Colon claims a championship at Mid-American Conference Championships

The University of Northern Iowa wrestling team grabbed two more spots at the NCAA national tournament en route to a second-place tam finish at the Mid-American Conference Championships held March 8 and 9 in Kent, Ohio.

Former Clear Lake High School standout wrestler, Joe Colon, was one of four UNI wrestlers to be crowned a champion.  Colon, who is a senior, wrestles at 133 pounds for the Panthers.

UNI will take seven wrestlers, which is the most since 2007-08 when nine Panthers qualified, to the NCAA Division 1 Wrestling Championships to be held Thursday-Saturday, March 20-22, in Oklahoma City, Okla.

The Panthers led by seven and a half points in the team standings starting the final day of the tournament.  Missouri closed the gap to just four points at the start of the medal rounds, and surged ahead in the finals to win the title for the second year in a row.  Mizzou edged out UNI by two-and-a-half points, winning 118.5-116.  Old Dominion was third with 97.0

Colon showed his dominance in the third and worked on last-second back points, which went to review.  However, he had to settle for the decision when they went unawarded.  He beat Joe Roth of Central Michigan, 10-3.