Ashland entered last weekend’s NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships at Public Hall in Cleveland having not won a national championship since 1996, when Cory Kline won at 136 pounds. With Kline being honored on the eve of the national meet, six Eagles hoped to change that.

Three came close, becoming All-Americans, but no one brought home a coveted national title. The experience the Eagles had was not without triumph, however, and it was certainly not without drama.

Sophomore 133-pounder Michael Labry, junior 197-pounder Joe Brandt and junior 184-pounder Bryson Hall were the three AU athletes who earned the coveted title of All-American.

The two most drama-filled moments came from Labry and Brandt.

Labry came through the first day unscathed, and was the only Ashland wrestler still with a chance at a title. The second seed at 134 pounds came up against top-seeded Donald DeShazer in the semifinal. Even as the underdog, Labry felt confident with his draw having beat DeShazer over the summer in a freestyle match.

“I was actually really happy to get him in the semis rather than the final or anybody else, really,” he said.

What resulted was one of the closest matches of the tournament. After the first period ended 0-0, Labry and DeShazer split a pair of points over the next two periods and went into overtime tied 1-1. Finally, in the third overtime, the match ended when the referee called Labry for fleeing the mat on an attack by DeShazer.

It was a controversial decision that was upheld after video replay, but one that Labry and AU head coach Josh Hutchens – as well as many in attendance – vehemently disagreed with.

“That was a huge moment,” Hutchens said. “It was unfortunate that it was interpreted incorrectly, but it ended the match and it was tough.”

Labry did not have much time to bounce back, but he did so brilliantly. Rather than dwell on the missed opportunity at a national title, he won his next two matches to claim third place.

“You don’t do yourself any justice by going out there and dropping to sixth,” he said. “You can’t say ‘oh, I should have been in the final.’ You’ve got to show that you could have been there and you’re going to next year.”

While Labry breezed through the first day, other AU wrestlers had varying levels of success.

Brandt was one of the four Eagles who won his first match, advancing to the quarterfinals of the 197-pound weight class. A loss in his second match left him needing one more win to clinch All-America honors and a spot in Saturday’s competition.

He has faced the same situation all three years he has made it to the national meet, and just like the first two times he came through in a close match. This time, it took a last-second pin of San Francisco State’s Andrew Reggi to secure All-America honors.

“He saw his opportunity,” Hutchens said. “He got the guy down, snapped him down for a headlock, picked the far knee, cradled him right to his back and pinned him.”

It was a moment of sheer relief and jubilation for Brandt.

“It’s just so stressful,” Brandt said. “As soon as you get that All-American under your belt it’s just so much relief. You put so much time and effort in during the season and it all comes down to one tournament.”

Saturday, Brandt came in with the goal of fighting his way back to third place. Instead, after a loss to Upper Iowa’s Carl Broghammer in his second match of the day, he had to settle for a spot in the fifth-place match.

Standing across from him was Tanner Kris of Fort Hays State, the same opponent who beat Brandt in the quarterfinals. This time, Brandt pinned Kris in 2:10.

“It was like a train coming through,” Hutchens said.

In addition to Labry’s third-place and Brandt’s fifth-place finish, AU also got an eighth-place finish from Hall.

After being ranked number one for most of the regular season, Hall had a poor regional tournament and was relieved to place on the national stage for the first time. After winning his final match on Friday to clinch All-America honors, he lost both of his matches Saturday.

“I definitely think I should have done better the second day, but I’m happy with going where I did,” he said.

The only other AU wrestler to win his first match was senior heavyweight Tyler Houska, who lost in the quarterfinals and was unable to make it to the second day. 

Redshirt freshmen Brent Fickel (149 pounds) and Kyle Burns (157 pounds) each went 0-2 and had early exits in their first experience at the national level.

As a team, Ashland finished 14th. With none of his All-Americans graduating, Hutchens feels he has a group that should be competing for national titles for years to come.