BRISTOL, R.I. – Five Cortland wrestlers earned berths in the upcoming NCAA Division III Championships by virtue of finishing in the top three at the NCAA Div. III Northeast Regional Championships, hosted Saturday and Sunday by Roger Williams University. The NCAA championships will be held March 10-11 in La Crosse, Wis.
 
Senior Bobby Dierna (Webster/Wayne) earned regional Most Outstanding Wrestler honors for the second straight year, and third time overall, after winning the 157-pound weight class with a 4-0 record. He is the defending national champion and will head to nationals seeking his fourth All-America honor.
 
Junior Maverick Passaro (Manorville/Eastport South Manor) punched his ticket to nationals with a second-place finish at 133 pounds. Three other Red Dragons – sophomore Zack Zupan (Canastota) at 165 pounds, senior Colin Barber (Westfield, NJ) at 174 pounds, and junior Deuly Espinal (Brooklyn/Grand Street) at 184 pounds - each fought their way through the consolation bracket with three wins Sunday for third-place finishes and national berths.
 
The Red Dragons, ranked 15th nationally, placed third out of 19 schools at the regional as a team with 11.5 points behind third-ranked Johnson & Wales (171.5) and fourth-ranked Ithaca (139.5). Seventh-ranked Roger Williams (95) and Oneonta (72.5) rounded out the top five.

 

Dierna, ranked first nationally, finished the tournament 4-0 with two pins, a tech fall and a major decision. He's now 17-0 on the year, with every match resulting in bonus points, and his career record is 102-9. After his two pins Saturday, Dierna won by an 18-8 major decision in the semifinals versus Ty Herzog of Roger Williams. He then defeated nationally second-ranked Zach Joseph of Springfield in the title match by a 17-2 technical fall in 5:07.
 
Passaro won his semifinal match at 133 by a 17-1 technical fall in 5:13 over Oneonta's Austin Sisco. He was edged in the finals by nationally fourth-ranked Jay Albis of Johnson & Wales, 3-2. Albis took the lead with a third-period takedown. Passaro earned a late stalling point, but Albis notched a riding time point for the decisive margin. Passaro went 4-1 at the regional and will bring a 13-1 record into nationals.
 
Zupan began a run of three straight tight third-place finishes for the Red Dragons at 165 pounds. He opened Sunday with a pair of major decisions – 18-5 versus Josh Smith of Southern Maine and 16-3 over Nick Remke of Coast Guard. In the third place match, Zupan faced Alec Golner of Roger Williams, who pinned Zupan in Saturday's quarterfinals. Zupan took a 2-0 lead with a first-period takedown. He eventually led 3-2 on an escape to start the third. Golner was awarded a stalling point with less than 10 seconds left, but Zupan held on and earned a riding time point for the 4-3 victory. Zupan is 15-1 heading into the NCAA championships.
 
At 174 pounds, Barber began his run of three necessary victories with a 12-5 win over Oneonta's Ryan Marszal. He followed that with a 3-2 decision against Coast Guard's Michael Palomba. In the third-place match versus Springfield's Geovanni Medina, Barber took a 2-0 lead with a reversal early in the second period. Medina eventually tied it at 2-2 with escapes in the second and third, but Barber had enough riding time built up for the decisive point and the 3-2 victory. Barber is 35-9 this winter and 108-38 in his four seasons as a Red Dragon.
 
Espinal, also needing three wins Sunday at 184 pounds, started the day with a 13-5 major decision over Josephy Hennessey of Norwich and a 9-3 decision versus Dan Wensley of WPI. In the third-place match, Espinal faced Ithaca's Jake Ashcraft, who pinned him in a dual match at Cortland less than two weeks ago. Espinal trailed 1-0 after two periods, but took a 2-1 lead on a reversal less than 20 seconds into the third. Ashcraft escaped to tie the match, but Espinal took the lead for good with a takedown at the 42-second mark. Ashcraft again escaped, but Espinal sealed his 6-3 win with a takedown in the final 10 seconds. He finished the weekend with a 6-1 record and is 23-5 overall heading into nationals.
 
Three Red Dragons fell short Sunday in their quests for national berths. Senior Nick Bellanza (East Northport/John H. Glenn) finished fifth at 197 pounds with a 4-2 record. He won his first match Sunday, but lost 3-1 in the consolation semifinals. He wrapped the day with a 5-3 win in the fifth-place match. Bellanza finished the season 11-3 and his career 44-25.
 
Senior Andrew Roden (Kings Park) at 125 pounds and sophomore Da'mani Burns (Newburgh/Newburgh Free Academy) at 141 pounds each lost in their opening consolation matches Sunday and finished 2-2 at the regional. Roden lost 6-4 to Plymouth State and finished the season 21-10, with a career mark of 36-25. Burns lost by pin to Oneonta and concluded the season 16-7. His career mark is now 27-10.

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