Neosho County Community College Athletics

Based off of all the participants on every team at Neosho, grade point averages were figured up and then divided by the respective number of participants, and when the dust settled Wrestling earned the top men's team GPA at NCCC for the 2008-09 school year with a 2.91 GPA among 36 wrestlers. Additionally Neosho wrestling finished toward the top of the NJCAA's National Academic team standings which were based on the 10 starters, and an additional 2 alternates...based on those 12 wrestlers, Neosho had above a 3.2 GPA which was good enough to land them as one of the top 3 teams in the Nation academically. Neosho was pleased in the fact that it also boasted of 11 selections for Academic All Americans. GREAT JOB WRESTLERS!

With a little over a week to go before the West/Central Regional, the Panther wrestling team now finds itself ranked 14th amongst the scholarship division schools of the NJCAA, following a tough showing a week ago at the Meramec Duals. Neosho has 2 wrestlers currently ranked: Alex Gorton (Fr-Michigan) who is ranked 3rd at 125, and Rory Kendall (So-Oklahoma) who makes his debut in the rankings at 5th.

Neosho will head to Parsons on February 14th for the West/Central region, where they will face 5 other teams, including 3 other ranked teams in 4th ranked Labette, 6th ranked Colby, and 10th ranked Northwest College. Pratt and Western Wyoming will also compete at the all day regional, with top 3 finishers along with select wildcards advancing to the National Championships in Rochester, MN.

Neosho Community College upsets 5^th ranked Iowa Lakes and 3^rd ranked Rochester (Non Scholarship Division) to highlight a 3-2 outing at Meramec Duals in St. Louis...(to continue reading click here)

A close dual quickly turned the tide, as the Broncos of Hastings College rallied back from a 17-9 defecit to upend the Panthers and put Neosho at the 5-8 mark on the year...(to continue reading click here)

Despite closing the gap on the Cardinals from a previous meeting early on in the year, Neosho couldn't come away with a team win at home...(to continue reading click here)

The Neosho wrestling team traveled out west to take on the Beavers of Pratt in a showdown of two NJCAA West/Central region foes. Both teams entered with 1 wrestler ranked a piece but both would be out of the lineup for one reason or another, making it a pretty even slate heading into the competition. The night started off with Ethan Bates of Neosho pretty strong…with a quick takedown he soon locked up a cradle and had Pratt’s Joey Stephens on the verge of being pinned, however Stephens was able to break free and counter and soon had Bates on his back trying to break free, however with the ref now in position, Bates would be called pinned and the Panthers now trailed 6-0 to start the evening. Up next was Rory Kendall at 133. Kendall who wrestled 141 all first semester is no stranger to the 133 class, having wrestled it all last year and nearly qualifying for nationals. Kendall held a narrow 2-0 lead after the first period, but went to work on top and cranked on his opponent the rest of the way in amassing 8 nearfall points in picking up a decisive 14-0 win. 141 Montana Carson would have a rematch of the November 13^th dual against Chris Wright. In their previous meeting Wright was able to beat Carson by fall, but the Panther wrestler was poised to not let that happen again. With two early takedowns and a stalling call against him, Carson trailed 5-1 after a period had expired. Wright continued to pummel Carson with 5 more points in the 2^nd and was soon up 10-2 with riding time well in hand. Facing what appeared to be a looming major decision or possibly more, Carson buckled down and stormed back with a takedown and 3 nearfall and 2 more points late, but could only narrow the gap to 14-9, but in the process, was able to keep any bonus points off the board for the pesky hosts. Justin Ringgold trailed 2-1 going into the 3^rd period but quickly made a reversal to start the 3^rd and rode his opposition out the rest of the way to get the Panthers a much needed win and put them down by only a 7-9 score heading into the 157 weight.

Zac Taylor came out against Pratt’s Clay Shaft only to be taken down first, that however only seemed to fuel Taylor up and he soon not only reversed Shaft but put him on his back and squeezed the wind out of him to pick up a huge fall and gain the lead for the first time that night for the Panthers. However that lead would quickly pivot back, as Neosho’s Dustin Burton was tied 3-3 with Travis Budke, Burton hit a big takedown, only to then get into a scrambling situation and reversed onto his back and pinned giving Pratt the lead back at 15-13 with 4 weight classes to go. Fortunately at 174, Pratt decided not to weigh in anybody do to injuries and weight issues, which allowed Neosho to pick up another 6 and now be up 25-15 with the win being taken by Matt McNabb. 184 Neosho needing a big win bumped up Derek Heckel, who had seen quite a bit of competition at 184 early in the 1^st semester. Taking on Heckel would be Ralph Major of Pratt, an opponent that Heckel demolished in a mere 45 seconds in their only previous meeting. This time with a Pratt backing Major was able to keep things close and took the action into the 2^nd period trailing 3-2. Hoping to narrow Heckel’s margin, Major chose down and quickly realized that if you don’t move quick enough on the whistle, you will be controlled…and that is just what happened. Heckel not only controlled Major, but flipped him over and pinned him to extend the Panther lead to 25-15. Jeff Kirwan now was up against Tyler Downs. Downs hit a takedown, Kirwan escaped and the scoring halted until the 2^nd and 3^rd periods. Downs and Kirwan exchanged escapes over the final two periods, but that would be it with Neosho’s Kirwan losing by decision 3-2. Oddly enough the loss by Kirwan was won of disappointment and relief…by Kirwan taking a narrow loss at 197, Pratt was only able to collect 3 team points, meaning that with a pinfall being 6 points and the maximum you can get for winning a match, Neosho held a 7 point advantage and was going to be the victor regardless of outcome. Ryan Cox of Pratt wanted to put on an exclamation point for the Beavers and used a double overhook with a heel trip to toss Kris Powell to his back and get the fall to end the night 25 Neosho 24 Pratt in an close see saw battle.

