WICHITA, Kan. – The two-day 64th Annual NAIA Men's Wrestling National Championship at Hartman Arena has come and gone with the Vanguard Lions putting on an impressive performance on the backs of Frederick Padilla (SR/Azusa, CA) and Armon Fayyazi (SR/Irvine, CA), who earns NAIA All-American status for the second consecutive year.
What Happened?
In the 125-pound weight class, Nathan Yanez (SO/Eastvale, CA) earned a first-round bye before losing to the fourth seeded Brandon Orum of Life (Ga.) by 17-2 tech fall. In his last dual, he lost by Fall 3:18 in his battle with Caron Watson. ... Unseeded Gabriel Cortez (SO/Covina, CA) battled Ivan Gomez of Graceland and lost in a 9-6 decision. Next, he lost a 9-4 decision to Chasen Brown of Campbellsville. ... Eighth ranked Padilla beat Robert Denny of Graceland in a 15-0 tech fall before knocking off ninth ranked William Seibert of Missouri Valley by a 16-0 Tech Fall. In the next round, Padilla upset the Kyle Caldwell by a 7-0 decision. ... Fayyazi started with two byes before earned a 14-6 major decision over Ian James of Truett McConnell. In the next round he won in a sudden victory 3-1 over sixth seeded Mahlic Sallah of Campbellsville (KY). ... Competing in the heavyweight division, Michael Ruiz was bested in his opening bout with Devon Amburgy from William Baptist in Fall 1:26. In the consolation bracket, he lost to Kc Buday in Fall 2:42.
Why It's Important?
After Day One, the Lions were in 16th place in the 46-team field with a total of 22.5 points. By the end of the second day, they were 14th in the country with 34 total points the second highest in the Cascade Collegiate Conference and above five other conference foes.
Top Performers
In the Semifinals round, Fayyazi was upset in a tight 4-3 decision by 10th ranked Asher Eichert. Then, he defeated Keegan Mulhill 3-2 in TB-1 before calling to second ranked Casey Randles of Grand Vikings in Fall 3:59. Meanwhile, Padilla upset fourth ranked Sid Ohl of Life in a 11-3 major decision and then lost 4-3 in the battle for the 2021 National Championship in the 166-pound weight class. Fayyazi ties the previous best finish by a wrestler at the NAIA Championships (Paul La Blanc in 1975) before Padilla reset the standard by finishing second.
What They Said
Head Coach Caleb Flores – "In a year like no other, our guys have shown the character of true champions. We continue to set records with Armon being Vanguards first 2x All-American and Ricky Padilla being Vanguard's first National finalist and with our team finishing 14th in the nation. But none of this is possible without the support of our University and athletic admin staff and their great leadership."