CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Results of the American Rivers Conference Wrestling Preseason Poll (as voted on by the league's head coaches):
| 2023-24 American Rivers Conference Coaches' Preseason Wrestling Poll |
| Rank |
School (1st place votes) |
Points |
2022-23 Dual Meet Record |
| 1. |
Wartburg (8) |
64 |
14-1, 8-0 A-R-C (A-R-C & Regional Champions) |
| 2. |
Coe |
54 |
9-6, 5-3 A-R-C |
| 3. |
Loras (1) |
53 |
16-4, 7-1 A-R-C |
| 4. |
Luther |
40 |
14-6, 5-3 A-R-C |
| 5. |
Central |
35 |
7-5, 4-4 A-R-C |
| 6. |
Dubuque |
33 |
7-8, 4-4 A-R-C |
| 7. |
Simpson |
20 |
6-7, 2-6 A-R-C |
| 8. |
Buena Vista |
15 |
3-13, 1-7 A-R-C |
| 9. |
Nebraska Wesleyan |
10 |
1-12, 0-8 A-R-C |
*Coaches are not permitted to vote for their own teams.
Wartburg is the preseason favorite to win the league's championship after winning the league and regional titles a year ago. The Knights earned 64 points in the poll, recording eight of the nine first-place votes, while coaches are not permitted to vote for their own teams. In a tight vote for second and third, the Coe College Kohawks earned 54 points to be selected to finish in second. The Loras Duhawks picked up 53 points, and one first-place vote, and are selected to finish in third. Luther recorded 40 points to put them at the No. 4 spot. The Dutch of Central tallied 35 points to put them at the No. 5 spot and Dubuque picked up 33 points to earn sixth. Simpson, Buena Vista, and Nebraska Wesleyan finished seventh, eighth, ninth, respectively.
New Coaches: None
The Schedule: The 2023-24 season kicks off on November 2 with Simpson heading to Mount Vernon for a non-conference dual versus Cornell College, out of the Midwest Conference (MWC). Saturday, November 4 is when heavy action begins with Buena Vista and Nebraska Wesleyan heading to Simpson for the Luther Hill Invite, while Central and Luther head to Wisconsin for the Wisconsin-Stevens Point Pointer Open. Dubuque stays at home hosting the Jim Fox Invite. Wartburg opens up their quest to repeat as conference champions beginning with a conference dual at Simpson. Coe and Loras will be seen for the first time on the mats this season on Saturday, November 11 when they head to Decorah for the Luther Open, hosted by Luther College.
The annual A-R-C duals will bring the league's nine institutions into action on Saturday, January 20th. This year's conference duals will take place at Luther College and Wartburg College.
The path to the 2023 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships will begin with the NCAA Lower Midwest Regional. A location and dates of the Lower Midwest Regional are still to be determined. The top three wrestlers from each weight class earn the privilege to compete at the NCAA Championships. Additionally, the top three wrestlers at each weight class from the American Rivers Conference earn All-Conference honors.
2023-24 Season Review: A year ago, the league claimed 21 of the 30 national qualifying spots available at the Lower Midwest Regional. Of those 21, 13 captured All-American honors. The conference saw two national champions from Wartburg,
Zane Mulder (174lbs) and
Massoma Endene (197lbs), on the Knights way to a National Runner-Up team trophy.
Shane Liegel of Loras (184lbs) and
Kaleb Reeves of Coe (285lbs) both finished as runner-up. Loras'
Zeke Smith (157lbs) and Dubuque's
Darryl Aiello (285lbs) finished fourth, while
Dylan Koontz of Dubuque (133lbs) finished in fifth. There were three from the A-R-C who finished in sixth: Wartburg's
Zayren Terukina (141lbs) and
David Hollingsworth (157lbs), and Coe's
LJ Richardson (174lbs). Rounding out the All-Americans from the leauge in seventh place were
Brady Koontz of Dubuque (125lbs) and
Nathan Fuller from Wartburg (165lbs).
