NCAA Championships Digital Program
Grantham, PA - It has been more than 10 years since Messiah College has sent multiple competitors to the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. That streak is coming to an end this year, as seniors
Matt Cross and
Tim Stewart are set to travel to the annual showdown in La Crosse, Wis.
Cross and Stewart, former roommates during their four-year careers with the Falcons, will both be looking to earn the wrestling program's first
All-American since Craig Gin in 2009. That year, Gin took 7th place in the 157 lb. weight class.
Messiah's last NCAA Champion in wrestling was the College's first NCAA National Champion in any sport-- individual or team-- when Mike Helm took 1st place in the 157 lb. weight class in 2000.
Cross (174) takes a 37-6 record in 2011-12 into Wisconsin this weekend. His honors this year include 1st place finishes in the Messiah Invitational and
Petrofes Invitational. He placed 2nd in the Roger Williams Invitation and 5th at the
Wheaton College Invitational. Matt finished 2nd overall in the Empire Collegiate Wrestling Tournament held at the end of February.
Earlier this year, Cross became the 13th wrestler in
Messiah College history to earn his 100th career win. He did so one week before classmate
Tim Stewart earned his 100th win in the
team's win over Elizabethtown College.
Stewart (184) arrives in his second consecutive NCAA Championships
following an appearance last year. He will be looking to earn his first win in the tournament after dropping his first two match-ups in 2011.
He holds a 34-5 record in 201-12, including a 1st place, championship-defending finish in the Empire tournament. Following an early-season injury that slowed the start to his competitive bouts, he went on to earn a 1st place finish in the Petrofes Invitational, and 2nd and 7th place finishes in the Wilkes Invitational and Wheaton College Invitational, respectively.
Cross, Stewart, and Messiah head coach
Bryan Brunk will leave on Wednesday of this week to travel to the Championships at the La Crosse Center in La Crosse, Wis. They will practice this week before starting their competitive matches on Friday, March 9. The Championships conclude on Saturday, March 10.
Be sure to follow GoMessiah.com for additional updates on the coverage of the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships.
