Final Results
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Tiffin sophomore Nick Mason flexed at the top of the awards podium as a national champion of the 197-pound weight class at the NCAA DII Championships held at the Wolstein Center.
On March 8-9, seven different national qualifiers from the Great Midwest Athletic Conference began their quest with All-American and national title aspirations after emerging out of the tough super regionals.
The conference celebrated four All-Americans as Trey Grine (Tiffin – 149), Josh Wimer (Findlay – 149), James Wimer (Findlay – 157) and Mason (197), all finished in the top eight of their respective weight classes.
Mason pinned three consecutive opponents en route to Saturday’s finals, setting up a showdown with St. Cloud State’s Intermat Wrestle’s top-ranked grappler at 197 who was 34-3 a year ago.
Mason finished nationals with a strong 27-7 record and pulled an impressive comeback victory with a third-period takedown to negate accumulated riding time from Dietz for a 5-2 decision.
In the wrestling circle, Mason’s ascension to the top while being ranked No. 6 nationally, was an exciting one as he put on a show in the winner’s bracket.
Mason pinned his first opponent from Limestone, Clif-Steve Decius in 4:24. He then recorded another fall vs. Dylan McBride of Western Colorado in a time of 5:20. In the semis, it was just 2:39 into the match before Mason stuck Millersville’s Colton Dull to the mat.
Mason qualified for nationals after winning the Super Region III title.
Almost sharing the same celebration with Mason was teammate Trey Grine, who was the national runner-up at 149 pounds.
Grine had a dominant run into the final round with two pins and a major decision to finish his 2018-19 year with a 20-2 overall record.
Grine advanced past his first opponent with a 15-6 major decision before meeting Findlay’s Josh Wimer, a conference opponent, in the second round. Grine pinned Wimer in 1:56 before sticking Newman’s Kameron Frame in the quarterfinals in just 45 seconds.
He was on the short end of a tough decision against Chris Eddins Jr. from Pitt-Johnstown in the 149-pound final. Wimer was an All-American by virtue of his eight-place finish as he faced Kyle Ratman of Minnesota State in the seventh-place match.
Wimer was able to share All-American status with his brother, James, who was sixth place at the 157-pound weight class. Wimer competed in the fifth-place match against Newman’s Tyler Mies and concluded his junior season with a 29-14 record.