Millersville University
NCAA Super Region I Championships
Marauder Wrestlers Set For Super Regional Championships
2/20/2013 8:10:00 AM | Wrestling
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
NCAA Division II Super Region 1 Championships
Kutztown, Pa. - Keystone Arena
Session 1: Friday, Feb. 22, 3-8 p.m.
Session 2: Saturday, Feb. 23, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
Session 3: Saturday, Feb. 23, 3-6 p.m.
MEDIA COVERAGE
Live Results
Tournament Web Site
TICKET INFORMATION
All-Tournament Pass (sold on Friday only): $20 for adults, $10 for seniors and students and $5 for children
Individual Session Pass: $8 for adults, $5 for seniors and students, $3 for children
TOURNAMENT PREVIEW
• After wrestling its entire history at Division III and Division I, Millersville enters its first postseason competition as a member of Division II. Super Region 1 Championships is a two-day, three-session tournament that includes 14 programs. The top four placewinners in each weight class earns a berth to the NCAA Division II Championship in Cleveland, Ohio. There are four super regions in Division II, creating a 16-individual field in each weight class at the national championships. Millersville has already competed against six of the programs (East Stroudsburg, Gannon, Kutztown, Mercyhurst, Pitt-Johnstown and Shippensburg).
• As a team, the Marauders were ranked 12th of 14 in the most recent Super Region 1 rankings, which are voted on by the region's coaches. Heavyweight Brad Ladd was the lone individual to crack to the top six, coming in with a No. 4 ranking.
• Newberry, ranked No. 5 in Division II with a 19-2-1 dual record this season, won last year's team crown with three first-place finishers and seven national qualifiers. Pitt-Johnstown, currently ranked No. 4 with a 15-2 record, finished second with six qualifiers. 13 of the 14 teams in last year's super regional sent at least one wrestler to the national championships. Mercyhurst enters the regional ranked No. 10, Kutztown is No. 12 and UNC-Pembroke is No. 18.
WEIGHT CLASS PREVIEWS
125
• Freshman Sam Oberlander has shown more improvement from beginning of the season to now as any wrestler on the roster and heads into the super regional riding a three-match winning streak and is the winner of six of his last eight bouts. With no returning national qualifiers, the road to Cleveland is wide open for Oberlander. He boasts an 11-13 record on the season and just two weeks ago, he pinned Kutztown's Nick Lamoreaux in 4:19. Oberlander also has two wins over two different Shippensburg wrestlers at 125, but Ship's Dereck Enders (3-3), who is ranked No. 6 in the regional, has never faced Oberlander. Mercyhurst's Willie Bohince (27-5) is currently ranked No. 2, followed by Gannon's Matt Turek (23-6) and Pitt-Johnstown's Evan Link (18-7). In a two week stretch in December and January, Oberlander dropped a 7-2 decision to Bohince and a 12-8 decision to Turek. Newberry's Jeff Vesta (30-5) is the top-ranked wrestler in the weight class.
133
• Freshman Kyle Loeb enters the regional with a 7-14 mark and has his hands full with Gannon's Jose Matos and Pitt-Johnstown's Dave Fogle, who were both All-Americans at 125 in 2012. Matos (10-4) is currently ranked second behind Mercyhurst's Dylan D'Urso, who boasts a 26-3 record. Loeb has faced four of the top six wrestlers in the region, dropping a close 9-4 decision to D'Urso, but falling by pin to Fogle (13-10) and Matos. Shippensburg's Cameron Throckmorton (16-3) also owns a pair of major decision wins over Loeb. Loeb split with East Stroudsburg's Devin Holmes (3-18). Each wrestler won by a major decision.
141
• A third Marauder freshman, David Charles (10-12), has shown promise during the season but has been on a slide of late, dropping six of his last eight matches. Each loss in that stretch, however, has come by a close decision. Three of them were by just one point. His ability to stay away from the pin and keep the match close should help him in the tournament. His weight class, however, is filled with veterans. Newberry's B.J. Young (30-8) was the 2012 super region champ and national runner-up. Kutztown's Evan Yenolevich (17-7) won the super region at 133 last season. UNC-Pembroke's Daniel Ownbey (17-0) was an All-American last year, and Cody Myers (11-5) of Shippensburg was a national qualifier. Charles lost to Myers by a 6-0 score and to Yenolevich by a 6-1 decision. He does, however, own wins of Mercyhurst's Joey Miller (16-14), Gannon's Adam Weinell (12-10) and ESU's Joseph Hoy (4-14).
