Athletics - Wrestling

MOUNT VERNON – Cornell sent two wrestlers to the semifinals and crowned four All-Americans on opening day, propelling the Rams to their highest national team finish in 45 years at the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships Friday and Saturday at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids.

Coach Mike Duroe’s Rams placed seventh in the team race with 40.5 points, marking the program’s best finish at the Division III level. It was Cornell’s first top-10 national finish since the 1963 squad took fifth in Division II.

Cornell senior Chris Heilman (third at 125 pounds), sophomore Nick Nothern (sixth at 133), senior Pat McAuley (seventh at 157) and junior Kyle Kehrli (sixth at 174) earned All-America honors for placing in the top eight in their respective weight classes. Cornell had not crowned four All-Americans in a national tournament since 1950.

“Our guys competed hard and performed well to finish in the top 10,” Duroe said. “Our next goal is to finish in the top four and bring home a team trophy. There is still a lot more that we can accomplish as a program.”

Heilman (Colorado Springs, Colo./St. Mary’s) reached All- America status for the third consecutive year after placing fourth in 2007 and seventh in 2006. He became the fifth Ram in school history to earn All-America accolades at least three years, joining Shawn Voigt (1987, 88, 89, 90), Rodger Snook (1947, 49, 50), Lowell Lange (1947, 49, 50) and Lyle Morford (1930, 31, 32).

Heilman (38-4), the No. 1 seed in his class, finished 4-1 in the tournament. He posted a technical fall and major decision to advance to the semifinals, where he dropped an 8-2 decision to eventual champion Seth Flodeen of Augsburg. Heilman bounced back with a 13-5 win over No. 3 seed Jake Oster of Elmhurst and then took a 10-5 victory in the third-place match over No. 4 seed Robert Struthers of Wartburg.

“I am so happy for Heilman that he went out on a winning note,” Duroe said. “That is a huge testament to his character and the way his whole career has gone. That’s a great accomplishment to be a three-time All-American. He joins a real elite group.”

Nothern (Salina, Kan./ Salina South), the No. 6 seed, landed All-America honors for the first time in his second appearance at nationals. He advanced to the semifinals after recording a 3-1 overtime upset over No. 3 seed Travis Lang of Augsburg. Nothern (29-11) suffered a tight 3-2 loss to eventual champion David Morgan of Kings in the semifinals. He then dropped a 7-5 overtime decision to No. 5 seed Jordan Kolinski of UW-La Crosse and was pinned in the fifth-place bout in a rematch with Lang.

“I think those close losses will certainly inspire him for next season,” Duroe said. “He realizes that he has work to do.”

McAuley (Austin, Texas/Lanier), the No. 7 seed, became a two-time All-American after placing seventh for the second consecutive year. He rolled to a 10-2 win in his first match before falling 6-4 in overtime in the quarterfinals to eventual runner-up and No. 2 seed Jason Brew of Olivet. McAuley (34-14) went out on a winning note with an 8-4 decision in the seventh-place match over Andrew Goldstein of Gettysburg.

Kehrli (Winthrop/East Buchanan), a first-time All-American in his national tournament debut, was the highest placewinner among unseeded wrestlers in his class. He regrouped from a 9-6 opening-round loss to No. 8 seed Jerome Owens of Johnson and Wales with two wins to advance to the medal round. Kehrli (34-12) fell 2-1 in overtime in the fifth-place match to No. 2 seed Eric Bath of UW-Stevens Point.

“From where he started as a freshman, Kehrli has come a long, long way,” Duroe said. “He’s right there. He’s the kind of kid who will continue to work hard and will definitely be a team leader next season.”

Freshman heavyweight Josiah Payne (Paola, Kan./Paola) went 0-2 with a pair of tight setbacks to ranked opponents. He fell 2-0 to No. 5 seed Ryan Bowers of Heidelberg and lost 5-2 in overtime to No. 6 seed Mark Corsello of Elmhurst. Payne (23-22) qualified for nationals after upsetting three higher seeds to place third at the Iowa Conference Championships.

