Augsburg, Wartburg, Wartburg, Augsburg. Add in one Johnson & Wales, and we pretty much have the last 34 years of who's #1 in NCAA D3 wrestling. I can't help but think that one of these seasons, Roanoke will be added to the discussion. The team has only been around for what will now be six seasons, but it's as obvious as is the nose on your face that Nate Yetzer wants a big gold trophy on display in the case.
The Maroons do lose some very valuable talent this season, but they also bring back a heap load of talent as well. Should be a great year for Roanoke.
90 career wins & 8th in the D3 nation in 2025, Mac Cafurello closes out his career as a Regional IV champion. 3rd-2nd-1st in D3's toughest in-season tournament of the year, the Pete Willson Invitational.
Isiac Paulino may not have been varsity this season, but still great career with a D3 R12 finish to his name.
Jude Robison had a great ending to his phenomenal career. 3rd in the D3 nation, he collected gold at both Regional IV & Pete Willson.
What a standout career Mark Samuel had. After finishing 6th at Regional IV as a freshman, he'd earned NCAA D3 qualification with 3rd-3rd-1st finishes. A National champion as a junior, he finished 3rd in the D3 nation as a sophomore & 2nd as a senior. 83 career wins.
Nick Cook finished off his career 3rd at Regional IV, a match shy of being an NCAA D3 All-American & 5th at Pete Willson.
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| 141 Jonah Paulino |
A match shy of being an NCAA D3 All-American in 2025, Jonah Paulino posted a 14-1 record last season.
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| 149 Taylor Smith |
Taylor Smith looks to make history this season, as he will go for the honor of becoming a four-time Regional IV champion. 23-8 on the year, he was the runner-up at the Wilkes Invitational & Pete Willson.
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| 157 Casey Smith |
An NCAA D3 qualifier in 2025, Casey Smith missed qualification number two by one match last season. 24-8 on the year, he was 3rd at Pete Willson.
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| 165 Cade Parent |
28-11 on the year, Cade Parent was 2nd at Regional IV & 6th at Pete Willson.
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| 165 Taven Williams |
To illustrate the amount of depth that Roanoke has within their lineup, Taven Williams was an Old Dominion Athletic Conference champion last year.
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| 174 Xavier Preston |
Bronze, bronze, silver thus far, Xavier Preston will be going for Regional IV gold this year, as well as looking to climb higher on the NCAA D3 award stand, as he was 8th a year ago.
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| 184 Hunter Moore |
A Regional IV champion last year, Hunter Moore was 6th in the D3 nation & 7th at Pete Willson. 26-8 & a Wilkes Champion.
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| 184 Vincenzo Corvetto |
This really helps to illustrate the depth of talent that Coach Yetzer has on his team. Corvetto was a NCAA D3 qualifier in 2025. He was 3rd at Wilkes last season.
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| 197 Lorenzo Pellot |
I understand the whole, "never leave it in the ref's hands" philosophy. I've been hearing it for almost 35 years. I agree with it, but I also know that we're in a day in age where we should be able to trust officials to make fair calls & just calls. Lorenzo Pellot finished one match shy of D3 All-American honors last season & while I try very hard to not be critical, but instead be praiseful of our referees, I wasn't too happy with some of the calls in his final match. What I am happy with is that he has two more seasons left to do some big things, on top of the big things he's already done. A Regional IV runner-up, he won Pete Willson last year. On top of that, he was a bronze medalist at the PAN-AM championships!
In case I forget to mention it earlier, I think Roanoke is going to be very good this season.
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