Mid-American Conference

MAC Send 45 To 2016 NCAA Wrestling Championships In New York City

2016 NCAA Wrestling Championships Bracket
ESPN Media Zone
Live Stats - Track Wrestling

NEW YORK CITY -- The 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships begin March 17-19 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Mid-American Conference will send 45 wrestlers to represent the MAC in the NCAA Championships.  Entering the NCAA Tournament, four-time defending MAC Champion Missouri Tigers are currently ranked No. 6 in the nation with a perfect 14-2 overall record, including 8-0 in the MAC this past season.

The MAC had four programs ranked nationally in the Top 20, Kent State earned the No. 15 ranking with a 15-3 overall record and 7-1 MAC dual meet record, with its only MAC dual meet loss coming to No. 6 Missouri.  Central Michigan ranked No. 19 with an 11-5 overall record, 6-2 in the MAC, while Ohio University also ranked No. 20 with 13-3 overall mark and 5-3 record in MAC dual meets. The MAC's 45 allocations to the 2016 NCAA Wrestling Championships were third most of any conference in Division I Wrestling behind only the Big Ten and the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA).

MAC Wrestling Programs Ranked Nationally In The USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll:
No. 6    Missouri (14-2 overall, 8-0 in the MAC)
No. 15  Kent State (15-3 overall, 7-1 in the MAC)
No. 19  Central Michigan (11-5 overall, 6-2 in the MAC)
No. 20  Ohio (13-3 overall, 5-3 in the MAC)

Latest Individual Rankings by RPI and Coaches Poll
The MAC had 44 wrestlers ranked in the Individual Rankings by RPI, including six wrestlers ranked in the top five with No. 2 Barlow McGhee (Missouri) at 125, Daniel Lewis (Missouri) at 165 and J'Den Cox (Missouri) at 197; No. 3 Lavion Mayes (Missouri) at 149 and Blaise Butlter (Missouri) at 174; and No. 4 Matt Manley (Missouri) at 141.  Overall the MAC had 11 wrestlers ranked in the top 10 of their respective weight classes by RPI rating.

Also, the MAC had 47 wrestlers ranked in the Indvividual Rankings by the Coaches' Poll, including four MAC wresters in the top five with No. 2 J'Den Cox (Missouri) at 197; No. 4 Ian Miller (Kent State) at 157; No. 5 Daniel Lewis (Missouri) at 165 and Blaise Butler (Missouri) at 174.  The MAC had 12 wrestlers ranked in the top 10 of their respective weight classes by Coaches rankings.

2016 NCAA Wrestling Championships Schedule of Events/ESPN Live Coverage -- Madison Square Garden, New York City

Thursday, March 17
Noon ET - 4:00 pm ET:  First Session (ESPNU) - Eight Mat Configuration (Watch 8 Mat Coverage LIVE ESPN3), Pigtails and First-Round Competition
7:00 pm ET - 11:00 pm ET:  Second Session (ESPNU) - Eight Mat Configuration, (Watch 8 Mat Coverage Live ESPN3) Preliminaries: Wrestle-Back Prelims (pigtail matches) as needed; Wrestle-Back First Round. Followed by Championship Round, Second Round and Consolation Round

Friday, March 18
11:00 am ET - 3:00 pm ET:  Third Session (ESPNU) - Eight Mat Configuration, (Watch 8 Mat Coverage Live ESPN3) *Quarterfinals on middle four mats; Wrestle-Back Second and Third Rounds on outside mats.
8:00 pm ET - 11:30 pm ET:  Fourth Session (ESPN) - Six Mat Configuration, (Watch 6 Mat Coverage Live ESPN3) *Semifinals on inside two mats (one weight at a time) and Wrestle-back Fourth Round on outside four mats.  Followed by Wrestle-Back fifth rounds on all six mats.

Saturday, March 19
11:00 am ET - 2:30 pm ET:  Fifth Session (ESPNU) - Three Mats, (Watch 3 Mat Coverage Live ESPN3) *Wrestle-Back Semifinals on all three mats followed by third, fifth and seventh place medal round matches.
3:00 pm ET - 4:00 pm ET:  Championship Preview Show/Weigh In, Theater at Madison Square Garden
7:35 pm ET - 7:50 pm ET:  Grand March Parade of All-Americans
8:00 pm ET - 11:00 pm ET:  Sixth Session (ESPN), One Mat, (Watch Live ESPN3) Individual weight class awards. Championship Finals

Broadcast Information:
The NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships will be live from Madison Square Garden for the first time ever and ESPN will televise every session and cover every mat, every match for the entire three days of the sport’s premier event (March 17-19). This is the third year of every session, mat and match coverage.  