“Payne wrestled hard,” Duroe said. “To battle with those guys tells him that he is not far away from having success at this level. He came on strong at the end of the season.”

Winning combination – Heilman and McAuley will graduate as the winningest classmates in school history, compiling a combined career record of 271-82. McAuley finished his career at 139-51, third on the school’s all-time wins list. Heilman fashioned a 132-31 record, fourth in career wins. The only two wrestlers to win more matches are Voigt (148 wins, 1986-90) and Lange (140 wins, 1947-50).

Heilman’s 80.9 career winning percentage ranks fourth in school history. His team-high 38 wins this campaign tie for fifth in single-season history.

NCAA Division III National Championships
Friday-Saturday, March 7-8
U.S. Cellular Center
Cedar Rapids , Iowa

Team standings
1. Wartburg 147; 2. UW-La Crosse 100; 3. Augsburg 87; 4. Coe 78; 5. Delaware Valley 64; 6. Luther 45.5; 7. Cornell 40.5; 8. Elmhurst 38; 9. North Central 37.5; 10. UW-Stevens Point 33; 11. Olivet 29.5; 12. New York University 23.5; 13. Kings 21; 14. Rhode Island 20; T15. Lycoming and Mass Institute of Technology 19; 17. SUNY Brockport 18.5; 18. Heidelberg 17.5; 19. Marantha Baptist Bible 17; 20. Buena Vista 16.5; 21. Mt. St. Joseph 16; 22. Dubuque 15; 23. Stevens Institute of Technology 14.5; T24. College of New Jersey, Johnson and Wales and Oneonta State 14; 27. UW-Whitewater 10.5; 28. SUNY Cortland 10; 29. Ithaca 9.5; T30. Springfield and St. Johns 8.5; T32. Baldwin Wallace, UW-Eau Claire and UW-Platteville 8; 35. Johns Hopkins 6; 36. Case Western Reserve 6; T37. Concordia Moorhead and Gettysburg 4.5; 39. Merchant Marine Academy 4; 40. Knox 3.5; T41 Lakeland and Rochester Institute 3; T43. Messiah and Ursinus 2; T45. Bridgewater and York 1.5; T47. John Carroll, Loras, Manchester, Ohio Northern and Williams 1; T52. Centenary and Thiel 0.5. Hunter, Muskingum, Norwich, Oswego State, Roger Williams, Southern Maine and Wilkes did not score a team point.  

Cornell results
Heilman (third, 125 pounds) – tech fall Jacob Calhoun (UW-Stevens Point) 16-0; maj. dec. Jon Gregory ( Ithaca) 10-2; lost dec. Seth Flodeen ( Augsburg) 8-2; maj. dec. Jake Oster (Elmhurst) 13-5; dec. Robert Struthers (Wartburg) 10-5.
Nothern (sixth, 133 pounds) – dec. Adam Pizzurro (John Carroll) 8-3; dec. Travis Lang ( Augsburg) 3-1 OT; lost dec. David Morgan (Kings) 3-2; lost dec. Jordan Kolinski (UW-La Crosse) 7-5 OT; pinned by Travis Lang ( Augsburg) :56.
McAuley (seventh, 157 pounds) – maj. dec. Nathan Bachmann (Rochester Institute) 10-2; lost dec. Jason Brew (Olivet) 6-4 OT; dec. John Niedrich ( York) 14-7; pinned by Ryan Herwig ( Delaware Valley) :51; dec. Andrew Goldstein ( Gettysburg) 8-4.
Kehrli (sixth, 174 pounds) – lost dec. Jerome Owens (Johnson and Wales) 9-6; maj. dec. Benjamin Plowman (Ohio Northern) 11-1; dec. Michael Reilly (Kings) 11-6; dec. Gregory Osgoodby ( College of New Jersey) 6-1; lost dec. Brandon MacWhinnie (Stevens Institute of Technology) 5-2; lost dec. Eric Bath (UW-Stevens Point) 2-1 OT.
Payne (DNP, 285 pounds) – lost dec. Ryan Bowers ( Heidelberg) 2-0; lost dec. Mark Corsello ( Elmhurst) 5-2 OT.