The NWCA National Duals are upon us!! Taking place in Cedar Falls, Iowa, hosted by the University of Northern Iowa, they will be taking place this weekend January 9th & 10th! The NCAA DI Duals have been categorized into two pools. Today we'll be taking a look at pool 1 which features, Harvard, Northern Illinois, South Dakota State, Campbell, & Central Michigan. JT1Wrestle has taken a look at all of the duals that will happen in this pool & has put together what I feel will be the best matches.
Let's take a look!
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| #25 Blake West Northern Illinois Vs #22 Brady Roark South Dakota State 125 |
The first half of '25-'26 may not have started off the way that Blake West would have liked, but it sure ended the way he wanted it to. The two-time NCAA DI qualifier is currently on a high, having won the Midlands championship & should be coming into Cedar Falls boosting in confidence. With that noted, Brady Roark is having himself one heck of a solid sophomore season. Currently 11-2, he owns wins over Jore Volk, as well as recent Soldier Salute champion Mack Mauger.
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| #28 Markel Baker Northern Illinois Vs #23 Derrick Cardinal South Dakota State 133 |
This is a match that really intrigues me. We have Markel Baker a junior who has yet to make the NCAA DI national tournament, who is looking like he's definitely making the trip to Cleveland in March. Thus far the Husky is 11-4 on the season, a Michigan State Open title & 8th at the Midlands. His opponent here is Derrick Cardinal, a two-time NCAA DI qualifier, who recently become a three-time CKLV place-winner, going 6th-7th-7th overall.
If Baker can keep this one on the feet, he stands a fighting man's chance. It's not a shoe-in, but the neutral position is a war that Baker can win. If this one goes to the mat, it's over. Cardinal like a lot of Jackrabbits past & current is a monster in the top position. Cardinal's strategy will be to get on top & Baker's strategy should be to avoid bottom.
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| 157 |
I hope Coach Weiss has Jimmy Harrington well rested & mentally prepared for this weekend, cause come Saturday, the Crimson NCAA DI qualifier will be tested. Currently ranked #23, it's been a good season for the senior, taking runner-up honors at the Keystone Classic & placing 8th at the prestigious CKLV.
His toughest challenge here will be #19 Cael Swensen, who ironically enough is also 10-3 on the year. A two-time NCAA DI qualifier, he didn't place at CKLV compared to Harrington's 8th place showing, but against similar opponents, has a much better track record than Harrington.
#22 Mason Shrader won't be much easier, if easier at all. An NCAA DI qualifier in his own right, Shrader is currently 13-4 on the year & he placed 3rd to Harrington's 2nd at Keystone. An opportunity to perhaps show who really was runner-up, had there been wrestle-backs.
Despite not currently being ranked, I wouldn't overlook Landen Johnson either. The Husky recently placed 7th at Midlands & will be coming into these duals looking to knock off some names in an attempt to further make a name for himself.
Johnson will also wrestle Shrader, & the thing to look at here is how similar they are in wins & losses to the same opponents.
Johnson Vs Swensen will also happen, as well Swensen Vs Shrader.
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| 165 |
Things will prove to be exciting at 165 lbs, as they are at 157 lbs. Some may upon a first glance wonder why in the world I'm including Joe Cangro in this write-up. He's unranked, he hasn't really done anything worth noting this season & he currently stands 5-9.
I'll tell you why I include Joe Cangro in this write-up. Cody Walsh. Cangro owns a 9-4 decision over Walsh, whereas Walsh owns a 4-3 victory over #28 Marcus Espinoza-Owens. Bad days, bad match-ups, the unreal amount of parity we have in this sport. I don't need a lecture on it. I've taught the courses. Still it raises an eyebrow for me, when looking at the Crimson taking on the recent 6th place finish of CKLV.
I'm also still excited about what the "other" Ferrari brother can do. We got a small glimpse of his talent this past weekend, as the Camel took a 6th place finish at the Scuffle. Not convinced we've seen him at full capacity yet though. Cangro is a match neither MEO or Ferrari should take lightly, & Ferrari Vs MEO I can see being very good.
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| U.R. Matt Walsh Harvard Vs U.R. Adrian Cramer Central Michigan 184 |
Here's why this match intrigues me. These pool matches on Saturday are important in determining who gets to advance for matches on Sunday. Every match counts & in a dual of Harvard Vs Central Michigan, upsets are vital. Now is there really going to be an upset here at 184? Well, not officially. Neither Matt Walsh or Adrian Cramer are ranked. HOWEVER....
The first time these two met, Cramer wiped the mat with Walsh in a 16-6 major decision. The two have met twice more since that time & Cramer has squeaked by both times with a 4-3 victory. You have to know that Walsh wants this match. He wants to turn those two one-point losses into a win. Cramer goes into this one knowing he's the wolf on top of the mountain, who needs to keep the wolf climbing the mountain from reaching his destination.
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| U.R. Brock Fettig South Dakota State 184 |
And while we're talking 184 lbs, why not add in Brock Fettig. What makes Fettig interesting? Well this...
In comparison to Adrian Cramer, he has a 5-4 loss to Guiseppe Hoose, whereas Cramer has a 4-1 s.v. over Hoose. He also has a 4-1 s.v. over Isaac Dean, whereas Cramer has a 4-1 s.v. loss to Dean. That suggest to me that Fettig Vs Cramer, should be a good match.
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| U.R. Brant Cracraft Campbell 184 |
You thought I was done at 184! Well, I'm NOT! Brant Cracraft is currently 3-10 at the moment & this is why I love dual meets. To be frank, Cracraft probably isn't going to be top 33 by season's end. Probably won't have a winning record by season's end either. What he can do though, is be a hero in the dual meet Vs South Dakota State. He already owns an 8-5 s.v. over Fettig & this would be a bigger stage, at a bigger moment to do so again.
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| HWT |
We'll have some really good wrestling in Pool 1 at HWT. We have #21 Devon Dawson, #32 Bryan Caves & #20 Luke Rasmussen all looking to do battle on day one of the NWCA National Duals.
Hard to believe with as well as he's been wrestling this season that the former Pratt NJCAA standout Devon Dawson has yet to make the NCAA DI championships. Currently 15-5 on the season he was 8th at CKLV, as he made the finals of the Midlands.
Bryan Caves, currently 12-5 on the season was 5th at the Midlands.
Luke Rasmussen, an NCAA DI qualifier last year, was recently 7th at CKLV, with a 7-2 sudden victory over Dawson.
What really sticks out to be here is that Caves nearly tech'd Rasmussen the last they met 14-1. Yet I don't see that, as dominatingly one sided as it was, the guarantee for this match the way you think I would. Rasmussen is weird that way. He's turned some very ugly losses into respectable losses. Hell, he's turned some very ugly losses into wins! It'll be interesting to see what happens on Saturday.
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