17 New England Natives Make DIII Nationals
- 18 hours ago
- 8 min read
Seventeen New England–based wrestlers have qualified for this year’s Division III National Championship in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (slightly down from the 22 who qualified last year).
Division III has the largest number of programs (132) and the lowest number of qualifiers (210 across all weights) of any NCAA division, making it mathematically the hardest national tournament to qualify for. Wrestlers must place in the top three at one of the seven regional championships in order to qualify for the national tournament.
Connecticut and Massachusetts lead the pack, with every New England state except Vermont having representation this year (CT – 10, MA – 4, RI – 1, ME – 1, NH – 1). There is at least one wrestler qualified in each of the 10 collegiate weight classes except 125 (133 – 1, 141 – 2, 149 – 3, 157 – 1, 165 – 2, 174 – 3, 184 – 3, 197 – 1, 285 – 1).
The DIII National Championships will take place March 13–14 at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
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No. 4 Jake Craig (Sr.) – University of Southern Maine
Norridgewock, ME – Skowhegan/Hill School
High School Accolades
ME All-State Champion (2018)
CNESSPA New England Placer (3rd – 2018)
NHSCA All-American (6th – 2022)
College Accolades
2023
2nd, Northeast Region (NQ)
4th, DIII Nationals (AA)
2024
3rd, Northeast Region (NQ)
2025
2nd, Region I (NQ)
6th, DIII Nationals (AA)
2026
1st, Region I (NQ)
Up at 133 this year, Craig is making his fourth trip to NCAAs. Last season he finished sixth at 125 and is poised to make a deeper run this year. He is 29-1 on the season, with his only loss coming to Peyton Ellis of JWU, who did not end up competing in the postseason. Fresh off his first regional title, look for Craig to be a title threat in Iowa.
141
No. 6 Hayden Meyers (Jr.) – Wesleyan University
Coventry, RI – Coventry
High School Accolades
3x RI State Champion (2021, 2022, 2023)
CNESSPA New England Champion (2023)
2x CNESSPA New England Placer (3rd – 2022, 1st – 2023)
College Accolades
2024
4th, Northeast Region
2025
3rd, Region I (NQ)
2026
1st, Region I (NQ)
Meyers is making his second trip to NCAAs. Last season he made the blood round but came up just short of the podium. This year he is 23-1, with his only loss coming in overtime to No. 5 Isaias Torres of Ithaca College. Meyers enters NCAAs as the Region I champion and looks to
carry that momentum into his first All-American finish.
No. 14 Kaden Ware (Jr.) – Pennsylvania College of Technology
Brooklyn, CT – Killingly
High School Accolades
CT Open Champion (2023)
2x CNESSPA New England Placer (4th – 2022, 4th – 2023)
College Accolades
2024
6th, Mideast Region
2026
3rd, Region II (NQ)
Kaden Ware is making his first NCAA appearance after finishing third in Region II. The junior has made a significant jump after finishing sixth in the Mideast Region two years ago and failing to place last season. His current record is 16-2, with his only losses coming to No. 5 Isaias Torres of Ithaca and Joe Innamorato of Centenary.
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No. 20 Evan Lindner (Sr.) – Washington & Lee University
New Milford, CT – New Milford
High School Accolades
CT Open Champion (2022)
2x CNESSPA New England Placer (5th – 2020, 2nd – 2022)
College Accolades
2023
7th, Southeast Region
2024
2nd, Southeast Region (NQ)
2025
3rd, Region IV (NQ)
2026
3rd, Region IV (NQ)
Lindner is hoping the third time is the charm at NCAAs after making it to the blood round last season. He needed to dig deep this year, going 6-1 at regionals to place third, with his last two wins coming via sudden victory overtime. Lindner is 21-9 on the season but has the experience to navigate NCAAs. Look for him to push for a top-eight finish this time around.
