CLEVELAND, Ohio - Third-ranked Shane Ruhnke of Millersville tacked up the first seven points of the match to stake claim to an early lead and hand senior
Rodney Shepard his only loss of the 165-pound tournament in Saturday evening's national championship match inside Cleveland's Wolstein Center.
The performance marked the sixth time in the last eight years that a UNCP wrestler has advanced to a national title matchup, including a trio of national championship performances. It also marked the highest national finish for Shepard who wrapped up his collegiate career with a 50-19 record, including a 32-8 mark as a member of the Black & Gold. A two-time all-American, Shepard finished fifth at last year's NCAA Division II National Championships.
The Braves racked up 17-1/2 points across the two-day tournament and settled into 21
st place when the dust cleared. The finish placed the Black & Gold among the nation's top 25 teams for the 13th-straight season.
| 125 Pounds |
No. 6 Nick Daggett (UNCP) dec. Josiah Seaton (Colorado State Pueblo) D 5-2
No. 7 Cole Laya (Wheeling Jesuit) dec. No. 6 Nick Daggett (UNCP) D 5-3
No. 4 Marcus Povlick (McKendree) dec. Nick Daggett (UNCP) D 8-1 |
| 133 Pounds |
No.2 D'Andre Brumfield (Colorado State Pueblo) dec. Ronnie Pietro (UNCP) D 6-1
Timmy Martinez (Newberry) dec. Ronnie Pietro (UNCP) D 4-3 |
| 149 Pounds |
No. 10 Gavin Londoff (Lindenwood) dec. Kaleb Warner (UNCP) D 6-2
Kaleb Warner (UNCP) dec. John Gahagan (Belmont Abbey) D 9-2
No. 2 James Pleski (St. Cloud State) dec. Kaleb Warner (UNCP) SV-1 5-3 |
| 157 Pounds |
Corey Falleroni (Pitt-Johnstown) dec. Tyler Makosy (UNCP) D 6-0
James Wimer (Findlay) maj. dec. Tyler Makosy (UNCP) M 13-3 |
| 165 Pounds |
No. 2 Rodney Shepard (UNCP) dec. No. 7 Kyle Jolas (Lindenwood) D 10-5
No. 2 Rodney Shepard (UNCP) dec. Jason Buhr (Colorado Mesa) D 10-5
No. 2 Rodney Shepard (UNCP) dec. Koery Windham (Adams State) SV 3-1
No. 3 Shane Ruhnke (Millersville) disqualification No. 2 Rodney Shepard (UNCP) DQ |
| 174 Pounds |
Faris Teia (UNCP) dec. Devin Crawl (Central Oklahoma) D 4-1
No. 5 Nick Foster (McKendree) dec. Faris Teia (UNCP) D 3-1
No. 10 Gino Sita (Alderson Broaddus) dec. Faris Teia (UNCP) TB-1 6-5 |
| 184 Pounds |
No. 9 Brandon Sloop (UNCP) dec. Nathan Bowlen (Seton Hill) D 8-4
No. 1 Jeff Reimel (Kutztown) pinned No. 9 Brandon Sloop (UNCP) F 2:58
Brock Biddle (Pitt-Johnstown) pinned No. 9 Brandon Sloop (UNCP) F 3:36 |
| 197 Pounds |
| No Entry |
| 285 Pounds |
| No Entry |
