North Carolina State’s Nick Gwiazdowski upset two-time NCAA champ Tony Nelson in the 2014 finals. John Sachs photo. Continued from page 12
son, will be in contention to win a title at 133 this season. Top young prospects Mark Grey of Cornell and Zane Richards of Illinois also are expected to make an impact here along with Ohio State’s Johnni DiJulius. 141 pounds
Three-time NCAA champion Logan
Stieber of Ohio State is the clear-cut favorite in this class. Stieber did suffer an early season loss to Penn State freshman Zain Retherford last season, but came back to beat Retherford by the same 7-3 score in the Big Ten and NCAA tournament. Stieber won NCAA titles at 133 as a freshman and sophomore before bump- ing up a weight class to 133 this past season. Stieber is a top freestyle prospect. He
is a past Junior World silver medalist who placed second at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials. He was third at the 2014 U.S.
Open in Las Vegas. Retherford, a past Cadet World cham- pion, placed fifth in his first NCAA tourna- ment. Virginia Tech senior Devin Carter is
back after finishing second at the 2014 NCAAs with an amazing performance after missing nearly the entire season with an injury. Carter, a top freestyle prospect who has won the Dave Schultz Memorial International, may bump up to 149 this season.
All-Americans Mitchell Port of Edinboro, Evan Henderson of North Carolina, Stephen Dutton of Michigan, Richard Durso of Franklin & Marshall and Chris Dardanes of Minnesota also are back in this division.
149 pounds
Northwestern’s Jason Tsirtsis surprised many observers by storming to an NCAA title as a freshman. Tsirtsis is back in a weight class that includes returning runner-up Josh Kindig
of Oklahoma State along with All- Americans David Habat of Edinboro, Drake Houdashelt of Missouri, Mitchell Minotti of Lehigh and Nick Dardanes of Minnesota. Ohio State junior Hunter Stieber, a two-
time All-American at 141, returns to the mat at 149 this season after redshirting. Stieber is a two-time NCAA semifinalist who will be in contention to win this class. Stieber won a Pan American Championships title for the U.S. in freestyle this past summer. Penn State’s Andrew Alton and Nebraska’s Jake Sueflohn also are top competitors in this division. 157 pounds
Returning 157-pound NCAA champion Alex Dieringer of Oklahoma State, a 2013 Junior World silver medalist, is bumping up to 165 this season. Two-time NCAA runner-up Dylan Ness of Minnesota is the favorite in this divi- sion.
Continued on page 14 13 USA Wrestler
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