2021 North Central District Championships Preview

Watch the North Central District Wrestling Championships on GoHillsTV.com! 

ICCAC Dual Standings

District Championship Website

NJCAA Wrestling Rankings

North Central District Championships

Date: Sunday, March 7

Time: 10:00 a.m.

Location: Iowa Western Community College - Council Bluffs, IA

Notes: 

Due to COVID-19, there will be no spectators allowed at the six-team event.     

Typically, the district championship serves as the national qualifier for the NJCAA Wrestling Championships qualifying 70% of participants, and as the host region, earning an additional 10 qualifiers. However, due to COVID-19 causing many schools across the country to opt out of the spring season, the NJCAA Wrestling Committee voted in favor of the national championships being an open tournament. Each institution has the ability to enter one wrestler per weight class for a total of 10 from each school.  

Preview

This year's host Iowa Western won their first-ever District Championship in 2020. Currently, the Reivers are ranked No. 5 in the country and lead the ICCAC dual standings at 3-0. They have five wrestlers ranked in the most recent rankings. 

In their first season ever, No. 12 Indian Hills is in second in the standings. Also with three conference wins, the Warriors are 13 team points behind the Reivers. The Warriors boast five wrestlers in the NJCAA rankings. 

Iowa Central, winners of eight of the last 10 district titles, is ranked ninth in the country. Despite being 0-3 in ICCAC duals, the Tritons have seven wrestlers in the NJCAA rankings. 

NIACC has done well so far this season, with four ranked wrestlers, the Trojans are 2-1 in ICCAC duals this season, most recently defeating Iowa Central 26-23 on Feb. 24. The Trojans are No. 7 in the NJCAA poll. 

Iowa Lakes is currently No. 13 in the NJCAA rankings. With a 1-3 record in ICCAC duals, the Lakers have three ranked wrestlers in the latest rankings. 

Rounding out the group is Ellsworth. Unranked, the Panthers entered the 2020 season with a new coach for the second time in two seasons. Last year, they finished second at the District Championship and fifth at Nationals.

History:

WHO TO WATCH

125 lbs

Clarence Lee-Green of NIACC is ranked No. 4 in the country. He went 19-10 last year and currently holds a 2-1 record this year. He was 2-2 at the National Championships last season. Lee-Green is coming off a dominating 35-second pin against Iowa Central last week as he heads into the weekend. 

133 lbs

Caleb Meekins of Indian Hills is ranked 5th while Adian Harris of Iowa Central is 7th. Meekins won the battle of the ranked wrestlers on Feb. 17 in a high-scoring 11-8 decision. 

141 lbs.

Bret Minor of Iowa Central returns this year after finishing in fifth at the District last year. He is ranked 8th in the weight class overall. Creighton Baughman from Iowa Western is No. 5 in the country at 141. The two met back on Feb. 11 and Baughman edged Minor, 5-4. 

149 lbs.

Iowa Central 149-pounder Phil Smith Jr. leads all ICCAC in the rankings at No. 6. Just in front of Indian Hills' Destin Jones. Similar to Meekins & Harris at 133, Smith Jr. and Jones met on Feb. 17 and Smith won by major decision, 10-2. 

157 lbs.

The NJCAAs top 157-pounder is Iowa Western's Isaiah Crosby. Crosby is the reigning NJCAA Champion at the 165-pound weight class, one in which had the top-3 national finishers in 2020. He may face Andrew Gamble from Iowa Central, the No. 6 ranked wrestler and last years' district runner up. 

165 lbs. 

Last year's NJCAA runner up at 165 pounds is NIACC's Christian Minto. The 2020 ICCAC Wrestler of the Year won the District Championship last year but fell to Crosby in the NJCAA Finals. Minto's quest at redemption is on. He entered the 2021 season with a 25-1 career record and has gone 3-0 this season in ICCAC duals. Iowa Central's Keaton Geerts is ranked 5th in the class. Minto dominated their previous matchup, winning by tech fall, 17-2. 

174 lbs

The 174-pound class is loaded. The ICCAC has four wrestlers in the top-8 in the NJCAA. Highest is Jose Rodriguez of Iowa Central. The Triton is 2-1 with his only loss coming to Indian Hills 184-pounder Deron Pulliam. Rodriguez has wrestled at the 184-pound weight twice this year. Rounding out the ranked 174-pounders are Iowa Western's Michael Aguirre, Iowa Lakes' Massoma Endene and Indian Hills' Justin Grant. 

Endene pinned Grant on Feb. 24, and has a record this season of 8-1. His only loss came to Aguirre in sudden victory fashion, 9-8 on Feb. 4. 

184 lbs

Iowa Western's Josh McFarland is the No. 1 ranked 184-pounder in the most recent NJCAA rankings. He finished fourth at the NJCAA Championships last year, and third at Districts. Logan Koedam of Iowa Lakes finished second at Districts last year and is currently ranked 8th in the class. In the middle of those two is Chase McLeish from NIACC coming into the event as the 5th ranked wrestler in the country. 

197 lbs.

While Jose Valdez will represent NIACC as the No. 3 ranked wrestler in the 197-pound weight class. He is 3-0 this season with two pins. Indian Hills' Khris Walton is also 3-0 this season and is No. 6 in the nation. 

HWT

The ICCAC may be saving the best for last. The No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5 ranked wrestlers in the NJCAA are in the 285-pound class. Mitchell Williamson from Iowa Lakes leads the group. He has a sudden-victory win over No. 5 Dillyn Miller of Iowa Western. Miller wrestled at 197 pounds last year, where he finished as an All-American in sixth place. Jorden Pryor from Iowa Central is No. 4. He has a win over Miller as well, and is 3-1 this season with his lone loss to Gannon Gremmel of Iowa State.