SARA KOENIG RECEIVES NATIONAL WRESTLING HALL OF FAME HONOR
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – University of North Carolina Athletics administrative assistant Sara Koenig has been selected as the 2023 National Wrestling Hall of Fame Lifetime Service to Wrestling award winner, courtesy of the North Carolina chapter.
Friday evening in the Tar Heel victory against Virginia, Koenig was recognized by the athletic department and wrestling program for receiving the honor. The Lifetime Service to Wrestling award is given in appreciation for years of dedication to the development of leadership and citizenship in young people throughout the sport of wrestling.
“We can’t thank Sara enough for her commitment and passion to the sport of wrestling, especially at UNC and in the state of North Carolina,” wrestling head coach Coleman Scott said. “The positive impact she’s had on our program, our student-athletes and coaching staff is unmeasurable, and we’re extremely happy to see her receive the recognition on a national level that she deserves.”
Beginning in 1995, Koenig has spent her time in numerous roles in the sport, including being a contributor and editor of NCMat.com from 1995-2010 … rest of story at Goheels.com/news/2023/1/28/koenig-receives-national-wrestling-hall-of-fame-honor
Girls Wrestling across the nation
The Explosive Growth Of Girls High School Wrestling In Numbers
These numbers prove that girls’ high school wrestling is exploding across the country
On episode 25 of the Everything Women’s Wrestling Podcast, Eve Duncan, Joan Fulp, and Andrea Yamamoto share national updates on girls’ high school wrestling participation numbers for the 2022-2023 season. With a 46% average increase across all states, the data continues to tell a story of explosive growth.
Listeners will understand the sequence of growth across the country as well as the distinct difference between emerging sports status and championship status. Duncan, Fulp, and Yamamoto highlight the 10 states shown in the graphics below by praising grassroots leaders and sharing lessons learned. The conversation will leave you motivated to roll your sleeves up a little higher in an effort to keep this momentum going.
… rest of story and charts at Flowrestling.org/articles/10421777-the-explosive-growth-of-girls-high-school-wrestling-in-numbers
Niagara County girls wrestling expanding one pin at a time with first state tournament on deck
Bill Morello’s life has revolved around Lockport wrestling since childhood. There were plenty of female wrestlers during his early days, but it was primarily a male-dominated sport. Now a father of four daughters, Morello has become an advocate, as girls wrestling has exploded enough to become a standalone sport in more than 30 states and New York is finally following along.
New York is now on the eve of hosting the first state-sanctioned girls state wrestling invitational on Friday at SRC Arena on the campus of Onondaga County Community College in Syracuse, signaling the evolution and popularity of the sport. “They’re doing a great job right now promoting girls wrestling,” Morello said. “It just shows this year — with all the girls tournaments that have gone on — many more schools are getting all-girls wrestling (teams). … It speaks volumes that they support this.”
Fourteen of the 32 wrestlers invited to the invitational are representing Niagara County from Lockport, Newfane, Lewiston-Porter, North Tonawanda and Niagara Wheatfield. What’s even better is only four from the group will be graduating in June and six of the wrestlers being sent are in ninth grade or below. For those like NT coach Tony Fire, having the opportunity to compete at the state level is a monumental step for moving forward.
“It was definitely needed to not only reward them but to give them even more of a reason to come out and work towards being the best in the state,” Fire said. “This, in turn, is seen by other girls and attracts them, which, in turn, is yet another way that this sport will grow for females.” … rest of story at Niagara-gazette.com/sports/niagara-county-girls-wrestling-expanding-one-pin-at-a-time-with-first-state-tournament
Minnesota SHSL announces expansion of girls section and state tournaments
The sport of girls wrestling has taken off around the country, but especially in Minnesota the last couple of years. The latest evidence comes in the forms of a larger postseason.
Some exciting news for Minnesota girls wrestling was just announced by the MSHSL on Wednesday. Just one year after holding the first sanctioned girls section and state tournaments, the League announced it will be expanding the girls wrestling postseason starting this year.
