2007 NAIA Championships Preview
March 2-3 at Sioux City, Iowa

BY MATT PFIFFNER
A total of 43 wrestlers from Iowa schools will hit the mats when the 50th Annual NAIA National Championships get underway Friday  at 2 p.m. (note start time change) at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City. This is the third year in a row the championships will be held there.

Hometown team and 18th-ranked Morningside has 11 qualifiers, as does No. 10 William Penn. Northwestern, tied for 10th in the rankings with the Statesmen, brings nine wrestlers to the dance, while No. 20 Waldorf qualified eight and the other NAIA squad based out of Sioux City, Briar Cliff, has four National qualifiers.

Dana, Neb. won the title last season, but lost some big guns off that team and is ranked fifth this season. Traditional power Lindenwood, Mo. is seen as the team to beat this year, with Dickinson State (N.D.), Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) and Campbellsville (Ky.) ranked second through fourth.

What follows is a brief weight-by-weight preview of the championships, including the first-round match-up for each wrestler from an Iowa school.

125
A pair of grapplers from Iowa are in this bracket. Six of last year's top eight place finishers are also in the mix.

Shamar Haynes (18-7) of William Penn receives a first-round bye on the top half of the draw and then meets No. 7 Jermaine Waye (15-6) of McKendree in the second round. A possible quarterfinal match with fourth-ranked Cory Johnston of Dickinson State awaits the winner. Haynes was an NJCAA All-American last year for Ellsworth, with a fourth-place effort at 125.

Morningside's Bradley Gustafson (20-11) has a very tough first-round draw on the bottom of the bracket. He meets second-ranked Delrico Choates (26-5) of Cumberlands (Ky.). Choates won the NAIA National title last season. The man Choates defeated for the gold last year, Richard Byrd of Embry-Riddle, is ranked No. 1 and is also in the bottom of the draw.

Other returning 125-pound place finishers are No. 8 Josh Sampo of Lindenwood (fourth last season), No. 3 Mark Johnston of Dickinson State (sixth), No. 6 Craig Trampe of Dana (seventh) and Trevor Lofstedt of Southern Oregon (eighth).

133
Both hometown teams are represented at this weight class.

In the top half of the draw, Angelo Crinzi (11-13) of Briar Cliff meets Micaiah Watkins of Embry-Riddle in the first round. A match with No. 2 Mike Miller of McKendree probably awaits the winner. Miller finished fifth here last season.

Chris Utesch (35-9) of Morningside has had an outstanding season, but draw a tough first-round match. He will meet No. 7 Alex Varela (17-10) of Menlo in the opening bout. No. 3 Ryan Moyer of Lindenwood could be waiting in the next round for the winner. Moyer finished third in the nation last year.

Along with Miller and Moyer, other returning NAIA National placewinners at this weight are Jason Moreno of Lindenwood (fourth) and Jon Gerhold of Missouri Valley (sixth).

141
This weight class is loaded with five wrestlers from the state of Iowa.

On the top half of the draw, Levi Price (22-7) of Northwestern meets Daniel Herb (8-14) of Southern Oregon in first-round action. The winner will meet second-ranked Zach Flake of Campbellsville in the second round. Flake received a first-round bye. Also on the top, Rob Thomas (11-10) of Waldorf meets Nathan Schweitzer (13-9) of Dickinson State in the opening round. The winner gets No. 6 Gordo Villaescusa of Embry-Riddle in the next round. Villaescusa placed third here last season.

Jared Pickett (26-13) of Morningside and Dustin Howa (19-9) of William Penn meet in a first-round match on the bottom half of the bracket. The winner could face No. 8 Chris Smith of Montana State-Northern in the second round. Also on the bottom half, you have a pair of fourth-ranked wrestlers meeting in the first round. Jordan Keckler (15-7) of Northwestern is ranked fourth at 133, but is entered in the tournament at 141. He meets No. 4 141-pounder Bo Gregson (25-8) of Simon Fraser in the opening round.

Along with Villaescusa, other returning place finishers at this weight are No. 1 Terrence Almond of Dana (fourth) and No. 3 Brad Cooper of Cumberlands, Ky. (second).