No. 12 Caleb Seyfried (Sr.) – Williams College
Westport, CT – Green Farms Academy
High School Accolades
Prep New England Champion (2020)
2x Prep National All-American (6th – 2020, 7th – 2021)
College Accolades
2024
5th, Northeast Region
2025
4th, Region I
2026
2nd, Region I (NQ)
After narrowly missing out on qualifying for NCAAs the last two years, Seyfried finally punched his ticket in his senior season. The Connecticut native finished second in Region I and holds a 22-4 record on the season. Of those four losses, only two came against DIII opponents (No. 10 Nathan Fitt of Coast Guard and Nick Sanders, also from Coast Guard).
No. 19 Ty Stewart (Sr.) – Springfield College
Dracut, MA – Tyngsborough/Dracut
High School Accolades
MA All-State Champion (2022)
CNESSPA New England Placer (2nd – 2022)
College Accolades
2026
3rd, Region I (NQ)
Stewart has had a turbulent season but delivered a huge performance at the Region I Championship, avenging two losses from earlier in the season and finishing 6-1, good enough for third place and a spot at NCAAs. With a season record of 22-11, Stewart will be considered an underdog, but if he finds the same magic he had at regionals he could make a push for All-American status.
157
No. 1 Peter Kane (Sr.) – Williams College
Fairfield, CT – Green Farms Academy
High School Accolades
3x Prep New England Champion (2019, 2020, 2022)
2x Prep National All-American (4th – 2021, 5th – 2022)
College Accolades
2023
3rd, Northeast Region (NQ)
7th, DIII Nationals (AA)
2024
2nd, Northeast Region (NQ)
2nd, DIII Nationals (AA)
2025
1st, Region I (NQ)
5th, DIII Nationals (AA)
2026
1st, Region I (NQ)
Kane has one of the best résumés of any wrestler in the tournament. He is a two-time regional champion, four-time national qualifier, three-time All-American, and a national finalist from two years ago. He is currently ranked No. 1 in the country and holds a 29-1 record, with his only loss coming against a Division I opponent early in the season. Kane is one of the favorites to win the 157-pound title.
165
No. 7 Jack Richardson (Jr.) – Johnson & Wales University
Danielson, CT – Killingly
High School Accolades
CT Open Champion (2023)
2x CNESSPA New England Champion (2022, 2023)
College Accolades
2024
4th, Northeast Region
2025
2nd, Region I (NQ)
2026
1st, Region I (NQ)
Richardson finds himself back at NCAAs after a disappointing end to last season, where he lost close bouts in the quarterfinal and blood round to the eventual second- and third-place finishers. This year he is 27-2 and looked fantastic at the Region I Championship, winning all four of his bouts by bonus (two falls, a tech fall, and a major decision). This could be the breakthrough year for the JWU junior, who is still hunting for his first All-American honor.
No. 20 Nicky Bell (Sr.) – New York University
Greenwich, CT – Brunswick School/Northfield Mount Hermon
High School Accolades
2x Prep National All-American (8th – 2021, 6th – 2022)
College Accolades
2025
6th, Region III
2026
3rd, Region III (NQ)
Bell makes his first NCAA appearance at 165 pounds after competing at 197, 184, and 174 during the past three seasons. Sometimes finding the right weight class makes all the difference. After a 6-1 performance at the Region III Championship, Bell is looking to continue that momentum in Iowa. He is 23-8 on the season.
174
No. 9 Konrad Parker (Sr.) – Ithaca College
Danville, NH – Timberlane
High School Accolades
3x NH All-State Champion (2019, 2020, 2022)
College Accolades
2024
4th, Mideast Region
2025
2nd, Region II (NQ)
2026
1st, Region I (NQ)
Parker is making his second trip to NCAAs. With a year of experience and the confidence of a regional championship, Parker is poised to make a run for All-American status this season.
He is 37-4 on the year, with only two losses coming to DIII opponents.
No. 12 Joseph Bolduc (So.) – New England College
Methuen, MA – Methuen
High School Accolades
2x CNESSPA New England Placer (4th – 2023, 6th – 2024)
College Accolades
2026
1st, Region I (NQ)
Bolduc bounced between 165, 174, and 184 this season before finally settling at 174 for his first postseason appearance at the Region I Championship, Bolduc rode overtime wins in both the semifinal and final to claim the title and punch his ticket to NCAAs. With a season record of 18-7, he will be considered an underdog but proved at regionals he can show up in big matches.
