PARK CITY, Kan. – Grand View (Iowa) claims the programs 12^th Battle For The Red Banner as they win the 2024 NAIA Men’s Wrestling Championship by 55.5 points. The 67^th Annual event concluded Saturday Night inside Hartman Arena and was hosted by Visit Wichita from February 29^th – March 2^nd.

The Vikings have won the Red Banner in 12 of the last 13 years, which further extends the NAI Record for team titles. Former members Adams State (Colo.) and Central State (Okla.) are tied for second with eight each. In total, Grand View has 39 individual championships, which is now tied for first all-time with former member Simon Fraser (B.C.).

Saturday’s schedule included Session IV which saw the Sixth Round (Consolation Semifinals) and Placement Round (Third, Fifth and Seventh place) wrestled in the morning. After the midday break for the facility to be switched over and the Parade of All-Americans, Session VI saw the Championship Finals competed live on ESPN3.

Click HERE to see the full schedule and results page. Click HERE for the final team scores of the 2024 championship.

Session V Highlights:

• Sixth Round (Consolation Semifinals) and Placement Round (Third, Fifth and Seventh Place) Notes:
• 125 – No. 1 Aden Reeves of Grand View (Iowa) worked his way back the long way to claim third place defeating No. 2 Brandon Orum of Life (Ga.) who was the 2023 champion. No. 6 Trevor Marsman of Cornerstone (Mich.) won in sudden victory for fifth over No. 16 Allen Calderon of Indiana Tech. No. 4 Brody Gee of Saint Mary (Kan.) recorded a fall in 1:20 to claim seventh over No. 5 Izaeah Beavers of Campbellsville (Ky.).
• 133 – No. 1 Carson Taylor of Grand View (Iowa) defeated No. 6 Dominic Chavez of Texas Wesleyan for third place; Chavez is the first All-American in school history earning fourth. CaRon Watson of Briar Cliff (Iowa) upsets the fifth seed Jackson Cockrell of Grand View for fifth place. No. 8 Andrew Voiles of Southeastern (Fla.) won by injury designation over No. 3 Sammy Shires of Cumberland (Tenn.) in the seventh place match
• 141 – No. 4 Nicholas Yancey of Cumberlands (Ky.) won by decision to claim third over No. 5 Kael Brisker of Southeastern (Fla.). No. 7 Cade Manion of Oklahoma City earned a fall over unseeded Gage Hudson of Cumberlands (Ky.) to claim fifth while No. 12 Edrich Nortje of Dicksinson State (N.D.) defeated unseeded Aric Williams of Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) by fall for seventh
• 149 – No. 4 Parker Dobrocky of Southeastern (Fla.) upset the top overall seed Blake Gonzalez of Grand View (Iowa) in the third place match. Trailing the whole bout, No. 9 Blake Haney of Grand View (Iowa) earned a fall with one second left to beat No. 2 Nathan Lendt of Doane (Neb.). No. 8 Drake Vannoy of Oklahoma City bested No. 10 Bryce Nickel of Cumberlands by decision for seventh.
• 157 – No. 4 Kanaipono Tapia of Menlo (Calif.) won by decision over No. 12 Trevor Burdick of Reinhardt (Ga.) to earn third place. With a takedown in sudden victory, No. 2 Antwuan Burns of Campbellsville (Ky.) claimed fifth place over No. 7 Nate Wheeler of Indiana Tech. No. 9 Francis Morrissey of Ottawa (Kan.) upset No. 6 Dylan Whitt of Grand View (Iowa).
• 165 – No. 2 Rysan Leong of Menlo (Calif.) knocked off the No. 1 seed in Steven Villalobos of Life (Ga.) by decision. Unseeded Roman Garcia of Central Methodist (Mo.) won by fall in 54 seconds over Shadrick Slone of Campbellsville (Ky.) in the fifth place bout. No. 12 Trace Braun of Southeastern (Fla.) claimed seventh by major decision over unseeded Zander Ernst of Morningside (Iowa)
• 174 – In the third place match, Abel Nava of Providence (Mont.) earned a victory by fall over No. 2 Cole Smith from Cumberland (Tenn.). No. 1 Riley Smucker of Life (Ga.) earned fifth by decision over No. 14 Michael Scarponi of Doane (Neb.). No. 13 Maximus Zamora of Menlo (Calif.) earned a one point decision for seventh place over No. 9 Alex Hernandez of Southern Oregon thanks to riding time.
• 184 – No. 3 J.D. Perez of Ottawa (Kan.) defeated No. 4 William Speight of Lourdes (Ohio) for third. Unseeded Rylin Burns of Montana State Northern upset No. 14 Daryus Webb of Avila (Mo.) for fifth; Webb earns the first All-American honor in program history with his sixth place finish. No. 10 Jameel Coles of Grand View upset No. 8 Kyle Knudtson of Eastern Oregon in the seventh place bout.
• 197 – No. 7 Malachi Karibo of Baker (Kan.) secured a decision victory over No. 6 Kasten Grape of Doane (Neb.) for third. No. 12 Elijah Hynes of Missouri Valley held on for a decision over unseeded Andrew Herrera from Southern Oregon in the fifth place match. No. 1 Bradley Antesberger of Doane (Neb.) fights back for seventh, majoring No. 15 Cameron Cornman of Central Methodist (Mo.)
• 285 – No. 2 KC Buday of Providence (Mont.) earned a sudden victory win over No. 7 Hunter DeJong of Morningside (Iowa) for third. No. 5 Joshua Isaac of Missouri Valley claims fifth place by decision over No. 4 Gabe Jacobs of Southeastern (Fla.). No. 6 Antonio Dacosta of Menlo (Calif.) won with a sudden victory takedown of No. 11 Kenneth Copley of Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) for seventh.
• Grand View (Iowa) extended their lead during Session V, now leading by over 50 points. Life (Ga.) sits in second with 145 points followed by Menlo (Calif.) with 91.5 and Southeastern (Fla.) with 91. Doane (Neb.) rounds out the Top 5.

