CEDAR RAPIDS (IA) – Delaware Valley College junior Vinny Fava (Elmwood Park, NJ/Elmwood Park) finished in third place at 149 pounds while junior Aaron Karns (Bloomsburg, PA/Berwick) and freshman Zach Roseberry (Nokesville, VA/Brentsville) each took fourth at 197 and 285 pounds respectively at the 2014 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. The Aggies, as a team, tied for sixth place at the tournament.

Delaware Valley racked up 39.5 points to tie Cortland for the sixth spot. Wartburg College ran away with its record fourth consecutive Division III title as it notched 103.5 points. Wisconsin-Whitewater (67 pts), Messiah (64 pts), Coe (54 pts) and Augsburg (43 pts) rounded out the top five.

The trio of Aggies earned All-America accolades and upped the school's total of top eight national placewinners to 75 in its illustrious wrestling history. It is the 19th straight year that Delaware Valley has had at least one All-American and the seventh straight season of multiple All-Americans.

It is Karns' second straight All-America honor as he placed sixth last year. It is the first for Fava and Roseberry. The trio also combined for 10 straight wins at one point in the tournament as they ended Friday with three victories and combined for seven consecutive triumphs to start Saturday.

For Fava, he went a perfect 3-0 on Saturday, en route to his third-place showing. The transfer from Division I Rider and the seventh seed in the 149-pound bracket was tied 3-3 with sixth-seeded Jacob Long of Concordia Moorhead heading into the third period of their consolation quarterfinal match. Fava took the top position to start the third and he nearly pinned Long in the first 30 seconds, earning three points for a near-fall. He then held on for a 6-5 victory.

Fava followed with an early 2-0 lead and an eventual 3-2 decision over fourth-seeded Daniel Mirman of John Carroll to put him in the consolation finals. That meant a third meeting this year with rival Mark Hartenstine, the number three seed from Mark Hartenstine of Wilkes.

Hartenstine defeated Fava at both the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Championships and the East Regionals, but the third time was the charm for Fava. He notched a takedown with 1:07 left in the first and rode Hartenstine for the rest of the period. After a scoreless second, Hartenstine picked up an escape early in the third. But Fava kept him off the scoreboard the rest of the way and had riding time as well for a 3-1 victory. Fava finished his first year with the Aggies with a 30-5 record.

Karns and Roseberry each won their first two matches on Saturday before falling in the consolation finals. Karns, the seventh seed at 197, took on No. 6 Paul Glover of Brockport in the consolation quarterfinals. The match went to overtime tied at 1-1 when Karns caught his foe at the edge of the mat. He got the takedown and also turned it into a pin with 36 seconds left (7:24) for the win.

Karns then had little trouble with fourth-seeded Joe Giaramita of Cortland in the consolation semis as he had two takedowns, a reverse and a riding time in the third period for a 7-3 decision. In the consolation finals against third-seeded Jacob Lowry of Thiel, Karns gave up a takedown 34 seconds in and those were the lone points of the contest, besides riding time, as he dropped a 3-1 decision. Karns finished the campaign with a 31-6 mark, MAC and East Regional titles and a fourth place finish at the NCAAs.

Roseberry, the number eight seed at heavyweight, added more memorable moments to his rookie campaign on Saturday. He took on unseeded Ricky Caruso of Bridgewater State and had takedowns in the final minutes of the first and third periods, en route to a 5-2 triumph. That put Roseberry in the consolation semifinals against sixth-seeded Jacob Minske of Wisconsin-LaCrosse and he did not allow a point in seven minutes. Meanwhile, he had a takedown in the first, a reversal in the third and riding time for a 5-0 decision.

The consolation semifinals brought a rematch with two-time defending champion and top-seeded Chad Johnson of Augsburg. The two met in Friday's quarterfinals and Roseberry nearly handed Johnson his first Division III loss since 2011 before Johnson squeaked out a 3-2 decision (Johnson then lost in Saturday's championship semifinals to fall into the consolation bracket). Roseberry trailed 3-0 in the third when he got a takedown seven seconds in to get to within one. However, Johnson went onto a 7-3 decision as Roseberry finished the year with a 29-7 record, an East Regional championship and a fourth-place finish for All-America honors at the NCAAs.

Fava, Karns and Roseberry each reached the quarterfinals on Friday before falling into the consolation bracket and having to be victorious in a must-win match in order to stay alive in the tournament and secure All-America status.

Fava opened with a 4-3 decision over unseeded Nick Drendel of Dubuque before dropping a 3-0 decision in the quarters to undefeated and second-seeded Ryan Prater of Elmhurst. He then had a last-second thriller against eighth-seeded Luke Lohr of Waynesburg. Lohr was up 10-5 before Fava recorded an escape and then a takedown in the waning seconds of the second period to make it 10-8. He was then down one as the final seconds ticked down in the third when he got inside for a takedown just as the match ended. It was not ruled a takedown at first, but the two referees conferred met and even went to video to take a look at the ending. They came back to the mat and awarded Fava the two points and the 11-10 victory.

Karns met Donnie Horner of Coe in the first round and he tied it up at 1-1 with an escape five seconds into the third period. Karns got a takedown with 54 seconds on the clock and, nine ticks later, he had the pin and a spot in the quarterfinals. He had a rematch with second-seeded Shane Siefert of Wisconsin-Whitewater (the two met in last year's consolation semifinals) and Siefert was victorious again, this time a 4-1 triumph. Karns' do-or-die match was against No. 8 Matthew Heschel of Augsburg and he jumped out to a 4-0, first-period lead, en route to a 4-2 victory. Karns is 29-5 on the year.

