Hulegaard hopes to make BVU history at Division III wrestling nationals
Posted: Friday, March 07, 2008
STORM LAKE, Iowa -- Justin Hulegaard will look to become Buena Vista University's first four-time NCAA Division III All-American in the sport of wrestling when the Division III Championships start today and conclude Saturday at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids.
Hulegaard, who has a 28-6 record and is ranked seventh nationally at 133 pounds, is one of three participating Beavers. Aaron Cook (30-4 at 145) and Julian Mancha (21-10 at 165) will mark their national tournament debuts.
Cook and Mancha earned automatic bids following their second and third-place finishes, respectively, at the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships. Hulegaard advanced to nationals with a wild-card berth following his fifth-place finish.
A senior from Anoka, Minn., Hulegaard has already won three All-American awards, but is the only wrestler in BVU history to do so at the same weight class each year. He placed fifth at the national tournament as a freshman, was third as a sophomore and fourth last year.
Hulegaard is seeded eighth heading into a first-round match against Phillip Greene from the Merchant Marine Academy. Greene has won two straight Centennial Conference titles.
The eighth-ranked and eighth-seeded Cook will get a first-round bye, then will face 10th-ranked Matt Mauseth of Wisconsin-LaCrosse in the second round. Cook has won 11 of his last 12 matches.
Mauseth's teammate, top-seeded and top-ranked Tim Palmer, will face Mancha in the second round. Mancha, who has won seven of his last 10 bouts, got a first-round bye.
Hulegaard, who has a 28-6 record and is ranked seventh nationally at 133 pounds, is one of three participating Beavers. Aaron Cook (30-4 at 145) and Julian Mancha (21-10 at 165) will mark their national tournament debuts.
Cook and Mancha earned automatic bids following their second and third-place finishes, respectively, at the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships. Hulegaard advanced to nationals with a wild-card berth following his fifth-place finish.
A senior from Anoka, Minn., Hulegaard has already won three All-American awards, but is the only wrestler in BVU history to do so at the same weight class each year. He placed fifth at the national tournament as a freshman, was third as a sophomore and fourth last year.
Hulegaard is seeded eighth heading into a first-round match against Phillip Greene from the Merchant Marine Academy. Greene has won two straight Centennial Conference titles.
The eighth-ranked and eighth-seeded Cook will get a first-round bye, then will face 10th-ranked Matt Mauseth of Wisconsin-LaCrosse in the second round. Cook has won 11 of his last 12 matches.
Mauseth's teammate, top-seeded and top-ranked Tim Palmer, will face Mancha in the second round. Mancha, who has won seven of his last 10 bouts, got a first-round bye.
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