Johnnies compete at national meet
Dubuque, Iowa -- Senior Jacob Malone (New York Mills, Minn./New York
Mills) earned All-American honors, placing fifth at the NCAA Division
III National Meet at Loras College in Dubuque on March 3. A two-time
All-American at 157 pounds and a three-time national tournament
participant, Malone had a 4-2 record in the tournament, including a 3-2
decision over Wartburg College’s Aaron Wernimont in the fifth-place
match. Freshmen Mogi Baatar (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict’s,
N.J.) and Minga Batsukh (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict’s, N.J.)
both finished the tournament with 1-2 records at the 125- and 141-pound
weight classes, respectively. The Johnnies placed 23rd in the meet out
of 63 teams.
Former head coach enters Hall of Fame
Collegeville, Minn. -- Former Saint John’s University head wrestling
coach John Elton was one of two individuals inducted into the NCAA
Division III Wrestling Coaches’ Hall of Fame prior to the Division III
national championships Thursday, March 1, in Dubuque, Iowa. 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 ended his third season as the head wrestling
coach in 2006-07. 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. For all the latest news on Johnnie Wrestling and
other SJU sports, visit the Saint John’s athletic Web site at www.gojohnnies.com