Wrestling

Wrestlers Earn Best Finish Ever in National Championship

Six All-Americans

Saturday, March 16 9:30 p.m.
UW-Whitewater equaled its best finish ever in a national championship, and best since 1967 --- with a school record six Warhawks earning All-America honors with a top eight finish. 

Photo gallery (courtesy of Kaileigh Lobrano, available for purchase)
Photo gallery (courtesy of Kaileigh Lobrano, available for purchase)

UW-Whitewater sophomore Grant Sutter (Dodgeville/Dodgeville) finished second at 133 pounds at the NCAA III wrestling championship tournament, heading a group of six Warhawk All-Americans and leading UW-W to third place --- the highest finish ever for the team in a national tournament.

Sutter lost his championship match Saturday evening to Kenneth Anderson of Wartburg College, 9-1 to finish second.  Anderson took a 2-0 lead with a takedown in the first period, and extended it to 4-0 with another takedown in the second.  He tacked on two more takedowns and a point for riding time for the 9-1 final.  Anderson and Sutter also met in last year's NCAA III championship, with Anderson winning 4-3 in a semifinal match at 125 pounds.  Anderson went on to win the 125 class in 2012, and Sutter finished third.  Sutter finishes the 2012-13 season with 21-4 record.  Anderson wound up the season 25-0.

UW-Whitewater earned third place with 78 points.  Wartburg defended its title with 103 points, followed in second by Elmhurst College with 82.  After UW-W came UW-La Crosse with 56 points, and Ithaca College took fifth place with 47 points. 


Saturday, March 16 5:00 p.m.
UW-Whitewater 133 pounder Grant Sutter (Dodgeville/Dodgeville) will wrestle for his weight class championship tonight in the NCAA III championship tournament at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  UW-Whitewater remains in second place in the team standings with 78 points, trailing only defending champion Wartburg College, which has 98.

Photo Gallery (courtesy of Kaileigh Lobrano, available for purchase)

Sutter advanced to the title match with a 13-10 win over third-seeded Alex Gomez of Ithaca College in Saturday's afternoon session.  He led Gomez 4-3 after the first period, and still had a one point margin, 6-5, after two.  He outscored Gomez 7-5 in the third, with the winning points coming on a two point nearfall with 0:49 remaining.  Sutter, seeded seventh, will face number one seed Kenneth Anderson of Wartburg College in the championship bout.  Anderson, the 125 pound champion a year ago, comes in with a 24-0 record and a 45 match win streak.

Five other UW-W wrestlers finished their tournament competition Saturday afternoon, each earning National Wrestling Coaches Association All-America honors by placing among the top eight in their weight class.

Cade Sarbacker (Mineral Point/), the eighth seed, began Saturday with a loss to fourth seed Kristopher Krawchuk of Wilkes College (26-2), by pin at 4:58.  Sarbacker trailed 2-0 when the pin occurred.  Sarbacker came back to defeat #3 seed Cole Welter of Wartburg (19-5) 6-4.  Sarbacker took a 4-1 lead in the opening period and held it through a scoreless second.  Welter used an escape and a takedown to tie the match 4-4 in the third, but a Sarbacker reversal with twelve seconds left provided the winning points.  Sarbacker closed his tourney with a 12-5 loss to #2 seed Chris Burdge of Centenary College (26-2) in the third place match, thus finishing fourth.

UW-W 165 pounder Cedric Gibson (Plainfield, IL/Plainfield North), the fifth seed, opened Saturday with a 2-1 win over WIAC rival Jordan Schulte of UW-Stevens Point, the eighth seed.  After a scoreless first, Gibson took a 1-0 lead in the second period.  Schulte evened the match at 1-1 in the third, but Gibson earned the win with a point for riding time.  In his second match of the afternoon Gibson defeated James Myers of Olivet College 6-4.  Gibson trailed 3-2 after the first three minutes, and the match was tied 4-4 after the second period.  Gibson used an escape from the bottom and a final point for riding time for the win.  Continuing a busy day, Gibson defeated third seeded Joey Favia (29-3) of Stevens Institute of Technology 3-1. After a scoreless first, Gibson took a 2-1 lead with a takedown in the second, then added an escape in the third for the final margin.  In the third place match Gibson defeated the number one seed, Landon Williams of Wartburg College (29-2) 8-3.  Gibson had a 2-1 lead after one, and that score still held after two periods.  Williams earned points for two escapes in the third, but a three point nearfall provided the winning points.

