Weight Class
Preview
125 | 133 | 141 | 149 |157 | 165 | 174 | 184 | 197 | HWT
Team Preview
125
Tom Grafstrom (MSU) will be looking to win his first regional title, but
Rob Bland (CMSU) is emerging as a serious challenger after late season victories over
Weston Moore (UCO) and Tark Johnston (SIUE). Another wrestler to watch out for here is Rob
Jankowski (UWP).
National Rankings at 125
| 1. Jody Strittmatter |
Pittsburgh-Johnstown |
| 2. Chris Perretti |
Ashland (Ohio) |
| 3. Ryan Lewis |
North Dakota State |
| 8. Tom Grafstrom |
Moorhead State |
133
Ryan Hintz (CMSU), a returning national qualifier is on a roll, having
won his last nine matches to move to sixth in the nation. Two of the nine wins are
over returning All-Americans Brock Moore (UCO) and Jesse Montez (SIUE). In order to win
the regional championship he will have to avenge an early season overtime loss to Scott
Larson (MSU) who is currently ranked seventh in the nation.
National Rankings at 133
| 1. Mike Barreras |
Adams State (Colo.) |
| 2. Kris Nelson |
North Dakota State |
| 3. John Strittmatter |
Pittsburgh-Johnstown |
| 6. Ryan Hintz |
Central Missouri State |
| 7. Scott Larson |
Moorhead St. (Minn.) |
141
Defending regional champ and #3 ranked Dwight Ballou (MSU) is the man to
beat at this weight, but taking home the gold will be no easy task. He will be challenged
by several good wrestlers. They include Joe Schneider (UCO), Brad Kiefer (TSU), Ken
Schmidt (UWP), and Luke Shaw (CMSU).
National Rankings at 141
| 1. Braumon Creighton |
Nebraska-Omaha |
| 2. Troy Keiswetter |
Nebraska-Kearney |
| 3. Dwight Ballou |
Moorhead St. (Minn.) |
149
Brad Shefchik (UWP) is the frontrunner at this weight, but only by a
slight margin. Others with regional title aspirations include Elijah Roberts (SIUE), Floyd
Lorne (UCO), and Pete Dickinson (MSU). Doug Yeager (CMSU), a returning national qualifier,
should not be overlooked, having posted wins over several nationally ranked opponents.
National Rankings at 149
| 1. Lazaro Reinoso |
Carson-Newman (Tenn.) |
| 2. Chris Currier |
Southern Colorado |
| 3. Isaac Greeley |
Pittsburgh-Johnstown |
157
This weight class could be a battle between two nationally ranked
wrestlers. Fourth-ranked Jason Thompson (MSU) and #6 ranked Jody Marple (UCO), a two-time
All-American, will most likely be the #1 and #2 seeds going into the tournament. They not
only have their sights set on the regional title; both will be shooting for the National
Championship in Omaha. Freshman Zac Stephens (SIUE), Nick Nihill (NSU) and Dean Leaders
(CMSU) will look to upset them.
National Rankings at 157
| 1. Benny Charles |
Southern Colorado |
| 2. Wayne Mooney |
North Dakota State |
| 3. Scott Hewit |
Northern Colorado |
| 4. Jason Thompson |
Moorhead St. (Minn.) |
| 6. Jody Marple |
Central Oklahoma |
165
This weight class appears to be a two man race for the regional crown
between returning All-American and 3rd ranked Titus Taylor (SIUE) and Calvin Buehler
(TSU). Both wrestlers have been nationally ranked this season with Taylor being ranked as
high as No. 1. Nathan Gomez (UCO) and Jeff Diebel (MSU) could be the Adark horses@ in this weight class.
National Rankings at 165
| 1. Troy Barbush |
Pittsburgh-Johnstown |
| 2. Joe Callahan |
Chadron State (Neb.) |
| 3. Titus Taylor |
SIU-Edwardsville |
174
Tony Realmuto (UCO) and Travis Nagel (MSU) have wrestled their way to
the top of this weight class after recording one win each over No. 6 ranked Matt Johnson
(CMSU). Do not count Johnson out though. He is the defending regional champion and a 1998
All-American. He will be looking to avenge those losses and win his second title.
National Rankings at 174
| 1. Steve Saxlund |
North Dakota State |
| 2. Tyler Jones |
South Dakota State |
| 3. Albert Harrold |
Nebraska-Omaha |
| 7. Tony Realmuto |
Central Oklahoma |
| 8. Matt Johnson |
Central Missouri State |
184
This weight class is wide open with no clear cut favorite for the
regional championship. John Rolling (CMSU) and Luke Goral (UWP) have met twice this
season, each getting one win. Edwin Lorne (UCO), a returning All-American has returned to
the lineup late in the season and will be seeking to reach the regional finals for the
second straight year. Tony Spiker (TSU) is a solid wrestler and could be a force. This
should be an interesting weight with several hard fought, exciting matches.
National Rankings at 184
| 1. John Simpson |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 2. Conrad Johnson |
Adams State (Colo.) |
| 3. Kevin Boccella |
Shippensberg (Pa.) |
197
The top man at this weight class is No. 2 ranked Jeremiah Constant
(UCO). Korak Simmons (CMSU), fresh off a redshirt year, is a strong, aggressive wrestler
who could challenge Constant for the regional title. Other contenders include Dale
Daugherty (NSU) and Dave Roberts (MSU).
National Rankings at 197
| 1. Jon Bush |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 2. Jeremiah Constant |
Central Oklahoma |
| 3. Shawn Ange |
Minnesota State-Mankato |
HWT
1998 regional runner-up Steve Brown (SIUE) and Brady Van Vooren (SSU)
should battle each other for the title at this weight. Other contenders, who should not be
overlooked, include freshman Dan Spencer (CMSU), Ryan Deprey (UWP) and Claude Davis (UCO),
all wrestling in their first regional tournament.
National Rankings at Heavyweight
| 1. Jerry Corner |
Nebraska-Omaha |
| 2. Shane Carwin |
Western State (Colo.) |
| 3. Tim Croff |
Carson-Newman (Tenn.) |
Team Championship
The race for the team title appears to be wide open.
Central Oklahoma, currently ranked No. 5, is the returning regional champion and is a
slight favorite to repeat again this year. Wisconsin-Parkside, making a late season surge,
will also be a serious contender after having placed ahead of Central Missouri State
University at the Wheaton Invitational. Central Missouri State, a strong tournament team
wrestling on their home turf, should also be in the running for the team title. Despite a
dual meet loss to Central Oklahoma, Central Missouri was victorious at the Midwest Classic
in Indianapolis, taking home first place honors ahead of Central Oklahoma and
Wisconsin-Parkside. Another possible contender could be Moorhead State University, who
earlier this season was impressive in a dual meet victory over Central Missouri State.
This should be an exciting tournament with 90 competitors fighting for the chance to be
one of the 28 wrestlers who will represent the Midwest Regional at the National Tournament
in Omaha, Nebraska on March 12-13.
National Team Rankings as of 2/9/99
No. 5 Central Oklahoma
No. 13 Moorhead State
No. 17 Wisconsin-Parkside
No. 18 Central Missouri State
Receiving Votes: SIU-Edwardsville |