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5 storylines to follow at the NCAA Division III Region VI men’s wrestling tournament
How many qualifiers will Wartburg produce? Cornell 5th-year senior Treyten Steffen eyes 1st NCAA berth; Coe lower weights manned by Parke Bros; Loaded weights include Luther All-American duo
Feb. 27, 2025 5:59 pm
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Postseason begins for NCAA Division III men’s wrestling programs this weekend. American Rivers Conference schools and Cornell will compete in the 18-team Region VI tournament Friday and Saturday. The top three individuals advance to the NCAA Championships March 14-15 in Providence, R.I. Here are five storylines to watch during the national qualifier at Alliant Energy PowerHouse.
HOW MANY QUALIFIERS FOR WARTBURG?
For about the last 30 years, it isn’t a question about whether Wartburg produces national qualifiers but whether they advance the whole team or have enough to contend for a national title. The Knights enter the postseason No. 4 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association NCAA Division III tournament rankings behind No. 1 Wisconsin-La Crosse (coached by Dave Malecek), No. 2 national tournament host Johnson & Wales and rival Augsburg, which is third. Wartburg and Augsburg have won every NCAA team title since 1995. The last team not ending in -burg to win the national tournament was Ithaca (N.Y.) in 1994.
The Knights have eight wrestlers ranked in the top 15 nationally at their weights by the NWCA. Top-ranked Massoma Endene is a two-time defending NCAA champion at 197. No. 2 Kasey Ross (184) and No. 7 Kyler Romero (149) join Endene as returning regional champions. Heavyweight Mitch Williamson and Blain Christie are ranked fifth and sixth, respectively, but both have their hands full in brackets with more ranked wrestlers than qualifying spots. The two weights Wartburg doesn’t have a top-15 ranked wrestler – 141 and 165 – only have one ranked wrestler in the field. It could mean one of the three national berths could be obtainable. Wartburg will need to advance as many as possible to make a run at a 16th NCAA national title and first since 2022.
TREY STEFFEN LOOKS FOR 1ST NATIONALS BERTH
Cornell fifth-year senior Treyten Steffen has been a starter since his sophomore season. He has gradually improved each season, tallying 101 wins over the last four season. He is still in search of the elusive NCAA berth.
“He had a really good season last year,” Cornell Coach Brent Hamm said. “He ended up getting beat at the regional by Moe (Wartburg’s Endene) and the guy that ended up getting third (Westminster’s Montgomery Mills) at the national tournament. So, he had a great season last year but it was good.”
“Obviously, he was upset. Not that he needed it, but it was good motivation for him going into the off season to keep getting better. He did that.”
Steffen enters his final postseason with a 29-5 record and ranked 10 th at 197. He has seven pins, seven technical falls and four major decisions, tallying 57 nearfall points thanks to a strong ability to ride opponents. The Rams’ challenging schedule has prepared him for the two-day event. Steffen and Endene are the only two ranked wrestlers by NWCA or d3wrestling.com in the bracket.
“He’s had some really big wins this year,” Hamm said. “He's been battle tested. We always go to some tough tournaments and he's beaten some good guys this year, so he's ready to go and excited. He’s in a good place.”
PARKE BROS. OPEN FOR COE
Former Linn-Mar preps Brayden and Bryce Parke hold the first two spots for the Kohawks. Brayden has been the starter at 125, while older brother, Bryce, is ranked No. 9 at 133 pounds.
Brayden has been solid in his first season with the Kohawks. Bryce has been a regular for a few years, qualifying for the 2024 NCAA tournament. They both have a legit shot at advancing.
Bryce is the highest of three ranked wrestlers with Loras’ No. 10 Aiden Evans and Wartburg’s No. 11 Josh Gervey. Brayden, considered a contender in d3wrestling.com’s rankings, is in a class with Loras’ No. 13 Connor Fiser and Wartburg’s No. 14 Brett Birchman.
Bryce and Ty Koedam (157) qualified for Coe last season. No. 4 L.J. Richardson (174) was an All-American two years ago, placing sixth for the Kohawks. Teammate Jared Voss (184) also qualified in 2023.
LOGJAM OF RANKED WRESTLERS
The addition of a seventh regional this season has helped spread out the talent slightly, however, it is inevitable to have more quality wrestlers than qualifying spots at some weights. Region VI has four weight classes with more than three ranked wrestlers in the field.
The biggest, literally, is heavyweight. Five wrestlers ranked in the top 10 nationally will battle for berths, ending the season for two. Luther’s Walter West is ranked fourth, Williamson is fifth, Schreiner’s Austin Cooley, Eureka’s Jacob Jaminski and Dubuque’s Justin Matson fill out Nos. 8 through 10.
The 157-pound bracket includes Christie, Luther’s No. 7 Clayton McDonough, Central’s No. 8 Carter Martinson and Loras’ No. 9 Eric Kinkaid.
At 184, No. 2 Ross and No. 6 Voss lead the way with Cornell’s No. 8 Cael McLaren and Central’s No. 9 Sam West in the fray.
Loras’ No. 3 Zeb Gnida, a former Solon prep, and No. 4 Richardson are frontrunners of a ranked quartet.
LUTHER ALL-AMERICANS VIE FOR NCAA RETURN
In addition to being two of the ranked wrestlers at 157 and heavyweight, the Norse’s McDonough and West are vying for a chance to reclaim All-American honors. They have a tough task in a loaded regional.
McDonough placed fourth last season at 157, while West finished seventh at heavyweight. They are looking to become Luther’s first two-time NCAA All-American since Justin Kreiter in 2016-17. Donovon Corn was a two-time All-American, earning NCAA honors in 2023 and NWCA honors in 2021.
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