NCAA releases updated 2022 NCAA wrestling awards standings for DII and DIII

INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA has released updated standings for the 2022 NCAA wrestling awards that will be awarded in March at the Divisions II and III wrestling championships following NCAA regional competitions that took place over the weekend to determine the national championship qualifiers.

The inaugural NCAA Wrestling Awards were presented at the 2012 wrestling championships. The three awards, given in each division, honor the Most Dominant Wrestler as well as the student-athletes that have accumulated the most falls and the most technical falls throughout the course of the regular and postseasons. 

For results to be counted for the awards they must come against opponents in the same division (i.e. Division II vs. Division II). Ties in the falls and tech falls categories are broken based on the aggregate time. For the Most Dominant Wrestler award, 17 matches and qualifying for the national tournament are required for this award. 

CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFIERS: Division II | Division III

A national champion in 2019, Matt Malcom of Nebraska-Kearney leads the Most Dominant standings in Division II with 4.75 team points per match, which is a significant lead over second place Dalton Abney of Central Oklahoma at 4.47, while Pittsburgh-Johnstown 165-pounder Dillon Keane debuts at third with 4.33 team points per match.

RIT 157-pounder Kaidon Winters’ dominant season continues, and he increased his average to 5.64 team points per match to lead in the race for Division III Most Dominant, but is followed closely by the tandem of Coe heavyweight Kaleb Reeves and Millikin 165-pounder Braden Birt with 5.56 and 5.51 averages.

The Most Dominant Wrestler standings are calculated by adding the total number of team points awarded through match results and dividing that number by the total number of matches wrestled. Points per match are awarded 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)

Tiffin’s Nicholas Mason racked up three falls during his super regional and took the lead in Division II with 14 falls, while UIndy 149-pounder Logan Bailey falls to second with his 12 falls. Hunter DeLong of Glenville State rounds out the top three with 11 falls at 174 pounds.

WATCH: St. Cloud State wins 2021 NCAA DII wrestling championship

The run for most falls in Division III will all come down to the national tournament as Joe Salerno of Washington and Lee and RIT’s Winters are tied with 21 falls. Salerno holds the tiebreaker in aggregate time, but his season is over, while Winters will have an opportunity to increase his total at the national championships. Coe’s Reeves and Millikin’s Birt are still in the hunt with 20 falls heading to Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Nebraska-Kearney 174-pounder Austin Eldredge had four tech falls to win the super regional championship and has increased his streak to 10 consecutive tech falls against Division II competition to enter the national tournament with 16 this season, which is already five more than the previous record in Division II since the start of the awards.

Speaking of records, Johnson & Wales 174-pounder Michael Ross increased his new record in Division III since the implementation of the awards with his 21st of the season during this weekend’s regionals. Augsburg 157-pounder Tyler Shilson is having an excellent season in his own right with his 14 tech falls in second putting him two ahead of third-place Cooper Pontelandolfo of NYU and Quinn Tobin of Alvernia with 12.