SECOND DAY, SATURDAY
Finish with a flourish.  At the NCAA III Wrestling Championship hosted by UW-La Crosse in La Crosse, Wisconsin Saturday ... UW-W finished eighth.  Corey Anderson (Rockton, IL/Hononegah) and Grant Sutter (Dodgeville/Dodgeville) earned All-America honors.  Corey Schmidt (Homewood, IL/Homewood Flossmoor), Reid Dickerson (Indianapolis, IN/North Central), and Adam Latella (Rockton, IL/Hononegah) were named National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Scholar All-Americans.  Tim Fader was named NWCA Division III National Coach of the Year.

Photo gallery (courtest of Chad Rasmussen)

After opening with a pair of wins, Sutter lost 4-3 to eventual 125 pound champion Kenneth Anderson of Wartburg College in a semifinal match.  Sutter came back to defeat Nathanie Giorgio of the Coast Guard Academy 1-0 in the third place match.  Sutter finished the season 14-1.

Anderson won twice Friday.  In a semifinal match Saturday he defeated George Saliba of York College 10-3 to earn a spot in the title bout at 285 pounds.  Anderson lost to the number two seed, Chad Johnson of Augsburg College, 6-1 in the championship match.  Anderson wound up 38-4, tied for seventh on the list of season victories in the UW-W record book.  He is the fifth Warhawk to earn All-America honors at heavyweight.  He was preceded by Jon Schmidt (fifth in 2010), Derrick LeVake (seventh 1996, fifth 1997), Randy Meyer (eighth 1989), Tim Carmin (third in 1981 and 1982), and Toby Ackerman (third, 1971).  Anderson's second place finish is the highest by a Warhawk wrestler since Rob Llorca won his second title at 158 pounds in 1991.

The NWCA Scholar Athlete Award is earned with a current year, or cumulative 3.25 (on a 4.0 scale).  Schmidt earned the distinction for the third year in a row.  Dickerson is a two time honoree, and Latella earned it for the first time. 

Fader, in his eighth year at UW-W,  directed Whitewater to the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title and the school's best finish in the national tournament since 1987.  He was also the NWCA III Coach of the Year in 2001.  Fader is the president of the Division III membership of the NWCA. 

FIRST DAY, FRIDAY
Grant Sutter (Dodgeville/Dodgeville) and Corey Anderson (Rockton, IL/Hononegah) advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championship in La Crosse, Wisconsin Friday. 

Photo gallery #1 (courtesy of Chad Rasmussen)
Photo gallery #2 (courtesy of Chad Rasmussen)

UW-Whitewater had six wrestlers earn a berth in the national tourney, and all six of them scored.  Sutter and Anderson will continue wrestling Saturday, with the finals set for Saturday evening.

Sutter is the six seed at 125 pounds.  After a first round bye, Sutter defeated Mike Fuenffinger of Augsburg College 10-6 in the second.  He followed that with a 5-4 win over third seed Jimmy Gotto of Coe College.  Sutter, 13-0, will face the number two seed, Kenneth Anderson of Wartburg College, in the semifinal Saturday. 

Anderson raised his record to 37-3 with a pair of wins at 285 pounds Friday, moving into a tie for ninth place in the UW-W record book.  Anderson, the fourth seed, defeated Matthew Mahon of Ithaca College 9-3 in the first round, then beat five seed Ryan Frank of Wartburg 5-3.  Anderson will face George Saliba of York College in the semifinal Saturday.

Adam Latella (Rockton, IL/Hononegah) went in as the eighth seed at 197 pounds.  Latella opened with a win over Andrew Lovins of Heidelberg College 6-2, then was pinned by the number one seed, Byron Tate of Wartburg, in 3:50.  Moving to the consolation side, Latella fell to Reid Mosquera of Johns Hopkins 12-9 to end his season with a 16-4 record.

Jake Fredrickson, the five seed at 133, opened with a 4-2 win over Eric McCann of Delaware Valley College.  In round two he lost to Joe Mileski of UW-Stevens Point 5-2, the same score when the two met in the WIAC tournament February 19.  Moving to consolation, Dalton Bullard of Elmhurst College pinned Fredrickson in 1:45.  Fredrickson ended the year 29-6.

Cade Sarbacker (Mineral Point/Iowa-Grant), the seven seed at 149, defeated Ryan Warcynski of the University of Dubuque 8-1.  Anthony Dattolo of Wilkes College beat him in the second round 12-5, and Sarbacker lost to Mike Wiley of Plymouth State College 11-6 in the consolation bracket to wind up 2011-2012 with a record of 9-3.

David Dwyer (Rockton, IL/Hononegah), seeded fifth at 184, also garnered team points with a first round win.  Dwyer beat Brian Boll of Buena Vista College 7-2 in round one.  In the second round he lost to Alex Martocello of York 3-1, and when he moved consolation he lost by a medical forfeit.  Dwyer ended the season 24-9.

The NCAA III Championship will conclude tomorrow in La Crosse.

Fox 6 News Story: Adam Latella

PREVIEW
UW-Whitewater is sending its largest contingent, six wrestlers, under head coach Tim Fader to the NCAA  Division III championship tournament hosted by UW-La Crosse in La Crosse, Wisconsin Friday-Saturday, March 9-10.  The Warhawks will be represented by Grant Sutter (Dodgeville/Dodgeville), Jake Fredricksen (Woodstock, IL/Woodstock), Cade Sarbacker (Mineral Point/Iowa-Grant), David Dwyer (Rockton, IL/Hononegah), Adam Latella (Rockton, IL/Hononegah) and Corey Anderson (Rockton, IL/Hononegah).

Video Coverage of the Tournament

Championship Program

Latella, a 197 pound qualifier, will be making his third appearance in the NCAA meet.  He qualified as a sophomore and finished fifth to earn All-America honors last year.  Latella, 16-4, is the eighth seed in his bracket.  He will open against Andrew Lovins of Heidelberg College, a qualifier out of the Ohio Athletic Conference.

Fredricksen also has national tournament experience, having qualified last year.  He is seeded fifth at 133 with his 28-4 record.  He has a first round bye, and will face Eric McCann of Delaware Valley, 23-8, in round two.

Sarbacker, 8-1, is the seventh seed in the 149 class.  His first round opponent will be Ryan Warczynski of the University of Dubuque.  Warczynski is making his third trip to nationals.

David Dwyer (Rockton, IL/Hononegah), 23-7, is seeded fifth at 184.  He has a first round bye, then will face Brian Broll of Buena Vista College, a three time NCAA qualifier.

Corey Anderson (Rockton, IL/Hononegah), 35-3, is the fourth seed at 285 pounds.  His first match will be versus Matthew Mahon of Ithaca College, 25-7 and a two time NCAA III tournament participant.

Sutter, 11-0, earned the sixth seed at 125.  He has a bye in round one, then faces Mike Fuenffinger, 14-7, of 2011 runner-up Augsburg College.

UW-Whitewater's number of qualifiers is exceeded by just three schools.  Wartburg College, the 2011 champion, leads with ten qualifiers, followed by Augsburg and Coe College with six each.  Ithaca College joins UW-W with six qualifiers.  The top eight finishers in each weight class earn All-America recognition.

Wartburg and Augsburg has monopolized the Division III wrestling championship, with one of the two winning the last seventeen team titles.

UW-W finished twenty-ninth in the NCAA III championship last year.  Whitewater's best finish ever in a national tournament was a third place tie in the 1967 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics championship, and the Warhawks' best finish in the NCAA III championship is seventh in 1987.


For additional information:  Tim Fader, UW-W coach