Wisconsin Badgers
2024 NCAA Championships - Sessions 1 & 2
Six to Pin: NCAA Championships
March 19, 2024 | Wrestling
Watch the Badgers on ESPN, ESPNU and ESPN+ this week
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The top of the mountain. The @ncaawrestling Championships are here!
— Wisconsin Wrestling (@BadgerWrestling) March 18, 2024
2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships
Thursday, March 21
Friday, March 22
Saturday, March 23
T-Mobile Center
Kansas City, Mo.
Watch live on ESPN/ESPNU/ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/zGdkgnu07K
KANSAS CITY – Ranked No. 22 by Intermat for tournaments, Wisconsin (9-7, 3-5 B1G) has qualified five wrestlers to the the 2024 NCAA Championships at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri on March 21-23.
There will be six sessions of the NCAA Championships:
- Thursday, 11:00 a.m. CT - Session 1 - Complete
- Thursday, 6:00 p.m. CT - Session 2 - Complete
- Friday, 11:00 a.m. CT - Session 3 - Complete
- Friday, 7:00 p.m. CT - Session 4 - Complete - Read the Recap
- Saturday, 10:00 a.m. CT - Session 5
- Saturday, 6:00 p.m. CT - Session 6
View a full detailed schedule of events here on NCAA.com. Read Thursday and Friday's recap here.
ESPN will be broadcasting the NCAA Championships across ESPN, ESPNU and ESPN+. A full schedule of broadcast coverage is available at www.ncaa.com/championships/wrestling/d1/broadcast-info.
Here’s six more notes to pin:
1. Lineup
| Weight | Wrestler (Record) | NCAA Coaches Ranking | Big Ten Championship Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
125 | #10 Eric Barnett (26-6) | 7th | Seeded 10th; 2021 & 2022 NCAA All-American; 4X NCAA Qualifier |
149 | #16 Joseph Zargo (20-9) | 16th | Seeded 19th; 3X NCAA Qualifier |
165 | #5 Dean Hamiti (26-2) | 5th | Seeded 5th; ’23 B1G Champion; ’24 B1G Finalist; ’22 & ’23 NCAA All-American; 3X NCAA Qualifier |
174 | #14 Max Maylor (18-7) | 15th | Seeded 17th; 1st NCAA Qualification after placing 7th at ’24 B1G Championships |
184 | #20 Shane Liegel (19-12) | 22nd | Seeded 17th; 1st NCAA D1 Qualification after placing 7th at ’24 B1G Championships;’21 NCAA Champion (D3) and 4X NCAA All-American (D3) |
| Head Coach: | Chris Bono | Record: | 37 NCAA qualifications; 13 NCAA All-American honors; 1 NCAA Champ (Seth Gross, 2018 SDSU) |
| Associate Head Coach: | Jon Reader | 6th season | 37 NCAA qualifications; 13 NCAA All-American honors; 1 NCAA Champ (Seth Gross, 2018 SDSU) |
| Assistant Coach: | Seth Gross | 4th season | 21 NCAA qualifications; 9 NCAA All-American honors |
| Coach (RTC): | Garrett Model | 1st season | First NCAA Championships as coach; 2X NCAA Qualifier as a Wrestler |
2. NCAA Seedings:
Five Badgers earned automatic qualifications for the 2024 NCAA Championships after placing at the Big Ten Championships: Eric Barnett (125 pounds), Joe Zargo (149), Dean Hamiti (165), Max Maylor (174) and Shane Liegel (184).
Barnett leads the Badgers with his fourth NCAA qualification, Hamiti and Zargo both will make a third trip, while Liegel and Maylor have both earned their first trips to the NCAA Division 1 tournament. Liegel previously won the 2021 NCAA Division 3 Championship and was a four-time qualifier at Loras in D3.
The Badgers earned the following NCAA seeds:
- Eric Barnett, 125 - 10th Seed
- Joe Zargo, 149 - 19th Seed
- Dean Hamiti, 165 - 5th Seed
- May Maylor, 174 - 15th Seed
- Shane Liegel, 184 - 22nd Seed
MSN ?? KC
— Wisconsin Wrestling (@BadgerWrestling) March 20, 2024
A good day of travel to Kansas City for the 2024 @ncaawrestling Championships pic.twitter.com/QAhciTtGDD
3. Bono at NCAAs
Head coach Chris Bono enters his sixth NCAAs at Wisconsin and has now qualified 37 Badgers to NCAAs, including 13 NCAA All-American honors during his tenure leading the program at UW.
Bono has 19 NCAA All-Americans and NCAA Champion Seth Gross (2018) during his career overall as a head coach.
4. Five Badgers Ranked by NCAA Coaches
Five Badgers are currently receiving rankings by the NCAA coaches in advance of the 2024 NCAA Championships released on March 13 along with the official conference allocations.
- 7th - Eric Barnett, 125
- 5th - Dean Hamiti, 165
- 15th - Max Maylor, 184
- 16th - Joseph Zargo, 149
- 22nd - Shane Liegel, 185
An earlier version of the rankings also included Nicolar Rivera in the 133-pound poll.
5. In the media polls
Five Badgers retained national rankings in the latest Intermat poll for March 12, 2024, while the team is No. 22 in the team rankings in tournament.
- No. 5 – Dean Hamiti, 165
- No. 10 – Eric Barnett, 125
- No. 14 – Max Maylor, 174
- No. 16 – Joseph Zargo, 149
- No. 20 - Shane Liegel, 184
