5 storylines at the NCAA Division III and Division II Wrestling Championships

The college postseason continues with the NCAA Division II and III Wrestling Championships on Friday and Saturday. The D-III tournament includes the American Rivers Conference programs and Cornell, which is hosted by Johnson & Wales University in Providence, R.I. Upper Iowa is the lone D-II program in the state and will compete at Indianapolis, Ind.

KOHAWKS IN THE FIELD

Coe qualified four wrestlers for this year’s tournament. The Kohawks’ L.J. Richardson is seeded No. 5 at 174 pounds. Senior Jared Voss is the sixth seed at 184 and Bryce Parke is the No. 7 seed at 133. His brother, Brayden, is in the 125 bracket. All four have interesting stories.

Richardson was an All-American two seasons ago, placing sixth at 174. He missed a return trip last year by one win and a mere two points, finishing fourth behind three eventual All-Americans. Richardson is 22-4 and in position to reach the awards stand again.

Voss is a senior with a 23-4 record. He has endured a lot to get to this point. Voss was 11-1 to begin his freshman season in 2021. He wrestled until the holiday break, missing the rest of the season and undergoing neck surgery.

“I think a lot of it comes from him being an incredibly positive young man,” Coe Coach John Oostendorp said. “He worked hard and really put himself in a great position to get stronger.”

Voss rebounded with a national tournament appearance in 2023, going 21-9 at 197. He dropped to 184 a year ago but placed fifth at the regional tournament. Voss was the Region VI runner-up to Wartburg’s Kasey Ross, earning another NCAA berth.

“He can literally attack you from your feet to your upper body, and he’s done it this year,” Oostendorp said. “He’s a really good athlete and has allowed himself to make a big jump.

“I think the biggest thing is he is relaxing and really enjoying the sport. He’s focused on the fight and it’s allowed his athleticism and explosiveness to come out. He’s having a lot of fun, right now.”

Former Linn-Mar preps, Brayden and Bryce Parke, have been reuniting, leading off the Kohawks lineup. Both captured regional titles in Cedar Rapids. Brayden is a freshman with a 24-5 mark, while Bryce is a senior at 23-4. Bryce is a three-time NCAA qualifier, advancing to the tournament as a freshman in 2022 and last season.

“I’m excited to take this group out to nationals,” Oostendorp said. “I think we have all right seeds. It’s more the mindset of the guys we’re taking out there. They are just real competitors and that’s what it takes at the national tournament.”

GNIDA LOOKS FOR ANOTHER STRONG FINISH

Loras 174-pounder and former Solon prep Zeb Gnida received the No. 2 seed for the national tournament. Gnida claimed his second straight regional title on March 1 at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse, topping Richardson 4-1 in sudden victory.

Gnida is a returning All-American, placing third last season. He is unbeaten this year, entering the NCAA tournament with a 19-0 record.

Gnida could experience a case of déjà vu. He could face Augsburg’s No. 7 seed Seth Goetzinger in the second round and have a potential match with Millikin’s No. 6 Dejon Glaster in the semifinals. Gnida beat both en route to a bronze medal at last year’s national meet.

Interestingly, the Duhawks lead Iowa schools with seven qualifier, one more than Wartburg. All seven are from Iowa high schools. In addition to Gnida, Jalen Schropp (141) is from Williamsburg, 157-pounder Eric Kinkaid hails from Camanche, Aiden Evans (133) and Dustin Bohren (165) are from Bettendorf and Connor and Chase Fiser (125 and 149) wrestled for Bondurant-Farrar.

LUTHER DUO VIE FOR 2ND STRAIGHT MEDAL

Luther’s Clayton McDonough (157) and heavyweight Walter West are attempting to earn their second straight All-American finishes. In 2024, McDonough placed fourth, while West was seventh.

McDonough (30-6) is the No. 8 seed. West is seeded fourth with a 20-1 mark. They are looking to become the programs 23 rd and 24 th two-time All-Americans. The last to do it was Donovan Corn, who was third at 197 at the National Wrestling Coaches Association National Championships when the 2021 NCAA tournament was cancelled and third at 184 in 2023. The last Norse to become a two-time NCAA All-American was Justin Krieter, who was fourth and second in 2016-17.

If West can reach the podium, he would be just the fourth Luther heavyweight with multiple medals and the first since former Cedar Rapids Jefferson state champion Conner Herman (2015-16).

CAN THE ‘BURGS BE BEATEN?

Augsburg and Wartburg have ruled NCAA D-III Championships for the last 30 years. One of the two program has won every national title since 1995. The last team champion that didn’t end in -burg? Ithaca (N.Y.) College captured the team championship in 1994. Wartburg has won 15 titles during that stretch, while Augsburg has 13, including the last two. The 2020 and 2021 tournaments were canceled due to the Covid pandemic.

Johnson & Wales has seven qualifiers and is competing at home. Castleton (Vt.) has been ascended the ranks this season and has eight in the field to match Augsburg. The biggest threat to bash the Burgs’ party is University of Wisconsin-La Crosse coached by former Cedar Rapids Regis and Xavier Coach Dave Malecek. The Eagles have nine qualifiers and seven seeded seventh or better. Heavyweight Michael Douglas (23-1) is the No. 1 seed, 165-pounder Tanner Gerber (16-1) is No. 2 at 165 and All-American Ben Kawczynski (20-5) is the third seed at 197. Douglas and seventh-seeded 157-pounder Tyler Goebel (25-2) were national finalists last year. UWL has the depth and point scorers to improve last year’s third-place finish.

UPPER IOWA SENDS 2 TO D-II CHAMPIONSHIPS

Upper Iowa’s Ethen Doty and Lawson Losee will compete at the NCAA Division II Championships this weekend. Both are seeded eighth and projected to reach the podium.

Doty is 29-9 at 149, while Losee is 25-10 at 174. This is the first NCAA appearance for both Peacocks. Losee, who was just 16-15 last season, pinned Glenville State’s top-seeded Hayden Pummel during the NWCA National Duals in January. They could meet in the quarterfinals.

Central Oklahoma has won the last two team titles. Lander (S.C.) University was the runner-up in 2023 and 2024. UCO has six qualifiers and Lander has eight.

Comments: kj.pilcher@thegazette.com