of Ohio State, Caleb Henson (149) of Virginia Tech, Keegan O’Toole (174) of Missouri, Carter Starocci (184) of Penn State and Greg Kerkvliet (Hwt) of Penn State. Other defending champs Levi Haines (Penn State) and Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) are rated No. 2, respectively, at 174 and 184 pounds.
Defending national champ Penn State remains No. 1 in WIN’s Tournament Power Index, which is team-race prediction at this point in the season for the 2025 NCAA Division I Championships, March 20-22, in Philadelphia; and based on where their wrestlers are ranked in WIN’s individual ratings.
The following is a breakdown of those individual TPI points per ranking: 20 for 1st, 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.
The Nittany Lions, which feature nine ranked wrestlers and eight ranked in the Top 8 of their weight class, earned 125.5 TPI points in these rankings. … more at … https://www.win-magazine.com/2024/11/11/wins-first-regular-season-rankings-include-34-newcomers-9-freshmen/
NCWA Teams’ Rankings
NCWA Men’s Team Rankings
Now that the 2x Defending National Champions, Bellarmine University, have moved on to full NCAA-D1 status, the battle for the 2025 NCWA Men’s National Championship seems to be a dog-fight between around 5 programs. Liberty graduated some top talent including National Champions but also brought in a stellar recruiting class. Thomas More and Apprentice re-loaded their rosters with several key returners. Menlo College will be in a NCAA-transition year along with Vanguard University. Tarleton State will be in their first year with a NCAA-recruited team. Then there are the upstart programs that have made a recent mark such as Washington State, Utah Tech, and Springfield Tech.
1. Thomas More University (Crestview Hills, KY) – NCAA-D2 Transition
2. The Apprentice School (Newport News, VA) – NCWA-D1
3. Menlo College (Atherton, CA) – NCAA-D2 Transition
4. Liberty University (Lynchburg, VA) – NCWA-D1
5. Tarleton State University (Stephenville, TX) – NCWA-D1
6. Washington State University (Pullman, WA) – NCWA-D1
7. Vanguard University (Costa Mesa, CA) – NCAA-D2 Transition
8. Utah Tech University (St. George, UT) – NCWA-D1
9. University of Central Florida (Orlando, FL) – NCWA-D1
10. Springfield Tech CC (Springfield, MA) – NCWA-D1
11. West Chester University (West Chester, PA) – NCWA-D2
12. University of Florida (Gainesville, FL) – NCWA-D1
13. University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV) – NCWA-D1
14. University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI) – NCWA-D2
15. The Ohio State University (Columbus, OH) – NCWA-D2 … more at … https://ncwa.net/news/2024/ncwa-mens-team-rankings
And …
NCWA Women’s Team Rankings
The women’s division has grown by leaps and bounds over the last few years; however, the division remains top heavy with four teams at the top and then the rest. Look for Ottawa-Arizona to attempt to get back to the top of the podium (1st in 2023, 2nd in 2024) and Washington State, Utah Tech, and UNLV to battle it out for the top spot.
1. Ottawa University – Arizona (Surprise, AZ)
2. Washington State University (Pullman, WA)
3. Utah Tech University (St. George, UT)
4. University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV)
5. Liberty University (Lynchburg, VA)
6. Tarleton State University (Stephenville, TX)
7. Grand Canyon University (Phoenix, AZ
8. Colorado State University (Fort Collins, CO)
9. The Apprentice School (Newport News, VA)
10. University of Central Florida (Orlando, FL)
11. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA)
12. Springfield Tech CC (Springfield, MA)
13. Texas A & M University (College Station, TX)
14. Santa Rosa Junior College (Santa Rosa, CA)
15. The University of Texas (Austin, TX) … more at … https://ncwa.net/news/2024/ncwa-womens-team-rankings
Carolinas Colleges News & Results
Wolves Dominate in Season Home Opener 44-10 Against Bluefield State University
Newberry, SC: The Wolves dominate in season home opener 44-10 against Bluefield State University.
The first win of the night goes to Sophomore Ethan McCullough who went up against Luke Roberts at 133 pounds. Roberts couldn’t keep up with McCullough as the match ended with a technical fall 21-4.
Caelen Alderman, 149 pounds, was up next against Enrique Sanchez where he brought the pressure. Alderman was the first and only Newberry pin of the night with a time of 4:06. … more at … https://newberrywolves.com/news/2024/11/13/general-wolves-dominate-in-season-home-opener-44-10-against-bluefield-state-university.aspx
And …
Crusaders Move to 2-0 in Conference With Victory at LMU
HARROGATE, Tenn. — The Belmont Abbey wrestling team earned its second straight Conference Carolinas victory thanks to a 35-16 victory over Lincoln Memorial Wednesday evening at Mary Mars Gymansium.