Session VI Highlights:

• Championship Finals Notes:
• 125 – No. 3 Hunter Sparks of Eastern Oregon was the runner-up in 2023 and defeated the reigning champion in the semifinal round; No. 13 Nicholas Aguilar of Menlo (Calif.) built a 4-1 lead, but a takedown inside the final 20 seconds by Sparks gave him the crown that evaded him a year ago by decision, 6-5. This is the Mountaineers first champion since 1969.
• 133 – No. 2 Jovan Garcia of Menlo (Calif.) won the second straight individual championship for the Oaks at 133, defeating No. 4 Thaddeus Young of Life (Ga.) in the process; Garcia tied the bout 4-4 in the second period, built a 10-5 lead by a pair of takedowns and a near fall, and held on for an 11-9 win.  
• 141 –No. 15 Hartwell Taylor of Saint Mary (Kan.) who earned the second finalist spot in Saint Mary (Kan.) history goes on to claim the first Spires championship by a 4-2 decision. Taylor was the first 15 seed to reach the finals in NAIA Wrestling History. No. 1 Evan Potter of Southern Oregon was the third place finisher at 133 a year ago and ends his 2024 campaign as the runner up.
• 149 – No. 3 Chase Zollmann of Missouri Valley and No. 5 Jack Latimer of Cumberland (Tenn.) are both first time finalist, but MVC’s Zollmann looked the part. He built a 6-1 margin after two periods and won 7-3. Latimer finishes as the runner-up to go along with his fourth place finish in the 2021 championship.
• 157 – No. 1 Brevin Balmeceda of Life (Ga.) was the national champion a year ago at 149 and adds a second to his name, outlasting No. 3 David Rubio of Corban (Ore.) by a 2-0 decision. Rubio has twice been a runner-up at 165 in 2023 and 157 in 2024.
• 165 – No. 3 Jonathan Kervin of Indiana Tech defeats No. 4 Keller Rock of Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) by an 11-5 decision. Both were first time All-American in the 2024 championships.
• 174 – No. 5 seeded Alex Reynolds of Grand View (Iowa) bested No. 10 Graham Calhoun by a 5-4 count, the first of three individual titles for the Vikings tonight.
• 184 – No. 1 Isaiah Luellen from Grand View (Iowa) is a five-time All-American and earns the elusive National Championship title, beating No. 2 Kyle Homet of Life (Ga.) by a 4-1 decision. Previously, Luellen was the runner-up in 2023 and had also placed third, fourth, and fifth.
• 197 – This is the 12^th time in NAIA history that teammates have met in the final bout and the third time Grand View (Iowa) has had the pair battle it out. No. 8 Garavous Kouekabakilaho upsets No. 3 Owen Braungardt by a 4-2 count and prevents his teammate from being a back-to-back as a national champion.
• 285 – No. 3 Zane Lanham of Life (Ga.) pulled the upset on No. 1 Greg Hagan, the reigning heavyweight champion. Lanham ends his career with a second title after winning at 197 in 2022.
• Team Scores of Top 5. Grand View (Iowa) ends with 209.5 points for top billing while Life (Ga.) finishes second with 154. Menlo (Calif.) claims third place with 95.5 points while Southeastern (Fla.) sits in fourth with 91. Doane (Neb.) rounds out the Top 5 with 63 points.

National Championship Awards:

• Nick Mitchell of Grand View (Iowa) wins Coach of the Year.
• Hunter Sparks of Eastern Oregon named NAIA Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Year.
• Hartwell Taylor of Saint Mary (Kan.) was selected as the NWCA-NAIA Outstanding Wrestler of the Championships.
• Roman Garcia of Central Methodist (Mo.) was selected as the Manuel Gorriaran Memorial Award Winner. (3 Falls in 7:25). 
• Click here for the full list of 2024 NAIA Men's Wrestling All-Americans.

All matches from Sessions I to IV were streamed live via FloWrestling before coverage switched to ESPN3 for the championship finals on Saturday Night. Access to the results and brackets can be found through TrackWrestling.

For additional information on the 2024 NAIA Men's Wrestling National Championships, click HERE.