Three Johnnies headed for Nationals in
two weeks
Three SJU wrestlers will travel to Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa to
compete at the NCAA Division III National Championships on March 2-3.
Freshman Mogi Baatar (125; Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict's, N.J.),
freshman Minga Batsukh (141; Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict's,
N.J.) and senior Jacob Malone (157; New York Mills, Minn./New York
Mills) all finished third in their respective weight classes and
qualified as at-large bids at the Great Lakes Regional held on Feb. 17
at Elmhurst College. SJU finished fifth out of 15 teams at the
Regional. Matches are set to begin at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 2 and at
10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 3 at the Five Flags Center in Dubuque.
Former head coach to enter Hall of Fame
Collegeville, MN -- Former Saint John’s
University head wrestling coach John Elton will be one of two
individuals inducted into the NCAA Division III Wrestling Coaches’ Hall
of Fame prior the Division III national championships Thursday, March
1, in Dubuque, Iowa. The induction ceremony is at 6:30 p.m. at the
Holiday Inn across from The Five Flags Center in Dubuque. Graduating
with honors in 1980 from Saint John’s, Elton started his competitive
wrestling career at Bloomington Lincoln High School. In 1976, Elton
placed second at 145 pounds in the Minnesota State Wrestling
Tournament. As a collegiate wrestler, Elton was a four-year standout
for the Johnnies and captured a National Catholic Championship during
his senior season. Elton also qualified for the NCAA tournament at 150
pounds in 1979 and 1980, and the NAIA tournament in 1977 and 1978.
Elton was named MIAC Coach of the Year in 1984, 1993, 1995 and 1997.
Elton retired following the 2003-04 season with a career dual record of
273-100-5 (.729). In total, 69 student-athletes qualified for the NCAA
Division III national tournament under Elton, including 19 NCAA
All-Americans, 31 Scholar All-Americans and two NCAA individual
national champions.
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.