The Crusaders won three of the six bouts contested Wednesday while winning the other four via forfeit. Freshman Stone Busler (149) led the way for the Crusaders with a win via tech fall over LMU’s Graham Rocha.
Additionally, Alex Ropski (165) and Palmer Smith (174) won their respective bouts by decision to help clinch the match for the Abbey.
Belmont Abbey is now 2-0 overall in dual matches with the same record in Conference Carolinas competition. Lincoln Memorial is now 0-2 overall and in conference play. … more at … https://abbeyathletics.com/news/2024/11/13/wrestling-crusaders-move-to-2-0-in-conference-with-victory-at-lmu.aspx
And …
Issac Sheeren Named Conference Carolinas Wrestler of the Week
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Freshman Issac Sheeren has been named the Conference Carolinas Wrestler of the Week, the league annouced on Tuesday afternoon. This is the first award for Sheeren this season and the first Bearcat to earn a weekly honor from the conference since the 2022-23 season.
Sheeren also earned Wrestler of the Week honors from Wrestle Report
A freshman from Houston, Texas, Sheeren opened his career with a dominant 18-2 tech fall over Ruban Izzard Jr. of Allen. He then raised eyebrows on Friday as he took down a former Junior College national champion in Kale Schrader of Newberry with a takedown in the last ten seconds to secure a 6-5 win.
Issac then wrapped his week by winning the Georgia Open on Sunday which included him taking down the #3 ranked heavyweight in NAIA, 8-2, in the finals. … more at … https://landerbearcats.com/news/2024/11/12/wrestling-issac-sheeren-named-conference-carolinas-wrestler-of-the-week.aspx
And …
A wrestler’s journey from Afghanistan to Newberry College
NEWBERRY COUNTY – The start of a new season for the Newberry College wrestling team means a crop of new wrestlers with unique backgrounds and stories. One of those unique stories is that of Bashir Rostami, an Afghanistan refugee who, after wrestling for his high school in Florida for one year, found his way to Newberry.
Rostami was born in Kabul (the capital city of Afghanistan), and grew up in the Parwan Province before once again living in Kabul. His sister, Malalai, had a high-level position at the Kabul International Airport and according to Bryant Blanton, associate head wrestling coach at Newberry college, she bravely risked her own life helping to get American soldiers out of Afghanistan.
This heroic act led to the troops offering to get her and her family out of Afghanistan, to which they took advantage. The family then came to the United States, specifically Tampa, Florida. Rostami attended Freedom High School for two years. While he was unable to wrestle his junior year, he did participate during his senior year.
And wrestled he did as Rostami said he won over 20 matches with just one loss. This was not Rastami’s first experience with wrestling, or contact sports in general. He said he wrestled for about six or seven years in Afghanistan, as well as practicing kung fu, muay thai, mixed martial arts and soccer.
Rastami said he has a goal of being a UFC world champion and that his family is his motivation to succeed, especially that of his father who passed away two years ago. … more at … https://www.newberryobserver.com/sports/72714/a-wrestlers-journey-from-afghanistan-to-newberry-college
NWCA All-Star classic match order, Penn State wrestling bout previews, how to watch, and more
The eyes of the college wrestling world will turn toward State College this weekend. The No. 1 Penn State wrestling team opens its 2024-2025 season and NCAA title defense on Sunday when Drexel visits for a 1 p.m. ET dual meet. Of course, that is not the only event Rec Hall is hosting this weekend. One day earlier, the NWCA All-Star Classic, an exhibition event featuring top wrestlers from around the country, will feature 16 bouts, five of which will feature a Nittany Lion.
The NWCA All-Star Classic starts at 7 p.m. ET. Flo Wrestling is streaming it live for its subscribers here. And, some tickets are still available here.
Which Penn State wrestlers are in the NWCA All-Star Classic?
Penn State was set to have six competitors in this event. Now, however, the list is down to five. Heavyweight Greg Kerkvliet dropped out earlier this week due to a family obligation. But, he will be in action Sunday against the Dragons. His teammates competing on Saturday, though, are unlikely to be. The Nittany Lions are represented by Beau Bartlett, Shayne Van Ness, Tyler Kasak, Levi Haines, and Carter Starocci.
“It looks like the majority of them will not be wrestling Sunday,” head coach Cael Sanderson said this week. “I think there’s a couple of them that are considering it, but I think their focus right now is the all-star match. If something changes, obviously they’re on weight, but they’re wrestling some of the best guys in the country, so we want them to focus on that match. We have a lot of really tough and able bodied kids that are ready to jump in there, if the opportunity presents itself.”
