Triton defends Great Lakes District title, Region 4 places four All-Americans
FLINT, MICH. & COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA - Triton College successfully defended its 2023 district title when it rode four individual championships to claim the 2024 NJCAA Great Lakes District Wrestling Championship by eight points. The Trojans, ranked #9 in the latest NJCAA Wrestling Poll, racked up 183.0 points to clip second place Southwestern Michigan College at 175.0. Harper College was third with 147.5 points, followed by Morton College in fourth (90.5), and Joliet Junior College in ninth (57.0). In addition to Triton's four titles, the Wolves earned one individual championship and all of Region 4 qualified 33 wrestlers for the national tournament. Tim Duggan of Triton College was again awarded the Great Lakes District Coach of the Year. (Recap: Triton)
2024 NJCAA Great Lakes District Wrestling Championship Final Results (pdf)
Triton College's run to the district title was highlighted by Anthony Scheckel (125), Anthony Bitner (149), Connor Svantner (157), and Ghee Rachal (197) all finishing atop the podium, as well as runner-up finishes from Andre Giurini (133) and Andrew Mulay (165). Paul Kadlec of Joliet Junior College claimed the 174 crown. Harper College saw three wrestlers reach championship bouts, with Aiden Cohen (174), Connor Lorden (197), and Oleg Simakov (285) each placing second. Emmanuel Olive was Morton College's top finisher with a runner-up spot at 157.
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The 2024 NJCAA Men's & Women's Wrestling Championships on March 1-2 featured a first-ever Division III field for team results. Harper College finished 16th overall with 58.5 points, but was third in the Division III field. Western Wyoming won the overall team title with 161.0 points, while Rochester Community & Technical College took the first-ever DIII crown with 86.0 points. Triton College (Division I) was right behind the Hawks in 17th with 55.0 points, with Joliet Junior College (Division III) in 33rd with 11.0 points and Morton College (Division I) finishing 41st with 6.5 points.
All-American honors went to Anthony Schickel of Triton College with a third place finish at 125, Joliet Junior College's Paul Kadlec in seventh place in 174, and Harper College's Connor Lorden in third place and Triton's Ghee Rachal in fifth at 197.
On the women's side, Morton College placed nine with 24.5 points to finish behind overall champion Indian Hills Community College with 307.5 points. The Panthers were represented by seven wrestlers, while Joliet Junior College competed with three and finished 18th overall.
2024 NJCAA Men's & Women's Wrestling Championship Final Results