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MINNEAPOLIS (1/28/02) - The two-time defending national champions in NCAA Divisions II and III wrestling will meet on Tuesday, when Division II power North Dakota State University travels to Minneapolis to face Division III power Augsburg in a dual meet at Si Melby Hall. Match time is 7 p.m.
Augsburg, the two-time defending NCAA Division III national champions and winners of seven of the last 11 national titles, is ranked No. 1 in the latest NWCA Division III national poll.
Augsburg has individuals ranked in the top eight nationally in eight of the 10 weight classes, including four top-ranked wrestlers -- Darin Bertram (Sr., Herman, Minn./Herman-Norcross HS) at 125 pounds, John Marchette (Sr., Canual Fulton, Ohio/ North Canton Hoover HS) at 133 pounds, Nick Slack (Sr., Belle Plaine, Minn.) at 174 pounds and Kevin Rasmussen (Sr., Owatonna, Minn.) at 197 pounds. Tony Abbott (Sr., Inver Grove Heights, Minn./St. Thomas Academy HS) is ranked second at 165, Ricky Crone (Jr., Apple Valley, Minn.) is ranked third at 184, Brad Fisher (Sr., Austin, Minn.) is ranked fourth at 141 and Jamell Tidwell (Fr., Richfield, Minn./Bloomington Kennedy HS) is ranked fifth at 149.
Augsburg, now 13-0 in dual meets this season, solidified its hold on the top ranking in Division III with the title at the NWCA Division III National Duals, Jan. 19-20 in Columbus, Ohio. In the title match, Augsburg topped No. 2 Wartburg for the second time this season, 29-12.
On Saturday at the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Team Duals tournament at Concordia-Moorhead, Augsburg outscored their league opponents 214-0 in four matches to claim the championship for the 12th year in a row. Augsburg beat host Concordia 50-0, topped Carleton 58-0, St. Olaf 56-0 and St. John's 50-0.
Against non-Division I opponents (Divisions II and III) since 1989-90, Augsburg is now 162-7, and has lost just two matches to non-Division I opponents since the 1995-96 season.
North Dakota State, the two time defending NCAA Division II national champions and winners of four Division II national crowns (1988, 1998, 2000, 2001), fell from the top spot in the Division II national rankings after losing to No. 2 Central Oklahoma 18-14 in the title match at the NWCA Division II National Duals on Jan. 20 in Columbus, Ohio.
The Bison have nine wrestlers ranked in the Division II individual national rankings, including top-ranked 174-pounder Todd Fuller (Sr., Maple Lake, Minn.) and top-ranked heavyweight Nick Severson (Sr., Hayfield, Minn.). Two ranked wrestlers -- 141- pounder Lucas Christianson (So., Apple Valley, Minn., ranked eighth) and Chris Rufo (Sr., Honolulu, Hawaii, ranked fifth), are expected to miss Tuesday's match, both with knee injuries. Other Bison ranked nationally are 125-pounder Matt Strawser (Jr., Coon Rapids, Minn.) and 197-pounder Brian Kraemer (So., Cold Spring, Minn.), both ranked third; 133-pounder Jake Thielbar (Sr., Faribault, Minn.), 165-pounder Michael Fiedler (So., Sauk Centre, Minn.), both ranked fourth; and 157-pounder Paul Carlson (So., St. Francis, Minn.), ranked seventh.
Augsburg holds a 4-2 lead in the all-time dual-meet series with the Bison, dating to the 1977-78 season. Augsburg won last year's meet, 19-12 at Fargo, N.D., avenging a loss in the 1999-2000 season, 19-17 at Augsburg.
The teams met each other this season at the St. Cloud State Invitational on Dec. 8. For the second year in a row, North Dakota State topped Augsburg, scoring 150.5 points to Augsburg's 148.5. North Dakota State had five champions to Augsburg's two. The Bison topped Augsburg wrestlers in four head-to-head meetings in championship matches, while Augsburg had one head-to-head winner. Augsburg's wrestling team has dominated small-college competition in last decade.
