Chippewa Valley Times

The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire wrestling team has achieved notable success on the first day of the NCAA Division III Championships at Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island. Two wrestlers from the team, Jared Stricker and Ian Pepple, have secured All-America honors.

Jared Stricker, a senior from High Bridge, Wisconsin, is the reigning national champion in the 174-pound category. On Friday, he won two matches to advance to the national semifinals for the third consecutive season. Stricker's first victory was a technical fall against Tyler Bodovetz from Ohio Wesleyan with a score of 15-0 in the opening period. He then pinned Javen Estrada of North Central (Illinois) in 5:09 during the quarterfinals. These victories have ensured Stricker's All-America status for a third straight year. He will compete against Hunter Mays from The College of New Jersey in Saturday's semifinals as he aims to become UW-Eau Claire's first two-time national champion.

Ian Pepple, a sophomore from Hastings, Minnesota, is making his debut at nationals and has earned his first All-America honor by winning three out of four matches. Pepple began with a pin against Sawyer Dereszynski from Messiah in 5:20 but was later defeated by Dylan Harr of Johnson & Wales. He kept his tournament hopes alive with an 11-3 major decision over Gavin Layman from Ohio Northern and secured his spot on the podium with a 7-2 win over Pilo Perez from Dubuque in the blood round. Pepple will face Jackson Punzel from Wheaton in Saturday's consolation quarterfinals and could potentially place as high as third.

Senior Zach Sato from Oswego, Illinois faced elimination after losing his initial two matches. Sato was defeated by Tyler Herrema from Olivet with a score of 10-4 and by Daniel Uribe from Wabash with an 11-7 decision in the consolation bracket. Despite these losses, Sato concludes his season with an impressive record of 34-5 and ranks second in UW-Eau Claire history with 143 career wins.

The tournament continues on Saturday, March 15th, beginning at 10 a.m. Eastern time for semifinals and wrestle-backs. The national finals are scheduled for 7 p.m. Eastern time.