149
This is one of three weights where six grapplers from Iowa schools will be competing. This may also be the best chance to see an Iowan win a National title.

Darren Cotton (28-2) of William Penn is tied for the No.1 ranking headed into the tournament. He starts his run at a title with a match against Dustin Center (27-9) of Cumberlands, Ky. in the second round. Both received first-round byes. Cotton placed third last season and is the heavy favorite to come out of this half of the bracket. But Center, who placed eighth last year, could be a dangerous opening opponent. Also on the top of the draw, David Fuller (11-8) of Waldorf meets Jon Muri (17-5) of Great Falls in the first round. Chris Keating (18-7) of Northwestern has a first-round bout with Dominic Angelo (16-13) of McKendree.

This is definitely the tough half of the draw, with the co-No. 1, No. 3, No. 4, No. 5, No. 7 and No. 8 ranked wrestlers. Fourth-ranked Brad Stockton (16-4) of Waldorf received a first-round bye, as did co-No. 1 Mark Dickman (22-1) of Lindenwood. Those two meet in what should be an outstanding second round bout. Dickman is the defending NAIA Champion, while Stockton placed fourth last season. J.T. Heckler (9-13) of Briar Cliff meets Theo Dotson (11-7) of Cumberlands, Ky. in the first round, while Brandon Palmer (16-10) of William Peen faces Brandon Harris (14-8) of Simon Fraser.

Five of last year's top eight finishers are back at 149. Along with Dickman (first), Cotton (third), Stockton (fourth) and Center (eighth), third-ranked Chris Seta of Campbellsville (fifth) also returns.

157
Five wrestlers from the state are here, along with three returning top-eight place finishers.

On the top half, Kelly Rydberg (20-9) of Waldorf meets David Johnson (17-13) of King College in the first round. No. 7 Dan Pray of Dana awaits the winner. Brian Heiberger (20-22) of Northwestern faces Gerald Harris (12-20) of Missouri Baptist in opening-round action. The winner gets N0. 6 Brandon Benson of Oklahoma City.

Three wrestlers from the state help make up the bottom half of the draw. Paul Carter (8-6) of William Penn has a tall order in the first round, against second-ranked Hayden Harrison of Embry-Riddle, who placed second here a year ago. Matt Gustafson (36-13) of Morningside has a first-round bye and meets No. 4 Chad Jennings (11-3) of Missouri Valley in the second round. Jennings placed sixth here last year. Courtney Goodwin (5-14) of Northwestern meets No. 8 Aaron Winning (19-11) of McKendree in the opening round. The winner gets No. 5 Earl Ulrey of Southern Oregon.

The other returning placewinner at this weight is third-ranked David Clemons of Campbellsville, who is in the top half of the bracket, along with top-ranked Wayne French of Great Falls.

165
Six wrestlers represent four of the Iowa NAIA schools at this weight. Three returning top-eight finishers, including the defending champ, are also here.

In the top of the bracket, Nate Stirgus (14-4) of William Penn meets Grant Hoppel (26-14) of Cumberlands, Ky. in the first round. Stirgus is looking to improve upon his seventh-place finisher from a year ago. Bob Seger (14-15) of Morningside faces second-ranked Ryan Smith (31-8) of Great Falls in an opening round bout. Smith placed sixth here last year.

Four wrestlers from Iowa schools are on the bottom half of the draw. No. 8 Marty Usman (15-3) of William Penn received a first-round bye and awaits the winner of No. 3 Stephen Towne of Menlo and Charles Simmons of Cumberlands, Ky. Lamar Reed (19-21) of Northwestern meets David Krawczyk of Simon Fraser, Kevin Guinn (20-6) of Waldorf faces Trey Myers (5-20) of Cumberlands, Ky. and Erin Hume (17-17) of Morningside received a first-round bye. He will wrestle either top-ranked and defending NAIA champ Jake Dieffenbach (29-2) of Lindenwood or Ryan Kromer (11-10) of York in the second round. Obviously, Dieffenbach is the expected opponent.

174
A pair of top-three ranked individuals from the state highlight this weight class, along with the presence of the returning runner-up.