“The MSHSL is excited to see continued growth in girls wrestling,” the League said in a statement. “The number of girls in MSHSL wrestling has more than doubled since last year and the League recognizes the need to modify and expand postseason opportunities at both the section and state tournaments.
“After careful data analysis and consultation with tournament staff, we will be modifying the girls individual section and state tournaments.” … rest of story at Guillotine.com/2023/01/mshsl-announces-expansion-of-girls-section-and-state-tournaments
College Women’s Wrestling News
Emily Shilson to Transfer to McKendree
Big transfer news today on the women’s collegiate front as four-time undefeated collegiate national champion, Emily Shilson, will be transferring from Augsburg to McKendree. Shilson made her news public via her Instagram account today.
Shilson has won the last three NCWWC national titles at 109 lbs while competing at Augsburg; however, she did not compete for Auggies during the 2022-23 campaign. Early indications are that Shilson will be able to wrestle immediately in 2023 for McKendree. Her only collegiate action this year came at the All-Star Classic when Shilson wrestled unattached and took on Life University’s Peyton Prussin. Although Prussin took an early lead, Shilson rallied back for an 8-4 victory.
Shilson’s addition will provide a boost to the three-time defending NCWWC national champion Bearcats. Recently, at the National Duals, McKendree finished third after losing to King in the semifinals. … rest of story at Intermatwrestle.com/articles/26435
Women’s Weekly: Can McKendree Compete With Iowa?
McKendree will challenge King and North Central at this year’s national championships, but can the Bearcats take down the Hawkeyes next season?
Don’t count out the reigning three-time national collegiate champions just yet.
McKendree’s rookie head coach Alexio Garcia is designing a team that can compete for a fourth straight title after a rocky start to the season. The team is currently 6-4 after finishing third at the NWCA Multidivisional National Duals, but much has changed in the past two weeks.
The Bearcats are the only team to hoist a championship trophy over their heads since the inception of the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships (NCAA programs) in 2020. It seemed inevitable that the streak would end after several top wrestlers transferred to different schools once Sam Schmitz — the architect of the program — left for Central Methodist.
Now, it’s a three-team race between North Central, King, and McKendree.
It’s not like the cupboard was completely bare when Garcia arrived in Lebanon, Illinois. He inherited four national champions — Pauline Granados, Cam Guerin, Alara Boyd, and Sydnee Kimber — to build around. Two-time All-Americans Lizzette Rodriguez and Payton Stroud were also in the line-up, which gave McKendree a fighting chance.
However, the Bearcats had holes — and Garcia went on a recruiting frenzy to fill them.
None was bigger than Emily Shilson. … rest of story at Flowrestling.org/articles/10416604-womens-weekly-can-mckendree-compete-with-iowa
Bakersfield College unveils new women’s wrestling team at spring media day
When Andrea Prise stopped by Marcos Austin’s Bakersfield College wrestling team, she was just hoping to recruit some men interested in expanding their horizons by wrestling steers for her fledgling rodeo club. Instead, her visit led to a conversation with Athletic Director Reggie Bolton about BC’s upcoming addition of women’s wrestling as a varsity sport. “He said, ‘Well, are you interested in coaching?’” Prise recalled. “I was like, ‘Well, heck yeah!’”
And so Prise, already an adjunct in agriculture and the founding coach of the rodeo club, now finds herself at the forefront of another new venture. She was joined by wrestlers Galilea Chavez (East) and Chloe Espericueta (Shafter) in the Gil Bishop Sports Center for BC’s media day Friday, the public debut for the new team, which will be on the mat this spring.
“I was just waiting for something to happen,” Chavez said, “for a women’s team, hoping (for it) to open up, and it happened, which I’m very excited about.” Women have trained with the men’s team before — Espericueta, a sophomore, was listed on the wrestling roster each of the past two years, and Chavez, a freshman, won a round robin at the Meathead Movers Tournament in October — but this is the first time they’ll have the chance to compete on their own terms for any extended stretch.
“I think for any first program, we just want to build a strong foundation,” Prise said. “We want to have our fundamentals solid so that from here we can just keep building and building.”