149
• Brock Thompson stepped in for Josh Ruppert at the mid-point of the season and has been more than solid, posting an 11-9 record with a team-leading three major decisions and two tech falls. Thompson seems to excel in the tournament format, posting an 8-5 record. He beat No. 6-ranked Mitch Voelker (11-10) of Kutztown in November by a 7-6 score in the tiebreaker. Voelker returned the favor in February, winning by a 5-1 decision. Because he joined the dual lineup late in the season, Thompson hasn't seen the majority of the wrestlers in his class. Shippensburg's Ean Starner edged Thompson by a 6-2 decision on Jan. 19, and 11 days later, Joe Welk (5-10) of East Stroudsburg won by a close 2-1 decision. The weight classes' favorite is Newberry's Deral Brown (33-5), followed by West Liberty's Nick Wykoff (17-1) and Seton Hill's Nick Nichols (23-2). Brown was the runner-up in 2012. No. 5-ranked Jack Bachman (19-6) of Pitt-Johnstown is a two-time national qualifier at 141 and was the super region champ in 2011.
157
• One of the Marauders' elder statesmen, redshirt junior Zac Wawrzyniak-Bush, has steadily performed all season, posting a 14-14 record. Like Charles, he in close matches and pushing opponents the full time. The 157-pound class is top heavy with No. 1-ranked Braden Turner of East Stroudsburg (17-5) and No. 2-ranked Taylor Knapp (20-5) of Newberry both returning as All-Americans. Of the six ranked wrestlers, Wawrzyniak-Bush has faced only Turner and Shippensburg's Neal Grudi (14-4). Turner won by a 12-4 major decision, and Grudi won by a 9-3 decision in January and a 6-1 decision in November. Wawrzyniak-Bush owns wins over Mercyhurst's Ian Grecco (6-15) and Pitt-Johnstown's Joel Paolo (12-15).
165
• Junior Zach Pincus has bounced between 165 and 174 this season, but has settled in at 165 lately and has won four of his last seven matches. He has not faced any of the wrestlers currently ranked in the top six but did top ESU's Tony Vorndran (2-8) by a 2-0 decision recently but lost by a fall to Kutztown's Andrew Wesner (4-3). With no returning national qualifiers, the weight class is up for grabs. UNC-Pembroke's Robert Shade (16-4) is ranked No. 1 with Pitt-Johnstown's Keith Ryan (14-5) pegged No. 2.
174
• Millersville has been unable to find consistency at 174 this season, running four different wrestlers into the lineup. Tyler Hoover has started in duals of late but is in search of his first victory. This weight class is absolutely loaded with defending 165-pound NCAA champ, three-time defending super region champ and two-time All-American Mike Williams (17-1) of UNC-Pembroke returning. No. 2-ranked Brendan McKeown (16-1) of ESU was the 2012 runner-up at 174, and No. 3-ranked Travis Sheehy (25-7) of Newberry won the weight class in 2012. Seton Hill's Zach Benzio (12-1) was a national qualifier at 184 in 2012.
184
• Daniel Cox takes an 11-16 record into the championships. Returning region champ Zack Zelcs (7-5) of Gannon and 2012 All-American at 174 pounds Travis McKillop (25-1) of Pitt-Johnstown highlight the class. Because of wrestling up at 197 for part of the season, Cox has yet to see many of his potential opponents. Recently, he lost to ESU's Luke DeLuise (13-9) by a 10-4 decision and defeated Kutztown's Matt Cosgrove (2-6) by a 7-5 decision.
197
• Joel Suter missed a large portion of the season because of an injury but since returning to the lineup in mid-January, he's posted a 5-3 record and is 10-9 on the season with seven pins. Two of his most recent opponents, Tyson Sear (14-7) of ESU and Vinny Campanile (22-5) of Kutztown are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the super region. Searer edged Suter in a 5-0 decision, while Campanile won by 10-0 major decision. There is an opportunity for Suter, however, has there are no returning national qualifiers in the class.
285
• Brad Ladd, the lone senior in the lineup, represents Millersville's best opportunity for a national qualifier. Ladd, boasting a 17-10 record with seven pins, is ranked No. 4 in the region and has already wrestled No. 1-ranked Ziad Haddad (21-2) of Kutztown and Pitt-Johnstown's Josh Duplin (20-8). There are no returning national qualifiers in the class, making the top four spots open for the taking. West Liberty's Mike Carpenter is ranked No. 2 with a 26-3 record. Ladd split with during a one-week stretch, losing 6-2 but the winning by fall in 37 seconds in the second meeting. Ladd has also pinned Mercyhurst's Jeff Pollard (17-12), Gannon's Charles Lear (3-5) and ESU's Joe Blaes (5-12) and has defeated two different Shippensburg heavyweights. Haddad topped Ladd by an 18-5 major decision in February.
