HAYS, Kan.– Drury will have two wrestlers compete for a 2020 national championship as Peter Kuster, and Jared Rennick advanced out of NCAA-II Super Region IV in Hays, Kansas, on Sunday. Kuster placed third at 141 pounds while Rennick also advanced with a third-place finish in the heavyweight division. The top three finishers in the region earned a berth to the NCAA-II Tournament.
 
Kuster won his first match of the day edging Nate Keim of Central Oklahoma 4-3, then fell to Brandon Ball from Fort Hays State and ranked second nationally, 6-2, in the semifinals. Kuster bounced back to pin Baylor Smith from Newman in 2:06, then the sophomore from Jefferson City punched his ticket to nationals winning a rematch with Keim 5-2.
 
Rennick entered the regional ranked sixth in nationally in the heavyweight class and started his day with a 5-2 win over Bellarmine's Brian Stears. Caleb Gossett from McKendree and ranked seventh in the country, earned a 3-1 decision over Rennick, but the junior from Washington, Missouri, stayed alive on the bracket with a 10-2 Major Decision against Johnny Green of Ouachita Baptist. Rennick then won his third-place match against Fort Hays State's AJ Cooper 10-6.
 
"We are proud of Peter and Jared for qualifying to the NCAA-II Championships," said Drury head coach James Reynolds. "This tournament is a really important benchmark on their way to a performance goal. Once again, we are grateful for the parent, fan, university, and community support."
 
Drury's Ben Stahlman made a deep run in the regional tournament and nearly advanced to nationals as well. The junior from House Springs, Missouri, got to the third-place match at 157 pounds. He opened with a win by Fall in 4:41 over his opponent from Ouachita Baptist, and, after dropping his quarterfinal match, Stahlman won three straight by decision. One win away from advancing from nationals, Stahlman battled 11th ranked Nate Smalling of McKendree for third place. Smalling pinned Stahlman in the quarterfinals, but the rematch went the distance as Smalling earned a 5-0 win.
 
Kuster and Rennick will head to the NCAA-II Championships March 13-14 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
 
Drury Results from NCAA-II Super Region IV
133
Champ. Round 1 - Cody Karstetter (Central Oklahoma) over Chris Hansen (Drury) (TF 16-1 3:48)
Cons. Round 1 - Chris Hansen (Drury) received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Anthony Pisciotta (Maryville) over Chris Hansen (Drury) (TF 16-1 4:16)
 
141
Champ. Round 1 - Peter Kuster (Drury) received a bye
Quarterfinals - Peter Kuster (Drury) over Nate Keim (Central Oklahoma) (Dec 4-3)
Semifinals - Brandon Ball (Fort Hays State) over Peter Kuster (Drury) (Dec 6-2)
Cons. Semis - Peter Kuster (Drury) over Baylor Smith (Newman) (Fall 2:06)
3rd Place Match - Peter Kuster (Drury) over Nate Keim (Central Oklahoma) (Dec 5-2)
 
149
Champ. Round 1 - Seth Otis (Drury) received a bye
Quarterfinals - Danny Swan (Lindenwood (Mo.)) over Seth Otis (Drury) (MD 8-0)
Cons. Round 2 - Seth Otis (Drury) received a bye
Cons. Round 3 - Kevin Kissane (Newman) over Seth Otis (Drury) (MD 14-0)
 
157
Champ. Round 1 - Ben Stahlman (Drury) over Adrian Salazar - Rivera (Ouachita Baptist) (Fall 4:41)
Quarterfinals - Nate Smalling (McKendree) over Ben Stahlman (Drury) (Fall 3:57)
Cons. Round 2 - Ben Stahlman (Drury) over Austin Morgan (Central Missouri) (Dec 5-3)
Cons. Round 3 - Ben Stahlman (Drury) over Tristan Porsch (Fort Hays State) (Dec 9-2)
Cons. Semis - Ben Stahlman (Drury) over Devan Hendricks (Bellarmine) (Dec 6-1)
3rd Place Match - Nate Smalling (McKendree) over Ben Stahlman (Drury) (Dec 5-0)
 
165
Champ. Round 1 - John Ridle (Central Missouri) over Alex Garrett (Drury) (MD 14-4)
Cons. Round 1 - Alex Garrett (Drury) received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Alex Garrett (Drury) over Austin Stofer (Lindenwood (Mo.)) (For.)
Cons. Round 3 - Conrad Vajnar (Fort Hays State) over Alex Garrett (Drury) (MD 11-2)
 
174
Champ. Round 1 - Logan Zimmermann (Drury) received a bye
Quarterfinals - Abner Romero (Lindenwood (Mo.)) over Logan Zimmermann (Drury) (TF 16-0 6:15)
Cons. Round 2 - Logan Zimmermann (Drury) received a bye
Cons. Round 3 - JD Johnson (Newman) over Logan Zimmermann (Drury) (Fall 2:45)
 
184
Champ. Round 1 - Aryus Jones (Fort Hays State) over Tucker Caswell (Drury) (TF 16-0 3:10)
Cons. Round 1 - Tucker Caswell (Drury) received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Tucker Caswell (Drury) over Zion Vasquez (Central Missouri) (Fall 2:24)
Cons. Round 3 - Nate Panagakis (Newman) over Tucker Caswell (Drury) (MD 13-2)
 
285
Champ. Round 1 - Jared Rennick (Drury) received a bye
Quarterfinals - Jared Rennick (Drury) over Brian Stears (Bellarmine) (Dec 5-2)
Semifinals - Caleb Gossett (McKendree) over Jared Rennick (Drury) (Dec 3-1)
Cons. Semis - Jared Rennick (Drury) over Johnny Green (Ouachita Baptist) (MD 10-2)
3rd Place Match - Jared Rennick (Drury) over AJ Cooper (Fort Hays State) (Dec 10-6)
 
 
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