ROANOKE, VA – University of Wisconsin-Platteville sophomore Tyler Hannah became the 23rd wrestler in program history to earn NCAA DIII All-America honors inside the Berglund Center. Hannah advances to the 197 pounds semifinals on Saturday. Friday marked the second consecutive trip to the NCAA DIII Championships for Hannah while freshman Aiden Brosinski made his debut at the national event, competing at 157 pounds.
Hannah's first career NCAA All-America honor advances him to Saturday's action while Brosinski fell just short of All-American status with a loss in the consolation second round.
Hannah (32-5) entered the event as the number six seed and went 2-0 on Friday. In the first round, Hannah won with by a decisive 7-0 decision over Dylan Wellbaum (6-3) of Adrian College. With the win in round one, Hannah advanced to Friday night's quarterfinal against the third seed Doug Byrne (6-1) of Baldwin Wallace University. Hannah pinned Byrne (6:12) to secure a place on the podium and keep sights on a title match appearance alive.
Brosinski went 1-2 in Friday's opening day, starting competition against third seed Zeke Smith (16-1) of Loras. Brosinski and Smith remained deadlocked at 0-0 after five minutes of wrestling, but the Duhawk ultimately pulled ahead late for a 2-0 decision to send Brosinski to the consolation first round. The Pioneer bounced back with a big 10-0 major decision over Ryan Whitten (27-8) of Otterbein University in the first consolation round. Brosinski matched up against the fifth seeded and returning All-American Ryan Luth (16-2) of Washington and Lee in the second consolation round. There the winner secured a podium finish and left the other wrapping up their season. Luth took the lead early and pulled ahead for a 13-5 major decision. Brosinski finished his rookie season 26-15 overall, complete with a trip to the National Championships.
Action continues at the NCAA DIII Championships on Saturday, March 11 at 9 a.m.