ESPN will televise the semifinals (March 18) and finals (March 19) in prime time and ESPNU will televise the first and  second rounds (March 17), quarterfinals (March 18) and medal round (March 19).  ESPN3 will carry individual mat feeds throughout the entire tournament allowing fans to choose which wrestlers and/or schools to follow at any time. Eight mats will be used for the first, second and quarterfinals, before the competition is reduced to six mats for the semifinals, three mats for the medal round and one mat for the finals.  Additionally, for computer users, ESPN3 will once again offer multi-mat, simultaneous viewing which allows fans to watch up to four different mats at one time.  Also for the third consecutive year, Off the Mat – a special presentation of the Championships finals – will be seen on ESPN3. 

MAC's 45 Qualifiers For NCAA Wrestling Championships Third Most In Division I Wrestling
The MAC received five at-large selections to bring the Conference total to 45 wrestlers headed to the 2016 NCAA Wrestling Championships in New York City on March 17-19.  The five at-large selections from the MAC were Josh Alber of Northern Iowa (133 lbs.), Zach Synon of Missouri (133 lbs.), Ian Miller of Kent State (155 lbs.), Tyler Buckwalter of Kent State (165 lbs.) and Gage Hutchison of Eastern Michigan (285 lbs.).

Missouri Wins Fourth Consecutive MAC Wrestling Championship
Earlier this month the Missouri Tigers won their fourth consecutive MAC Wrestling Tournament Championship in dominating fashion with 127.5 total team points and five Tigers were crowned as individual champions. Central Michigan ranked second with 93.5 team points, while Ohio finished third with 76.0 team points. Only two and one-half points separated third through fifth place as fourth place Kent State ended with 75.5 team points and fifth place Northern Iowa finished with 73.5 team points.  Northern Illinois (65) ranked sixth, while Buffalo (56), Eastern Michigan (54.5) and Old Dominion (36.5) rounded out the team scoring.

Missouri had five wrestlers crowned as MAC Champions as Barlow McGhee (125), Le'Roy Barnes (157), Daniel Lewis (165), Blaise Butler (174) and J'den Cox (197) all won their respective weight classes.  For Cox it was his third consecutive MAC individual championship at the 197 weight class. Missouri also had Matt Manley (141) qualify for the Championship match at 141 weight class, however Manley could not compete due to a medical forfeit.


MAC Wrestling Programs Team-By-Team Previews:

Buffalo:
Wrestlers Prepare For NCAA Championships

BUFFALO, NY - Three members of the University at Buffalo wrestling team will compete at the NCAA Championships beginning on Thursday at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Joe Ariola, Colt Cotton and Bryan Lantry all qualified and will compete at the event for the first time.  Full Story...

Central Michigan:
Big Apple, Big Dreams For Chippewas Wrestlers

NEW YORK CITY – It doesn’t get any bigger than New York, and it doesn’t get any bigger than the NCAA Championship. Seven Central Michigan wrestlers will see how they match up with the best of the best when they partake in the NCAA Championships at Madison Square Garden.  The tournament runs from Thursday, March 17, through Saturday, March 19. ESPNU and ESPN3 will provide coverage every day throughout the tournament. Saturday’s championship matches, which begin at 8 p.m., will be carried live by ESPN. Each of the 10 weight classes comprises 33 wrestlers. Sixteen in each weight class are seeded. Three Chippewas – Justin Oliver (149) pounds, Luke Smith (157) and Mike Ottinger (174) – are seeded.  Full Story...

Eastern Michigan:
Eagles Ready For NCAA Wrestling Championships

NEW YORK CITY - The Eastern Michigan University wrestling team concludes the 2015-16 season when it sends four wrestlers to the 2016 NCAA Championships at Madison Square Garden in NYC, Thursday-Saturday, March 17-19. The Eagles qualified four grapplers into the national tournament for the third time in five seasons. The four wrestlers competing for the national title will be redshirt senior Anthony Abro at 197 lbs., redshirt junior Nicholas Barber at 149 lbs., redshirt sophomore Gage Hutchison at heavyweight, and redshirt freshman Dakota Juarez at 165 lbs.  Full Story...