Second-ranked Abel Trujillo (18-6) of William Penn receives a first-round bye in his quest to reach the finals and improve on last year's third-place finish. Trujillo could face Eric Hume (17-15) of Morningside in the second round, but the Mustang must get past Brandon Wyms (18-15) of McKendree first. Jake Oberfoell of Missouri Valley is also on the top half of the draw. He isn't ranked entering the championships, but did place fifth here last year and could be dangerous, if he gets past No. 4 John Slater of Lindenwood in the second round.

On the bottom half of the draw, Weston Frahm (24-20) of Morningside receives a first-round draw. His reward for that could be a second-round bout with top-ranked and returning runner-up Mike Kummer (28-1) of Great Falls. Third-ranked Enoch Francois (40-8) of Northwestern and Derek Pike (12-14) of Waldorf meet in an all-Iowa first-round match.

184
Six wrestlers from Iowa and three returning 184-pound place finishers are in this full 32-man bracket. This is the lone weight class in the tournament where no one receives a bye into the second round.

Kent Scheff (8-6) of Waldorf draws seventh-ranked Luke Borneman of Cumberland (Tenn.) in the first round. Just below that match, Chibuike Enyia (10-13) of Briar Cliff meets Chase Locke (20-12) of Southern Oregon.

Third-ranked Jake Stevenson (18-1) of Morningside is back from injury and looks for his third All-American finish, after placing at 174 his first two seasons. Stevenson begins the tournament on the bottom half against Chas Maloch (12-18) of McKendree. Spenser Sharp (18-19) of William Penn wrestles Nigel Kinworthy (10-7) of Missouri Baptist, who placed sixth here last season. Jordaryl Logan (22-12) of Briar Cliff appears to have the best chance at placing for the Chargers. He meets Thomas Mancha (6-17) of King in the first round. Second-ranked Jasper Locket of Missouri Valley, a fourth-place finisher for Bacone last season, could be a second-round foe. Zach Anderson (14-14) of Morningside meets Mariano Sanchez (13-9) of Menlo in the first round.

Along with Stevenson (fourth at 174), Lockett (fourth at 184) and Kinworthy (sixth), the other returning place finisher at this weight is top-ranked Joffre Lander of Embry-Riddle (seventh), who is on the top half of the draw.

197
A trio of wrestlers from the state and four returning top-eight place finishers held make up this bracket.

On the top of the draw, Cole Wilson (20-12) of Morningside meets Jamie Brisbin (York) in the first round. If Wilson gets past that match, he would face second-ranked Glen Jackson (26-6) of Campbellsville in the second round. Jackson was sixth here a year ago.

On the bottom of the draw, Jake Head (10-10) of Waldorf faces No. 6 Wade Jordan (29-12) of Dana in the first round. A great second-round match will take place on this half of the bracket. Third-ranked Andrew Lundgren (16-7) of Northwestern and No. 4 Matt Juncal (13-5) of Lindenwood both received first-round byes into this second round meeting. The winner would be the highest ranked wrestler left on this side of the bracket.

Other returning place finishers at this weight are defending champ and top-ranked Justin Schlect of Dickinson State, Tyrell Blanche of Menlo (seventh) and No. 5 Brian Fritchman of Montana-State-Northern (eighth).

285
A trio of wrestlers from Iowa schools are here, long with returning fifth-place finisher Sam Sand of Jamestown and eighth-place finisher Lionel Riley of Dakota Wesleyan.

Jordan Wall (15-6) of William Penn received a first-round bye and could face Riley in the second round. Top-ranked Eric Flinchum of Cumberlands, Ky., No. 3 Clay Rodgers of Dickinson State, No. 4 Jacob Hallmark of Menlo, No. 6 Arian Bhullar of Simon Fraser and No. 8 Sand help make this a very tough half of the draw.

On the bottom half, Sam Zylstra (26-21) of Northwestern meets Xavier Taylor (16-16) of Cumberland in the first round, while Chauncey Coleman (25-7) of William Penn receives a first-round bye. Coleman will meet Josh Robinson of Montana State-Northern or John Horn of NDC in the second round. There are no ranked wrestlers in Zylstra and Coleman's quarter of the draw, so it appears wide open here to reach the semifinals.