Johnnies head to Great Lakes Regional
The Saint
John’s University wrestling team will compete at the Great
Lakes Regional in Elmhurst, Ill., on Saturday, Feb. 17. The regional is
scheduled to start at 9 a.m. Participating teams from Minnesota include
Augsburg, St. Olaf, and Concordia-Moorhead. SJU is currently ranked #27
in the latest Brute/Adidas NWCA Division III team rankings released on
Feb. 12. Freshman Minga Batsukh (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict's)
is ranked #8 at 141 pounds in the Brute/Adidas NWCA Division III
Individual Rankings.
Three Duals In Five Days
Collegeville, Minn. -- On Feb. 6, the SJU junior varsity wrestling team
lost to Ridgewater, 35-6. Junior Tim Thompson (133, Lake City,
Minn./Lake City) won by decision, 9-7. Sophomore Joe Kuka (Hwt.,
Parker, Colo./Regis Jesuit) won by decision, 2-1, in overtime.
Collegeville, Minn. -- The Saint John’s University westling team
defeated Saint Cloud State, 25-13 on Feb. 9. Freshman # 8 Minga Batsukh
(141, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict's) pinned freshman Tim
Whitley, 4:35, and junior Jason Finley (197, Lake City, Minn./Lake
City) pinned sophomore Adam Hill, 1:22.
Northfield, Minn. -- On Saturday, Feb. 10, the SJU junior varsity squad
was defeated by St. Olaf, 13-9. Tim Thompson (133) won by decision,
17-1, and freshman Grant Lydon (149, White Bear Lake, Minn./White Bear
Lake) won by decision, 13-4.
SJU Head Coach Brandon Novak
Head Coach Brandon Novak is in his third season as the head wrestling
coach in Collegeville. A 2001 graduate of SJU, Novak won the NCAA
Division III Championship at 197 pounds in 2001 and was a three-time
All- American. As a football player at SJU, Novak was named MIAC Most
Valuable Player as a linebacker in 1999 and a two-time first-team
All-America selection. Last year, Novak led the Johnnie grapplers to a
16th place finish at the NCAA Championships. In 2005-06, Novak's SJU
wrestling team had the fifth-highest team grade point average in NCAA
Division III at 3.334.