Wrestlers nationwide have arrived in Oklahoma as NCAA announced the wrestling championships brackets on Wednesday, scheduled from Thursday, March 16 to Saturday, March 18, at the BOK Centre in Tulsa, Okla.
Spencer Lee and Yianni Diakomihalis are among the favourites to become the fifth and sixth wrestlers ever to win the national championship. Meanwhile, juggernaut Penn State will be looking forward to winning its 11th championship, 10th under Cael Sanderson, who is one of only four wrestlers to win four NCAA championships.
The Venue, Date, and Start Time:
- Venue: BOK Centre, Tulsa, Okla.
- Date: Thursday, March 16, 2023
- Start Time: 3:30 pm ET / 11:00 am CDT
Columbia Lions:
Program record, six wrestlers from Columbia Lions will be participating in the 2023 NCAA Championships. Two of the six wrestlers, Kazimir and Ogunsanya, will make their second consecutive appearance at the NCAA Championships.
Junior Nick Babin (125), Senior Matt Kazimir (141), Junior Joshua Ogunsanya (165) and Junior Lennox Wolak (174) automatically qualified based on their standings at the EIWA Championships. Meanwhile, Sophomore Cesar Alvan (157) was selected as an at-large bid. Junior Angelo Rini (133) is another wrestler to represent the Lions this season.
Ogunsanya is the No. 16 seed at 165 and will meet the No. 17 seed Austin Yant of Northern Iowa.
Kazimir is the No. 19 seed in the (141) and will take on Northern Iowa’s No. 14 seed Cael Happel.
First-Round Bouts:
- 125: No. 24 Nick Babin vs No. 9 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin)
- 133: No. 29 Angelo Rini vs No. 4 Michael McGee (Arizona State)
- 141: No. 19 Matt Kazimir vs No. 14 Cael Happel (Northern Iowa)
- 157: No. 27 Cesar Alvan vs No. 6 Daniel Cardenas (Stanford)
- 165: No. 16 Joshua Ogunsanya vs No. 17 Austin Yant (Northern Iowa)
- 174: No. 21 Lennox Wolak vs No. 12 Aaron Olmos (Oregon State)
Wyoming Cowboys:
Wyoming Cowboys will send three wrestlers to the 2023 NCAA Championships
Jacob Wright finished third at 157 pounds in the Big 12 Championships and will enter the NCAA tournament as the No. 15 seed. He will take on No. 18 Derek Gilcher (IND).
Jore Volk will make his NCAA debut as the No. 21 seed at 125 pounds and will face No. 12 Michael DeAugstino (NW).
Cole Moody is the No. 32 seed at 165 pounds and will kick off his campaign against No. 33 seed Josh Kim (Harvard) in the first round of his second NCAA Championships.
Campbell:
Campbell has sent at least five wrestlers for the fifth consecutive season to the NCAA championships
Domenic Zaccone is the No. 20 seed and will face No. 13 Chris Cannon in his second NCAA appearance. Shannon Hanna is the No. 27 seed at 141 pounds and will meet No. 6 Beau Barlett from Penn State.
Caleb Hopkins is the No. 27 seed at (184). Three-time NCAA qualifier will take on No. 6 Kaleb Romero. Levi Hopkins is the No. 24 seed at 197 pounds in his debut season and will face the 2022 champion Max Dean.
Taye Ghadiali will be making his third NCAA Championships. He is seeded No. 17 and will fight No. 16 Tate Orndorff from Ohio State.
Iowa State:
Eight wrestlers will be representing Iowa State in the national championship, which marks the fifth season, with Iowa State sending at least eight wrestlers to the national tournament. Moreover, they’re one of the fifteen teams to send at least eight wrestlers to the NCAA championship.
David Carr is seeded at No. 1 at 165 pounds after a 23-0 regular season which included wins against the rest of the top six seeds.
Marcus Coleman and Paniro Johnson are the No. 5 seeds at 149 and 184 pounds, respectively. Meanwhile, Sam Schuyler is at No. 8 in the 285-pound bracket.
Lock Haven University:
Four wrestlers will represent Lock Haven University at the tournament; Anthony Noto, Gable Strickland, Ashton Eyler and Tyler Stoltzfus, with Noto leading the way after listing as the No. 8 seed at 125 pounds. Strickland (133) is tabbed as the No. 29 seed, Eyler (157) at No. 31, and Stoltzfus (174) at No. 31.
Both Noto and Eyler will be making their second consecutive appearance in the national tournament after both qualified for the last season’s tournament as well. The former will enter the tournament with a 29-2 record and an 18-match unbeaten streak after winning his second straight Mid-American Conference (MAC) individual title.
Another wrestler from Lock Heaven University, Strickland (133), will make his NCAA debut after winning a MAC title and 31-9, while Eyler (157) will enter with a 29-12 record. Meanwhile, Stoltzfus, currently ranked among the nation’s top Division I wrestlers, is set to make his NCAA debut with 32-12 on the season at 174 pounds.
