Fifty-nine pins were recorded on first day of action in Abe Lemons Arena in Oklahoma City 

OKLAHOMA CITY - Notre Dame (Ohio) pushed 10 wrestlers through the championship bracket to take the early lead with 44 points at the 53rd Annual NAIA Wrestling National Championships Thursday at Abe Lemons Arena on the campus of Oklahoma City University. Southern Oregon is in second place with 38 points and has eight wrestlers in the championship bracket. Missouri Valley is third (32 points), McKendree (Ill.) is fourth (31 points) and Great Falls (Mont.) is fifth (28 points) to round out the top five teams after the first day of action. 

Notre Dame picked up bonus point performances in 13 matches, led by 149-pounder Ashtin Primus. The sophomore notched a major decision and back-to-back falls to provide big points for the Falcons. Of 12 wrestlers taking the mat for Notre Dame, only two fell into the consolation bracket in the first session. 

Three-time defending national champion Lindenwood (Mo.) wrapped up the first day in sixth place with 25.5 points. Nine Lions suffered defeat and will have to work back through the consolation bracket, while three wrestlers are still alive in the championship bracket. 

Pins were prevalent with 59 sticks registered, including seven in under 60 seconds. Chauncey Phillips of California Baptist recorded the quickest fall of the day by putting Oklahoma City's Bryce Dicus on his back in 29 seconds at 125 pounds. 

Two sessions are slated for Friday, starting with a 10 a.m. round of championship quarterfinals along with preliminary, first, second and third round matches of consolation action. The third session gets underway at 6 p.m. and will feature championship semifinal matches and two rounds of consolation wrestling. 

For updated information throughout the Championships, click below.
http://naia.cstv.com/sports/m-wrestl/2010Championship.html

For brackets after day one, click below.
http://naia.cstv.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/naia/sports/m-wrestl/auto_pdf/WR_SessionI