Head Coach Jeff Swenson
• Head coach Jeff Swenson (Augsburg '79) is in his 20 th season as Augsburg's head coach (23 seasons overall in wrestling coaching) and has a career dual-meet record of 285-32. He is one of a handful of wrestling coaches in the nation to win at least 250 matches as a coach and 100 as a college wrestler. He was a three-time All-American and an NAIA national champion at 167 pounds in 1979, finishing his collegiate career with a 102-17 competitive record. Swenson has earned MIAC Coach of the Year honors 12 times, and has earned NWCA National Coach of the Year honors five times (1983, 1991, 1995, 1998, 2000).
• During his tenure as Augsburg's head coach (1981-84, 1987-present), Swenson has coached 112 All-Americans, 26 individual national champions, while his teams have won seven national titles (1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001) and 19 MIAC team championships. Under his commitment to academic as well as athletic success, Swenson's Auggies have earned 67 NWCA Scholar All-America honors, as well as earning the academic national team championship in 1999 (second in 1998 and 2000, fourth in 2001).
Individual Profiles of Wrestlers in Augsburg-North Dakota State Dual Meet:
125 -- Darin Bertram (Sr., Herman, Minn./Herman-Norcross HS) -- 23-1 overall (Augsburg career 127-13), currently ranked No. 1 in nation. Record includes three pins, four technical falls and five major decisions. Defending national champion at 125 pounds, could become fifth-ever Auggie to earn four All-American honors (previous Auggies were Steve Gliva 1982-85, John Beatty 1987-90, Tom Hall 1983-85, Nik Lewandowski 1998-2001, Gliva and Hall earned AA honors in 1983 from both NAIA and NCAA). Bertram finished second in country his freshman and sophomore seasons. His previous season records have been 41-2, 31-2 and 32-8. Lost his first match of year in championship match at Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic on Jan. 12, losing 4-2 to Pat Runez of Mary (N.D.), top-ranked wrestler in NAIA.Has won championship this season at Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29), while finishing second (injury withdrawls both times) at St. Cloud State Invite (12/8) and Auggie-Brute-Addias Open (11/17). Bertram has won three MIAC titles. Bertram has one of the top prep wrestling backgrounds of any Auggie. He won three Minnesota Class A state titles at 112 at Herman-Norcross HS, and was listed as the third-best senior wrestler in the nation at 112 by InterMat, along with being listed among Wrestling USA Magazine's Nation's Best 1998 HS Seniors and an honorable mention Ascis-Tiger HS All-American. A health and physical education major with a 3.2 GPA, Bertram earned NWCA Scholar All-America honors in 2000.
133 &endash; John Marchette (Sr., Canual Fulton, Ohio/North Canton Hoover HS) -- 23-1 overall (Augsburg career 79-10), currently ranked No. 1 in nation. Record includes six pins, two technical falls and nine major decisions. Marchette is 30 years old, born 12/4/71. Has won championships this season at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (unattached, 11/17), Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (unattached, 12/1) and Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29). Returned to varsity lineup at Orange Bowl Sunshine Open. Biggest win of season came in 13-4 major-decision win over Joe Havig of Wartburg in a dual 1/6, pushing Marchette into the top spot in the national rankings. Topped Havig for second time in National Duals dual meet on 1/20, winning by 12-3 major decision. Suffered his first loss of season in championship match at Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic on 1/12, losing 14-8 to Montana State-Northern's Caleb Schaeffer, ranked fourth in NAIA, who earned tournament Outstanding Wrestler honors. Marchette did not wrestle last season, sitting out the year with a medical redshirt. A 1991 high school graduate, Marchette wrestled for one year at the University of Minnesota (1991-92), then left college. He returned to higher education in 1997, when he joined his brother Sonny at Lassen College, a junior college in California. Sonny wrestled, and John was an assistant coach. In 1998-99, when Sonny transferred to Iowa State, John also decided to return to the wrestling mat himself, and transferred from Lassen to Augsburg. Marchette shined in his first year as an Auggie, winning the 133-pound national title in 1999. He finished sixth in the nation at 133 in 2000. Marchette has also won two MIAC championships. He is an art major whose career goal is to become a teacher and coach.
