And That's a Career - A final salute to the Class of '25 - NCAA Division 2 149 lbs

 

Nick James
Nebraska-Kearney

You know my love for redemption stories.  Nick James story was a very rewarding one.  7th as a freshman & 5th as a sophomore, James finished one match shy of D2 All American honors as a junior.  He came back in a very big way for his final season of collegiate wrestling, making the NCAA Division II finals!  He was also 1st-3rd-1st-1st at Super Region VI. 

Dean Noble 
Western Colorado

What a rewarding career it was for Dean Noble.  A three-time NCAA Division II qualifier, Noble was 1st-2nd-3rd at Super Region VI, earning 7th & 4th place D2 All American honors.  He also made the Midwest Classic Finals this year. 

Jackson Hoover
Indianapolis

Also a scholar All American, Jackson Hoover earned NCAA D2 All American honors of 5th place in his final season of collegiate wrestling.  He was 4th-3rd-1st at Super Region IV. 

Joey Semerad
McKendree

In his final season of collegiate wrestling, Joey Semerad demonstrated how it can often be tougher to earn a medal at the Midwest Classic, than the NCAA D2 tournament.  One match shy of placing at MWC, Semerad would not be denied at nationals, earning 7th place All American honors.  The past two seasons he was 2nd & 3rd at Super Region IV. 

John Carayiannis
Belmont Abbey

Zoitos "John" Carayiannis earned D2 All American honors of 6th in both his freshman & sophomore seasons.  Unfortunately, he was never able to capture All American honors again, but he did have many other ups in his career, including placing 3rd-2nd-1st in his last three Super Region III's. 

Colby Njos
St Cloud State

Colby Njos put together a strong career for the Huskies, placing 1st & 3rd in the last two Super Region V's.  On the season he had a 4-3 decision over D2 champion Cael Larson. 

Torry Early
Chadron State

A match shy of D2 qualification last year as a junior, Torry Early would not be denied in his final season, capturing runner-up honors at Super Region VI. 

Jake Piccirilli
UNC-Pembroke

As a rouge writer without a major publication backing me, I sometimes wonder who all is reading me?  Is it fellow fans, such as myself?  Do any actual coaches or wrestlers read JT#1? When I first started covering NCAA D2 years ago, the first D2 wrestler to start following me via Twitter was Jake Piccirilli.  I enjoyed watching him have an outstanding career for the Braves of UNC-Pembroke, that just about saw him qualify for the NCAA DII national championships on four occasions.  Missed it by a mere hair his sophomore season.  3rd-4th-3rd-2nd at Super Region II. 

James Ryan
Kutztown

The Long Island, New York native spent time at both Gannon & Kutztown, where he enjoyed success for both programs.  A three-time NCAA DII qualifier, with finishes of 2nd-3rd-3rd at the Super Region. 

Wyatt Turnquist
Northern State

Every season there are a lot of really good wrestlers in NCAA Division II wrestling that miss out on the National tournament because of how few qualifiers there are.  If I had to narrow it down to the very best, I might say Wyatt Turnquist, because if he isn't the best, he is certainly one of them.  3rd in the D2 nation as a sophomore, Turnquist was the victim of an insanely tough Super Region V.  3rd-3rd-5th-4th in the Region, on the year he had a 3-0 win over D2 champ Cael Larson.  He also defeated D2 runner-up Nick James 7-1.  On another day, Turnquist could've very well been a D2 champ himself.  3rd-1st-4th at the Midwest Classic these past three seasons. 

And That's a Career - A final salute to the Class of '25 - NCAA Division 2 141 lbs

 

Christian Small
Lake Erie

I tell you what, 141 lbs in NCAA Division II broke my heart in many ways this season.  I was always hoping to see Christian Small win an NCAA II title during his career, but between bad luck & injury, things unfortunately didn't work out that way.  An NCAA DII runner-up as a sophomore, he had a nightmare tournament as a junior going 0-2 & this year injury saw him finish a match shy of D2 All American honors.  3rd-1st-1st at Super Region III, he was the Midwest Classic runner-up this season.  When it comes to class & sportsmanship, one of the best ever. 

Brayden Lowery
Indianapolis

Braydon Lowery fought hard to earn the varsity spot at Indianapolis this season & made the most of it by winning Super Region IV & finishing one match shy of D2 All American honors. 

Angel Flores
Adams State

Angel Flores ended an outstanding collegiate career as a two-time NCAA D2 qualifier, with an All American finish of 4th in 2024.  Was 3rd & 2nd at Super Region VI. 

Cayden Henschel
UW-Parkside

As said when I spoke of Small,  141 lbs in D2 was very heartbreaking this year.  Cayden Henschel seemed to have done everyone in D2, except make All American honors.  Not only did he seem poised to make the award stand, he looked like he was going to stand a top of it.  He beat everyone this year. Wins over nearly everyone who made All American honors.   Yet come Super Region V time, a tournament he had previously finished 1st & 2nd at, things fell apart for him & he took 5th.   I've spoken of this many times already this season, but the fact that many celebrated his tragedy, I find injudicious & concerning.   Henschel was very self-promoting, but I never saw him degrade anyone else. It's like in wrestling so many want the sport to grow in terms of popularity & viewership, yet they want the masses to come to us like the Prince who suddenly shows up to awaken Cinderella & Sleeping Beauty with a kiss out of nowhere.  It doesn't work that way.  It's us that has to attract them.  It takes going the extra mile and doing things like what Henschel did, which in many ways takes a lot of courage.  I personally think he was one of the best things to happen to D2 wrestling.   His highlights were the prestigious Midwest Classic, where he was 8th-3rd-1st. 

Grayson DiBlasi
Colorado School of Mines

While Cayden Henschel is probably the best to not qualify for the NCAA DII championships this year at 141 lbs, Grayson DiBlasi is a very, very close second.  An unorthodox wrestler, who made it up as he goes, this is a guy I'm going to miss seeing on the mat.  You knew any time he stepped his toe to the line, as Doc Brown would say in Back to the Future you were about to see some serious shit.   3rd & 2nd in his first two Super Region VI tournaments, DiBlasi was a victim of loaded brackets in both his junior & senior years, finishing 5th & 4th.  Matter of fact, in his final collegiate match, he gave Johnny Lopez a tough 11-9 match.  Lopez went on to win the D2 title.   DiBlasi was 7th-7th-4th at the Midwest Classic. 

Mason Myers
Pittsburgh-Johnstown

An NCAA DII qualifier last year as a junior with a 2nd place finish at Super Region I, Mason Myers came up a little short in his final attempt as he finished 5th at Super Region I.