Where: Pleasant Hill, Iowa
When: Saturday
Start time: 9 a.m. CT
Livestream and on demand: Trackwrestling
What You Should Know
NAIA machine Grand View plays host to a field that features a cast of Northern Iowa stars, NJCAA No. 1 Ellsworth and several other top NAIA programs.
Wrestlers to Watch via Trackwrestling
Josh Alber (Northern Iowa) — Up a weight after reaching the NCAA Championships twice at 133, Alber is ranked 12th at 141.
Dalton Bailey (Life) — Lost to Grand View’s Evan Hansen (see below) in overtime in the NAIA finals last season. He returns as the second-ranked 197-pounder nationally.
Drew Foster (Northern Iowa) — Foster made one of college wrestling’s biggest leaps last season, going from a 15-18 record as a sophomore to a 26-6 mark and an All-America finish as a junior. He’s ranked fourth nationally at 184.
Evan Hansen (Grand View) — Hansen topped off a brilliant freshman season by scoring a 9-7 overtime win against Dalton Bailey in the NAIA finals.
Grant Henderson (Grand View) — Henderson followed up an NAIA runner-up finish as a sophomore by winning a title last season at 165. His only three losses last season came against Division I competition.
Steven Lawrence (Ellsworth) — The top-ranked junior college 157-pounder in the country is a two-time Indiana state high school finalist who earned All-America honors last year for the Panthers as a freshman.
Taylor Lujan (Northern Iowa) — One of the nation’s most entertaining scramblers, Lujan went 29-6 last season as a freshman. He’s ranked ninth at 174 pounds.
Max Thomsen (Northern Iowa) — The third-ranked 149-pounder is coming off a last-second win Sunday against Princeton All-American at the NWCA All-Star Classic.
Josh Wenger (Grand View) — One of Grand View’s five NAIA national champs last year, Wenger posted a 26-2 record at 141. He’s up to 149 this year.