College Wrestling: Coe finishes fifth in D-III meet

CEDAR FALLS - Coe entered the Cliff Keen/NWCA National Duals seeded fifth in the NCAA Division III field. The Kohawks walked away with that exact finish.

Coe went 4-1 to claim fifth place Sunday at the UNI-Dome. Coach John Oostendorp saw some good things from his team, which placed here for the fifth straight time.

“There was some positives in there, but there are some things we need to work on,” Oostendorp said. “We want to continue to build this program through January.”

Coe rebounded with three straight wins following a 20-19 quarterfinal loss to runner-up Wisconsin-La Crosse. Coe avenged its only other D-III loss this year with a 23-18 win over third-seed St. John's (Minn.) for fifth.

“They have a really good attitude about having pride in the program,” Oostendorp said. “That's what you need in the middle of January when you have two-a-days and cutting weight. You have to have the right frame of mind and I liked what I saw from that standpoint.”

The Kohawks were led by defending 125-pound national champion Clayton Rush, who was undefeated over the two days and increased his mark to 22-1. The senior earned a key win against St. John's, moving up to 133 pounds to pin eighth-ranked Chad Henle in 5 minutes, 17 seconds.

Wartburg rallies

It's a good thing Wartburg Coach Jim Miller is shaving his head because he may have pulled any hair he had out Sunday. The Knights won a pair of close duals to capture their fifth national duals title and first since 2008.

The second-seeded Knights beat University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, 16-15, winning the final three bouts to rally in the title dual. Wartburg had to win the final three and claimed four of the last five matches to beat Ithaca (N.Y.), 18-15, in the semifinals to reach the finals for the 10th straight year. Wartburg beat Wisconsin-La Crosse, 25-8, for the title in 2008.

“We're real fortunate to have the guys at the top end for sure,” Miller said. “You've got to believe that we're within reach.”

Defending 197-pound national champion Byron Tate and national runner-up heavyweight John Helgerson, who both placed at Midlands Championships in late December, had key wins in both duals. Dylan Azinger contributed a win against Ithaca at 184, while Todd Becker won for the Knights at 184 against Wisconsin-La Crosse.

Tate said he's grown to accept the pressure at the top of the Knights' lineup.

“We practice together,” Tate said. “We're like the last defense. Whether we win a meet or lose a meet all depends on what we do.”

UNO wins third straight

The University of Nebraska-Omaha won its third consecutive Division II national duals title with a 17-15 win over Augustana (S.D.) in the finals.

Joining UNO as a repeat champion is Notre Dame College, which won the NAIA title with a 31-16 win over Lindenwood. Clackamas Community College (Ore.) won the NJCAA bracket, while top-seed Cornell beat No. 7 Virginia Tech, 25-10, for the Division I title. Oklahoma City captured the women's division crown.