SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (Feb. 25, 2023) – One of the best programs in Division III put itself on display again this weekend as the No. 5 Loras College wrestling team placed third at the NCAA Lower Midwest Regional and saw four Duhawks advance to the NCAA National Championship meet.

The Duhawks placed nine of their 10 wrestlers inside the top six places of their respective brackets on Saturday as they concluded the two-day meet with a third-place finish. Top-ranked Wartburg College claimed the title with 181 points ahead of No. 6 North Central College with 157 points. Loras was next in line with 138 points.

Seniors Shane Liegel and Gabe Fiser were each the victors of their brackets and will be making return trips to the NCAA National Championship meet. Liegel will be making his third appearance at nationals while Fiser has qualified for the second time.

Senior Zeke Smith suffered his first loss of the season in his championship match, but his runner-up finish is enough to earn him his second straight trip to the national championships. Freshman Eric Kinkaid is the fourth Duhawk who will make his way to Roanoke, Va. for the championships as he placed third in his bracket.

Liegel entered the regional meet as the top-ranked wrestler at 184-lbs and as the No. 2 wrestler in his class nationally. His dominance was on full display on Friday as he pinned Westminster College's Christopher Corley in 1:14 before moving on to defeat Cornell College's Cael Mclaren in a 10-1 major decision.

On Saturday, Liegel earned a 6-0 decision over Tristin Westphal, the 15^th-ranked wrestler from Coe College to advance to the championship round. A repeat 6-0 victory, this time over No. 3 Donovan Corn of Luther College, gave the Spring Green, Wis. native the bracket championship and sent him to the national championship meet yet again.

Fiser began his run through the 165-lb bracket with a convincing win of his own as he beat Fontbonne University's Harry Rodriguez by a 12-0 major decision before he defeated Millikin University's Dejon Glaster in a 6-3 decision.

Fiser's next two bouts were as important and impressive as any of his victories this season. In the semifinals, the unranked Duhawk took down the top regional seed and No. 5-ranked Nate Fuller from Wartburg in a dramatic 5-3 sudden victory that guaranteed him a spot in the national championship field, but the Grundy, Va. native wasn't done yet as he finished off his bracket title with a 9-2 decision over North Central's Cole Cervantes.

There weren't many surprises from Smith as the top-ranked wrestler at 157-lbs started with a 15-0 tech fall, a first-round pin, and a 9-3 decision before a stalemate match in the semifinals. A one-point escape for Smith was the only point scored between him and Millikin's Nathan Callaway as Smith took down the No. 8 wrestler to advance to the finals.

Wartburg's David Hollingsworth, who is No. 3 nationally, got the better of Smith in the bracket championship with an 8-1 decision, but despite his first loss of the season, the Prairie du Sac, Wis. native's runner-up finish still sends him to the national championships.

Finally, the freshman Kinkaid narrowly made it through to the national championship after he won each of his first two bouts on Friday. Seventh-ranked Kinkaid started with a first-round pin of Westminster's Wyatt Cooley before blanking Buena Vista University's Axel Hernandez in a 7-0 decision.

Tenth-ranked Bradley Rosen of North Central sent the Camanche, Iowa native to the consolation side of the bracket with a 13-4 decision, but the freshman responded with a 9-2 win over Central College's Pierre Baldwin to advance to the third-place match.

Kinkaid prevailed with a 4-3 decision over the University of the Ozark's Jake Dado in a suspenseful win-or-go home match that secured the Duhawk freshman a spot at the national championships.

While they may have fallen short of qualifying for nationals, the Duhawks got strong showings from Wyatt Wriedt (4^th – 285), Zeb Gnida (5^th – 174), Jared Hensley (6^th – 125), Jalen Schropp (6^th – 149), and Colin Murphy (6^th – 197) as they all finished near the top of their respective brackets and helped lift the team to a third-place finish.

Loras' four national qualifiers will head off to Roanoke, Va. in just over a week's time as they will get set to compete at the NCAA Division III Wrestling National Championships on Friday-Saturday, March 10-11.   Ferrum College will serve as the host of the event at The Berglund Center.