First-Round Bouts:
- 125: No. 8 Anthony Noto vs No. 25 Joey Prata (Oklahoma)
- 133: No. 29 Gable Strickland vs No. 4 Michael McGee (Arizona State)
- 157: No. 31 Ashton Eyler vs No. 2 Levi Haines (Penn State)
- 174: No. 31 Tyler Stoltzfus vs No. 2 Mikey Labriola (Nebraska)
MSU:
Junior 157-pounder Chade Saldate is one of the four individuals representing their side in the NCAA championships. It’s his third appearance in the tournament, and he is in the No. 11 seed position.
Redshirt senior 184-pounder Layne Malczewski is also making his third appearance in the championship as the No. 15 seed this year.
Graduate 197-pounder Cameron Caffey is set for his fourth and final NCAA championship appearance and will take on fellow Big Ten and No. 14 seed Jacob Warner in the first round.
Junior 165-pounder Caleb Fish will make his second consecutive appearance as the No. 29 seed at 165 pounds this year. He will start his campaign against fourth-seeded Cornell star Julian Ramirez.
It’s worth mentioning that four of MSU’s five participants from last year have returned, with 133-pounder Rayvon Foley the only non-returning qualifier.
Princeton Tigers:
Four confirmed and possibly fifth will compete at the national championships and represent Princeton Tigers.
Princeton qualified Patrick Glory (125), Quincy Monday (165), and Luke Stout (197) after their finishes at the EIWA championships and added a fourth, Travis Stefanik (285), through an at-large bid. Nate Dugan (184) is the first alternate and would be able to participate if any of the 33 wrestlers at 184 are unable to compete.
Bucknell:
Kurt Phipps (133), Dylan Chappell (149), and Dorian Crosby (285) will represent Bucknell in the 2023 NCAA Wrestling Championships. It’s worth mentioning that all three are making their debut in the NCAA Championships.
Phipps, a junior, was one of the 47 wrestlers to receive an at-large bid and is at No. 25 seed in the 133-pound. Chappell is seeded 29th at 149 pounds and automatically qualified after finishing second at the EIWA Championships. Meanwhile, Crosby, a junior, also qualified automatically and is seeded 28th in the 285-pound bracket.
Utah Valley University:
Three wrestlers will represent Utah Valley in the 2023 National Championships. 174-pounder and 2021 All-American Demetrius Romero is set to make his fourth appearance after missing last year due to an injury.
Evan Bockman finished fifth at the Big 12 championships and will make his second appearance in the tournament. Meanwhile, Isaiah Delgado, a junior, finished seventh and will be making his NCAA debut.
App State:
This year marks the fourth straight year when App state is sending at least five wrestlers to the NCAA Championships.
No. 5 Caleb Smith (125), No. 33 Ethan Oakley (133), No. 24 Tommy Askey (157), No. 27 Will Formato (165) and No. 32 Will Miller (174). A two-time All-American, Jon Jon Millner is seeded No. 9 at 149 pounds but was forced to withdraw because of an illness
First-Round Bouts:
- 125: No. 5 Caleb Smith (26-5) vs No. 28 Killian Cardinale (10-1, West Virginia)
- 133: No. 33 Ethan Oakley (20-11) vs No. 32 McGwire Midkiff (15-11, North Dakota State)
- 157: No. 24 Tommy Askey (30-11) vs No. 9 Will Lewan (21-6, Michigan)
- 165: No. 27 Will Formato (28-8) vs No. 6 Patrick Kennedy (19-3, Iowa)
- 174: No. 32 Will Miller (24-10) vs No. 33 John Worthing (19-9, Clarion)
Boilermakers:
Four Boilermakers wrestlers will represent their side in the 2023 NCAA championships. Matt Ramos (125) is the No. 4 seed. Graduate senior Parker Filius will enter his fourth NCAA championship with a 21-9 record with his highest-ever, No. 12 at 141.
Coleman will also make his fourth appearance after a 27-6 record and sixth finish at the Big Ten tournament. He will take on another Big Ten opponent in No. 21 Andrew Clark of Rutgers
First-Round Bouts:
- 125: No. 3 Matt Ramos vs No. 29 Nico Provo (Stanford)
- 141: No. 8 Parker Filius vs No. 21 Cleveland Belton (Oregon State)
- 157: No. 3 Kendall Coleman (R-Senior) vs No. 21 Andrew Clark (Rutgers)
- 285: No. 10 Hadyen Copass (R-Freshman) vs No. 3 Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State)
Penn State:
Two-time defending champion Bravo Young (133) and Carter Starocci (174) earned No. 1 seeds. Meanwhile, two-time champion Aaron Brooks (184) will be looking to win the third title from the No. 3 seed.
Following are the wrestlers representing Penn State at the 2023 NCAA Championships:
- 133: No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young (16-0)
- 141: No. 6 Beau Bartlett (22-2)
- 149: No. 12 Shayne Van Ness (19-6)
- 157: No. 2 Levi Haines (20-1)
- 165: No. 13 Alex Facundo (19-4)
- 174: No. 1 Carter Starocci (19-0)
- 184: No. 3 Aaron Brooks (12-1)
How To watch Division I Wrestling Division I Championship First Round:
The Division I Wrestling Division I Championship First Round Live, Fans will be able to watch the event through the following streaming services and TV channels:
- ESPNU
- ESPN+