Poised for a high finish, Roland Dunlap (Muskego/Muskego ) had an unfortunate end to his championship at 184 pounds.  The fifth seed, Dunlap had to default with an injury to eighth seeded Colin Lenhart of Johnson and Wales University (17-6).  Lenhart led 5-0 at the time of the injury.  The injury also prevented Dunlap from competing in the seventh place match, where he had to medically forfeit to finish eighth in the tourney.  

Shane Siefert (Mundelein, IL/Carmel), the fifth seed at 197 pounds, began Saturday with a pin in 6:24 of #8 Trent Fliegel of Luther College (29-12).  Siefert trailed 2-1 after the first period and 3-1 after two, but had come back to take a 6-5 lead at the time of the pin.  Siefert followed up with a 7-2 win over #3 Aaron Karns of Delaware Valley College (31-6).  Siefert piled up a 6-1 lead in the first period and increased that to 7-1 after two.  In his final match, for third place, Siefert fell to number one seed Jared Myhrberg of NY-Cortland (38-2) 9-5 to finish fourth.  Siefert trailed 2-1 after the initial period and 4-2 after the second.

Anthony Edgren (New Lisbon/New Lisbon), the #5 seed, wrestled three times Saturday afternoon in the 285 pound class.  Edgren edged Jeremy Reith of Elizabethtown College (20-4) 6-5 in overtime in his first bout of the day --- and the longest match a UW-W wrestler has participated in this year.  Period one, tied 2-2.  Period two, Edgren takes a 3-2 lead. Period three, Reith ties it 3-3.  First extra period (sudden victory), tied.  Second extra period (tiebreaker), tied.  Third extra period (sudden victory) tied.  Fourth extra period (tiebreaker), tied.  Edgren finally survived to earn the win based on riding time in the extra period.  After that marathon Edgre lost to WIAC rival, and #3 seed, William Mayer of UW-La Crosse (21-2) 4-3.  Mayer led 2-0 after the first period and 4-1 after two, but Edgren scored an escape and, after two warnings for stalling, a penalty point against Mayer to close within 4-3 before time ran out.  Edgren closed his championship with a 6-4 win over sixth seed Tom Bouressa (24-6) of Concordia-Moorhead in the fifth place match.  With the help of a two point nearfall, Edgren led 5-3 in the first, upped that to 6-3 after two, and held on for the win.


Friday, March 15 11:00 p.m.
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater is in second place after the first day of the NCAA III championship tournament at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  UW-W has piled up 46 points, trailing only defending champion Wartburg's 66.  Elmhurst College is third with 39.5, UW-La Crosse fourth with 32.5, and Ithaca College fifth with 29.  The tournament will conclude Saturday.

Photo gallery (courtesy of Kaileigh Lobrano, available for purchase)

Photo gallery (courtesy of Kaileigh Lobrano, available for purchase)

Six UW-W wrestlers are still in the competition.  Following are the results from Friday's evening session, and what is next for the Warhawks.

133 ... Grant Sutter (Dodgeville/Dodgeville) pinned #2 seed Nathan Fitzenreider of North Central College (32-1) in 3:41
            Sutter (20-3), seeded 7th, will face #3 seed Alex Gomez of Ithaca College (16-5)
141 ... Jake Fredricksen (Woodstock, IL/Woodstock) lost to #5 seed Paul Marcello (24-8) of Johns Hopkins 5-3
            Fredricksen was pinned by Kyle Windquist of Luther College (11-6) in 8:59
            Fredricksen, seeded 4th, ends the season 32-9
149 ... Elroy Perkin (Greenfield/Whitnall) lost to Trevor Engel of Cornell College (30-8) 9-6
            Perkin ends the season 32-13
157 ... Cade Sarbacker (Mineral Point/) defeated #1 seed Elias Larson of Trine University (16-3) 6-5
            Sarbacker, seeded 8th, will face #4 seed Kristopher Krawchuk of Wilkes College (26-2)
165 ... Cedric Gibson (Plainfield, IL/Plainfield North) lost to #4 seed John Darling of The College of New Jersey (31-3) 10-4
            Gibson defeated James Myers of Olivet College 6-4
            Gibson, #5, will face #8 seed Jordan Schulte of UW-Stevens Point (24-9)
184 ... Roland Dunlap (Muskego/Muskego ) was pinned by Julian Meaney of Elizabethtown College in 4:59
            Dunlap beat Richard Dowdley of Heidelberg College (12-6) 4-3
            Dunlap, #5, will face #8 Colin Lenhart of Johnson and Wales College (15-5)
197 ... Shane Siefert (Mundelein, IL/Carmel) lost to #4 Mike Benefiel of Elmhurst (19-2) 8-3
            Siefert defeated Jeremy Burns of Springfield College (16-6) 2-1
            Siefert, #5, will face #8 Trent Fliegel of Luther College (29-11)
285 ... Anthony Edgren (New Lisbon/New Lisbon) lost to #4 James Buss of Loras College (32-4) 2-1
            Edgren pinned Corey James of New York-Cortland (25-6) in 0:36
            Edgren, #5, will face Jeremy Reith of Elizabethtown College (20-4)

