BOSSIER CITY, La. – Menlo College has a commanding lead with seven wrestlers backfilled awaiting national title matches Saturday, taking control of the field at the NCWA Championships here at the Brookshire Grocery Arena. Life University is in second with 189 points and needs considerable help despite having three wrestlers in the finals and 10 others in the placing rounds.
The NCWA Championships have been a success yet again, celebrating a 29th season hosting a collegiate national championship that has grown to be the largest wrestling tournament of its kind in the U.S. with 775 student-athletes competing. Opportunities abound within the NCWA for students who want to continue wrestling in college, spurring the immediate success of teams such as Tarleton State, which sits in third place in Division I with 155. 5 points. There are 94 schools represented in the men's division.
The NCWA is also a postseason lifeline for wrestling programs who are transitioning between divisions or associations, offering a postseason tournament to compete in where their student-athletes would not have one otherwise. Menlo College, last year's champion and the favorite to repeat on Saturday, sixth-place University of Jamestown (N.D.), seventh-place Ferrum College and Point Park (Penn.) (35th) are in the field this season as transitioning programs.
Menlo wrestlers are in seven championship bouts in the finals session that begins at 1 p.m. Isaiah Morales will start things off at 174 pounds taking on Josh Daltro of North Florida. Menlo's Diego Morales (197 lbs.) and Javier Martinez (285) have matches soon after, and the championship bouts will conclude with five straight matches offering Menlo wrestlers in one corner with Michael Torres (141), Tyger Taam (149), Ezekiel Lara (157) and Kanaipono Tapia (165).
Life's trio of wrestlers in the finals are Adrian Morales (133), Camron Crump (149) and Jaden New (157). Tarleton State has the pair of Aidan Medina wrestling Adrian Morales from LIfeand Finn Shepard at 165 wrestling Menlo's Tapia.
Of local interest is James Baldwin of LSU at 235 pounds. Baldwin is the first LSU wrestler to advance to the NCWA finals and could win its first title. But it will be a tall order to take down now-three-time-All-American David McElravy Jr. of The Apprentice School in the final. McElravy is making his first trip to the finals as well.
South Carolina's Aaron Coverdell is his program's first NCWA finalist since 2013 and could become only the Gamecocks' second national champion. He faces Menlo's Diego Morales in the 197 final. Apprentice surged Friday into its fifth place standing. It has two wrestlers in the finals beginning with McElravy followed by Lucas VanNostrand at 125 pounds.
Complete results from the tournament and video coverage can be found at https://go.flo.zone/r0XDZJTi
Here are the men's Team Scores going into finals rounds (current top 10):
Division I
1. Menlo College– 205.5
2. Tarleton State – 155.5
3. Liberty – 121.5
4. Apprentice – 119.5
5. Jamestown – 98.5
6. Ferrum College – 93.5
7. Central Florida – 79
8. Utah Tech - 78
9. Mercyhurst – 47.5
10. Washington State - 43
Division II (current top five)
1. Life - 189
2. Iowa State – 73.5
3. Menlo (NCWA) – 72.5
4. Connecticut – 42.5
5. Ohio State – 39.5
