LINK – ASHLAND UNIVERSITY WRESTLING PAGE
Ashland University wrestling is ranked 11th in the Division II Wrestling Coaches Association Top 25 national preseason poll that was released Friday (Oct. 20) afternoon.
Four Eagle wrestlers were ranked in their individual weight classes. Redshirt senior Luke Cramer is first at 197 pounds, junior Chandler Minnard is eighth at 141, redshirt sophomore Bret Romanzak is eighth at 165 and junior Deaken McCoy is 10th in the 285 class.
AU also earned a No. 11 preseason ranking in 2016 in the D2Wrestle.com national poll. The Eagles went on to place sixth as a team at the national tournament in Birmingham, Ala.
Cramer earned All-American honors in 2017 by placing third at nationals following a regional title. Minnard, Romanzak and McCoy all qualified for nationals last season with fourth-place performances at regionals, but did not earn All-American status.
Redshirt seniors Jordan Murphy and Bob Mason were left off of the preseason rankings despite having qualified for nationals in the past. In his second consecutive trip to nationals, Murphy garnered his first All-American award in 2017 by placing sixth. He also was a regional champion last season.
Mason was the regional runner-up in 2016, but did not place at the national tournament.
The Eagles begin their season Nov. 5 at 9:30 a.m. at the Michigan State Open in East Lansing, Mich.
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