Notes:  Fredricksen had a 2-1 lead when he was pinned.  Fredricksen led Marcello 1-0 after two periods before Marcello scored five in the third.  His match with Windquist went into overtime. Perkin battled Engel to a 3-3 tie in the third period of their match, but he trailed 6-3 after the first five minutes.  In Sarbacker's upset of the top seed, Larson led 5-4 after one period.  Sarbacker escaped from the down position in the second to tie at 5-5, and he piled up 2:17 of riding time to earn the decisive point.  In the Gibson-Darling match, Gibson was in front 4-3 after one, but Darling added a two point nearfall and three point nearfall in the third, plus riding time, for the win.  Gibson also trailed Myers 3-2 after one, then tied it 4-4 in the second and used an escape from the bottom plus riding time for the win.  Dunlap and Meaney were 2-2 at the time of the pin.  Siefert persevered through three overtimes, the longest match of the year for a UW-W wrestler, in the win over Burns. Edgren and Buss were 0-0 after one period, Buss led 1-0 after two, Edgren escaped from the bottom to start the third and tie the match, but Buss won with one point of riding time.  Edgren's pin of James is his team leading fourteenth.

The top eight finishers earn All-America honors from the National Wrestling Coaches Association.

UW-W's best finish was third place in the 1967 NAIA championship, and the school's top finish in the NCAA Division III meet was seventh place in 1987. 

Follow the results of the championship through NCAA Division III live video and live stats.

Friday, March 15 3:00 p.m.
UW-Whitewater is in second place in the team standings after the first session of competition at the NCAA III championship in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  The Warhawks have compiled 15 points, following only defending champion Wartburg College's 21.  Elmhurst College is third with 10.5 points, Saint John's (MN) fourth with 8, and UW-La Crosse rounds out the top five with 7.5 points.

Seven of Whitewater's eight wrestlers are still in the championship side of their brackets, and  none have been eliminated with two losses.

133 ... Grant Sutter (Dodgeville/Dodgeville), seeded 7th, pinned Austin Binish of MSOE (now 20-7) in 5:48
            Sutter (19-3) will face #2 seed Nathan Fitzenreider of North Central College (32-1)
141 ... Jake Fredricksen (Woodstock, IL/Woodstock), seeded 4th, defeated Jordan Dyer of NY-Brockport (now 30-11) 6-1
            Fredricksen (32-7) will face #5 seed Paul Marcello of Johns Hopkins (23-8)
149 ... Elroy Perkin (Greenfield/Whitnall) was defeated by Greg Sanders of Concordia-Wisconsin (34-3) 7-4
            Perkin (32-12) will face Trevor Engel of Cornell College (27-8) on the consolation side of the bracket
157 ... Cade Sarbacker (Mineral Point/), seeded 8th, defeated Kurt Knutsen of Augsburg (now 13-22) 9-1
            Sarbacker (10-0) will face Elias Larson of Trine (16-2), seeded #1
165 ... Cedric Gibson (Plainfield, IL/Plainfield North), seeded 5th, defeated Justin Bowland of Augsburg (20-19) 4-3
            Gibson defeated Ricardo Plummer of Messiah College (26-9) 4-3
            Gibson (13-5) will face John Darling of The College of New Jersey (30-3), seeded 4th
184 ... Roland Dunlap (Muskego/Muskego ), seeded 5th, defeated Caleb Malychewski of Pacific College (28-8) 1-0
            Dunlap will face Julian Meaney of Eliabethtown College (9-1)
197 ... Shane Siefert (Mundelein, IL/Carmel), seeded 5th, defeated Travis Ebersole of Messiah College (16-11) 1-0
            Siefert will face Mike Benefiel of Elmhurst College (18-2), seeded 4th 
285 ... Anthony Edgren (New Lisbon/New Lisbon), seeded 5th, pinned William Fletcher (17-8) of Wilkes College
            Edgren (27-5) will face James Buss of Loras College (32-4), seeded 4th

Sutter was leading 7-1 when he recorded his fall in the third period.  Perkin tied his match at 4-4 with an escape with 0:29 left in the second period before his opponent scored three points in the third period.  Gibson won his opening match with an escape in the second period, and another escape from the down position to start the third.  He won his second match when his opponent was penalized a point with 0:32 left in the match.  Dunlap made a second period escape, at 0:51, stand up for the only point in his win.  Siefert had a similar result, escaping from the down position in the second period and making that point hold up.  Edgren had a 9-1 lead when he registered his pin, his team leading thirteenth fall of the season.