No. 3 Ty Finn (Gr.) – New York University
Simsbury, CT – Simsbury
High School Accolades
CT Open Champion (2020)
2x CNESSPA New England Placer (4th – 2018, 3rd – 2020)
NHSCA All-American (7th – 2021)
College Accolades
2026
2nd, Region III (NQ)
Finn is a graduate student transfer who spent three seasons with the Virginia Tech Hokies Division I program. In his first DIII season he has consistently been near the top of the rankings, with his first loss coming to No. 1 Hunter Mays of TCNJ in the Region III finals. It is
very possible the two meet again in Iowa for the NCAA title.
184
No. 8 Jack Ryan (Sr.) – SUNY Oneonta
Trumbull, CT – Trumbull
High School Accolades
Class LL Champion (2020)
CNESSPA New England Placer (6th – 2020)
College Accolades
2023
3rd, Mideast Region (NQ)
2024
2nd, Mideast Region (NQ)
7th, DIII Nationals (AA)
2025
1st, Region II (NQ)
3rd, DIII Nationals (AA)
2026
2nd, Region II (NQ)
Ryan is a two-time DIII All-American making his fourth trip to NCAAs. Last season he finished third in the country and will be looking to improve on that finish in his senior season.
He currently holds a 15-2 record. One of those losses came to No. 1 Gannon Smith of Elizabethtown. The two wrestled twice at NCAAs last season and split those matches. Smith currently leads the series 2-1, but if they meet again it could be Ryan’s chance to even things up.
No. 3 Jamie Evarts (So.) – Williams College
Brookline, MA – Brookline
High School Accolades
MA All-State Placer (5th – 2024)
MA Division I State Placer (3rd – 2024)
College Accolades
2025
1st, Region I (NQ)
2026
1st, Region I (NQ)
Evarts burst onto the DIII scene last year as a freshman and has only improved in his sophomore season Now a two-time Region I champion and two-time NCAA qualifier, Evarts holds a 28-3 record with only one loss to a DIII opponent (No. 17 Gabe Monroe of Coast Guard at 197). He enters the national tournament on a 25-match win streak dating back to early December and will be a threat to climb the podium.
No. 19 Desmond McLaughlin (Sr.) – Vermont State University Castleton
Springfield, MA – Springfield Central
High School Accolades
MA All-State Champion (2022)
CNESSPA New England Placer (4th – 2022)
College Accolades
2024
5th, Northeast Region
2026
2nd, Region I (NQ)
McLaughlin makes his first NCAA tournament appearance as the Region I runner-up.
With a 31-11 record on the season, he has wrestled a high volume of matches and appears to be peaking at the right time. That momentum could serve him well heading into the national tournament.
197
No. 18 Carson LiCastri (Sr.) – SUNY Oneonta
Easton, CT – Joel Barlow
High School Accolades
2x CT Open Champion (2019, 2020)
CNESSPA New England Champion (2019)
2x CNESSPA New England Placer (1st – 2019, 3rd – 2020)
College Accolades
2024
5th, Mideast Region
2025
3rd, Region II (NQ)
2026
1st, Region II (NQ)
LiCastri returns to NCAAs this season as the Region II champion. He is riding a 10-match win streak dating back to early January and holds a 28-6 record. If that hot streak continues, LiCastri could become a serious All-American contender.
285
No. 18 Thomas Lunt (Sr.) – John Carroll University
East Haddam, CT – Xavier
High School Accolades
CT Open Champion (2022)
CNESSPA New England Placer (5th – 2022)
College Accolades
2025
6th, Region V
2026
3rd, Region V (NQ)
Lunt makes his first NCAA appearance for John Carroll after finishing third in Region V.
The senior is 20-10 on the season and won five matches to storm back for third place at the regional championship. He will have his hands full with a deep heavyweight class that returns the top three finishers from last season.
All rankings provided by The Open Mat.
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