March 12, 2018
THIEF RIVER FALLS, Minn. The Northland Pioneers Wrestling team again had five individual competitors attend the 2018 NJCAA Wrestling Championship on February 23-24, 2018 in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
The Pioneers were represented by five national qualifiers who competed in the tournament. Rashidi Kikopa (141), Kyle Fowler (149), Richard Dralu (165), Hunter Roller (184), and Desmond Bradford (285) competed in the tournament and posted a combined record of 4-10 and placed 33rd overall.
Pioneers wrestling coach Scott DCamp said, We qualified five wrestlers for the NJCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year, and we maintained our spot as the number two-team in the conference while closing the gap on Rochester. We also had two conference/district champions, Richard Dralu at 165 pounds, and Hunter Roller at 184.
The Pioneers wrestling program is in its fifth year after the program was reinstated in 2013 following a 40-year absence. Coach DCamp expressed how the attendance at nationals is an important milestone for Northland. We are still a very young program, said DCamp. Each national tournament has given us more exposure at the national level and helped with recruiting.
A lot of time, preparation and coaching went into preparing for the tournament. NCTC athletics director Mike Curfman said, Coach DCamp has his team wrestle a very strong schedule which I believe helps get his team ready for their post-season tournaments. I believe this tough competition helped us to have five wrestlers advance to the National NJCAA Wrestling Tournament. Curfman added, This is very impressive and credit goes out to all the coaches and athletes associated with the team.
Following the close of the 2018 wrestling season, Coach DCamp is looking forward to next years season. Two of our national qualifiers, Hunter Roller and Kyle Fowler, never qualified for state in Minnesota and another, Richard Dralu, never placed in North Dakota. All three of these guys are freshmen, which means they will return next year to form the core of a team that should be our best yet.
2018 Top Non-Scholarship Schools
1. Nassau 432. Harper 37.5
3. Rochester 32.5
4. Joliet 22
5. Jamestown 16
6. Itasca 15.5
7. Camden 14.5
8. Northland 10.5
9. Middlesex 10
10. Thaddeus Stevens 8
11. Ridgewater 7.5
12. SUNY Sullivan 5.5
13. Rowan 5
14. Bergen 1
15. Minnesota West 0
(Source: FloWrestling)
For complete results from the championship, brackets and more, please visit: http://www.njcaawrestlingcb.com/
For more information on Northland athletics, follow the Pioneers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. You can also watch home games streamed live online at nctctv.com.