The NCAA III tournament is providing live scoring for every bout as well as video streaming.

Competition will continue with an evening session Friday, followed by afternoon and evening sessions Saturday to conclude the tournament.

March 14
Seven University of Wisconsin-Whitewater wrestlers have earned seeds in the NCAA III championship March 15-16 at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  Tournament officials have also released the brackets for all weight classes.

UW-W's eight wrestlers, the most a Whitewater team has ever qualified, is the second largest team representation at the tournament.

UW-W's lineup and the initial bout for each competitor follows.

133 .. Grant Sutter (Dodgeville/Dodgeville) (18-3), 7th seed, will wrestle Austin Binish (20-6) of MSOE
141 ... Jake Fredricksen (Woodstock, IL/Woodstock) (31-7), 4th seed, will wrestle the winner of Jordan Dyer (30-10) and
            Nathaniel Behnke (36-11), both unseeded
149 ... Elroy Perkin (Greenfield/Whitnall) (32-11), unseeded, will wrestle Greg Saunders (32-11)
157 ... Cade Sarbacker (Mineral Point/) (9-0), 8th seed, will wrestle Kurt Knutsen (13-21), unseeded, of    
            Augsburg
165 ... Cedric Gibson (Plainfield, IL/Plainfield North) (11-5), 5th seed, will wrestler Justin Bowland (20-18), unseeded, of
            Augsburg           
184 ... Roland Dunlap (Muskego/Muskego ) (9-0), 5th seed, will wrestle Caleb Malychewski (28-7), unseeded
197 ... Shane Siefert (Mundelein, IL/Carmel) (25-7), 5th seed, will wrestle Travis Ebersole (16-10), unseeded, of
            Mesiah
285 ... Anthony Edgren (New Lisbon/New Lisbon) (26-50, 5th seed, will wrestle William Fletcher (17-8), unseeded, of
            Wilkes College

The NCAA III tournament will provide live scoring for every bout as well as video streaming.

March 4
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater will be represented by eight competitors, tied for the second largest team contingent, at the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championship March 15-16 at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. 

Animoto video  (updated 3/11/13)

Two time defending NCAA III champion Wartburg College qualified ten wrestlers for the national meet, and 2012 runner-up Augsburg College joined Whitewater with eight qualifiers.  The State University of New York-Cortland was next with six.

NCAA DIII Wrestling Championships Digital Program

Wrestlers used a new regional format to qualify in 2013.  For many years the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament was a qualifying meet, as were numerous other conference meets, but that ended with the 2012 meet.  UW-W competed in the Midwest Regional hosted by Elmhurst College Saturday March 2.

UW-Whitewater qualifiers for the NCAA III championship include the following.    

The top eight finishers in the NCAA III tournament earn All-America honors from the National Wrestling Coaches Association.  UW-Whitewater has had wrestlers earn 65 All-America honors since 1967, including Terry Schuler, who earned All-America recognition four times (1985-88, 177 pounds first three years, 190 in 1988).  The group also includes national champions Fred Townsend (126 pounds, 1978), Ed Brady (150, 1987), and Rob Llorca (158, 1990-91).  Townsend was named the Outstanding Wrestler at the 1978 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics championship, and Llorca earned the distinction at the NCAA III meet in both 1990 and 1991.

UW-Whitewater is ranked second in the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III poll.  Wartburg is number one, and UW-W is followed by Elmhurst, New York-Cortland and Ithaca in the top five.   

UW-Whitewater has placed among the top twenty teams in the national championship twenty-one times since 1967, and have finished in the top ten ten times in that span.  Over the last five years the Warhawks have finished eighth (2012), twenty-ninth (2011), twelfth (2010), twenty-seventh (2009) and tied for twenty-fourth (2008).  UW-W's best finish was third place in the 1967 NAIA championship, and the school's top finish in the NCAA Division III meet was seventh place in 1987. 

Follow the results of the championship through NCAA Division III live video and live stats.

Print Friendly Version