Wrestlers of the American Rivers Conference will look to fight their way back to the top of of the national championship award stand in 2024. This year's championship will be held March 15-16 at the La Crosse Center in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
| 1st |
|
Wartburg College
Head Coach: Eric Keller (14th season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 14-1 overall, 8-0 A-R-C (A-R-C & Regional Champions)
2022-23 Conference Finish: 1st
2022-23 NCAA Finish: Runner-Up
Returning All-American(s): 4
All-American(s) Lost: 3
Returning All-Region: 6
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 4
Eric Keller - "Wartburg Wrestling is simply focused on getting better each and every day and reaching our full potential. The one thing we can control is our day-to-day focus, fight, and effort. Our goal is to enjoy the journey, which means having fun every step of the way. The American Rivers Conference is the best wrestling conference in the nation. We feel fortunate to be a part of a conference that understands, appreciates, and values this great sport." |
| Key Returners: |
|
| Joe Pins - 133lbs. (Sr.) |
2x All-American (2022 - 8th; 2021 - 3rd) |
| Nathan Fuller - 165lbs. (So.) |
2023 All-American (7th) |
| Zane Mulder - 174lbs. (Sr.) |
2023 National Champion, 3x All-American (2022 - 4th; 2021 - 2nd) |
| Massoma Endene - 197lbs. (Jr.) |
2023 National Champion |
| 2nd |
|
Coe College
Head Coach: John Oostendorp (23rd Season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 9-6 overall, 5-3 A-R-C
2022-23 Conference Finish: T-3rd
2022-23 NCAA Finish: 12th
Returning All-American(s): 2
All-American(s) Lost: 1
Returning All-Region: 6
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 4
John Oostendorp - "I;m excited to work with this team and see where they can be by the end of the year. We have a strong core group of returning upperclassmen leadership mixed in with a talented incoming class. As always the A-R-C will have some great competition that we are looking forward to competing in." |
| Key Returners: |
|
| Cade Hornback - 125lbs. (Sr.) |
All-Region (4th) |
| Bryce Parke - 133lbs. (Jr.) |
2022 National Qualifier |
| Gabe McGeough - 157lbs. (So.) |
N/A |
| Dylan Falck - 157lbs. (Sr.) |
N/A |
| Will Esmoil - 165lbs. (Sr.) |
2022 All-American (4th) |
| LJ Richardson - 174lbs. (Jr.) |
2023 All-American (6th) |
| Jared Voss - 184lbs. (So.) |
2023 National Qualifier |
| Matt Arenault - 197lbs. (Jr.) |
2022 All-Region (6th) |
| Damari Dancy - Hwt. (Jr.) |
2023 All-Region (6th) |
| 3rd |
|
Loras College
Head Coach: Jeren Glosser (2nd season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 16-4 overall, 7-1 A-R-C
2022-23 Conference Finish: 2nd
2022-23 NCAA Finish: 15th
Returning All-American(s): 0
All-American(s) Lost: 2
Returning All-Region: 4
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 2
Jeren Glosser - "We are very excited for another great year of competition in the toughest conference in Division III, the American Rivers Conference. We returned several tough starters and have added some strong young talent to our lineup. Looking forward to great duals and competition this year!" |
| Key Returners: |
| Eric Kinkaid - 149lbs. (So.) |
2022 National Qualifier (3rd at Regionals); 2022 All-Conference |
| Jalen Schropp - 141lbs. (Sr.) |
2020 NWCA All-American; 2021, 2022, 2023 All-Conference; 2x National Qualifier |
| Gabe Fiser - 157lbs. (Sr.) |
2020 NWCA All-American; 2x National Qualifer; 2021, 2022, 2023 All-Conference |
| Zab Gnida - 174lbs. (Sr.) |
2022 All-Conference |
| 4th |
|
Luther College
Head Coach: Dave Mitchell (28th season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 14-6 overall, 5-3 A-R-C
2022-23 Conference Finish: T-3rd
2022-23 NCAA Finish: 23rd
Returning All-American(s): 0
All-American(s) Lost: 1
Returning All-Region: 6
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 1
Dave Mitchell - "We made some big strides last year with a very young team. Last season we had as many as six freshman in our starting lineup and were still able to place in the top 10 at the NWCA National Duals and the Top 25 at the NCAA Championships. We are excited to keep developing and excited to test that development by competing against the best teams and wrestlers in the country in the American Rivers Conference again this season." |