Kent State:
Five Flashes Set to Grapple at the Garden for NCAA Championships
Kent State Media Notes

NEW YORK CITY -- Looking for an All-American in eight consecutive seasons and its second national champion in program history, Kent State will send five wrestlers to New York City's Madison Square Garden for the 86th NCAA Championships March 17-19.  Action begins Thursday at noon with two sessions each day. All 10 weight classes will have 33-man brackets battling for All-America (Top 8) honors.  Four seniors will be closing out their college careers in Manhattan, including Mack McGuire and Ian Miller, who became just the seventh and eighth four-time NCAA qualifiers in program history.  Miller can become just the second three-time All-American in program history.  Mike DePalma will be making his third NCAA appearance, while Tyler Buckwalter and Kyle Conel will be making their NCAA debuts.   Full Story...

Missouri:
No. 6 Ranked Missouri Set To Wrestle In NCAA Championships
Missouri Media Notes

NEW YORK CITY -- Missouri enters the NCAA Championships ranked No. 6 in the USA Today/NWCA Coaches poll and No. 8 in the Intermat Tournament Rankings.  The Tigers will have nine wrestlers in the NCAA Championships at Madison Square Garden.  Missouri won its fourth straight Mid-American Conference Tournament Title and fifth straight conference title overall on March 6 with a first place finish at the 2016 MAC Championships (Mizzou won the Big 12 Title in 2012).  The Tigers finished the MAC dual season 8-0, winning its second straight MAC Regular Season Championship, finishing with a perfect 8-0 MAC record for the second consecutive season. Junior J'den Cox recorded his 100th career victory on Feb. 21 in a 16-7 major decision over Nebraska's Aaron Studebaker. Cox became the 24th member of Mizzou 100-win club, becoming the fastest to 100 wins in program history, doing so in 105 matches. Cox won his third straight MAC Title on March 6 and is 28-1 this season.  Full Story...

Northern Illinois:
Huskies Arrive In New York City For NCAA Championships
Northern Illinois Media Notes

NEW YORK CITY - The Northern Illinois University wrestling team arrived in New York City this afternoon ahead of this weekend's 2016 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will be held from Thursday afternoon to Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in the Big Apple. NIU traveled with its largest continent to the NCAA Championships since 2007, which was the last time four Huskies qualified for nationals. Competing for NIU this weekend will be Mid-American Conference champion at 133 pounds Austin Eicher, redshirt freshman Steve Bleise at 141, senior Andrew Morse at 157 and second-year NCAA qualifier Shawn Scott at 197 pounds.  Full Story...

Northern Iowa:
Three Panthers Grab Top-15 Seeds At NCAA Championships
Northern Iowa Media Notes

NEW YORK CITY – Three Panthers grabbed top-15 seeds for the Division I Wrestling Championships set for next week. In the first round, No. 9 Dylan Peters faces a familiar foe in MAC opponent Shakur Laney of Ohio. Peters beat Laney 9-5 at the MAC championships and pinned him earlier in the year. Peters qualified for the NCAA tournament with a second-place finish at 125 pounds at the MAC Championships.  Full Story...

Ohio:
Bobcats Set For NCAA Championships
Ohio Bobcats Media Notes

NEW YORK —The Ohio wrestling team is about to embark on a historic NCAA Championships appearance as the Bobcats have a program high seven wrestlers who will be competing this weekend at Madison Square Garden over seven weight classes. Competition is set to being at MSG on Thursday at 12 p.m. and will continue each day until Saturday’s Championship round. Each match will be streamed on ESPN3 with ESPN carrying action on Friday and Saturday. Ohio is coming off a third place finish at the MAC Wrestling Championships 10-days ago. Senior Phil Wellington (Euclid, Ohio) took second in the competition at 197 while senior Cody Walters(Macedonia, Ohio) was third at 174-pounds. Full Story...

Old Dominion:
Jeske, Mecate and Dechow Set For NCAA Championships
Old Dominions Media Notes

NEW YORK -- Brandon Jeske, Chris Mecate and Jack Dechow are poised to compete in the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at Madison Square Garden in New York City from Thursday, March 17 through Saturday, March 19. Mecate and Dechow will look to reclaim All-American status for the second time in their careers while Brandon Jeske is in search of his first top-eight finish. The 2016 NCAA Championships will commence Thursday, March 17 at noon with 10 round of 64 pigtail bouts, which will be followed immediately by the round of 32 action. Jeske and Dechow will both wrestle simultaneously in the round of 64.  Full Story...