She added that Austin’s team provides a good foundation in and of itself. “I’m gonna keep saying it all semester: I don’t want to reinvent the wheel, I just want to keep going on his program because it’s been successful,” Prise said.
The team’s inaugural season will also be the first for the California Community College Athletic Association as a whole. For now, BC only has wrestlers for six of the 10 weight classes. But Prise, who has refereed wrestling locally and competed herself in high school, hopes that the program will encourage more women to stay local in the future. Her own sister, she said, had to travel to Oregon just to play the sport. … rest of story at NWCAonline.com/bakersfield-college-unveils-new-womens-wrestling-team-at-spring-media-day
Felician University Announces Men’s and Women’s Wrestling for 2024
RUTHERFORD, NJ – Felician University Athletics will add Men’s and Women’s Wrestling to its repertoire in the 2024-2025 academic year, Director of Athletics, Andrew Toriello, announced today.
Wrestling will become the university’s 21st varsity sport, 12th women’s offering and 9th men’s offering with the addition. It will compete at the NCAA Division II level and within the National Collegiate Wrestling Association (NCWA) during the Fall/Winter seasons, beginning in early November and its regular season ending by February. Felician is entering a realm with a current total of 64 men’s wrestling teams and 16 women’s teams within Division II; however, Felician would become the first institution in the state of New Jersey to offer the sport at that level.
Throughout Felician’s residing state, with the combination of the NCAA, NAIA, and JUCOs, 14 institutions offer men’s wrestling and 3 offer women. Specifically, within the NCAA Divisions I and III, there are seven New Jersey collegiate organizations that govern a men’s wrestling team (three-Division I/four-Division III) and only three house a women’s team (two- Division I/one-Division III).
“I am very excited to add sports to our intercollegiate athletics offerings and we are ecstatic to become the only Division II school in the state of New Jersey that will sponsor both men and women’s wrestling”, Toriello stated. “New Jersey has proven to have a multitude of talent within the sport of wrestling and bringing the sport to Felician will … rest of story at NWCAonline.com/felician-university-announces-mens-and-womens-wrestling-for-2024/
How the Top 25 (and more) Fared: January 16-22
The 5 best college wrestlers at every weight, ranked
We’re less than two months from the NCAA tournament so it’s as good a time as any to take stock of where the top wrestlers are and assess who might contend for a national title this March in Tulsa.
First, my disclaimer. The following list is not an official ranking from the NCAA. Instead, it’s my rankings of the five top athletes in all ten weights, based on results, previous accomplishments, performances this season and notable wins.
Some of the biggest names are at the top of my standings: three-time national champions Spencer Lee and Yianni Diakomihalis hold down their spots as No. 1-ranked wrestlers at 125 and 149 pounds and two-time champs Roman Bravo-Young and Carter Starocci own 133 and 174 pounds.
Let’s take a look at who else sits within the top five of these power rankings.
125 pounds
1. Spencer Lee, Iowa
2. Patrick Glory, Princeton
3. Liam Cronin, Nebraska
4. Matt Ramos, Purdue
5. Patrick McKee, Minnesota
It’s Spencer Lee vs. the field at 125 pounds. Princeton’s Patrick Glory is a formidable wrestler who notched two notable wins against NCAA finalist Brandon Courtney and NCAA All-American Brandon Kaylor, and he’s coming for Lee, but this is the Hawkeyes weight for now. … rest of story at NCAA.com/news/wrestling/article/2023-01-23/5-best-college-wrestlers-every-weight-ranked
7 Big Stories from the Week in College Wrestling (1/23/2023)
The college wrestling season continues to chug along. I feel like it’s a good sign when every week “seems like a crazy week of action.” I wouldn’t necessarily classify the past few days as too out of the ordinary; however, we did see plenty of notable, newsworthy results.
Among them, one of my favorite duals of the year (NC State/Virginia Tech), a top-ten clash between Penn State and Michigan, and Iowa getting more than they bargained for in Wisconsin. We’ve mentioned those duals in some form or fashion below, but some items we didn’t mention were Clarion over Lock Haven, Columbia over Princeton, Rider over Princeton, maybe some problems for Oklahoma State at 125 and a #3 going down at 157 lbs. Be sure to check out our conference recaps as they will be discussed in greater detail.
