Three Dutch wrestlers earn All-America status
CORALVILLE — Three Central College wrestlers became first-time All-Americans after securing top-eight finishes at the NWCA Division III Championships Friday night.
Chase Poston (junior, 125 pounds, Olympia, Wash.), Luis Ramos (sophomore, 141 pounds, Selma, Calif.) and Shandon Akeo (senior, 133 pounds, Honolulu, Hawaii, Kapolei HS) are among the last eight wrestlers at their respective classes, solidifying them as All-Americans.
The final meet of the 2020-21 NCAA Division III wrestling season, the NWCA championship meet featured wrestlers from 34 schools and up to 32 wrestlers in a weight class. In addition to the larger brackets, extensive COVID protocols made for a marathon of a day.
“This is the longest day of wrestling I’ve ever been a part of,” coach Eric Van Kley said. “With COVID testing and all of the hoops we needed to jump through, our guys were in the arena for 14 hours today. It is hard to explain how challenging it is to sustain your energy level and emotions that long.
Unseeded Poston went 3-1, including a 12-2 major decision over No. 2 Cole Kubesh of Concordia – Moorhead (Minn.) to reach the quarterfinals. A third-period takedown and a riding time point gave him a 5-1 consolation win over Parker Brunkala of the United States Coast Guard Academy (Ct.) to seal a top-eight finish
“Chase has totally earned this opportunity,” Van Kley said. “He’s worked as hard as anybody on this team all year. He wrestled with a tremendous amount of confidence today.”
Ramos also went 3-1 with a pair of falls to earn All-America status with a top-eight finish. He beat No. 5 Kyle Slendorn of Stevens Institute of Technology (N.J.) 8-6 in the Round of 16.
“He’s been in a lot of huge matches throughout his life,” Van Kley said. “He knows he can beat anybody and shows so much confidence on the mat. He’s really steady on the mat with a deep confidence and toughness.”
After losing in the opening round against the No. 1 seed in the first round, Akeo rattled off four straight wins, including against No. 7 Levi Englman of Ferrum (Va.) and No. 4 Charlie Pickell of Augsburg (Minn.
“It’s a testament to his determination and his conditioning,” Van Kley said. “The longer and more grueling the day got, the stronger he became. At the end, he was blowing matches open against high-quality opponents.”
Central senior Griffen McBride (184 pounds, Pleasantville) wrapped up his career after a 3-2 day, missing All-America status by one win.
“He’s the consummate servant leader,” “There’s times when Griffen wants it more for other people than himself. He’s left his mark on Central wrestling.”
The other six wrestlers for Central combined to go 9-12 on the day.
Day two for Poston, Ramos and Akeo starts at noon Saturday. Saturday’s action will determine place finishes. All three are in the consolation semifinals.
Results from Friday can be found at https://arena.flowrestling.org/event/bd4e6410-8113-fc33-21d4-4b16a23ffbac