Pratt- 24 Neosho- 25

125- Joey Stephens (P) Won by Fall 2:47 over Ethan Bates (N)

133- Rory Kendall (N) Won by M.Dec. 14-0 over Brendan Harshman(P)

141- Chris Wright (P) Won by Dec. 14-9 over Montana Carson (N)

149- Justin Ringgold (N) Won by Dec. 4-2 over Mike Manion (P)

157- Zac Taylor (N) Won by Fall 1:51 over Clay Shaft (P)

165- Travis Budke (P) Won by Fall 4:14 over Dustin Burton (N)

174- Matt McNabb (N) Won by Forfeit **Pratt Open**

184- Derek Heckel (N) Won by Fall 3:22 over Ralph Major (P)

197- Tyler Downs (P) Won by Dec. 3-2 over Jeff Kirwan (N)

285- Ryan Cox (P) Won by Fall 3:57 over Kris Powell (N)

The Neosho Panther wrestling squad traveled up to the University of Northern Iowa to take on the best of the NJCAA in the Cliff Keen National Duals on January 10-11. The event which amassed a 2 day viewing total of over 15,000 featured teams from all varieties of collegiate divisions, from Women’s teams to the top tier of Division 1. Action started at 1pm on Saturday for the Panthers taking on the 3 time defending NJCAA Champion Iowa Central...(to continue reading click here)

13th ranked Neosho went into Wednesday's dual with 4th ranked Labette with several backups taking the lineup for the banged up Panther squad, although there was a lot of heart shown in defeat, the Panther's lost 33-6 and fell to 4-3 on the dual season...(to continue reading click here)

The 20th ranked Pratt Beavers came to Neosho on Thursday night for a dual between two teams ranked in the top 20 Nationally. Neosho ranked 13th in the NJCAA poll got out to an early lead at 125 lbs...(to continue reading click here)

National Junior College 13th ranked Neosho traveled to Oklahoma City to take on a trio of foes all from 4 year university programs. The day got off to a slow start as the host Stars of Oklahoma City University ranked #10 in NAIA defeated Neosho 37-9, Alex Gorton (freshman from Rockford, Michigan) picked up a forfeit win at 125, and Derek Heckel (freshman from Ulysses,KS) at 184 was the other winner for the Panthers in pulling out a 9-4 victory and amassing nearly 4 minutes of riding time in the process.

In the 2nd match of the day Neosho would face NCAA DII Grand Canyon University and come up with an early 21-0 lead after the half way mark, before GCU came back and took 3 consecutive matches back to narrow the gap 21-9, Matt McNabb (freshman from Chickasha, OK) appeared to be the next to suffer defeat at he hands of a GCU foe, but turned a 7 point deficit into a stunning defensive fall. Derek Heckel followed suit with a second period fall of his own and capture the 3rd team win of the year for the Panthers with a 33-9 victory.

The day finally came to a close with Neosho taking on NAIA’s 2nd ranked Menlo college out of California. Stephen Kendrick (freshman from Skiatook, OK) put together 4 takedowns and clinched riding time in a solid 9-5 performance, while Justin Ringgold (freshman from Wichita, Ks) used a late escape and held off his opponent’s late takedown attempts to hold on for a 3-2 squeaker. Although the Panthers wrestled tough in the last dual, the young squad still lost by a 37-6 margin and now have a 3-2 overall dual record. The Panther wrestling team will next wrestle at home against 20th ranked Pratt on Thursay at 7pm on the NCCC campus, before traveling to Warrensburg, Missouri on to compete Sunday in the University of Central Missouri Open Tournament.

Neosho wrestling opened up the collegiate season with two wins here in Chanute on Sunday afternoon. They day began with the University of Texas-Arlington Mavericks. The Panther’s had 13 true freshman suit up for the day, and the young squad was tested by two stingy, but shorthanded teams. Neosho racked up back to back falls with Alex Gorton and Stephen Kendrick against the Mavs to put NCCC up 12-0 before adding 18 more points via forfeit.

Arkansas native Aaron Butler added to the Panther scoring with a 10-7 decision at 165 putting the host team up by a 33-0 margin. In the 174 and 184 classes Neosho would lose by a 1 pt decision followed up by a fall making it 33-9. Jeff Kirwan who happens to be from the same hometown as the visiting Mavericks, was the only non true freshman in the lineup on the day for Neosho, and only took 70 seconds to dispatch of his opponent. Kris Powell lost by decision 9-2 to end the dual at 39-12 Neosho. Also to note, Nathan Brown lost by fall in an exhibition match.