Spencer Continues His Unreal Run
Later in the week, InterMat will release an article on the Hodge Trophy race. It’s an important subject and it’s newsworthy, but at the same time, it might be a little anticlimactic. With the run Spencer Lee is on, it is making a mockery of the term “race.” As of now, it’s a one-match sprint to the finish.
Iowa had two matches over the weekend and Lee was tasked with facing a pair of opponents ranked in the top six nationally. … rest of story at Intermatwrestle.com/articles/26445
Hanna earns SoCon weekly honors
BUIES CREEK, N.C. – After a 3-0 day at the 2023 Chippewa Challenge, Campbell’s Shannon Hanna has been named Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week.
Hanna, a senior 141 pounder, was one of four Camels to go 3-0 at the Chippewa Challenge, including a ranked win over No. 25 Angelo Martinoni of CSU Bakersfield, 3-1, picking up the go-ahead takedown with under a minute to go in regulation for the victory. The win was his second win over a ranked opponent this season.
The Lakeland, Fla. native also registered a 22-13 major decision over Central Michigan’s Jimmy Nugent, while topping American’s Ethan Szerencsits, 8-6. Campbell defeated CMU 23-15 and Bakersfield 32-8, while falling to American 19-18 in the Chippewa Challenge, hosted by the Camels on Sunday.
Hanna has now won 10 of his last 13 matchups, with his only defeats coming against ranked foes. The senior is 14-8 overall on the season, ranked at No. 32 in his weight class in the season’s first NCAA Coaches’ Panel, released last week. … rest of story at GOcamels.com/news/2023/1/25/wrestling-hanna-earns-socon-weekly-honors
No. 19 App State Wrestling Dominates Duke
BOONE, N.C. — Less than 10 seconds after the home dual against Duke began, Caleb Smith brought fans in Varsity Gym to their feet with an emphatic takedown.
Fans of the 19th-ranked Mountaineers had reason to cheer all evening, as App State won the first nine matches in a 42-3 victory against Duke on Tuesday night. The crowd of 968 witnessed eight of those wins produce bonus points in a one-sided affair that gave the Mountaineers their 10th victory over a Power Five program since JohnMark Bentley became head coach.
After climbing to its highest-ever ranking in the NWCA Coaches Poll earlier in the day — App State is as high as No. 18 in the country in a different poll and has been as high as No. 16 in InterMat’s rankings, back in 2016-17 — the Mountaineers improved to 7-2 overall by dominating their final nonconference dual.
The Appalachian Open on Saturday is next on the schedule, and App State will take a 3-0 league record into its SoCon dual at Gardner-Webb on Monday.
Smith’s fast start in Tuesday’s opener at 125 pounds propelled him … rest of story at APPstatesports.com/news/2023/1/24/-19-wrestling-no-19-app-state-wrestling-hammers-duke
College & University results – D 2 & 3
Wilson and Williams pick up wins in Pride’s match at Roanoke College
Roanoke, VA – The Greensboro College Men’s Wrestling team dropped an ODAC match to Roanoke College Thursday night but Josh Wilson and Brandon Williams were able to pick up victories over their opponents to keep in contentionion their respective weight classes. Results are below:
125 – Jude Robson (RC) fall JaJuan Givens (GC)* ; RC leads 6-0
133 – Sean Hall (RC) fall Ivan Benitez (GC), 1:05; RC leads 12-0
141 – #5 Josh Wilson (GC) maj. Dec. Dustin Smith (RC), 14-2; RC leads 12-3
149 – Nick Young (RC) wins by forfeit; RC leads 18-3
157 – Andrew McDougal (RC) wins by forfeit; RC leads 24-3
165 – David Reid (RC) fall Luke Gregory (GC), 2:03; RC leads 30-3
174 – Josh Epperly (RC) wins by forfeit; RC leads 36-3
184 – No. 17 Mahlic Sallah (RC) tech fall Khalil Beck (GC), 16-0, 5:05; RC leads 41-3 … rest of story at Greensborocollegesports.com/news/2023/1/19/mens-wrestling-wilson-and-williams-pick-up-wins-in-prides-match-at-roanoke
No. 2 Lander University dominates Mount Olive and Belmont Abbey in a tri-meet
MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. – After being ranked the No. 2 team in The Open Mat on Wednesday and No. 2 in the latest NWCA Div. II rankings, the Lander wrestling rolled over Mount Olive and Belmont Abbey in a tri-meet Saturday afternoon. Lander moves 16-2 overall and 6-0 in the SACC. The Bearcats are now winners of their last six conference matches and have won seven straight overall.
