The U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids once again plays host to the NCAA Div. III National Championships this weekend. The action begins 11 a.m. Friday morning and concludes on Saturday evening with the title bouts.

Wartburg claimed the title last season, but has played the role of underdog much of this season. The Knights have the firepower to win the title again, but it will take all 10 qualifiers to score and maybe a little help from other teams. Coe College is also bringing all 10 wrestlers to the tournament and is quite capable of winning the team championship this weekend in the Kohawks' back yard. Augsburg is strong as usual and may be the slight favorite heading into the tournament, but the Auggies were last season as well. Other teams to watch for are Ithaca (N.Y.), Delaware Valley and UW-LaCrosse.

Along with the 20 qualifiers Wartburg and Coe will be bringing, other Iowa Conference schools that will be represented are Luther (5 qualifiers), Cornell (3), Dubuque (3) and Buena Vista (2). Two former Iowa high school standouts, Dan Twito of Cedar Falls and Cory Ferguson of Montezuma, are also competing.

Here is a quick look at each weight class for the upcoming 2010 NCAA Div. III Wrestling Championships. Rankings used are from www.d3wrestle.com

125
Who's No. 1? - Clayton Rush, Coe
Returning All-Americans - Jake Oster, Elmhurst (1st); Clayton Rush, Coe (5th in 2009, 2nd in 2008); Mark Kist, Wartburg (3rd); Tyler Erdman, Elizabethtown (7th); Jon Gregory, Ithaca (8th in 2008).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 1 Clayton Rush, Coe; No. 2 Mark Kist, Wartburg; No. 8 Austin Mogg, Buena Vista; No. 9 Jayson Swanson, Luther.

Two-time All-American Clayton Rush of Coe comes in with the No. 1 bullseye on his singlet. The Kohawk junior has had an outstanding season, as he brings a 28-2 record into the tournament. If he reaches the quarterfinals, Rush could meet Jon Gregory of Ithaca, who placed eighth in 2008. Also on the top half of the draw is Austin Mogg of Buena Vista, who meets No. 5 seed Terrance Clendenin of Delaware Valley in the opening round. There is a potential semifinal match-up between Rush and defending champion and No. 4 seed Jake Oster of Elmhurst.

On the bottom half of the draw, Mark Kist of Wartburg sits as the No. 2 seed after finished second to Rush at the Iowa Conference and taking third-place honors at last year's NCAA Div. III tourney. The Knight will meet Lloyd McKinney of UW LaCrosse in the opening round. Kist and No. 3 seed Tyler Erdman of Elizabethtown are the only two returning All-Americans on the bottom half of the draw. Erdman placed seventh last season. Jayson Swanson of Luther takes on No. 6 seed Tyler Marlow of Brockport State in the first round.

133
Who's No. 1? - Nathan Fitzenreider, North Central
Returning All-Americans - Nichalos Nothern, Cornell (2nd); Corey Brown, Theil (6th); Chad Winowich, Ithaca (8th); Munkhbaatar Baatar, St. Johns (7th at 125 in 2008).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 7 Nichalos Nothern, Cornell; Sean White, Wartburg; Drew Hinschberger, Coe.

Cornell's Nick Nothern took runner-up honors at this weight last season, but comes in this year as the No. 7 seed with a 21-7 record. Nothern meets Dan Herr of The College of New Jersey in the opening round and could face No. 2 seed Nathan Fitzenreider of North Central in the quarterfinals.

On the top half of the bracket, Sean White of Wartburg in the No. 4 seed and comes in with a 30-7 record. He draws a tough first round opponent in returning All-American Corey Brown of Thiel. Drew Hinschberger of Coe also has a returning place finisher in the first round, as he takes on No. 5 seed Chad Winowich of Ithaca. The winners of those two bouts will meet in the quarters.

141
Who's No. 1? - Ben Anderson, Concordia
Returning All-Americans - Myanganbayar Batsukh, St. Johns (1st); Austin Bautista, UW Whitewater (3rd); Matt Kelly, Wartburg (3rd at 133 in 2009, 5th at 141 in 2008); Kevin Donahue, Cornell (7th); Jafari Vanier, Augsburg (A-A at 133 in 2006 and 2007).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 8 Kevin Donahue, Cornell; Matt Kelly, Wartburg; Chris LeClere, Coe; Kevin Bokoski, Luther.

Matt Kelly of Wartburg is a two-time All-American, including a third-place finish at 133 last season, but could not get a seed here. Kelly has struggled at times since returning to the Wartburg lineup, but with his past experience, don't count him out. Kelly begins the tournament against No. 5 seed Ben Anderson of Concordia. The winner of that bout gets No. 4 seed John Starzyk of North central or Chris LeClere of Coe in the quarters.