141 -- Brad Fisher (Sr., Austin, Minn.) -- 31-1 overall (Augsburg career 108-28), currently ranked No. 4 in nation. Record includes three pins, five technical falls and 10 major decisions (most on team). Has won championships at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (11/17), Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (12/1), St. Cloud State Invitational (12/8), Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29) and Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic (1/12). Suffered first loss of season with 5-3 setback to Wartburg's Will Kelly in dual on 1/6. Kelly is ranked second in Division III. Rebounded with dominating performance at Dickinson State Classic, with four wins, one a 17-2 technical fall win and an 11-2 major decision in championship match. Two-time All-American, finishing second in nation last season (losing championship match 5-3 in overtime to Lenny Baker of SUNY-Brockport) and sixth in 1999. Has won two MIAC championships. Sat out 1999-2000 season with medical redshirt. Was a two-time state champion at Austin HS, including earning the state title as an eighth-grader in 1993, the first time an eighth-grader had earned a wrestling state title in Minnesota history. A Junior National All-American, High School All-American and high school Academic All-American during his prep career.
149 -- Jamell Tidwell (Fr., Richfield, Minn./Bloomington Kennedy HS) -- 22-4 record (Augsburg career 22-4), currently ranked No. 5 in the nation. Record includes one pin (pinned once), two technical falls and eight major decisions. Has earned championships at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (141, 11/17), Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (141, 12/1) and Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic (149, 1/12); finished second at Dick Walker (Wartburg) Invitational (141, 12/8) and Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (141, 12/28-29). Moved into varsity lineup at 149 in early January, and has been 6-0 since then. Biggest win came in a 3-2 win over Wartburg's Tony Ganas, ranked sixth in the nation at the time, in a dual meet on 1/6. Ganas avenged the loss with a 7-3 win at National Duals on 1/20. Had three wins, including one by major decision, to win Dickinson State tourney (shared title with Ryan Stroud). One of most impressive prep records of any in Augsburg's 2001 recruiting class, winning two Minnesota state titles, earning three state Greco-Roman titles and two freestyle All-American honors, also four-time state freestyle runner-up. Member of Minnesota senior all-star wrestling team.
149 -- Blaine Kuhlman (So., Medford, Minn.) -- 12-4 record (Augsburg career 22-11). Record includes four pins, one technical fall and zero major decision (lost once by MD). Primarily White Team (junior varsity) wrestler, won championship at Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28- 29), finished third at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (11/17), second at Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (12/1), fifth at Dick Walker (Wartburg) Invitational (12/8). Three-time state placewinner in high school, finishing first, second and sixth, five-time all-conference wrestler. 149 -- Ryan Stroud (Fr., Park Falls, Wis.) -- 20-6 record (Augsburg career 20-6). Record includes four pins, no technical falls and two major decisions. Earned championships at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (149 Silver, 11/17), Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (12/1) and Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic (1/12); finished second at St. Cloud State Invitational (12/8), fifth at Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29). Three wins, including one pin, to reach title match at Dickinson State Classic (shared title with Jamell Tidwell). Prep record of 124-20, placing second in Wisconsin state championship in 2001 and third in 2000. Earned Lumberjack Conference Co-Outstanding Wrestler of the Year honors in 2001.
157 -- Jeremy Jirele (Sr., Owatonna, Minn.) &endash; 22-6 record (Augsburg career 87-26). Record includes four pins (pinned once), seven technical falls (most on team, lost once) and three major decisions (lost twice). Has earned championships at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (11/17), Minnesota- Morris Cougar Open (12/1) and Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29); finished second at St. Cloud State Invitational (12/8). Won MIAC title last season and qualified for NCAA national tournament for first time, eliminated with losses in first two matches. Battled injuries and illnesses last season, missing a month of action before returning to lineup and winning MIAC title. Was a state high school runner-up at Owatonna HS in 1998, when he was co-captain (with Auggie teammate Kevin Rasmussen) of an Owatonna team that won the Minnesota state team title. Also captain of his prep cross country team. An accounting major with a 3.2 GPA, Jirele has earned NWCA Scholar All-America honors in 2000 and 2001.
