CHADRON, Neb.  Dean Noble captured the 141-pound title Saturday at the NCAA Division II Super Region VI Wrestling Championships at Chadron State College, advancing to the NCAA D-II national meet along with four Western Colorado teammates.

The unseeded Noble defeated eighth seed Grayston DiBlasi of Colorado School of Mines with a 4-2 decision in the championship bout.

The first-, second- and third-place wrestlers in the 10 weight classes – and from all six regions – earn bids to the D-II championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on March 10-11.

Mountaineers joining Noble at nationals are Patrick Allis (125 pounds), Jason Hanenberg (149), Hunter Mullin (165) and Cole Hernandez (174).

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Hernandez was the first Mountaineer to punch his ticket into nationals. He advanced into the semifinal at 174 after a solid 12-3 major decision in the quarterfinal, but was relegated to the consolation bracket after a first-period fall to eventual runner-up Cade Lindsey of Fort Hays State.
• In his opening match in the wrestle-backs he pinned Peter McCrackin of Simon Fraser in the second period, advancing to the 3rd/4th-place match where he would face Ryan Rochford of Adams State. Hernandez, who defeated Rochford by a one-point decision on January 27 again earned a decision with a more decisive 9-4 win to capture 3rd place and Western's first berth into the national meet.
• Allis — whose opening-match 16-0 tech fall in 2 minutes, 10 seconds was the fastest of the Regional — earned a spot in the 125 final with a 7-4 decision over Kevin Honas of Fort Hays.
• Ranked 10th nationally, Allis would go up against 3rd-ranked Brendon Garcia of Adams State in the final. Leading 1-0 after two periods, Allis would surrender an escape to Garcia 30 seconds into the final period, and then a match-clinching takedown to Garcia with only 15 seconds remaining in the period. The 2nd place finish advanced Allis to Iowa.
• Noble began his day with an 8-2 decision, then exacted some revenge on 6th-seed Nick James of Nebraska-Kearney, who'd pinned Noble in a match on Jan. 21. Noble dominated the rematch with a 12-4 major to move forward into the semifinal. That match, too, was another strong one for Noble as he worked to an 8-2 decision that placed him into the final against DiBlasi.
• Noble scored first with a reversal late in the second period, but was assessed a penalty point seconds later that halved his advantage. DiBlasi had choice to start the third and elected bottom and with 38 seconds remaining would finally manage an escape to tie the match.
• DiBlasi hardly had time to catch his breath, however, as Noble came right back at him and scored a takedown with 20 seconds left, then rode out those final seconds for his first regional championship.
• Hanenberg, ranked No. 4 nationally and seeded second in the Region at 149, seemed destined to meet up with the 2nd-ranked and No. 1 seed Josiah Rider of Adams State.
• A 6-0 decision in the quarterfinal was followed by a 6-1 decision in the semifinal, pushing Hanenberg into the championship match where, as expected, Rider — a 4-2 winner in a Jan. dual between Adams and Western — awaited.
• This time wasn't meant to be either, as Rider earned an escape and takedown in the second period and added a riding time point in the end for a 4-0 decision, one that still pushes Hanenberg into the national championships.
• The final qualifier for Western was the 8th-ranked Mullin at 165. Leading 11-3 in his opening match Mullin finished it with a pin at the 5:52 mark, then notched an 11-1 major in the quarters and a 7-4 decision in the semis to advance to the championship bout.
• Aeden Valdez of Adams State, ranked 9th nationally, was the opponent and the aggressor from the start in the championship match. He finished the first period leading 5-2 and was ahead 8-2 in the second before pinning Mullin at 4:28.

MAT NOTES

• Missing nationals by one spot was Ryan Wilson at 157. He dropped a 3-1 decision to begin his regional, but battled back on the consolation side with 7-4, 5-0 and 3-2 decisions to earn a spot in the 3rd/4th-place match. His day, and NCAA tournament aspirations, ended in that match with a 6-2 loss to Carter Noehre of Colorado Mines.
• Placing sixth overall at 285 was Zachary Schraeder. A 4-0 defeat in his first match shifted him into the wrestle-backs, where he eventually made his way into the 5th/6th-place match, surrendering a 4-2 decision in the match.

TEAM NOTES

• Adams State captured the team title with 114 points, a slim 3.5 points ahead of runner-up Nebraska-Kearney. In third with 101 points was Colorado Mesa, followed by Western (91) in fourth and Colorado Mines (90.5) in fifth.
• Nebraska-Kearney earned six berths into nationals, followed by Adams and Western with five each.
• Of Adams State's five qualifiers, four were regional champions. The only other school with more than one regional champion was Kearney, with three.

UP NEXT
Western's qualifiers will now head to Iowa for the two-day national championship event.