David Evans secured third place at the Big 12 Championships on Saturday, earning a spot at the NCAA Wrestling Championships. Utah Valley University (UVU) added two more qualifiers—Evans and Haiden Drury—who will join Caleb Uhlenhopp in representing the Wolverines in Cleveland later this month.
Drury finished seventh in his weight class to claim the final automatic qualifying position, while Uhlenhopp qualified on Friday after a medical forfeit win. Hudson Rogers also reached the podium with an eighth-place finish but did not qualify for the NCAA tournament during his redshirt freshman season.
“Day two of the Big 12 Championships proved to be an important one for our program as we chased more automatic qualifications,” head coach Adam Hall said. “I’m proud of David Evans and Haiden Drury for their resiliency today in winning matches to punch their ticket to the NCAA Championships. David dominated the 8th-ranked guy in the country, 12-5, to finish third. The growth of our program is evident in having twice as many conference place winners and three times as many NCAA qualifiers as we did last year. Our staff looks forward to preparing our athletes for the next two weeks to win in Cleveland. Go Wolverines!”
Evans advanced by defeating No. 21 Max Peterson from North Dakota State with a score of 10-4 in the consolation semifinals, followed by a victory over No. 8 Jacob Frost from Iowa State. Against Frost, Evans established an early lead with three takedowns in the first period and maintained control throughout, finishing with a decisive win.
Drury earned his qualification by overcoming No. 22 Pierson Manville of Arizona State, securing a key takedown in the second period and holding on for a narrow 5-4 decision.
Elsewhere, Cael Valencia from Arizona State defeated Hudson Rogers to secure a qualifying spot at 174 pounds. In another match determining alternates at 197 pounds, Rune Lawrence from West Virginia bested Kael Bennie.
The NCAA selection show is scheduled for Wednesday, March 11 at 8 p.m. EST (6 p.m. MST). The NCAA Wrestling Championships will take place March 19-21 in Cleveland, Ohio.
