INDIANAPOLIS -- The NCAA has released the updated standings for the 2014 NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler Awards, in addition to standings for the most falls and tech falls within Divisions I, II and III. These awards will be presented in March at the respective NCAA wrestling championships. The standings only include matches between wrestlers in the same division.
The 2014 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships return to Oklahoma City March 20-22 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena. New ticket options are still available, visit NCAA.com/Wrestling to purchase. The Division II and Division III Wrestling Championships are both March 14-15 in Cleveland, Ohio, and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, respectively.
The Most Dominant Wrestler standings are calculated by adding the total number of points awarded through match results and dividing that number by the total number of matches wrestled. Points awarded per match are as follows:
*Fall, forfeit, injury default or DQ = 6 points (-6 points for a loss)
*Tech falls = 5 points (-5 points for a loss)
*Major decision = 4 points (-4 points for a loss)
*Decision = 3 points (-3 points for a loss)
This week a minimum of 17 matches are required to be eligible for the Most Dominant Wrestler standings. That required match total will increase by one per week until 18 matches is reached. Athletes redshirting the 2014 season are not eligible for any of the award standings.
In the Most Dominant standings, three-time defending national champion Penn State holds the top two spots with 165-pounder David Taylor with an average of 5.0833 points and 184-pounder Edward Ruth at 4.6522 points. Two-time NCAA champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State (141 pounds) is third with an average of 4.65 points.
A brand new leader has jumped to the top of Division II with St. Cloud State heavyweight Austin Goergen holding an average of 5.0588 points, while previous leader Edwin Cooper of Upper Iowa (149 pounds) is second at 4.5556 points. Dylan D’Urso of Mercyhurst (141 pounds) holds third place with an average of 4.4706.
The all-division lead is in Division III where 2013 NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler and two-time NCAA champion Nazar Kulchytskyy from Wisconsin-Oshkosh has a 5.1667 average at 165 pounds. Johnson & Wales (Rhode Island) 157-pounder Everet Desilets is second with five points and Riley Lefever of Wabash (184 pounds) is third with 4.9643 points.
In the falls standings, just one pin separates Indiana 157-pounder Taylor Walsh and Bucknell heavyweight Joe Stolfi in Division I with 20 and 19. Ohio 165-pounder Harrison Hightower is third with 12 pins.
Nothing has changed since last week in Division II where John Austin Jones of King (Tennessee) is still in first place with 12 pins at 165 pounds and 197-pounder Zachary Bennett of Pittsburgh-Johnstown is alone in second with 11 pins.
The top of the list in Division III also remains the same with Ohio Northern heavyweight Cody Lovejoy as the national leader with 20 pins and Colin Lenhardt of Johnson & Wales (Rhode Island) (184 pounds) close behind with 19 pins in a combined time of 39:12. 184-pounder Thomas Reyhons of Augustana (Illinois) added one pin to reach 19 and is in third with a combined time of 50:58.
Northern Iowa 133-pounder Joe Colon’s nine tech falls is still the standard in Division I, while Wisconsin’s Tyler Graff (133 pounds) leads a group of wrestlers with eight tech falls in a combined time of 19:13.
The top three positions in Division II are unchanged as Lake Erie 133-pounder Austin Gillihan leads the division with seven. Francis Mizia of Mercyhurst (157 pounds) and William Young of Newberry (141 pounds) follow Gillihan with six tech falls.
Wisconsin-Whitewater’s Shane Siefert increased his all-division lead with one tech fall to reach 11 on the season, three more than Wilkes 149-pounder Mark Hartenstine in second place.