NCAA announces qualifier allocations, final rankings
2/25/2010 12:15:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
 |
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – With the dual meet season coming to an end last weekend and the first scheduled conference tournament scheduled for this weekend, the NCAA released its initial Wrestling Qualifier Allocations as well as the third and final coaches panel rankings and second RPI on Thursday. The NCAA allocated 284 of its 330 NCAA tournament berths to 11 conferences. The EIWA was allocated 41 automatic berths, while Lehigh placed eight wrestlers in the top 33 in both the coaches ranking and RPI.
Leading the way for Lehigh is sophomore Zach Rey who is ranked No. 6 at 285 by the coaches and rates second in the RPI. Senior David Craig is ranked No. 14 at 184, while senior co-captains Matt Fisk and Seth Ciasulli are ranked 15th at 133 and 141 respectively. Freshman Robert Hamlin is ranked 18th at 174, while a trio of sophomores round out the Mountain Hawks ranked in the coaches panel rankings, with Joe Kennedy ranked 16th at 197, Brandon Hatchett coming in at No. 20 at 165 and Sean Bilodeau ranking 26th at 157.
In the RPI rankings, Fisk is the only Lehigh wrestler to be ranked in the top 10 as he is ranked tenth. Hamlin follows at No. 12 and then Ciasulli and Craig are both ranked at No. 16 at their respective weights. Kennedy comes in at No. 21 and Hatchett at No. 26. Freshman Joey Napoli is not ranked in the coaches panel, but owns the No. 29 RPI ranking.
The 41 berths allocated to the EIWA include the top three at each weight class. The 165-pound class earned the most spots with six, while 133 was next with five. Six weight classes (125, 149, 157, 174, 184, 197) will qualify the top four automatically, while 141 and 285 will send the top three finishers to the NCAA Championships, March 18-20 in Omaha, Neb.
The 41 automatic qualifying berths to the NCAA Championships will be determined when Lehigh hosts the 106th EIWA Championships, March 6-7 at Stabler Arena. The remaining 46 at-large qualifiers will be announced March 10 after an in-person meeting of the NCAA Wrestling Committee.