NEOSHO 39 Texas-Arlington 12

125-Alex Gorton won by fall over Vinh Ho in 2:30
133-Stephen Kendrick won by fall over Josh Beck in 0:30
141-Montana Carson won by forfeit
149-Cody Eaton won by forfeit
157-Justin Ringgold won by forfeit
165-Aaron Butler won by 10-7 decision over Devin Slick
174- Abraham Morante won by 7-6 decision over Matt McNabb
184- Caleb Alexander won by fall over Jason Mellies in 0:56
197-Jeff Kirwan won by fall over Justin Collins in 1:10
285- Devin Compton won by 9-2 decision over Kris Powell

Exhibition match: 285- Bryson Rayford won by fall over Nathan Brown in 0:55

Neosho battled Kansas State in the night cap of a triple dual. Kstate was fresh off a dual win over the same Texas-Arlington squad that NCCC beat early, but only by a 31-24 margin. Neosho would be in a similar situation with the Wildcats as once again the Panthers would pick up 18 points on forfeits due to open weights by Kstate at 125, 141, and 197. The wrestling got started with Stephen Kendrick of Skiatook using an early takedown and late reverse to pull ahead and stay there with a 5-1 victory.

Heading into 149 Neosho was in the lead 15-0, but a swing of momentum soon took place and the wildcats posted 4 consecutive wins in a row to put the upset minded Kstate team ahead by a point. However the tide soon switched back and the Panthers picked up a 42 second fall by Jason Mellies and following the forfeit of 197 by Kstate, Kris Powell ending the night for the home team in a wild heavyweight finale that saw the Kstate opponent put up 8 points in the first period, with Powell putting up 8 of his own in the 3^rd period to pull off a 14-8 decision.

Neosho 30 Kansas State 16

125-Ethan Bates won by forfeit
133-Stephen Kendrick won by 5-1 decision over Keaton Taylor
141-Zach Shannon won by forfeit
149-Brett Swoyer won by major decision 9-1 over Cody Eaton
157-Thomas Pipes won by decision 5-2 over Justin Ringgold
165-Slade Giesen won by fall over Aaron Butler
174- Asha Ali won by 8-2 decision over Matt McNabb
184- Jason Mellies won by fall over Andrew Scarlett
197-Jeff Kirwan won by forfeit
285- Kris Powell won by decision 14-8 over Joey Martinez

Neosho is next on the road to Oklahoma City on Sunday, November 9^th for a quadrangular with #2 ranked NAIA-Menlo College, NCAA DII school Grand Canyon University, and the host college NAIA #10 ranked OCU. Action for the quad will start at 10am.

ATTENTION:

Panther Wrestling Pheasant Hunt December 13th and 14^th

CONGRATULATIONS!

NCCC ALUMN RANDI MILLER!

photos courtesy of the Associated Press

RANDI MILLER

2008 Olympics- 63kg weight class

United States of America

Bronze Medalist

Intermat Wrestling has chosen Neosho as one of the top non NCAA DI schools for the 2008-09 year for having one of the top recruiting classes in the nation. According to Intermat’s Jason Bryant: “While there isn't a set "non-D1" recruiting ranking, the following schools recruited some top-notch talent that will definitely raise the level of competition on their respective collegiate levels and for those at the Junior College level, become NCAA talent eventually. Many, if not all, of the school listed below signed wrestlers ranked in InterMat's All-Class and Senior Class rankings. “

20 schools that are 4 year institutions made the Notable Non-Division I Recruiting Class Rankings, while only a mere 7 (including Neosho) from the Junior college ranks made the list.

Notable Non-Division I Recruiting Class Rankings (listed in alphabetical order)

Augustana (S.D.) (NCAA DII), Cal Baptist (NAIA) , Campbellsville (NAIA), Central (NCAA DIII), Clackamas (NJCAA), CSU-Pueblo (NCAA DII), Cumberland University (NAIA), Dickinson State (NAIA), Iowa Central (NJCAA), Iowa Lakes (NJCAA), Lindenwood (NAIA), Lycoming (NCAA DIII), McDaniel (NCAA DIII), Missouri Baptist (NAIA), Nebraska-Kearney (NCAA DII), Nebraska-Omaha (NCAA DII) NEOSHO COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE (NJCAA), Newberry (NCAA DII), NIACC (NJCAA), Northwest College (NJCAA), Olivet (NCAA DIII), Saint Cloud State (NCAA DII), Saint Louis-Meramec (NJCAA) , Southern Maine (NCAA DIII), Southern Oregon (NAIA), Wabash (NCAA DIII), York (NCAA DIII)

Two wrestlers linked to Neosho wrestling will represent USA at the 2008 Summer Olympic games-

Neosho Wrestling extends best wishes and good luck to USA Wrestling Olympic Team members TC Dantzler (Coached by Wayne Petterson while at Northern Illinois) and Randi Miller (former Neosho County Lady Panther wrestler).

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