2022 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships Website

Cedar Rapids, Iowa - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse wrestling team placed 19th at the 2022 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III Championships Saturday night at the Alliant Energy Powerhouse.  The Eagles finished with 21.5 team points. Wartburg College (Iowa) captured the national title with 79.0 points with Wabash College (Ind.) second with 78.0. 

Augsburg University (Minn.) and North Central College (Ill.) tied for third with 62.5. Stevens Institute of Technology (N.J.) was fifth (46.5) followed by Coe College (Iowa) sixth (40.5), Rochester Institute of Technology (N.Y.) seventh (37.0), Baldwin Wallace University (Ohio) eighth (36.0), Millikin University (Ill.) ninth (34.5) and UW-Oshkosh 10th (33.5). 

UWL's Nolan Hertel and Seth Brossard both earned NCAA Division III All-America honors on Saturday, the first career All-America accolade for both. Hertel, seeded-sixth at 157-pounds, placed fifth on Saturday, going 2-1 on the day. He opened with a decision (1-0) over seventh-seeded Darian Estevez from the University of Chicago (Ill.) in the consolation third round. Hertel lost by decision 3-1) to fifth-seeded Tyler Shilson of Augsburg University (Minn.) in the consolation semifinals before coming back to claim fifth-place with a medical forfeit over second-seeded David Hollingsworth of Wartburg (Iowa).  

Hertel went 4-2 in the two-day championships, finishing the season with a record of 26-5.  He opened the championships on Friday with a win by decision (4-0) over Zarik Anderson of the University of Dubuque (Iowa) before losing by decision (5-3) to Nathan Lackman of Rhode Island College in the quarterfinals. Hertel came back with a win by decision (8-2) over Matthew Sacco of The College of New Jersey in the consolation second round. 

Brossard, seeded-fourth at 165-pounds, earned NCAA III All-America honors with a seventh-place finish Saturday. He lost by decision (8-4) to UW-Eau Claire's Chase Schmidt, the tournament's seventh-seed, in the consolation third round Saturday morning before winning by fall (1:49) over Austin Lamb of Rochester Institute of Technology (N.Y.) in the seventh-place match. 
 

Brossard finished 3-2 in this year's national championships to conclude the year with an overall record of 24-4. He went 2-1 on Friday. After losing by decision (12-6) to Jaden Datz of Washington and Jefferson College (Pa.) in the first round, Brossard won by decision (7-3) over Gabe Fiser of Loras College (Iowa) in the first round of consolations. He won by fall (2:52) over Philip Rogers from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in the consolation second round.

The Eagles' Brandon Murphy went 0-2 at 125-pounds Friday. He lost by decision (10-4) to top-seeded Jacob Decatur of Baldwin Wallace University (Ohio) in the first round and by sudden victory (8-6) to Jack Stanley of the University of Mount Union (Ohio) in the consolation first round. Making his first appearance in the NCAA III Championships, Murphy finishes 12-16 on the season.

Ben Kawczynski, seeded-eighth, went 2-2 on Friday to finish 28-8 this year. He opened with a decision (4-1) over Owen Miller of Albion College (Mich.) in the preliminary round before losing by decision (3-2) to Nico Ramirez of Southern Virginia University in the first round. Kawczynski came back with a victory (2-1) over Max Bishop of Wabash College (Ind.) in the consolation first round, but was eliminated after losing by fall (:59) to Kaleb Reeves of Coe College (Iowa) in the second round of the consolation bracket.

UWL has 22 top-10 finishes at the national championships since joining the NCAA III in 1992, including a school-best second-place showing in 2001, 2006, 2008 and 2010.  The Eagles finished with a school record 106.0 points at the 2006 championships.  The Eagles have had 13 top-four finishes at the national meet. 

The Eagles have claimed 20 (14 wrestlers) NCAA III individual champions.  UWL has now claimed 130 All-America honors in wrestling, including 114 in the NCAA III and 16 in the NAIA. The Eagles had a school record seven wrestlers earn All-America recognition in 2005 and 2006.  Five wrestlers earned National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) All-America honors in 2020, based on overall work through the NCAA Division III Regional Tournaments. 

Dave Malecek completed his 16th season as UWL's head coach in 2021-22. He has led the Eagles to top-four finishes at the NCAA III Championships in seven different years.  UWL placed second in 2008 and 2010, third in 2007, 2009 and 2011 and fourth in 2012 and 2013.  Malecek has led UWL to 11 WIAC titles (2007-11, 2017-22) and been selected the Mertz Mortorelli WIAC Coach of the Year on seven occasions (2007-11, 2015, 2017).  UWL has earned the WIAC Coaching Staff of the Year Award the last five seasons (2018-22).  Malecek was named the 2020 NCAA III Upper Midwest Regional Coach of the Year after leading the Eagles to a second-place finish after nine (out of 10) wrestlers placed in the top-four.