The Colorado Mesa men's wrestling team is in Louisville this weekend to compete in the NWCA National Duals. They will have a bevy of duals as a part of the tournament, and we will give you the ins and outs of it below in this week's preview.
 
UPDATED RANKINGS
Following the Mavericks strong showing at the Midwest Classic, several individuals moved up or entered the NWCA National Rankings.
 
The biggest mover for the Mavericks was 133-pounder Collin Metzgar. In the previous rankings, Metzgar was ranked No. 11 in the previous rankings but following his Midwest Classic Championship, he vaulted all the way up to No. 2 in the rankings. During his win, he defeated the No. 3 and No. 4 ranked wrestlers.
 
Dawson Collins made his debut in the 125-pound rankings. The Grand Junction product was the runner-up at the Midwest Classic but made his mark on the way to the final and checks in at No. 7 in the rankings. He defeated two ranked wrestlers in the tournament including No. 2 Nick Daggett from UNC Pembroke.
 
Redshirt freshman Ryan Wheeler also snuck into the rankings at No. 12 at 157-pounds following his seventh-place finish at Midwest. His biggest win came against fellow RMAC opponent Josiah Rider of Adams State, who is now ranked No. 6 at the weight, before falling to him later in the tournament.
 
Senior Donnie Negus remained in the rankings at 197-pounds but fell to No. 10. He is still the highest-ranked wrestler in the region at the weight.
 
With the four ranked wrestlers, Colorado Mesa moved up to No. 15 in the team rankings trailing only No. 13 Adams State in the rankings.
 
FILLING IN
For various reasons the Mavericks will be without three key wrestlers at the National Duals. Dawson Collins, Ryan Wheeler and Nolan Krone are all out this weekend and will have others in their place in the lineup. This will give other's opportunities to step in and give the Mavericks a look at what is to come in near future.
 
Senior Cian Apple will step in at 125 pounds. Apple is no stranger to the lineup as he finished third at last season's regional tournament and was the Mavericks regular starter a year ago. The Arvada native is 8-5 this season with placings at the Colorado Mesa Open and the UNK Younes Hospitality Opens.
 
Ariel Rodriguez will likely bump up to 157-pounds and fill the void left by Wheeler. Rodriguez, a normal 149-pounder, is 1-2 on the season having only competed at the Colorado Mesa Open this year.
 
Redshirt freshman Jason Bynarowicz enters the lineup at 184-pounds. The Broomfield native is 10-5 on the season and is 1-0 in duals with two tournament placings this season.
 
NATIONAL DUALS
Colorado Mesa will be making their NWCA National Duals debut this weekend in Louisville. The Mavericks enter the tournament as the No. 8 seed and will take on No. 18 Mercyhurst to open the tournament. In their next dual, they will take on another nationally ranked opponent in either No. 1 Central Oklahoma or No. 9 Findlay.
 
The dual tournament is setup in a tournament bracket and will place out to eight spots. Six of the top ten teams are attending with nine total ranked teams in the 15-team field.
 
Check out the links at the top of the page to follow along.
 
COACHING STAFF
Head coach Chuck Pipher returns to the bench for his 15^th season with Colorado Mesa. Last season, Pipher led the Mavericks to the RMAC Championship as the top placing team at the NCAA Super Region VI Tournament. He had two wrestlers qualify for the NCAA National Championships and was able to come home with two all-Americans in Donnie Negus at 197-pounds and national champion at 165 pounds in Fred Green.
 
Pipher has amassed a 115-110 record in duals since the program was brought back in 2006. He has also had an all-American in 10 straight seasons which is the longest running streak in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
 
Also returning to the bench is assistant coach Mike Mendoza who is entering his third season in the program after successful coaching stints at Adams State, Cal State Bakersfield, Boise State and Northeastern Junior College. He brings over 20 years of coaching experience to the staff.

New to the coaching staff this season is another Pipher. Bo Pipher is in his first season on the staff after spending the past five years competing and earning his degree at Penn State. Pipher wrestled for the Nittany Lions under Cael Sanderson and amassed a 27-31 record in his time. 
 
THE RETURN OF THE REGIONAL TOURNAMENT
The Mavericks are once again slated to host the NCAA Super Region VI Tournament and it is looking more and more like it will be a full field. Last season, Simon Fraser and New Mexico Highlands did not compete at the regional tournament due to COVID restrictions in New Mexico and Canada.
 
The tournament is scheduled to be on Saturday February 26 in Brownson Arena.
 
ON THE HORIZON
The Mavericks will feature a set of duals from here on out as they will begin Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference duals on Wednesday January 19 as they host San Francisco State in Brownson Arena followed by a dual with Chadron State on Friday January 21 also in Brownson Arena.