NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships page

WATCH LIVE: Friday session 1 / Friday session 2 / Saturday session 3

EAST STROUDSBURG – Redshirt sophomore Adam Hluschak and redshirt senior Shane Mallory will begin their pursuit of All-America honors when they take the mat in the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships on Friday at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Hluschak, the Super Region 1 runner-up at 141 pounds, and Mallory, who placed fourth at 184 pounds, will look to become ESU's first All-Americans in wrestling since Jack Cuvo and Anibal Nieves in 1989. The top eight finishers at each weight class will be recognized as All-Americans, with 16 wrestlers filling out each class.

ESU is competing at the Division II level for the first time in more than three decades. The Warriors had six Division II All-Americans in a three-year period form 1974-76 and also placed six on the All-America platform at the College Division level, the precursor to Division II, from 1969-71. ESU has had 16 All-Americans in the history of the wrestling program.

Hluschak and Mallory advanced through a very difficult Super Region 1 to represent the Warriors at the national level this weekend. Hluschak is in his first year as a starter and brings a 20-14 record into the NCAA's, while Mallory was a four-year starter for the Warriors and is 77-46 in his career, including a 23-8 mark this season.

Hluschak faces No. 6 Jimmy Savala of Chadron State in the first round and is coming off an impressive performance at the Super Region 1 tournament, where he wrestled up from the fifth seed to make the championship match, falling 4-3 to Jeremy Parker of Limestone in the final.

Savala, a junior, is a three-time NCAA championships participant and is 11-4 on the season after being injured for most of the year. He lost his first-round match at the Super Region 4 tournament but won his next four bouts to finish third in the region.

Mallory takes on No. 2 Derek Skala of St. Cloud State (Minn.) in his opening round match-up. Mallory's senior season includes an 8-6 upset of Kutztown's Tim Darling in dual action before falling to Darling, 5-4, in the semifinals of Super Region 1 action at Pitt-Johnstown.

Skala is also a three-time national qualifier was seventh in the nation to earn All-America honors as a junior last season. He won the Super Region 3 championship two weeks ago and is 25-8 this year.

The action gets underway at Sapp Fieldhouse at Nebraska-Omaha on Friday with the first of three sessions. The first round matches will be contested beginning at 11 a.m. Central time, with the quarterfinals and first and second rounds of consolations held in Friday's second session at 6 p.m.

The remainder of the matches will be wrestled on Saturday beginning at 10 a.m., except for the finals which will start at 8 p.m. on Saturday night.