There are also a pair of Iowa Conference wrestlers on the bottom half of the draw. Kevin Donahue of Cornell finished seventh in the nation last season and that's the seed he has this year. He meets Matt Ulrich of Southern Maine in the first round. Kevin Bokoski of Luther has a tough opener against No. 2 seed and two-time All-American Jafari Vanier of Augsburg. Vanier was a place finisher at 133 in 2006 and 2007 and returns to Nationals three years later.

149
Who's No. 1? - Blaine Woszczak, Ithaca
Returning All-Americans - Matt Mauseth, UW LaCrosse (1st); Blaine Woszczak, Ithaca (4th); Corey Paulish, Williams (4th at 141); Jason Pyle, Luther (7th).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 4 Jason Pyle, Luther; No. 7 Mark Carey, Coe; No. 8 Jacob Groth, Wartburg.

No. 3 seed Jason Pyle of Luther is one of three returning All-Americans at this weight. The Norse grappler begins his quest for a title in a pigtail bout against Tye Boyer of Elizabethtown. The winner faces Charlie Curran of Elmhurst in the first round. Also on the bottom half of the draw is No. 7 seed Jacob Groth of Wartburg. Groth meets Justin Berns of Concordia in the opening round and if he wins, could meet No. 2 seed Tony Valek of Augsburg in the quarterfinals.

Mark Carey of Coe sits on the top half of the draw and received a very tough opening round bout. Matt Mauseth of UW LaCrosse won the National title last season, but comes in this year seeded fourth and takes on the Kohawk in the first round. A pair of fourth-place finishers from last season, No. 1 seed Blaine Woszczak of Ithaca (4th at 149) and Corey Paulish of Williams (4th at 141) meet in a good first-round match.

157
Who's No. 1? - Jesse Harrington, Delaware Valley
Returning All-Americans - Jason Adams, Augsburg (3rd); Luke Miller, Ohio Northern (4th); Jesse Milks, UW Plateville (5th); William Horwath, Ithaca (8th).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 6 Nicholas Loughlin, Cornell; Adam Weber, Wartburg; Dale Handley, Coe; Ryan Warcynski, Dubuque. Also: Dan Twito, Merchant Marines (former Cedar Falls).

A pair of Iowans could meet in the first round. No. 2 seed Nicholas Loughlin of Cornell waits for the winner of a pigtail match between Dan Twito of the Merchant Marines and Taylor Green of Kings. Twito is a former Cedar Falls prep. Also in that quarter of the draw is No. 7 seed Adam Weber of Wartburg, who meets Carl Breitenstein of Williams in the opening round.

On the top half of the bracket, Dale Handley of Coe meets top seed Jesse Harrington of Delaware Valley in the first round. Ryan Warcynski of Dubuque also has a tough opener against No. 4 seed and returning fourth-place finisher Luke Miller of Ohio Northern.

165
Who's No. 1? - Carrington Banks, Wartburg
Returning All-Americans - Josh Terrell, Dubuque (4th at 157 in 2008, 6th at 165 in 2009); Michael Morin, Southern Maine (4th); Christopher Dahlheimer, Lycoming (7th).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 1 Carrington Banks, Wartburg; No. 2 Nick LeClere, Wartburg; No. 4 Josh Terrell, Dubuque. Also: Cory Ferguson, UW LaCrosse (former Montezuma).

Josh Terrell of Dubuque defeated the top-two ranked wrestlers in the nation at the Iowa Conference Tournament and was rewarded for that effort with the No. 1 seed. Terrell, a two-time All-American for the Spartans, opens his tournament against Justin Barowski of Delaware Valley. If Terrell reaches the semifinals, he could meet No. 4 seed and returning All-American Michael Morin of Southern Maine.

A pair of native Iowans will square off in the first round on the bottom half of the bracket. No. 3 seed Nick LeClere of Coe faces former Montezuma standout Cory Ferguson of UW LaCrosse. Also on that side of the draw, No. 2 seed Carrington Banks of Wartburg, an NJCAA National champion at Iowa Central last year, meets Josef Waples of St. Olaf in the opening round.

There is a very strong possibility we could see Iowa Conference wrestlers take up three of the four semifinal spots on Saturday.

174
Who's No. 1? - Evan Brown, Dubuque
Returning All-Americans - Evan Brown, Dubuque (1st); Michael Schmitz, UW LaCrosse (4th); Zach Molitor, Augsburg (6th); Frank Heffernan, Wilkes (7th).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 1 Evan Brown, Dubuque; Seth Rehn, Coe; Dylan Azinger, Wartburg.

