Defending champion Wartburg placed three into the finals, and maintains its lead in the team race over Augsburg after the semifinal round of the NCAA Div. III Championships on Saturday morning.

At 197 pounds, top seed Riley Lefever of Wabash will seek a fourth NCAA Div. III title, as he faces No. 3 seed Carlos Toribio of Ithaca. Lefever won in the semifinals over No. 5 seed AJ Kowal of Stevens Tech in a 16-5 major decision.

Other returning champions reaching the finals are Lucas Malmberg of Messiah (125), Robert Dierna of Cortland State (158), Logan Hermsen of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (165), Ben Swarr of Messiah (174), Zachary Roseberry of Delaware Valley (285) and Donny Longendyke of Augsburg (285).

Malmberg is a national finalist for the fourth straight time, where he will battle unseeded Zachary Beckner of Ferrum.

Dierna, who pinned Derek Arnold of Ursinus in the semifinals, will battle Iowa transfer and No. 2 seed Logan Thomsen of Wartburg in the championship match.’

Hermsen will face No. 3 seed Stephen Jarrell of Johnson & Wales in the finals. He scored an 8-4 semifinal win over No. 4 Larry Cannon of Messiah.

Swarr will have a rematch of the 2016 national finals, when he battles Wartburg’s Eric Devos for the title. Last year, Swarr won the finals, 3-1.

The finals at 285 pounds pits 2016 national champion Roseberry against 2015 national champion Longendyke. He defeated Longendyke in the finals last year.

There was a big semifinal upset at 149 pounds, where No. 4 seed Dan Del Gallo of Southern Maine upset top seed and two-time national champion Kenny Martin of Wartburg, 7-5. Del Gallo will face another unseeded finalist, Aaron Engle of Cornell College, who pinned No. 2 Seth Lansberry of Lycoming, in overtime at 7:37.

Wartburg’s finalists are Thomsen, Devos and Cross Cannone at 141. Their lead over Augsburg after the semifinals was 47.5 points. Consolations are continuing.

Jon Gremmels, who contributed information for this update, will file a wrap-up story from the Div. III Nationals this evening.

NCAA DIV. III NATIONALS
At LaCrosse, Wis.

Finals pairings

125 pounds
1st - No. 1 Lucas Malmberg (Messiah) vs. unseeded Zachary Beckner (Ferrum)

133 pounds
1st - No. 5 Jay Albis (Johnson & Wales) vs. No. 2 Nathan Pike (NYU)

141 pounds
1st - No. 1 Dustin Weinmann (Wisconsin-La Crosse) vs. No. 3 Cross Cannone (Wartburg)

149 pounds
1st - No. 4 Dan Del Gallo (Southern Maine) vs. unseeded Aaron Engle (Cornell College)

157 pounds
1st - No. 1 Robert Dierna (Cortland State) vs. No. 2 Logan Thomsen (Wartburg)

165 pounds
No. 1 Logan Hermsen (Wisconsin-Stevens Point) vs. No. 3 Stephen Jarrell (Johnson & Wales)

174 pounds
No. 1 Ben Swarr (Messiah ) vs. No. 2 Eric DeVos (Wartburg)

184 pounds
No. 5 Justin Kreiter (Luther) vs. No. 3 Jordan Newman (Wisconsin-Whitewater)

197 pounds
No. 1 Riley Lefever (Wabash) vs. No. 3 Carlos Toribio (Ithaca)

285 pounds
No. 1 Zachery Roseberry (Delaware Valley) vs. No. 3 Donny Longendyke (Augsburg)

Semifinal results

125 pounds
No. 1 Lucas Malmberg (Messiah) dec. No. 5 Arnulfo Olea (Wartburg), 9-3
Unseeded Zachary Beckner of Ferrum dec.No. 3 Zac Denny (Wisconsin-Whitewater), 5-2

133 pounds
No. 5 Jay Albis (Johnson & Wales) dec. No. 1 Troy Stanich (Stevens Tech), 7-6
No. 2 Nathan Pike (NYU) dec. No. 3 Chris Williams (Millikin), 8-6

141 pounds
No. 1 Dustin Weinmann (Wisconsin-La Crosse) dec. No. 5 David Flynn (Augsburg), 3-0
No. 3 Cross Cannone (Wartburg) dec. No. 2 Devin Broukal (Wabash), 3-1, sv

149 pounds
No. 4 Dan Del Gallo (Southern Maine) dec. No. 1 Kenny Martin (Wartburg), 7-5
Unseeded Aaron Engle (Cornell College) pin No. 2 Seth Lansberry (Lycoming), 7:37

157 pounds
No. 1 Robert Dierna (Cortland State) pin No. 4 Derek Arnold (Ursinus), 1:46
No. 2 Logan Thomsen (Wartburg) dec. unseeded Mark Choinski (Wisconsin-Oshkosh), 7-1

165 pounds
No. 1 Logan Hermsen (Wisconsin-Stevens Point) dec. No. 4 Larry Cannon (Messiah), 8-4
No. 3 Stephen Jarrell (Johnson & Wales) dec. unseeded Anthony Arroyo (Baldwin Wallace), 8-7

174 pounds
No. 1 Ben Swarr (Messiah ) dec. No. 4 Benjamin Schweiger (Delaware Valley), 9-2
No. 2 Eric DeVos (Wartburg) dec. No. 3 Richard Carlson of Wisconsin-La Crosse), 8-1

184 pounds
No. 5 Justin Kreiter (Luther) dec. No. 1 Owen Webster (Augsburg), 5-3
No. 3 Jordan Newman (Wisconsin-Whitewater) tech.fall No. 7 Blaise Benderoth (NYU), 18-1, 6:03

197 pounds
No. 1 Riley Lefever (Wabash) maj. dec. No. 5 AJ Kowal (Stevens Tech), 16-5
No. 3 Carlos Toribio (Ithaca) dec. No. 2 Kyle Fank (Wartburg). 4-3

285 pounds
No. 1 Zachery Roseberry (Delaware Valley) dec. No. 4 James Bethel (Oneonta State), 4-1
No. 3 Donny Longendyke (Augsburg) maj. dec. No. 2 Lance Evans (Wartburg), 10-1

Team Standings after semifinals
1. Wartburg 107.5
2. Augsburg 60.0
3. Johnson & Wales 58.5
4. Messiah 46.5
5. Wabash 45.5
6. Cortland State 37.5
7. Loras 37.0
8. Ithaca 31.5
9. Delaware Valley 27.5
10. Stevens Tech 26.0