Augsburg, the top-ranked team in Division III wrestling, won the team title at the regional for the seventh straight year with 159 points, outdistancing second-place Concordia-Moorhead's 117.5 points. The Cobbers are ranked No. 8 nationally. No. 6-ranked North Central (Ill.) was third with 105, No. 17-ranked St. John's was fourth with 98.5, and No. 13-ranked Elmhurst (Ill.) was fifth with 95.5.
Four Auggies won regional titles -- top-ranked 149-pounder Willy Holst (SR, Prescott, Wis.), No. 4-ranked 157-pounder Jason Adams (JR, Coon Rapids, Minn.), No. 7-ranked 174-pounder Zach Molitor (SO, Cambridge, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti HS) and No. 2-ranked 197-pounder Jared Massey (JR, Circle Pines, Minn./Centennial HS).
Advancing to the national tournament as regional runners-up for Augsburg were No. 5-ranked 125-pounder Seth Flodeen (SR, Cannon Falls, Minn.), No. 1-ranked 133-pounder Travis Lang (SR, Bismarck, N.D.) and No. 7-ranked heavyweight Andy Witzel (JR, Fulda, Minn.). Augsburg No. 4-ranked 141-pounder Tony Valek (FY, Belle Plaine, Minn./Scott West) placed third, but qualified for nationals by winning a "true second" match, while Witzel also won a "true second" match to secure his nationals spot.
Also advancing to the national tournament for the Auggies was 165-pounder Orlando Ponce (SO, Hialeah, Fla./Hialeah-Miami Lakes HS), who finished third in his weight class but qualified for nationals as a "wild card" entrant.
The Division III national tournament will be held March 6-7 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Augsburg has won 10 national titles in the last 18 seasons.
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