Evan Brown of Dubuque surprised just about everyone with his run to the National title last season. He won't be surprising anyone this year, as he enters the tournament as the man to beat with a 28-2 record. He has not lost to any NCAA Div. III opponents in more than a year. Brown opens his title defense against Chris Wade of Oneonta State.

On the bottom half of the bracket, it appears to be more tough draws for Coe and Wartburg wrestlers. Seth Rehn of Coe meets No. 7 seed Mike Ciaburri of SUNY Cortland in the opening round. Dylan Azinger of Wartburg likely faces No. 2 seed Zach Molitor of Augsburg in the first round, as long as Molitor gets past a pigtail bout.

184
Who's No. 1? - Tyler Burkle, Coe
Returning All-Americans - Tyler Burkle, Coe (1st at 165 in 2008, 3rd at 165 in 2009); Phil Moenkedick, Concordia (2nd); Gabe Youel, North Central (4th); Ben Engelland, UW Stevens Point (5th).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 1 Tyler Burkle, Coe; No. 7 Todd Becker, Wartburg; Nic Barclay, Luther.

The smallest weight class of the tournament, with just 13 qualifiers, but not short on talent.

Leading the way is top-ranked and former 165-pound champ Tyler Burkle of Coe. The Kohawk stormed through his sophomore season with a perfect 39-0 record, but had to settle for third-place honors at 165 a year ago. Now up two weight classes, Burkle comes in 32-2 and ready to make a run at a second title to close out his career. Burkle meets Nicholas Kraus of Trine in the first round. Also on the top half of the draw in returning fourth-place finisher Gabe Youel of North Central.

On the bottom half of the draw, both Iowa Conference wrestlers have first-round bouts. No. 6 seed Todd Becker of Wartburg meets Ben Adams of John Carroll and with a win would meet returning runner-up Phil Moenkedick of Concordia in the quarterfinals. Nic Barclay of Luther draws No. 2 seed and undefeated returning fifth-place finisher Ben Engelland of UW Stevens Point in the first round.

197
Who's No. 1? - Jared Massey, Augsburg
Returning All-Americans - Jared Massey, Augsburg (1st); Ryan Malo, Williams (2nd); Andy Moore, UW LaCrosse (4th); Rob Kramer, Coe (5th); Bill Schindel, Mt. Union (8th).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 3 Byron Tate, Warburg; No. 5 Rob Kramer, Coe; Brian Broll, Buena Vista.

No. 5 seed Byron Tate of Wartburg makes his first appearance at Nationals against Adam Latella of UW Whitewater. The winner could meet No. 4 seed Troy Carlson of the University of Chicago in the quarters, with a semifinal date against returning undefeated National champ Jared Massey of Augsburg on the horizon.

On the bottom of the draw, No. 7 seed Rob Kramer of Coe finished fifth at last year's tournament and meets William Meaney of Elizabethtown in the first round. The winner could get returning runner-up and No. 2 seed Ryan Malo of Williams College in the quarterfinals. Malo meets Brian Broll of Buena Vista in the first round. Also on this tough half of the bracket are the returning fourth and eighth-place finishers.

285
Who's No. 1? - Kyle Bilquist, Delaware Valley
Returning All-Americans - Dan Laurent, UW LaCrosse (1st); Mark Corsello, Elmhurst (2nd); John Helgerson, Wartburg (3rd); Kyle Bilquist, Delaware Valley (4th); Andrew Witzel, Augsburg (5th); Adam Sutter, Lakeland (6th); Mitch Sander, Coe (7th); Brock Glotfelty, McDaniel (8th).
Iowa school qualifiers - No. 4 John Helgerson, Wartburg; No. 7 Mitch Sander, Coe; Allyn Plattner, Luther.

It's hard to imagine this has ever happened before, as all eight All-Americans from 2009 are back in the tournament this season. How deep is the heavyweight division here? The returning National Champion is seeded third and the returning third-place finisher is seeded fifth.

On the top half of the draw, No. 4 seed Allyn Plattner of Luther is the lone seeded wrestler who didn't claim All-American honors last year. He meets Jamison Sacco of Western New England, who is 25-1 but couldn't get a seed here. John Helgerson of Wartburg placed third last year and is seeded fifth. He meets Joe Murphy of SUNY Cortland in the opening round. If Plattner and Helgerson both take care of their first-round business, they meet in the quarterfinals.

On the bottom half of the draw, Mitch Sander of Coe finished seventh last season and is seeded seventh this week. He faces Ed Broderick of The College of New Jersey in the first round and if he wins, Sander would likely meet No. 2 seed Kyle Bilquist of Delaware Valley in the quarters. Bilquist finished fourth last year. Looming in the semifinals would probably be No. 3 seed and returning NCAA Div. III National Champion Dan Laurent of UW LaCrosse.