Roseberry did not give up a point to unseeded Sean Brooks of Mount St. Joseph as he registered a 2-0 shutout in his NCAA championship debut. That led to the first encounter with Johnson and a 3-2 loss. Roseberry went against unseeded Cory Becker of Coe in his consolation second round match and trailed 4-2 until a takedown with seven seconds left in the second tied it up. Roseberry dominated the third starting with an escape nine seconds in and a takedown halfway through for a 7-4 lead. After a Becker escape, Roseberry added a takedown with six seconds left for a 9-5 victory.

Senior 157-pounder Emmanuel Ajagbe (Bogota, NJ/Bogota), a three-time national qualifier and returning All-American, was the fourth Aggie wrestler at the NCAAs. He lost both of his matches and was eliminated from the tournament on Friday.

Ajagbe was unseeded and he battled fourth-seeded Jon Garrison of Mount Union (35-5) in the opening round. The match went into a one-minute overtime and Garrison registered a takedown with just four ticks to go for a 3-1 victory. In the consolation bracket, Ajagbe trailed unseeded Evert Desillets of Johnson & Wales 3-0 going into the third period. Ajagbe picked up an escape point seven seconds in and then tied the match with a takedown with 50 seconds to go. However, Desillets escaped Ajagbe's grasp with just five seconds for the 4-3 win and the end of Ajagbe's standout career. He finished the 2013 season with a 17-8 mark while his 113 career wins (113-38) has him fifth on the school's all-time list.


FINAL NCAA DIV. III CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM STANDINGS – TOP 10
1. Wartburg - 103.5 pts
2. Wisconsin-Whitewater – 67.0 pts
3. Messiah – 64.0 pts
4. Coe – 54.0 pts
5. Augsburg – 43.0 pts
6. Delaware Valley – 39.5 pts
6. Cortland – 39.5 pts
8. Johnson & Wales – 37.0 pts
9. Wabash – 36.0 pts
10. Wisconsin-Oshkosh – 34.5 pts


HOW DELAWARE VALLEY COLLEGE WRESTLERS FARED

149 pounds – Vinny Fava (Elmwood Park, NJ/Elmwood Park) – Seeded 7th out of 18 wrestlers
Championship First Round (Fri): Won by decision over Nick Drendel (Dubuque), 4-3
Championship Quarterfinals (Fri): Lost by decision to #2 Ryan Prater (Elmhurst), 3-0
Consolation Second Round (Fri): Won by decision over #8 Luke Lohr (Waynesburg), 11-10
Consolation Quarterfinals (Sat): Won by decision over #6 Jacob Long (Concordia Moorhead), 6-5
Consolation Semifinals (Sat): Won by decision over #4 Daniel Mirman (John Carroll), 3-2
Consolation Finals (Sat): Won by decision over #3 Mark Hartenstine (Wilkes), 3-1
- Fava, a junior transfer from Division I Rider, finishes in third place for his first All-America accolade and a 30-5 overall record -

197 pounds – Aaron Karns (Bloomsburg, PA/Berwick) – Seeded 7th out of 18 wrestlers
Championship First Round (Fri): Won by fall over Donnie Horner (Coe), 6:15
Championship Quarterfinals (Fri): Lost by decision to #2 Shane Siefert (Wisconsin-Whitewater), 4-1
Consolation Second Round (Fri): Won by decision over #8 Matthew Hechsel (Augsburg), 4-2
Consolation Quarterfinals (Sat): Won by fall over #6 Paul Glover (Brockport), 7:24 OT
Consolation Semifinals (Sat): Won by decision over #4 Joe Giaramita (Cortland), 7-3
Consolation Finals (Sat): Lost by decision to #3 Jacob Lowry (Thiel), 3-2
- Karns, a junior, finishes in fourth place for his second straight All-America accolade (sixth last year) and a 31-6 overall record -

285 pounds – Zach Roseberry (Nokesville, VA/Brentsville) – Seeded 8th out of 18 wrestlers
Championship First Round (Fri): Won by decision over Sean Brooks (Mount St. Joseph), 2-0
Championship Quarterfinals (Fri): Lost by decision to #1 Chad Johnson (Augsburg), 3-2
Consolation Second Round (Fri): Won by decision over Cory Becker (Coe), 9-5
Consolation Quarterfinals (Sat): Won by decision over Ricky Caruso (Bridgewater State), 5-2
Consolation Semifinals (Sat): Won by decision over #6 Jacob Minske (Wisconsin-LaCrosse), 5-0
Consolation Finals (Sat): Lost by decision to #1 Chad Johnson (Augsburg), 7-3
- Roseberry, a freshman, finishes in fourth place for his first All-America accolade and a 29-7 overall record -

157 pounds – Emmanuel Ajagbe (Bogota, NJ/Bogota) – Unseeded out of 18 wrestlers
Championship First Round (Fri): Lost by decision to #4 Jon Garrison (Mount Union), 3-1 OT
Consolation First Round (Fri): Lost by decision to Evert Desilets (Johnson & Wales), 4-3
- Ajagbe, a senior, has been eliminated from the tournament and finished the season with a 17-8 mark. The three-time national qualifier and 2013 All-American also finished fifth on the school's all-time list with 113 career wins. -