CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Defending national champion Notre Dame (Ohio) separated itself from Missouri Valley in the second session of the 2011 NAIA Wrestling National Championships Thursday in the U.S. Cellular Center, taking sole possession of first place with 39.5 points. The Vikings moved to second with 35 points and are followed by McKendree (Ill.) in third with 33 points and Southern Oregon in fourth with 28. Grand View (Iowa) and Lindenwood (Mo.) are tied at fifth with 27 points. Notre Dame, Grand View and Lindenwood each have eight individuals that advanced to the championship quarterfinals, while Missouri Valley and McKendree each have six. 

There will be two sessions on Friday, with the first starting at 10 a.m. CST and the second session starting at 6 p.m. Real-time results will be available through the NWCA Live Scorebook by clicking here. 

All seven previous national titlists are still in the hunt for a second championship. Tommy Pretty of Campbellsville (Ky.) won it all in 2010 at 133 pounds, but has bumped up to 141 pounds in his junior campaign. He has pinned two of his opponents and closed out with a 5-3 decision against Great Falls’ (Mont.) Myles Mazurkiewicz in a rematch of last year’s 133-pound championship. He will meet Nick Coffman of Grand View in the quarterfinals.

A pair of national champs have the potential to collide at 149 pounds. Matt Burns of Grand View, who was a national champ in 2009, notched a decision in his only match of the day and will face McKendree All-American Ryan Jahn in the quarterfinals. Jeffrey Pelton of Notre Dame was the 2010 champ and has earned bonus points in both of his bouts with a major decision and a technical fall. In the quarterfinals he will take on Jarid Price of Baker (Kan.). Should both former national champions win, they will battle in Friday’s semifinals. 

Reigning national champion Thomas Straughn of Notre Dame won both of his 157 bouts with dominate offense en route to two technical falls. A titlist in 2009, Glenn Rhees of Grand View used an 18-5 major decision in his only bout at 174 pounds. 

Three-time All-American and 2009’s 197-pound champion Andrew Sanchez of McKendree opened with a technical fall and followed up with a pin. He’ll meet Grand View’s Derek Nightser, who has two falls to his credit in Cedar Rapids, in the quarterfinals. On the opposite side of the bracket is 2010 champ Derek Foore of Notre Dame. Foore pinned his only opponent of the session in a quick 1:05 for a quarterfinal date with Campbellsville’s Spencer Adams. 

NeuLion will stream live all 10 individual weight class championship bouts on March 5 and will be available to view starting at approximately 7 p.m. A fee of $7.95 is set to view the finals. Click here for more information.

2011 NAIA Wrestling Championship Team Standings after day one
Place/Score/School/Championship bracket/Consolations

1. 39.5 Notre Dame OH 8 4 
2. 35.0 Missouri Valley 6 6
3. 33.0 McKendree 6 6 
4. 28.0 Southern Oregon 5 5 
5. 27.0 Grand View 8 4 
5. 27.0 Lindenwood 8 4 
7. 25.0 Campbellsville 5 7 
8. 20.0 Morningside 3 9 
9. 16.5 Great Falls 4 6 
9. 16.5 MSU-Northern 2 8 
11. 14.5 Lindsey Wilson 2 9 
12. 13.0 Dickinson State 0 9 
12. 13.0 Embry-Riddle 3 4 
12. 13.0 Midland 3 7 
15. 11.5 York 1 4 
16. 10.0 Dakota Wesleyan 1 5
17. 9.5 Baker 2 10 
18. 9.0 Shorter 1 8 
19. 8.0 Jamestown 2 7 
19. 8.0 Minot State 0 8 
21. 7.5 Cumberland 2 7 
22. 6.5 Oklahoma City 2 6
22. 6.5 Simon Fraser 1 4 
24. 6.0 Missouri Baptist 0 8 
24. 6.0 Waldorf 2 4 
26. 5.0 Menlo 1 7 
26. 5.0 William Penn 1 2 
28. 3.5 Hastings 0 5 
29. 3.0 Briar Cliff 0 3 
29. 3.0 Northwestern 0 5 
31. 2.0 Bacone 0 2 
31. 2.0 Calumet College of St. Joseph 0 3
31. 2.0 Central Baptist 0 1 
34. 1.5 Cumberlands 1 6 
35. 1.0 Concordia 0 7 
35. 1.0 Wayland Baptist 0 2 
37. 0.0 Hannibal-LaGrange 0 3 
37. 0.0 Sioux Falls 0 4 
37. 0.0 West Virginia Tech 0 3