Battle for the Red Banner Begins as Fire Compete at NAIA Nationals

LAKELAND, Fla. — Southeastern Wrestling heads to Kansas this week for the 69th Annual NAIA Men's Wrestling National Championships, as the Fire send a strong group of qualifiers to compete for national honors beginning Thursday at Heartland Credit Union Arena in Park City, Kansas.

The three-day event, hosted by Visit Wichita, will feature six sessions from March 5–7 as the nation's top NAIA wrestlers battle for individual titles and the coveted Red Banner awarded to the national champion.

All championship sessions will be streamed live on FloWrestling, the NAIA Network, and Urban Edge Network, while live brackets and results will be available through TrackWrestling.

Brackets for the national tournament were finalized by the NAIA Wrestling Coaches Association Bracketing Committee following the selection of at-large qualifiers and the ranking of each weight class by a 16-member committee of conference raters and oversight members.

Tournament Schedule

Competition begins Thursday morning and concludes Saturday night with the championship finals.
Thursday – March 5

• 11 a.m. — Session I
  • First Round
  • First Round (Consolation)
• 6 p.m. — Session II
  • Championship Second Round
  • Consolation Second Round

Friday – March 6

• 11 a.m. — Session III
  • Championship Quarterfinals
  • Consolation Round
• 5:15 p.m. — Parade of Scholar-Athletes
• 6 p.m. — Session IV
  • Championship Semifinals
  • All-America Round (Consolation)
  • Consolation Quarterfinals

Saturday – March 7

• 11 a.m. — Session V
  • Consolation Semifinals
  • Placement Matches (3rd, 5th, 7th)
• 6:30 p.m. — Parade of All-Americans
• 7 p.m. — Session VI
  • Championship Finals

All times listed in Central Time.

Southeastern brings a balanced lineup with multiple top-10 seeds, led by top-seeded Aaron Lucio at 133 pounds, who enters the tournament as one of the favorites to capture a national championship.

The Fire also feature strong contenders throughout the middle and upper weights, including Gentry Smith (197), Anthony Federico (165), Ty Rodriguez (174), and Mario De La Torre (149), each entering the tournament seeded inside the top six of their respective brackets.

With several wrestlers positioned for potential All-America finishes, Southeastern will look to make a significant impact in both the individual standings and the team race as the tournament unfolds in Wichita.

Southeastern First-Round Matchups

133 Pounds

• #1 Aaron Lucio (SEU) vs. Josiah Fernandez (Keiser)

141 Pounds

• #4 Andrew Voiles (SEU) vs. Steven Barnes (Concordia)
• Drew Jones (SEU) vs. #15 Horacio Godinez (Evergreen)

149 Pounds

• #6 Mario De La Torre (SEU) vs. Christian Lopez (Embry-Riddle)

165 Pounds

• #6 Anthony Federico (SEU) vs. Eric Hodge (Central Methodist)
• #8 Jovon Mitchell (SEU) vs. Blaze Sumiye (Providence)

174 Pounds

• #6 Ty Rodriguez (SEU) vs. Jake Prudek (Doane)
• #13 Husam Mustafa (SEU) vs. Benedict Holthaus (Friends)

184 Pounds

• #10 August Batson (SEU) vs. Jackson King (Dickinson State)

197 Pounds

• #5 Gentry Smith (SEU) vs. Ty Cobb (Lourdes)
• #9 Kasten Grape (SEU) vs. Cameron Cornman (Central Methodist)

285 Pounds

• Bryce Wheatley (SEU) vs. #5 Nico Rodriguez (Eastern Oregon)