INDIANAPOLIS – A season-high seven South Dakota State wrestlers are included in the final regular season NCAA Coaches’ Panel Rankings, which were announced Thursday.
Continuing to lead the way for the Jackrabbits is senior 133-pounder Seth Gross.
A junior from Apple Valley, Minn., the returning NCAA runner-up is undefeated in 133-pound matches this season at 21-0 (21-1 overall). Gross has been ranked No. 1 throughout the entire 2017-18 season and ranks fifth for RPI (rating percentage index) in his weight class.
Joining Gross with a top-10 ranking is senior David Kocer, who ranks 10th in the 174-pound weight class. A Wagner native and two-time NCAA qualifier, Kocer also stands ninth in RPI after compiling a 21-5 record during the regular season.
Fellow returning NCAA qualifiers Nate Rotert and Luke Zilverberg rank 11th and 12th in the 197- and 157-pound weight classes, respectively.
A senior from Spearfish, Rotert is in line for his fourth consecutive trip to nationals after posting a 22-3 record so far this season. He also ranks 10th for RPI.
A senior from Belle Plaine, Minn., Zilverberg leads the team in victories this season with 24 against seven losses. He stands 14th for RPI.
Also remaining in the rankings were 125-pounder Connor Brown and Martin Mueller at 184 pounds. Brown, a freshman from Oak Grove, Mo., is 21st in his weight class and an RPI of 23 after turning in an 18-12 record through the regular season.
Mueller, from Rapid City, remained 20th in the coaches’ rankings with an RPI of 15 after compiling a 21-4 overall record so far this season.
Cracking the coaches’ rankings for the first time was sophomore Henry Pohlmeyer, who appeared at No. 31 in the 141-pound rankings. A winner in eight of his last nine matches, Pohlmeyer has upped his season record to 19-7 overall.
In addition, the conference allocations for the upcoming NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships were announced Thursday by NCAA officials. The Big 12 Conference, of which SDSU is an affiliate member, was awarded 45 spots out of next week’s conference tournament, including a minimum of three qualifiers at all 10 weight classes. The Big 12’s 45 allocations ranked third among the eight conferences included in the allocations. The Big Ten had 80 and the Eastern Intercollegiate Wres-tling Association 47.
The Big 12 was given seven spots at 125 pounds, five at 133, three at 141, five at 149, three at 157, six at 165, five at 174, four at 184, four at 197 and three at 285.
After all of the qualifying events have concluded, the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee will meet to select the remaining 47 at-large qualifiers, which will be announced on March 6. All weight classes will consist of 33 wrestlers. The at-large selections will be made based on the fol-lowing criteria: head-to-head competition, quality wins, coaches’ ranking, results against common opponents, RPI, qualifying event placement and winning percentage.
SDSU’s postseason run begins with the Big 12 Wrestling Championships March 3-4 in Tulsa, Okla. The NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships are slated for March 15-17 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.
Photo from www.gojacks.com.