NWCA All-Star Classic bout order
Here’s the order of competition, courtesy of the NWCA:
110: 1 Emma Baertlein, Southern Oregon vs #4 Kendra Ryan, North Central … more at … https://www.on3.com/teams/penn-state-nittany-lions/news/nwca-all-star-classic-match-order-penn-state-wrestling-bout-previews-how-to-watch-and-more/
Stanford’s upset over Iowa State triggers movement in Top 10
Manheim, Pennsylvania – A weekend excursion by Stanford into Iowa provided mixed results in terms of wins and losses, but it proved to create the first big shift in the NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll released on Tuedsay.
Stanford’s 23-21 win in Ames over then-No. 6 Iowa State dropped the Cyclones five spots to No. 11, while it elevated the Cardinal to No. 14, a six-spot improvement from the previous week. The Cardinal are tied at 14 with Northern Iowa.
Stanford couldn’t repeat the feat in Iowa City as second-ranked Iowa (2-0) beat the Cardinal 32-9.
The top five remained the same as Iowa, fourth-ranked Nebraska and then-No. 7 NC State saw dual action over the weekend.
Nebraska (1-0) opened up with a 32-7 win over visiting Utah Valley, while NC State throttled Campbell 44-3 at Journeymen’s Wranglemania event in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
With Iowa State dropping to No. 11, that moved Cornell into the Top 10 for the first time this season.
Illinois had a strong weekend, defeating then-No. 19 Arizona State 37-9 and Binghamton 30-10. The Fighting Illini moved up one spot to No. 16 this week. West Virginia (1-0) won its only dual of the week over Division II Glenville State 35-10. Arizona State topped LIU 38-3 to split its weekend in Pennsylvania.
Then-No. 23 Oregon State topped North Dakota State 35-6 in Fargo, while No. 25 North Carolina opened up with a pair of wins, topping Drexel 33-9 and Navy 23-16. … more at … https://nwcaonline.com/news/2024/11/12/ncaa-division-1-men-stanfords-upset-over-iowa-state-triggers-movement-in-top-10.aspx
Prendergast selected Wrestler of the Week
GREENVILLE, N.C. (Nov. 12) – For a consecutive week, University of Mount Olive freshman Lillian Prendergast was named the Conference Carolinas Wrestler of the Week by the league office on Tuesday afternoon.
Prendergast reached the podium with a fourth-place finish behind a 4-2 record in the 103-weight class on Saturday at the Eagle Madness Open in Georgia. Following an opening-round loss, she rebounded with three consecutive wins in the consolation bracket. Prendergast produced a first-round pin over D. Tejada before earning a 14-2 tech fall versus Alyssa Archer of Lindsey Wilson. In the consolation semifinals, Prendergast won via fall over Conference Carolinas foe Lynnlie Rountree of Emmanuel. She ultimately claimed fourth place at 103 following a loss to Kira Mitchell in the third-place match.
This season, Prendergast boasts a 7-2 record with a pair of podium finishes. … more at … https://umotrojans.com/news/2024/11/12/womens-wrestling-prendergast-selected-wrestler-of-the-week.aspx
UNC-Pembroke Wrestling Weathers Storm, Takes Down Tornado
PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke wrestling team faced a 19-14 deficit with two matches remaining, but wins from Nigel Williams and Massimo Sullivan secured the narrow 21-19 victory for the Braves in Conference Carolinas wrestling action Wednesday night at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
The Braves (2-0, 2-0 CC) improved to 9-1 in the all-time series with the Tornado (0-1, 0-1 CC).
Bryson Harper got the Braves on the board first with a decision victory at 125 pounds, before King would take the 133 and 141 pound bouts. Ninth-ranked Jake Piccirilli cut into the King lead with a dominating 21-3 tech. fall win at 149 pounds, while King answered with a decision win at 157 pounds to stretch the lead once again. Will Lowery’s reverse pin in the 165-pound match gave the lead back to the Braves, while a King win at 174 pounds saw the lead change once more. A Tornado win by decision at 184 pounds took the King lead to 19-14, before Williams kept the Black & Gold alive with a victory at 197 pounds. Sullivan would then clinch the UNCP win in the heavyweight bout with … more at … https://uncpbraves.com/news/2024/11/13/wrestling-weathers-storm-takes-down-tornado.aspx
Vince Robinson Named ACC Wrestler of the Week
Charlotte, N.C. – Wolfpack wrestler, Vince Robinson, has been named the ACC Wrestler of the Week as announced by the conference office on Tuesday, November 12.
