KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The NAIA Men’s Wrestling Coaches’ Top 20 Preseason Poll was released Thursday by the national office. The Cascade Collegiate Conference saw 10 total teams represented with five being ranked and five who received votes.
Menlo College was the first CCC team, ranked at No. 4. Montana State University-Northern followed at No. 7 with University of Providence right behind at No. 8 to make three teams in the top 10. Eastern Oregon University landed at No. 17 while Southern Oregon University rounded out the poll in the No. 20 spot.
Hunter Sparks (125) of Eastern Oregon and Rysan Leong (165) of Menlo were named the Top-Ranked Individuals in their respective weight classes.
Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University, Corban University, Vanguard University, Simpson University, and Arizona Christian University all received votes.
2023-24 NAIA Men’s Wrestling Coaches’ Top 20 Preseason Poll
| Rank |
Last Time |
Team |
Points |
| 1 |
1 |
Grand View (Iowa) |
250 |
| 2 |
2 |
Life (Ga.) |
227 |
| 3 |
3 |
Southeastern (Fla.) |
168 |
| 4 |
7 |
Menlo (Calif.) |
144 |
| 5 |
13 |
Campbellsville (Ky.) |
142 |
| 6 |
10 |
Morningside (Iowa) |
141 |
| 7 |
20 |
Montana State-Northern |
118 |
| 8 |
9 |
Providence (Mont.) |
116 |
| 9 |
12 |
Ottawa (Kan.) |
114 |
| 10 |
16 |
Cumberlands (Ky.) |
113 |
| 11 |
4 |
Doane (Neb.) |
109 |
| 12 |
11 |
Reinhardt (Ga.) |
104 |
| 13 |
15 |
Cumberland (Tenn.) |
102 |
| 14 |
14 |
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) |
101 |
| 15 |
5 |
Indiana Tech |
100 |
| 16 |
RV |
Oklahoma City |
96 |
| 17 |
8 |
Eastern Oregon |
92 |
| 18 |
6 |
Marian (Ind.) |
85 |
| 19 |
19 |
Baker (Kan.) |
84 |
| 20 |
RV |
Southern Oregon |
75 |
Receiving Votes: Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) 73; Missouri Valley 71; Keiser (Fla.) 60; Briar Cliff (Iowa) 58; Lourdes (Ohio) 58; Central Methodist (Mo.) 54; Saint Mary (Kan.) 52; William Penn (Iowa) 46;
Corban (Ore.) 45; Midway (Ky.) 45; Cornerstone (Mich.) 44; Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 37; Oklahoma Wesleyan 33; Texas Wesleyan 33; St. Thomas (Fla.) 32; Rio Grande (Ohio) 32; Wayland Baptist (Texas) 32; Avila (Mo.) 28; Graceland (Iowa) 24; Northwestern (Iowa) 22;
Vanguard (Calif.) 22; Dickinson State (N.D.) 21; St. Ambrose (Iowa) 20; Concordia (Neb.) 17; Missouri Baptist 16;
Simpson (Calif.) 12; Arizona Christian 10; Bethany (Kan.) 8; Rochester (Mich.) 8; Waldorf (Iowa) 6; Brewton-Parker (Ga.) 5; York (Neb.) 5; Montreat (N.C.) 3; Central Baptist (Ark.) 2
Top-Ranked Individuals | Individual Rankings
125 – Hunter Sparks, Eastern Oregon
133 – Carson Taylor, Grand View (Iowa)
141 – Pat Gould, Keiser (Fla.)
149 – Brevin Balmeceda, Life (Ga.)
157 – Salvador Silva, Southeastern (Fla.)
165 – Rysan Leong, Menlo (Calif.)
174 – Riley Smucker, Life (Ga.)
184 – Jesse Daniel Perez, Ottawa (Kan.)
197 – Owen Braungardt, Grand View (Iowa)
285 – Greg Hagan, Grand View (Iowa)
Rating Methodology:
- The rating was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the eight conferences/groups.
- Two days prior to the national rating, each qualifying group rater submits the top 10 individuals from each weight class in his conference into the system. Only wrestlers listed on a conference ballot are considered for the national ballot.
- The top 25 individuals in each weight class is based on how each voter ranks the best individuals. An individual receives 25 points for each first place vote, 24 for second place and so on through the list. This same point system is used to determine the team ranking.
- The highest and lowest ranking for each team (a non-rating is considered a low rating) is removed and the team's ranking will be recalculated with an additional point added to each team for every ballot
- For the complete Top 20 calendar, click here.