CHADRON, Neb. – The Colorado Mesa men's wrestling team competed at the NCAA Super Region VI Tournament on Saturday (Feb. 25) at the Chicoine Center.
 
The Mavericks had a solid showing at the NCAA Super Region Tournament as everyone who competed won at least one match
 
At 133 pounds, Collin Metzgar reached the championship bout before falling to Quen Campbell 5-3 in sudden victory to place second at the weight. The Colorado Springs native defeated Corbin White in the quarterfinals by technical fall 18-0 before a 5-2 semifinal win over Paul Airola of Nebraska-Kearney to reach the final.
 
Metzgar will be making a return trip to the NCAA National Championship meet and in search of his first All-American honor.
 
Ryan Wheeler reached the championship bout at 157 pounds before falling to top ranked Noah Hermosillo of Adams State 12-5 in the final. Wheeler opened with a 9-6 win over Kyle Botelho of San Francisco State before an 8-3 decision of Evan Kilgore of Highlands. The University Place, Wash. native claimed a 3-2 win over Cyrus Meeks in the semis during the tiebreaker portion of the match.
 
Wheeler will be making a return trip to the NCAA National Championships, and he will be looking for his second straight All-American award after placing third last year and earning the Gorriarian Award.
 
Dawson Collins placed third at 125 pounds after a 4-1 decision victory over Quade Smith of Chadron State. The Grand Junction native reached the semifinals at the weight before losing to Patrick Allis of Western Colorado 7-4. He opened the tournament with an 18-2 technical fall win over Marques Catapiz of Simon Fraser and followed with a 10-0 major decision over Zach Wright of San Francisco State.
 
Collins will be looking for his second consecutive All-American honor after placing fifth at last season's championships.
 
At 197 pounds, Kash Anderson will be making his first trip to the NCAA Championships after claiming third place at 197 pounds with an 8-5 win over Ben Tonnesson of Adams State. Anderson reached the semis before falling to top seeded Tereus Henry of Fort Hays State in overtime.
 
Jason Bynarowicz placed fourth at 184 pounds. He reached the semifinals before falling to Chadron State's Keegan Gehlhausen. He bounced back with a win in the consolation semifinals before falling in the third-fourth matchup to Adams State's Hunter Tobiasson.
 
Daniel Magana (149) and Gus Dalton (165) each placed fifth at their respective while true freshman Alex Castaneda (141) placed sixth in his first regional tournament.
 
Prior to the tournament beginning, head coach Mike Mendoza was named the NWCA Super Region VI Coach of the Year in his first season at the helm of the Mavericks. He led the program to a 9-4 record in duals and the program's third straight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title.
 
The four national qualifiers will compete at the NCAA National Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in two weeks.