165 -- Tony Abbott (Sr., Inver Grove Heights, Minn./St. Thomas Academy HS) -- 28-3 record (Augsburg career 113-28), currently ranked No. 2 in nation. Record includes 19 pins (most on the team this season), no technical falls and three major decisions. Has earned championships at Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (12/1) and Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29); finished second at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (11/17), St. Cloud State Invitational (12/8) and Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic (1/12). Two of his three losses have been to top-ranked wrestlers in nation, losing 3-2 to top-ranked Jorge Borgen of Upper Iowa in 165-pound title match at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open and 5-0 to Jason LaBrie of Mary (N.D.) in championship of Dickinson State Classic (LaBrie ranked No. 1 in NAIA). Used three 3-point near-falls in first-period to cruise to a 13-3 major-decision win over Wartburg's Kevin Powell in dual meet on 1/6, pinned Powell in 2:32 in rematch in National Duals on 1/20. Had two second-period pins to reach title match at Dickinson State tournament. Augsburg's top pin artist, has 56 career pins, third-most in school history (record is 61, set by Kevin Schiltz, 1990-93). Earned All-America honors for the first time last season with a fourth-place national finish, winning MIAC title for the first time. He was a White Team (junior varsity) wrestler in the first half of the 1999-2000 season but earned a varsity spot midway through the year, reaching the NCAA tournament for the first time as a wildcard bid. Abbott, who has a 3.27 GPA with a communications/ education major, earned NWCA Scholar All-America honors last season. He was a two-time Minnesota state placewinner at St. Thomas Academy HS, finishing fifth in 1997 and fourth in 1998.
174 -- Nick Slack (Sr., Belle Plaine, Minn.) -- 29-1 record (Augsburg career 116-12), currently ranked No. 1 in nation. Record includes 16 pins (second-most on team), six technical falls (second- most on team) and one major decision. Has earned championships at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (11/17), Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (12/1), Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29) and Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic (1/12); finishing second at St. Cloud State Invitational (12/8). Has won last 19 matches in a row. Cruised through Dickinson State field with four wins, two by technical fall, including 17-0, TF win over Montana State-Northern's Kyle Fisher, ranked second in NAIA, in title match. Lone loss this season was a 5-4 setback to North Dakota State's Thad Pike, ranked No. 1 in Division II, in championship match at St. Cloud State Invitational. A two-time All-American, Slack has lost just two matches in last three seasons, finishing 29-1 last season and in second place in nation. Went 31- 0 to win the 2000 national championship at 174, marking just the third time an Augsburg wrestler has completed a season unbeaten. His 60- match winning streak, spanning 1999-2001 seasons, was the second-longest in school history; Henry Gerten won 64 straight matches (and two national championships) from 1996-98. Lone loss last season was one of the most dramatic college wrestling matches of the season, a 13-11 loss to Simpson's (Iowa) Nick Ackerman in the 174-pound national-title match. Ackerman, who had both his legs amputated when he was two years old due to an illness, was voted the Most Valuable Wrestler of the tournament by coaches at the meet. Slack earned Outstanding Wrestler of the Meet honors at the 2001 MIAC Duals, where he had two pins in three victories, including an 11-second pin in his first match. He earned his third MIAC championship last season and qualified for the NCAA championships for the third time. He was eliminated on the first day of his first NCAA meet, in 1999. Slack has an impressive prep wrestling background. He won two Minnesota Class AA state titles in 1996 and 1998 at 160 for Scott West (combined program of Belle Plaine and Jordan high schools), and was listed as an honorable mention among the top 12 prep wrestlers in the country at 160 by InterMat. He was listed among Wrestling USA Magazine's Nation's Best 1998 HS Seniors at 160, and was also an Amateur Wrestling News All-American. He was a Junior National All-American, finishing third this summer at the 1998 Asics-Tiger Junior Freestyle Nationals at 154.
