Men's Wrestling

NJCAA NORTH CENTRAL DISTRICT PREVIEW

NJCAA NORTH CENTRAL DISTRICT PREVIEW
Posted: Feb 11, 2023

Iowa Falls, IA – The No. 12 nationally ranked Indian Hills Men's Wrestling squad is set to open postseason action at the 2023 National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) North Central District Championship on Sunday.

DETAILS: 2023 NJCAA North Central District Championship

Iowa Falls, IA  |  Dittmer Gymnasium

Sunday, February 12  |  10:00 AM

WATCH LIVE: GoHillsTV

TICKETS: Adults ($15), Students/Senior Citizen ($10)

BRACKETS: 125 | 133 | 141 | 149 | 157 | 165 | 174 | 184 | 197 | 285

SCHEDULE

Round 1      20 matches      3/6 & 4/5 seeds
Round 2     20 matches      Semi-finals
Round 3 20 matches      Consolation Semis
Round 4 10 matches 5th/6th Place
Round 5 20 matches      Championship & 3/4th Place
Round 6 True 2nd Place      If needed
     

The Indian Hills Men's Wrestling squad heads to Ellsworth Community College for the 2023 NJCAA North Central District Championship as 10 individuals look to lead the Warriors to a district title and a berth in the upcoming national tournament.

BACK POINTS

The Warriors are set to make their third all-time appearance at the NJCAA North Central District Tournament after another impressive run through the ICCAC regular season.

  • The Warriors enter the tournament after a 5-1 regular season dual record, tied for the most victories in the six-team conference. The Warriors are 15-3 all-time in ICCAC duals.
  • Indian Hills posted the third-most dual points in ICCAC action this year with 164.
  • 13 invidiaul national qualifiers will return to the NJCAA North Central District Tournament on Saturday, including seven returning All-Americans.
  • An ICCAC team has placed in the top-5 at the NJCAA National Tournament in each of the last eight years.

RETURN OF LEWIS, DEBOE

The Warriors will rely heavily on the experience of sophomores Matthew Lewis and Kawaun Deboe who both earned national tournament bids from a year ago.

  • Lewis placed fourth overall at last year's district tournament in the 149lb weight class to earn an automatic berth to the national tournament where he advanced to the consolation semifinal round.
  • Lewis is 15-4 on the year and has earned 32 career victories at Indian Hills, third-most in school history.
  • Deboe enters the district tournament ranked No. 3 in the nation in the heavyweight division after earning All-American honors during his freshman season. DeBoe, who placed third overall at districts last year, finished seventh at the national tournament.
  • Deboe has posted an unblemished 4-0 record in ICCAC duals this year with a pair of falls.
  • Deboe has not lost a match to a junior college opponent this year.
  • "Kawaun and Matthew are two guys that have national tournament experience from last year. These are guys that that the rest of the team will lean on for leadership during the postseason." – Head Coach Cole Spree

BETTICH BECKONS

Freshman standout Riley Bettich has made a statement on the mat in his initial year at Indian Hills. Bettich is set to enter the district tournament as the No. 3 ranked wrestler in the nation in the 125lb class.

  • Bettich has posted a 21-3 overall record on the year. The 21 wins rank second all-time in a single season in Indian Hills history.
  • Bettich is 6-0 in ICCAC duals this year with four falls and two tech falls.
  • Bettich has posted 10 falls on the year, good enough for third all-time in a single season in school history.
  • Bettich's three losses this year have come against the top two ranked individuals in the nation in the 125lb class.
  • The Warriors have earned back-to-back national tournament berths from the 125lb weight class as Chris Busutil captured the 2021 title and placed fifth in 2022.
  • "Riley has put together a huge freshmen season and I am excited to see him make a deep run into the postseason." – Head Coach Cole Spree

LIMON, LINN SURGING 

The late season surge of sophomores Manuel Limon and Cade Linn have aided the Warriors' push into the postseason and have resulted in a pair of individual national rankings.

  • Limon (16-12) has earned the No. 10 rank in the latest 133lb national rankings after a late season push for the Warriors.
  • Limon has won nine matches since January 18, a stretch that includes three dual wins and two ICCAC victories.
  • After not being ranked in the first three polls of the year, Linn (8-2) has climbed to No. 7 in the 184lb division. 
  • Linn is 3-1 in ICCAC duals this year

WARRIORS AT DISTRICTS

Despite just its third year of existence, the Indian Hills Men's Wrestling program has been a force at the NJCAA North Central District tournament in each of the last two years.

  • In its first season of competition, the Warriors shocked the ultra-competitive ICCAC and won the 2021 NJCAA North Central District Championship.
  • The Warriors have won five individual district titles over the last two seasons, including back-to-back titles from Caleb Meekins and Deron Pulliam.
  • In total, the Warriors have earned 20 bids, 10 in each of the last two years to the national tournament following qualification through the district tournament.

NATIONALLY RANKED INDIVIDUALS

26 individual student-athletes represent the ICCAC in the latest NJCAA individual national rankings.

  • Each of the six ICCAC teams are represented in the individual rankings and at least one individual from the conference is ranked in each of the 10 weight classes.
  • Indian Hills boasts four individually ranked wrestlers who will compete the district tournament – No. 3 Riley Bettich (125), No. 10 Manuel Limon (133), No. 7 Cade Linn (184), and No. 3 Kawaun Deboe (285).
  • Iowa Western and Iowa Central sport the most individuals in the rankings with six each.

SPREE'S NOTES

Head coach Cole Spree boasts a wealth of experience at the NJCAA North Central District Tournament. The former Ellsworth All-American and head coach, 2023 marks his 12th trip to the district tournament. Spree has won two district titles (2013 w/ Ellsworth, 2021 w/ Indian Hills) and has twice been named the ICCAC Coach of the Year (2013 & 2019).

"Overall just excited to see our guys compete. They have been wrestling their best at the right time and hopefully it continues this weekend. The competition is going to be tough, but that's to be expected with our conference. In junior college I believe it would be hard to find a conference as deep as the ICCAC. If we want to be in the mix for a team championship in the end, we are going to have to win some big matches and maybe redeem some losses from earlier in the year."

WHAT'S AT STAKE

Individual berths to the NJCAA National Tournament is on the line at the district tournament on Sunday. The top four individuals from each weight class will earn automatic berths to the NJCAA National Tournament with wild card spots available based on total number of participants. 11 individuals earned wild card berths in 2022.

The NJCAA National Tournament is set for March 3-4 at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, IA.

PROJECTED LINEUP

125- #3 Riley Bettich (22-3) – FR – Stevensville, MI

133- #10 Manuel Limon (16-12) – SO – Rock Island, IL

141- Matthew Lewis (15-4) – SO – Centerville, IA

149- Nevertesonne Lahens (3-4) – SO – Immokalee, FL

157- Weston Milnes-Bowers (7-6) – SO – Chandler, AZ

165- Peyton Asbury (8-8) – FR – Brownsburg, IN

174- Lucas Henderson (11-9) – SO – Centerville, IA

184- #7 Cade Linn (8-2) – SO – Elysburg, PA

197- Tobias Bell (7-10) – SO – Chicago, IL

285- #3 Kawaun Deboe (8-3) – SO – Erie, PA