Men's Wrestling | 3/10/2018 3:06:00 PM
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – West Liberty's Darius Bunch posted the highest national finish by a Hilltopper wrestler in six years here Saturday as the 2018 NCAA Division II wrestling championships concluded at U.S. Cellular Arena.
Bunch, a junior transfer from Emmanuel (Ga.) University, earned his first NCAA Division II All-America citation by mounting a strong drive through the consolation brackets to finish fourth in the nation at 133 pounds.
It's the highest placement by a Hilltopper wrestler since Jarrod Shaw was national runner-up at 157 pounds in the 2012 championship meet.
Bunch didn't have an easy road to the podium. After dropping a frustrating one-point decision in his first-round championship bracket on Friday, the WLU standout had to gut out narrow decisions against No. 1-ranked Airk Furseth of Wisconsin-Parkside and No. 3-ranked Dustin Warner of Wheeling Jesuit to punch his ticket for Saturday's action.
It was more of the same on Saturday as Bunch - ranked No. 7 nationally - pulled out a 3-2 decision against No. 10-ranked Dustin Kirk of King (Tenn.) in their Third Round Consolation match before eking out an identical 3-2 verdict against Nebraska-Kearney's No. 3-ranked Bryce Shoemaker to advance to the Third Place Match.
Bunch and Notre Dame's Kelan McKenna, ranked No. 6 nationally, battled through a scoreless first period. The second period also finished in a scoreless tie but McKenna had stolen the momentum by riding Bunch throughout the period to earn a 2-minute riding time advantage.
Needing to erase that edge, Bunch opted to give up an escape at the start of the period and try for a takedown. McKenna was able to elude Bunch's efforts for nearly the entire frame before catching the WLU grappler on a late shot for a takedown and a 4-0 win.
The impressive national tournament run boosted Bunch's final season record to a sparkling 29-6, leaving him as one of the top returning wrestlers in the NCAA Division II ranks for the 2018-19 season.