| Key Returners: |
| Clayton McDonough - 149lbs. (So.) |
National Qualifier; A-R-C Freshman of the Year |
| Bryce McDonough - 157lbs. (So.) |
32-8 Record; 5th at Regionals |
| Cullen Quick - Hwt. (Jr.) |
Ranked as high as #5 in 2022-23 |
| Chrisitan Chavez - 133lbs. (Sr.) |
2020 All-American; Regional Placewinner |
| Ryan Cripe - 141lbs. (Jr.) |
Regional Placewinner |
| Connor Kidd - 125lbs. (So.) |
23-9 Record |
| 5th |
|
Central College
Head Coach: Eric Van Kley (17th season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 7-5 overall, 4-4 A-R-C
2022-23 Conference Finish: T-5th
2022-23 NCAA Finish: N/A
Returning All-American(s): 0
All-American(s) Lost: 0
Returning All-Region: 2
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 1
Eric Van Kley - "Very excited for the upcoming season. Central Wrestling has a good balance of returning experience along with new faces. Also looking forward to the overall schedule of our conference and competition nationally." |
| Key Returners: |
| Brock Beck - 133lbs. (Sr.) |
Nationally Ranked |
| Pierre Baldwin - 141lbs. (So.) |
All-Region |
| Gage Linahon - 197lbs. (Sr.) |
2023 Regional Finalist; National Qualifier |
| 6th |
|
University of Dubuque
Head Coach: Jon McGovern (20th season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 7-8 overall, 4-4 A-R-C
2022-23 Conference Finish: T-5th
2022-23 NCAA Finish: 8th
Returning All-American(s): 2
All-American(s) Lost: 1
Returning All-Region: 5
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 2
Jon McGovern - "The group of men returning to the team has a very strong work ethic and ability. They are looking to build on the top eight NCAA Championship finish. Having three NCAA All-Americans last year makes more of the team that is training with them believe they can do it as well. This season we are looking to build on our national team finish and have more NCAA All-Americans. The conference is the toughest in the nation and helps prepare our guys to be the best they can be. We are looking forward to the work ahead of us." |
| Key Returners: |
N/A |
| 7th |
|
Simpson College
Head Coach: Dylan Peters (5th season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 6-7 overall, 2-6 A-R-C
2022-23 Conference Finish: 7th
2022-23 NCAA Finish: N/A
Returning All-American(s): 0
All-American(s) Lost: 1
Returning All-Region: 0
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 0
Dylan Peters - "We lost a great group of seniors but have a solid group of young guys to keep the progress that group started." |
| Key Returners: |
|
| Shane Mathias - 197lbs. (Fifth Year) |
Round of 12 - Lower Midwest Regional |
| Kanin Hable - 125lbs. (So.) |
Round of 12 - Lower Midwest Regional |
| 8th |
|
Buena Vista University
Head Coach: Sean White (3rd season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 3-13 overall, 1-7 A-R-C
2022-23 Conference Finish: 8th
2022-23 NCAA Finish: N/A
Returning All-American(s): 0
All-American(s) Lost: 0
Returning All-Region: 1
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 0
Mark Rial - "Keep Building, Every Dam Day." |
| Key Returners: |
| Axel Hernandez - 149lbs. (Redshirt Sr.) |
8th in Regionals - 2023 |
| 9th |
|
Nebraska Wesleyan University
Head Coach: Brandon Bradley (8th season)
2022-23 Dual Record: 1-12 overall, 0-8 A-R-C
2022-23 Conference Finish: 9th
2022-23 NCAA Finish: N/A
Returning All-American(s): 0
All-American(s) Lost: 1
Returning All-Region: 1
Returning NCAA Qualifiers: 0
Brandon Bradley - "Looking forward to the upcoming season as we have added depth to different weight classes. I'm excited to see young and older guys step up this season to represent our program and the top conference in the country the right way!" |
| Key Returners: |
|
| Isaiah Graves - 125lbs. (So.) |
N/A |
| Jared Gallub - 149lbs. (Jr.) |
N/A |
| Travis Guzman - 157lbs. (Jr.) |
N/A |
| Zeth Gerkensmeyer - 174lbs. (Sr.) |
2x Regional Placer |
| Rylee Iburg - 184lbs. (So.) |
N/A |
