WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (March 2, 2024) – Senior Luke Hoerle joined sophomore Ryan Smith and classmate Stefan Major in winning a regional championship Saturday to lead No. 10/12 Stevens Institute of Technology wrestling to its fourth straight regional championship Saturday at Lycoming College's Lamade Gymnasium.

Graduate student Akhil Vega and senior Joel Martsinovsky will join the three regional champions in advancing to the NCAA Division III National Championships after posting top-three finishes in their respective weight classes. The top-three finishers in each of the 10 weight classes advance to the national championship.

Hoerle topped the field at 133, while Major and Smith finished first at 174 and 157, respectively. As a team, Stevens amassed 164.5 points to capture the Southeast Regional title, extending the program's run of consecutive regional crowns. Dating back to the 2019-20 season when the dominant strech began, this season's 164.5 points represents the squad's second-highest winning total. The current stretch of consecutive regional titles surrounds the 2020-21 season, where NCAA regional events were not held. Averett totaled 146.5 points to finish second, with Roanoke (145.5), Delaware Valley (118) and Washington & Lee (102) rounding out the top five. The Ducks' three regional championships were the more than any other team in the field.

The regional crown is the third for Major and the second for Smith, while Hoerle captured his first. With the victory, Major will be returning to the national championship tournament for the third time, while Smith and Hoerle are each making their second. In addition to the three regional champions, Martsinovsky finished second at 184 and Vega won four straight matches in the consolation bracket to finish third at 125. With the third-place finish, Vega will be returning to nationals for the first time since the 2019-20 season, while Martsinovsky is heading there for the first time. 

In addition to the five Ducks heading to nationals, sophomore Nico Diaz was fifth at 141, graduate student Pasquale Vizzoni was fifth at 149 and junior Blaise Wagner placed sixth at 197 as Stevens totaled eight place-winners.

The Rundown

• After a perfect first day, Hoerle needed just two victories Saturday to claim the regional crown at 133. Ranked ninth by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) and 12th by The Open Mat, Hoerle began his day with a contest against Roanoke's nationally-ranked Jude Robson (Roanoke). He posted a tidy 7-3 decision victory to advance to the regional final. In the championship match, Hoerle scored a takedown in the sudden victory period to post a 4-1 victory over 11th-ranked Jacob Blair of Delaware Valley, who wrestled at 141 earlier in the season. He'll enter nationals with wins in nine of his last 10 matches.
• After posting a pair of bonus-point victories on the first day of competition, Smith began his day with an 8-1 decision win over 2023 national qualifier Jason Rezac (Alvernia). The Brick, New Jersey native, who is ranked fourth and sixth, respectively, in the two major polls, topped Rezac in last year's regional championship match. Smith punched his return trip to nationals with an 11-2 major over Wilkes' Jaryn Hartranft.
• Already a two-time regional champion, Major needed just two victories Saturday to earn his third. Ranked eighth by the NWCA and sixth by The Open Mat, Major began his day with a 10-1 major over Lycoming's Eli Crum in the semifinals, handling him with a 10-1 major for his third bonus-point win of the tournament. In the championship match, Major posted a hard-fought 6-4 decision over Averett's Khalil Mitchell to join a select group of Ducks with three regional crowns.
• Vega, ranked 16th by The Open Mat, began his day with a 19-2 tech fall over David Rubin (Washington & Lee), earning the stoppage in the third period for his third tech fall of the tournament. In the consolation semifinal, Vega posted an impressive 2-1 victory over Alvernia's Keito Shaw, earning the win in sudden victory to advance to the third place match and avenge an earlier loss. Vega would punch his ticket to national with a 7-2 victory over the host school's Kaden Majcher. Vega enters nationals with wins in eight of his last nine matches.
• Martsinovsky cemented his first trip to nationals with a competitive 5-4 decision over Marymount's Rylan Moose. Ranked ninth by the NWCA and 11th by the The Open Mat, Martsinovsky fell by decision to Averett's George Moseley via an 8-1 margin. He'll enter the national tournament with wins in 12 of his last 13 matches. 
• Diaz started his second day of competition with 4-1 decision over Wilkes' Jack Bauer, matching his margin of victory over the Wilkes' 141-pounder. Diaz dropped his next match to Roanoke's 11th-ranked Mark Samuel via a close 5-2 decision, dropping the second-year wrestler into the fifth-place match. Diaz would conclude his sophomore campaign on a high note with his 14th tech fall of the season with a 17-1 win over Delaware Valley's Ryan Arndt, with the stoppage coming 15 seconds into the second period.
• Looking to win his way ino the third place match, Vizzoni opened his day with an 8-2 decision over Gettysburg's Ethan Composto. Unfortunately, Vizzoni was pinned in the consolation semifinals by Averett's Jesse Alvarado in the second period, moving the Flemington, New Jersey native into the fifth place match. Like Diaz, Vizzoni was able to secure fifth place, although his came via an 8-4 decision over Waynesboro's Cole Homet to avenge Homet's victory in the quarterfinals.
• Wagner kicked off his second day of competition with a high-scoring 24-12 major decision over Averett's Jamar Christian (Averett) to reach the consolation semifinals. Unfortunately, Wagner suffered his second his second one-point loss of the tournament to Delaware Valley's Daniel Eckley (Delaware Valley) to fall into the fifth place match. Wagner had earned a 7-4 win over Eckley in the Middle Atlantic Conference semifinals. Wagner would close his tournament with a 9-3 setback to Washington & Lee's John Santowski.

Top Performers

• Stevens totaled seven pins across the two-day event, ranking seventh among the 22 competing teams. However, the Ducks totaled an impressive 16 tech falls, which was six more than Washington & Lee, who had 10.
• Across the entire tournament, Stevens totaled 556 match points, nearly 200 more than any other school
• Major and Martsinovsky led the team with two pins each.
• Diaz totaled four tech falls among his five victories to lead all competitors. Hoerle and Vega were among three wrestlers to post three. Interestingly, Hoerle had the fastest tech fall in the tournament with his 19-4 opening round victory over Southern VIrginia's John Carlson, which took place in just 58 seconds.
• Major finished with 25 team points, which ranked fourth, with Hoerle right behind with 24.5.
• Martsinovsky's 25-point performance in the Richboro, Pennsylvania native's second-round win over James Ellis was tied for the most points scored in any single match.
• Wagner's 24-point performance in his vitory over Christian was tied for the second-highest total in a match. Wagner also amassed a tournament-leading 88 points across his matches.

Up Next
The five Ducks will move on to Nationals, which will take place Mar. 15-16 in La Crosse, Wisconsin with the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse serving as site host.
Live stats and video links will be posted to stevensducks.com once available.

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