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Nine Mavericks qualify for NCAA National Championships
February 27, 2005
Janousek and Krinkie claim Individual titles; Girtz places second
Marshall, Minn.--- The fourth-ranked Mavericks of Minnesota State advanced nine wrestlers, including two champions, to the NCAA Division II National Championships at the North Regional qualifier, held in Marshall, Minn. The top four wrestlers in each weight class advance to the national championships and they will join the qualifiers from three other meets around the country. Senior Josh Janousek and sophomore Travis Krinkie claimed individual crowns to lead the Mavericks to their best showing in a qualifying meet in over 35 years.
Freshman 125-pounder Nick Smith (Yankton, S.D.) will be making an appearance at the national meet after just a half season as a Maverick. The mid-season transfer fell to #3 Dustin Tovar of Nebraska-Omaha in the semifinals after a first-round bye but rebounded to finish third with a major decision and an injury default win in the consolation bracket.
Another late addition to the team, sophomore Efrain Ayala (Grand Island, Neb.) will be making his first national showing at 133 pounds with a nearly identical path as Smith. The second-seeded Ayala was the recipient of a first-round bye but fell by fall in the semifinals to third-seeded Scott Ahlf of MSU Moorhead. He secured third place with 5-2 and 6-2 wins in the wrestlebacks.
Eighth-ranked sophomore Brandon Girtz (Forest Lake, Minn.) followed up a first-round bye at 141 with a 5-2 win over seventh-ranked Ben Keen of MSU Moorhead, avenging a 4-3 loss to Keen in dual competition this season. In the finals, Girtz fell by a 10-5 margin to fourth-ranked Eli Dominguez of Nebraska-Omaha.
The second-ranked 149-pounder in the nation, sophomore Jason Rhoten (Kasson, Minn.) earned his second trip to nationals with a third-place finish. Rhoten earned a first-round technical fall over Danny Meyer of MSU Moorhead. In the semifinals, he was edged 5-3 in overtime by third-ranked Shane Unger of Nebraska-Omaha. Rhoten responded with wins by major decision and fall to finish third and earn a chance for a second All-American honor is as many seasons. He finished fourth at the last season's national meet.
At 157 pounds, junior Math Bitz (Bismarck, N.D.) will make his second appearance at the national tournament but first in a Maverick uniform. Last season, he qualified at 141 pounds as a member of the North Dakota State Bison, who departed for NCAA Division I competition after last season. Bitz, seeded second and ranked sixth nationally, fell to third-seeded Austin Scarset of Augustana 5-4 in the semifinals following a first-round bye. He came through the consolation bracket with a fall and 3-1 overtime victory in the third-place match over Shawn Plumley of host Southwest MSU.
Sophomore 165-pounder Jeremiah Nowak (Edgar, Wis.) went 2-3 on the day, finishing fifth and narrowly missing qualifying for the national meet in a true-fourth match. Nowak fell to top-ranked J.D. Naig of Nebraska-Omaha in the first round but bounced back to record a 3-2 win in the wrestlebacks. After winning the match for fifth place, Nowak had a chance to earn the fourth spot with a true-fourth match but fell short, 5-1 to Rocky Stavn of MSU Moorhead.
Top-seeded sophomore Travis Krinkie (Blue Earth, Minn.) earned a chance to repeat his All-American performance from a year ago after taking the 174-pound title. Ranked fourth nationally, Krinkie followed a first-round bye with a 9-2 decision over fourth-seeded Tim Johns of Southwest MSU to reach the finals. He finished his championship run with a 10-6 decision over fifth-ranked Dusty Wilking of Augustana. Last season, Krinkie finished second at the regional meet and placed eighth at the national championships.
Second-ranked junior John Koons (Crosby, Minn.) had a long road to finish third and qualify for his first national tournament as a Maverick at 184 pounds. The second-seed in the tournament, he was upset by Lukas Pohlmeier of St. Cloud State 9-7 in the first round. However, he rattled off three straight wins in the consolations, including a 10-0 major decision over Pohlmeier, to claim third. Koons is in his first season of NCAA Division II wrestling but is no stranger to national competition. Last season, he was an NJCAA runner-up for Ridgewater.
Returning All-American senior Josh Janousek (Greenbush, Minn.) cruised into the semifinals with an 8-0 major decision over Mike Gritti of St. Cloud State. A 3-1 win over third-seeded Cory Wellnitz of Northern State put him into the finals where he faced top-ranked Tim Boldt of Augustana, who already owned a 5-3 dual win over Janousek in the regular season. Janousek upset Boldt with a 9-4 decision to take the 197-pound crown and improve upon last season's third-place finish.
The final Maverick qualifier, heavyweight Mike Engelmann (Spencer, Iowa), has earned the third trip in his four-year career. The seventh-ranked senior posted a first-round fall over Richard Roesler of Southwest MSU before falling in the semifinals to second-seeded Chris Tuscherer of MSU Moorhead by a 4-1 margin. A fall over Jess Hockley of Northern State and a 9-5 win over Chris Bietz of Augustana gave the third-seeded Engelmann a third-place finish.
The representation will be the best for a Maverick squad since the 1969-70 team qualified ten wrestlers to the NCAA College Division tournament. That squad finished fifth in the team standings with 41 total points.
The Mavericks look to improve upon last-season's 17th-place finish at the national championships. The two-day event will be hosted by defending national champion Nebraska-Omaha on March 11-12.