Four Titans To Compete At NCAA Championship
For the first time in 30 years, UW-Oshkosh is sending four
competitors to the National Collegiate
Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III Wrestling
Championship.
Sam Engelland (Sr. • Neenah), Nazar Kulchytskyy (So. •
Sosnivka, Ukraine), Zachary Mueller (Sr. • Jackson) and Dan
Schiferl (So. • Stoughton) will all represent the Titans at
the national meet on March 9-10 in La Crosse. Kulchytskyy earned an
automatic berth to the event after winning the 157-pound title at
the Wisconsin
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Championship held
Feb. 26, while Engelland, Mueller and Schiferl received at-large
selections.
The 184-pound Engelland makes his fourth appearance at the NCAA
Division III Championship after finishing ninth a year ago. This
season, Engelland has compiled a 26-3 record with 13 pins. The
four-time WIAC second-place finisher owns a 116-39 career record
(34 pins).
After a 34-match winning streak earlier this season, Kulchytskyy
holds a 40-2 record with 17 pins. He became UW-Oshkosh's first WIAC
champion since 2001 with his victory at the league championship.
Kulchytskyy has gone 52-2 (25 pins) during his two seasons with the
Titans.
Mueller appeared at the 2010 NCAA Division III Championship as an
at-large selection. This year, the 125-pound Mueller improved his
record to 32-7 (four pins) with a second-place result at the WIAC
Championship. He has registered a career record of 95-47 (19
pins).
Another second-place finisher at this year's WIAC Championship,
Schiferl boasts a 25-10 record (six pins) at 174 pounds. He owns a
39-26 record (12 pins) after competing for the Titans in 2010.
The last time UW-Oshkosh had more than three qualifiers for the
NCAA Division III Championship was 1982. The Titans placed sixth in
the team standings as six men, including Sam Engelland's father,
Steve, represented UW-Oshkosh in that meet. Rick Gruber and Sean
McCarthy each placed second in their respective weight classes.
UW-Oshkosh’s only wrestler to win a national title was Rick
DeMarais, who captured the 158-pound title at the 1975 National
Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Championship.
The Titans have scored at the NCAA Division III Championship four
times in the last five years. UW-Oshkosh counted five points to
finish 38th a year ago.