Central’s Van Kley named regional wrestling coach of the year
Central Dutch Athletics
MANHEIM, PA.—Another stellar campaign at the helm of the Central College wrestling team yielded head coach Eric Van Kley the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Lower Midwest Regional Coach of the Year award Friday night.
The NWCA presents the honor to a head coach in each of the six regions that has demonstrated outstanding effort throughout the season in developing and elevating their program on campus and in the community. The awards are sponsored by Defense Soap, the official hygiene partner of the NWCA.
Each of the six region winners is now eligible for the NWCA National Coach of the Year, which will be announced Thursday, March 7.
In his 12th season with the Dutch, Van Kley was tabbed for the honor for the second time having previously led the 2015-16 Regional Coaching Staff of the Year.
Van Kley led the Dutch to a No. 12 Division III national ranking and a 13-3 dual mark, equaling his record for most season wins at Central, set in 2011-12 (13-11). The squad’s .812 winning percentage is the program’s highest since 1991-92.
In the classroom, Central’s wrestlers maintain a 3.05 grade point average. The team visits an adopted third-grade classroom at Lincoln Elementary School in Pella monthly. Senior team captain Jeremy Vester (Oak Harbor, Wash.) initiated and leads the Wakanda group on campus for Central’s African-Americans students. Van Kley has also spoken to Central’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter as well as local high school and youth club teams.
Chair of the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships Committee, Van Kley also spent a year as NWCA president after two years as president-elect.
Van Kley also is in his seventh year as Central’s athletics director. Prior to joining the Central staff, he served as had coach for three seasons at the University of Great Falls (Mont.), where he was named NAIA West Region coach of the year in 2006-07. He’s a graduate of Minnesota State University-Mankato where he was a team captain and three-year letterwinner.
Van Kley will lead the Dutch into the NCAA Division III Lower Midwest Regional this weekend. The two-day event starts Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. and continues on Sunday at 11 a.m.