No. 2/2 Lander (36) – Mount Olive (10)
The Bearcats started hot against the Trojans after beginning the match up 15-0 with two pins. James Joplin kicked things off with a first-period pin at 125 against the Trojans before Elijah Lusk earned three more points with a 2-0 decision before Zeth Brower used a first-period pin of his own to give the Blue and Gold a 15-0 edge.
Mount Olive would earn a major decision at 149 and a pin at 157 to get within five points of Lander.
David Hunsberger would respond with a 6-1 win by decision to get the Bearcats back on the scoreboard and increase the lead to 18-10. Hunsberger used an escape and takedown along with a point from riding time to extend his lead in the third period.
Jack Bond would help increase Lander’s lead to 21-10 with a 10-4 win by decision at 174 that saw takedowns in all three periods while the only points picked up by Mount Olive were from escapes. … rest of story at landerbearcats.com/news/2023/1/21/no-2-wrestling-dominates-mount-olive-and-belmont-abbey-in-a-tri-meet
Seliga Nabs SACC Wrestler Of The Week Honors Again
GREENVILLE, S.C. – The hardware kept rolling in for redshirt sophomore Logan Seliga on Tuesday afternoon when the Belle Vernon, Pa., native picked up South Atlantic Conference Carolinas Wrestler of the Week laurels for the third time this season, the league office announced.
Seliga, who took over the top spot in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) rankings at 125-pounds on Wednesday, celebrated his No. 1 ranking with a pair of quick wins on Thursday at the Lincoln Memorial Tri-Meet. He registered a pair of pins over a combined 1 minute and 56 seconds as the Black & Gold recorded dual meet victories over Lincoln Memorial and King in Harrogate, Tenn. Seliga opened action at the Lincoln Memorial-hosted tri-meet by pinning LMU’s Porter Finstad at the 1:35 mark of the first period, and then closed out his day with a pin of King’s Tyson Upchurch in just 21 seconds.
A two-time NCAA Championships qualifier for the Black & Gold, Seliga has compiled a 36-12 (.750) career record in Pembroke, … rest of story at UNCPbraves.com/news/2023/1/24/wrestling-seliga-nabs-sacc-wrestler-of-the-week-honors-again
No. 2 Wrestling runs over Lincoln Memorial at home
GREENWOOD – Returning home after trouncing Mount Olive and Belmont Abbey in a tri-match on Saturday, the No. 2 Lander wrestling team chopped down Lincoln Memorial 46-9 at Horne Arena Tuesday evening. Lander moves to 17-2 overall and 7-0 in the SACC while LMU drops to 1-9 overall and 0-6 in the SACC. The Bearcats started the match up 18-0 as the Railsplitters forfeited at 157, 184 and 197. LMU would rebound with a major decision at 125 to get on the scoreboard while Kaiden Fisher would answer with a first-period pin at 133. Fisher was up 12-0 in the first period before recording the win.
The Railsplitters got points at 141 with a pin of their own to make it a 24-10 contest. Lander would see wins the rest of the way starting with Jack Tangen running circles around his opponent at 149.Winning by tech fall 24-9, Tangen recorded six takedowns in the third period as his opponent only recorded points from escapes. Randy Myers took a win at 157 from forfeit before Gage Bernall recorded a pin 49 seconds … rest of story at Landerbearcats.com/news/2023/1/24/no-2-wrestling-runs-over-lincoln-memorial-at-home
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