The redshirt freshman went 3-0 throughout Sunday’s Collegiate Classic round robin where he picked up ranked victories over No. 13 Diego Sotelo (Harvard), No. 16 Max Gallagher (Penn), and No. 19 Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh).
Robinson is currently ranked 16th for the 125 pound weight class on FloWrestling, as of today. … more at … https://gopack.com/news/2024/11/12/wrestling-vince-robinson-named-acc-wrestler-of-the-week
Asheville to host Southern Conference wrestling championship at UNC Asheville in 2025
The Southern Conference wrestling tournament is returning to Asheville in a two-year deal, the conference announced in partnership with Explore Asheville on Monday.
The Explore Asheville SoCon Wrestling Championship will take place at Kimmel Arena on UNC Asheville’s campus on March 7-8, 2025, coinciding with the SoCon basketball tournament that will be taking place from March 6-10, 2025, at Harrah’s Cherokee Center-Asheville. “We are energized and filled with heart to build upon the long-standing relationship between the Southern Conference and our community,” Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority CEO Vic Isley said in a release. “SoCon’s expansion of its event footprint here fires up our community comeback with customers and business momentum in Asheville, as sports fans, athletes and their families join us in 2025.”
Explore Asheville originally planned to host the 2024 Ingles SoCon Volleyball Championship at Harrah’s Cherokee Center–Asheville on Nov. 21–24, the first in a three-year partnership between the city and the conference. The tournament will instead be hosted at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium in Spartanburg, South Carolina, on the same dates.
The wrestling and basketball tournaments will bring sports and tourism back to Western North Carolina in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Helene. … more at … https://www.citizen-times.com/story/sports/college/2024/11/11/southern-conference-wrestling-tournament-to-be-held-at-unc-asheville-in-2025/76201492007/
Penn State, Iowa begin season ranked atop NWCA Division I Men’s Wrestling Coaches Poll
Manheim, Pennsylvania – For the third straight year, Penn State will start the college wrestling season ranked No. 1 in the country.
The Nittany Lions garnered all 16 first-place votes as the season’s first poll was released by the National Wrestling Coaches Association on Wednesday. Penn State won its third straight national championship and 12th overall last March, setting a new NCAA tournament scoring mark in the process with 172.5 points and outdistancing runner-up Cornell by an unprecedented 100 points.
Coach Cael Sanderson’s team is also riding a dual meet win streak of 55 in a row, which currently sits as the 13th longest all-time in college wrestling history and the sixth-longest in major college history.
Iowa starts the year ranked second after finishing the regular season 12-2 in duals and fifth at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. The Hawkeyes are followed by Oklahoma State, Nebraska and Ohio State in the top five.
Oklahoma State went 14-1 last season and for the first time in nearly 30 years, will be led by a new head coach. World and Olympic champion David Taylor assumed the role over the summer as the Cowboys’ head coach and brings a new feeling of excitement to Stillwater. The Cowboys finished a disappointing 10th at last season’s NCAA championships.
Nebraska went 12-2 in duals and finished ninth at the NCAA championships, while the Buckeyes were 15-2 in duals and finished eighth. The Big Ten, as usual, has an abundance of teams ranked in the Top 25, with eight of the conference’s 14 wrestling schools starting the year in the poll, including four in the top five. Michigan (8-4 in 2023-24) gives the Big Ten a fifth team in the Top 10, coming in at No. 10.
While the Big Ten was unaffected on the wrestling side of things by the continuing world of college realignment, other conferences find themselves with changing membership.
Oklahoma State is one of eight Big 12 teams ranked in the Top 25 to start the season, with newcomer Arizona State adding to the list of usual suspects. Iowa State (13-2) and Missouri (10-4) come in ranked sixth and ninth, respectively.
The ACC boasts five schools ranked – including rivals Virginia Tech (9-4) and NC State (16-2) coming in ranked No. 7 and No. 8 to start the year. Geographical outlier Stanford joins the conference and starts the year ranked No. 21. … more at … https://nwcaonline.com/news/2024/10/30/national-wrestling-coaches-association-penn-state-iowa-begin-season-ranked-atop-nwca-division-i-mens-wrestling-coaches-poll.aspx
TDR blog
After 20 seasons of publicizing wrestling The TakeDown Report’s (TDR) focus has changed to the collecting of college coaching records from North America since 1903. We will continue to recognize and reward successful wrestlers in eastern North Carolina (east of Raleigh & Fayetteville), assist with schools in starting or re-starting a team and this blog. Join us on our FaceBook Page – “The TakeDown Report” for photos and news. Please send results, stories, links and news to pass along. E-mail us at takedownreport@gmail.com
Martin Fleming, Editor
Takedown Report
Takedown Report 