BROOKINGS – South Dakota State will have a school record eight wrestlers competing in the NCAA championships this weekend in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and action will begin on Thursday.
Tanner Sloan, A.J. Nevills, Clay Carlson, Cade DeVos, Tanner Cook, Cael Swensen, Cade King and Tanner Jordan will all be competing for the Jackrabbits in Tulsa. SDSU head coach Damion Hahn said having eight guys qualify for nationals is huge for the program.
“It’s huge, it really is. We’re taking the most we’ve ever taken. Taking eight guys is just another step in the direction of where we want to be. It’s kind of a confirmation that what we’re doing is right. We are giving these guys opportunities to go and compete. We go coast-to-coast and we wrestle the best competition out there and it shows because we’re taking eight guys to the national tournament and that is massive for our program,” Hahn said.
Senior Tanner Sloan will make his fourth NCAA Championship appearance as he is the No. 7 seed in the 197-pound weight class. He has a 23-2 record on the season and will take on Ohio State’s Gavin Hoffman, who is seeded 26th, in the first round. Hoffman beat Sloan last year at nationals, but Hahn thinks Sloan is ready to go as he finished as the runner-up at 197 at the Big 12 Championships.
“We’re not looking ahead because the first round match is against the guy from Ohio State that beat Tanner in the first round last year and that kid ended up being an All-American. So, we have to get past that first one. … This is not the same Tanner Sloan. His level of confidence and how he’s feeling is on point. So, we have to get through that first one. It’s a winnable match, and then we will focus on who that next person is,” Hahn said.
Clay Carlson will participate at the NCAA championships for the third consecutive season and will be the No. 11 seed in the 141-pound weight class. Carlson, who has a record of 22-8 this season and was an All-American in 2021, will face No. 22 seeded Malyke Hines of Lehigh in the opening round. After finishing third at the Big 12 Championships, Hahn thinks Carlson has a good opportunity, even though he’s a double-digit seed.
“Clay coming in as the No. 11 seed, hey, no big deal],” Hahn said. “It’s no big deal because we know what is going out onto the mat. You have a kid who literally does not have quit in him. So, every single match that he wrestles in, it will be a dog fight. He’s going to push the pace and get into his offense. He’s got [Hines] and I don’t think he’s has seen the level of competition that Clay has.
“… We have to push that pace. It’s another winnable match and then we’ll go on and face the next guy. I’m excited for Clay because there have been moments throughout this year where you see him and think, that’s the Clay we know. … If he wrestles the way he’s been wrestling, watch out.”
Cade DeVos will also be making his third consecutive appearance at nationals. He will be the No. 13 seed in the 174-pound weight class and will face No. 20 seeded Alex Cramer of Central Michigan in the first round. DeVos is 25-7 this season and Hahn thinks he’s in a good position to make a run in the tournament.
“Cade has not seen this guy yet and [Cramer] is going to come out and push the pace, but yet again, it’s another winnable match. I think how Cade finished at the Big 12 Tournament, that’s the Cade DeVos we know. That’s the Cade DeVos that we have seen perform and I like it. I like where he is in the bracket,” Hahn said.
At heavyweight, A.J. Nevills (19-6) is seeded 14th for the Jacks. He will take on Duke’s Jonah Niesenbaum in the first round and the fifth-year senior from Clovis, California has a lot of experience at the NCAA Championships as this is his fourth appearance. Hahn said he likes the draw for Nevills, and it will be all about feeling good going into the tournament.
“A.J. has someone that he’s never seen before, but it’s the national tournament and everyone is going to have to go out and compete, so he’s going to have to go out there and battle. I think it’s a winnable first round match [for him] if he goes out there and performs the way he can perform. I think right now it’s about feeling good and being as healthy as every one of these [other] guys,” Hahn said.
Tanner Cook, who has a record of 17-7, will face returning All-American Cameron Amine of Michigan in the first round at 165. Cael Swensen (21-8) will be the No. 20 seed at 157 and will face No. 13 Trevor Chumbley of Northwestern, in a rematch as Chumbley won a 6-2 decision over Swensen at the Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas in December.
Cade King and Tanner Jordan each earned an at-large berth to the championships. King has a record of 19-9 this season at 184 and will be seeded 24th. He’ll face Minnesota’s Isaiah Salazar, who is seeded ninth. Jordan will be the No. 32 seed at 125 and will face No. 33 seeded Tucker Owens of Air Force for the right to face No. 1 Spencer Lee. Jordan is 17-14 this season and pinned Owens during a dual in January.
The NCAA championships begin on Thursday at the BOK Center and will run through Saturday. You can watch all of the matches on the ESPN family of networks.
