INDIANAPOLIS – Findlay officially saw its first action on the mat with Tiffin as the second season award for Great Midwest Athletic Conference Wrestling Athlete of the Week was officially announced on Tuesday morning.
 
It was the Oilers and the Dragons taking part at the Indianapolis Duals on Saturday with the host Greyhounds (GLVC) and Davenport (GLIAC) also competing. Findlay and Tiffin both defeated Davenport while more seasoned No. 11-ranked UIndy, wrestling its third dual of the season, had the upper hand against both Great Midwest programs.
 
It officially sets the stage for the Great Midwest Wrestling Championship scheduled to be conducted this Saturday at 9 AM CT (10 AM ET) from the campus of Kentucky Wesleyan College with six teams in attendance.
 
Associate member Ashland will be making its debut with the Great Midwest with the Eagles officially joining the league as a full member in 2021-22. Lake Erie recently completed its wrestle-offs during the weekend and Kentucky Wesleyan has a handful of duals already completed. Ohio Valley's first anticipated mat action of the year will presumably be on Saturday.
 
The entirety of the championship event will be streamed on the Great Midwest Digital Network with separate video streams on Mat 1 and Mat 2 inside the Woodward Recreation & Health Center. The brackets for each weight class will also be updated in real time through TrackWrestling.
 
After conducting team dual championships for the previous two seasons (2019 Lake Erie champion, 2020 Tiffin champion), this year's conference championship format will have a different look as teams ramp up their preparation for super regionals and hopefully nationals.
 
The top three performers at each weight class on Saturday will be awarded all-conference status. Two different wrestlers from each school are allowed to be entered in each weight while the highest advancing wrestler will count toward team point totals. The Elite 23 Award winner and the Great Midwest Wrestler of the Meet will also be announced during the awards ceremony later in the afternoon.
 
Due to COVID-19 precautions established by the host institution, there will not be fans permitted in the facility on Saturday.
 
 
Wrestling Athlete of the Week
James Wimer
Findlay
157 lb.
RS Senior
Grove City, OH (Central Crossing HS)
 
The last time Wimer saw the mat, it was during the 2019 NCAA Championships as he claimed Division II All-American status for the Oilers. He redshirted last season, still giving head coach Shawn Nelson and his program an absolute beast in the middle weights for teams to contend with.  
 
Wimer put his talents on display at the Indianapolis Duals on Saturday at UIndy, earning bonus points in both of his matches to start the 2020-21 campaign.
 
He didn't show any signs of rust in a highly-anticipated matchup against UIndy's Dawson Combest, a national qualifier from a year ago (2020 NCAA Championships were canceled due to COVID).
 
Wimer is currently ranked third by Intermat and Combest is ranked fourth, respectively.
 
His other nationally-ranked and NCAA qualifier teammate, No. 12 Zachary Collins, set the tempo for Findlay with a victory via decision at 125 pounds. Wimer then added four points to UF's team total with an 11-2 major decision over Combest.
 
In the 32-18 team win over Davenport, Wimer recorded his first pin of the season with a 2:55 stick of Levi Six. Wimer is now 31-14 in the Great Midwest and his win percentage of .689 is top 10 in conference history.
 
This is his first conference career weekly honor. His older brother, Josh, was also an NCAA All-American for Findlay in 2019 at 149 pounds.