Wrestling ranked No. 13/No. 22 in latest NWCA polls; All-American Reed No. 1 individually at 141 pounds
By Tim Glon
| NWCA Poll 12-15-23 (.pdf) | NWCA Complete Rankings site |
ADA — The Ohio Northern wrestling team is ranked No. 13 in the latest National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Tournament Poll and is No. 22 in its first Dual Meet poll for the 2023-24 season.
The Polar Bears received 16 points in the poll and are tied with Millikin (Ill.) and Central (Iowa) for 13th in the poll.
Augsburg (Minn.) is the top-ranked team in the poll with 82.5 points, Wartburg (Iowa) is second with 54 points, and Wisconsin-LaCrosse is third with 46 points.
In the Dual Meet poll, ONU is at No. 22, just ahead of Ithaca (N.Y.) and behind Lycoming (Pa.)
Baldwin Wallace is the only other OAC school to appear in the polls at No. 4 (Tournament) and No. 5 (Team).
Individually, junior two-time All-American Jacob Reed (Canal Winchester/Lancaster) is ranked first nationally at 141 pounds.
The NWCA also released individual regional rankings of the top eight wrestlers in each weight class.
In the Central Region, Reed is ranked first at 141 pounds, junior Teagan Hendricks (Jamestown/Greenview) is second at 165, junior Gavin Layman (Chesterton, Ind.) is third at 184, junior Dylan Le (Dublin/Scioto) is third at 133 pounds, junior Colin Mellott (Wapakoneta) is fourth at 125, junior Adam Myers (Springfield/STEM Academy) is sixth at 174,, senior Jadon Brownlee (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) is seventh at 285, junior Jayden Jones (Ashland) is seventh at 157, freshman Cole Williams (Cumming, Ga./South Forsyth) is seventh at 197 and sophomore Colton Spurgeon (Mount Vernon) is eighth at 149.
The Polar Bears (4-2 overall) will return to action Sunday at the West Liberty (W.Va.) Duals.
National Wrestling Coaches Association - Tournament Poll #2
Dec. 15, 2023
| Rank |
School (First Place Votes) | Total Points |
Prev. Rank |
| 1. | Augsburg (Minn.) | 82.5 | 1 |
| 2. | Wartburg (Iowa) | 54 | 2 |
| 3. | Wisconsin-La Crosse | 46 | 4 |
| 4. | North Central (Ill.) | 35 | 9 |
| Baldwin Wallace | 35 | 6 | |
| 6. | Castleton State (Vt.) | 31 | 8 |
| 7. | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 28.5 | 3 |
| 8. | Johnson & Wales (R.I.) | 28 | 7 |
| 9. | Alvernia (Pa.) | 26 | 5 |
| 10. | Wabash (Ind.) | 19.5 | 10 |
| 11. | Concordia (Minn.) | 18 | 15 |
| 12. | Coast Guard (Conn.) | 17.5 | 11 |
| 13. | Ohio Northern | 16 | 18 |
| Millikin (Ill.) | 16 | 20 | |
| Central (Iowa) | 16 | 18 | |
| 16. | College of New Jersey | 15.5 | 12 |
| 17. | Muhlenberg (Pa.) | 15 | 21 |
| 18. | New York U. | 14.5 | 14 |
| Centenary (N.J.) | 14.5 | 17 | |
| 20. | Elizabethtown (Pa.) | 13.5 | 21 |
| 21. | Williams (Mass.) | 12 | 21 |
| Greensboro (N.C.) | 12 | NR | |
| 23. | Stevens (N.J.) | 11 | 25 |
| 24. | Coe (Iowa) | 10.5 | NR |
| 25. | Averett (Va.) | 10.5 | NR |
National Wrestling Coaches Association - Dual Poll #1
Dec. 15, 2023
| Rank |
School (First Place Votes) | Record |
| 1. | Augsburg (Minn.) | 2-0 |
| 2. | Wartburg (Iowa) | 3-0 |
| 3. | Wisconsin-La Crosse | 6-0 |
| 4. | North Central (Ill.) | 4-0 |
| 5. | Baldwin Wallace | 2-0 |
| 6. | Castleton State (Vt.) | 6-0 |
| 7. | Stevens (N.J.) | 4-2 |
| 8. | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 8-4 |
| 9. | College of New Jersey | 4-1 |
| 10. | Johnson & Wales (R.I.) | 3-2 |
| 11. | Coast Guard (Conn.) | 0-1 |
| 12. | Alvernia (Pa.) | 2-1 |
| 13. | Coe (Iowa) | 2-0 |
| 14. | New York U. | 5-0 |
| 15. | Wabash (Ind.) | 1-0 |
| 16. | Loras (Iowa) | 1-1 |
| 17. | Central (Iowa) | 5-1 |
| 18. | Millikin (Ill.) | 3-0 |
| 19. | Wisconsin-Whitewater | 5-3 |
| 20. | Luther (Iowa) | 2-1 |
| 21. | Lycoming (Pa.) | 3-0 |
| 22. | Ohio Northern | 4-2 |
| 23. | Ithaca (N.Y.) | 0-0 |
| 24. | Springfield (Mass.) | 3-0 |
| 25. | Chicago (Ill.) | 1-0 |