184 -- Ricky Crone (Jr., Apple Valley, Minn.) -- 26-1 record (Augsburg career 26-1), currently ranked No. 3 in nation. Record includes three pins (lost once), four technical falls and five major decisions. Earned championships at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (11/17, unattached, shared title with Mike Cuperus), Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (12/1, unattached), Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29); finished second at Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic (1/12). Lone loss was a 3:07 pin by Montana State-Northern's Tyson Thivierge, the top-ranked wrestler in NAIA, in the championship match of the Dickinson State Classic. Took over top spot at 184 for Auggies in January, claiming an impressive 11-3, come-from- behind, major-decision win over Wartburg's Sonny Alvarez, ranked fourth in Division III, in a dual meet 1/6. Key stretch of match was at end of second period, when Crone converted a takedown into a 3-point near-fall. Topped Alvarez 3-1 in rematch in National Duals on 1/20. Transferred to Augsburg this season from Division I University of Northern Iowa, where he was 21-10 in two seasons (14-5 in 1999-2000, 7-5 in 2000-01). Won UNI Open in 2000-01, finishing second at the meet in 1999-2000. High school wrestler at Minnesota powerhouse Apple Valley HS, where he qualified for the state tournament five times, finishing third twice and fourth once. Had 43-3 record as a senior. Earned Academic All-Conference and Academic All-State in high school.
197 -- Kevin Rasmussen (Sr., Owatonna, Minn.) &endash; 26-3 record (Augsburg career 86-22), currently ranked No. 1 in nation. Season record includes four pins, no technical falls and three major decisions. Moved into top spot in national rankings for first time in career in most recent rankings (1/22). Earned championships at Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (12/1) and St. Cloud State Invitational (12/8); finished second at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (11/17), Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29) and Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic (1/12). Claimed impressive 7-6 win over Wartburg's Alain Djournessi, ranked third in Division III, in dual meet on 1/6 and claimed 5-2 win in rematch in National Duals on 1/20. Topped North Dakota State's Brian Kraemer, ranked third in Division II, 6-3 in title match at St. Cloud State Invitational. Losses this season have all come to ranked wrestlers -- a 7-2 loss to Wisconsin-La Crosse's Matt Morris in the championship match of the Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (Morris is currently ranked sixth in Division III); a 9-1 loss to Mike Irving of Cumberland (Ky.) in the Orange Bowl Sunshine Open final (Irving is currently ranked second in NAIA), and a 6-1 loss to Emmett Wilson of Montana State-Northern in the Dickinson State Classic final (Wilson is currently ranked sixth in NAIA). Used a late-season charge to earn a wild-card spot in the NCAA championships last season, finishing second at the MIAC tournament (to St. John's 2001 national titlist Brandon Novak). Rasmussen earned All-American honors for the first time with a sixth-place national finish. Primarily a White Team (junior varsity) wrestler his first two seasons, Rasmussen assumed the varsity role at 197 in 2000-01. 1998 graduate of Owatonna HS, he was co-captain (with Auggie teammate Jeremy Jirele) of an Owatonna team that won the Minnesota state team title in 1998. Was also all-conference in football. A physics major with a 3.5 GPA, Rasmussen earned NWCA Scholar All-American honors in 2001.
HWT -- Scott Revier (So., Olivia, Minn./Bird Island-Olivia-Lake Lillian (BOLD) HS) -- 19-12 record (Augsburg career 35-20). Record includes eight pins (pinned twice), no technical falls and no major decisions (lost three times). Moved into varsity lineup at heavyweight this season. Placed second at Minnesota-Morris Cougar Open (12/1) and Dickinson State (N.D.) Classic (1/12), fourth at St. Cloud State Invitational (12/8), fifth at Auggie-Brute-Adidas Open (11/17) and Orange Bowl Sunshine Open (12/28-29). Had a 16-8 record last season as a White Team (junior varsity) wrestler. Three-time state tournament entrant at BOLD HS, winning state title in 2000. Two-time state placewinner, two-time Academic All-State. Also a nose guard/tackle on BOLD football team that finished second in state tournament in 1998.
HWT -- Mike Flanagan (Jr., St. Paul, Minn./St. Thomas Academy HS) -- 4-0 record (Augsburg career 4-0). Record includes four decisions. Transferred to Augsburg in January after competing for two seasons at University of Minnesota. Compiled Minnesota career record of 18-22 (four pins), including a 2-4 record this season prior to transferring at the semester break to Augsburg. Was primary fill-in for Garrett Lowney at heavyweight during first half of 2000-01 season. Compiled 46 pins and was 2-time all-conference selection at St. Thomas Academy HS.