For the Lock Haven University wrestling team, the 2019-20 season proved to be another memorable one.
 
The Bald Eagles settled into their new home in the Mid-American Conference and proved once again, "The Rise" is here to stay.
 
The rise of LHU wrestling started back in 2017-18. Highlighted by Ronnie Perry's storybook run to the 2018 NCAA Division I finals, LHU returned to the national scene. LHU placed 16^th at the NCAA Tournament in Cleveland in 2018 and crowned two all-Americans. Two more All-Americans in 2019 and a second straight top-20 finish proved the rise of LHU wrestling was for real after an all-around strong 2018-19 season.
 
This season (2019-20), Lock Haven officially opened its tenure in the MAC, a traditionally strong Division I wrestling conference and the Bald Eagles quickly made some noise. Jared Siegrist, a senior, made history by winning LHU's first ever individual MAC title after a dominating run to the 174-pound title. Thanks to Siegrist's title and seven placewinners, Lock Haven placed fifth at its first-ever MAC Tournament in March. Siegrist was one of five NCAA qualifiers, all of whom were looking to cap the season on the sport's biggest stage.
 
Lock Haven's early MAC dominance, among many other highlights proved once again, LHU wrestling continues to rise. Let's take a quick look back.
 
2019-20 SEASON BY THE NUMBERS:

• 1 All-American (Luke Werner, NWCA Honorable Mention All-American at 125 pounds)
• 5 NCAA Division I National Qualifiers
• 1 Individual MAC Champion (Jared Siegrist, 174 pounds)
• 7 of 10 LHU wrestlers placed at the 2020 MAC Championships, LHU's first-ever MAC Tournament
• 4 Bald Eagles named to Academic All-MAC Wrestling Team
• LHU led the NCAA in bonus-point victories
• LHU led the NCAA in tech falls
• LHU ranked No. 2 in country in pins

 
ALL-AMERICAN:
On Friday (April 17), the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) announced its 2020 Division I All-American Wrestling Teams and junior 125-pounder Luke Werner was named an Honorable Mention All-American. By way of a third-place finish at the 2020 Mid-American Conference Championships in March, Werner was set to make his NCAA Championship debut before the tournament was cancelled. NWCA All-American honors were based on each wrestler's overall body of work through the conference tournaments and up to the national championships. Werner's total body of work during the 2019-20 season was certainly impressive, and even more so considering the fact that he had originally planned to redshirt the season. He quickly dropped his redshirt in early December and never looked back on the way to a 31-5 overall record. The junior went 7-1 in duals and 4-1 in MAC duals. Werner went 5-1 at the MAC Tournament on the way to the third-place finish and he placed second at the prestigious Southern Scuffle in January. On the season, 22 of his 31 wins came by way of bonus points. Werner's seven tech falls ranked No. 6 among all DI wrestlers.
 
2020 NATIONAL QUALIFERS:
In all, five Bald Eagles qualified for the 2020 NCAA Division I National Tournament.
 
125 lbs. Jr. Luke Werner // First-Time Qualifier // 2020 NWCA All-American
133 lbs. R-Sr. DJ Fehlman // 3X NCAA Qualifier
141 lbs. R-Sr. Kyle Shoop // 4X NCAA Qualifier // 2019 All-American (7^th)
157 lbs. R-Sr. Alex Klucker // 3X NCAA Qualifier
174 lbs. Sr. Jared Siegrist // First-Time Qualifier
 
Werner, Fehlman, Shoop and Siegrist qualified by way of strong finishes at the MAC Championships, and Klucker earned an at-large selection.
 
MAC CHAMPIONSHIP RECAP:
Siegrist becomes LHU's first MAC Champion - -
Jared Siegrist turned in a historic performance and became LHU's first ever individual Mid-American Conference champion. He went 4-0 on the way to the 174-pound title and was one of seven Bald Eagle placewinners, as LHU wrapped up the two-day (March 7-8) MAC Tournament in style. Siegrist, a senior and four-year starter, was one of four LHU wrestlers who also qualified for an automatic spot in the NCAA Championships by way of their strong finishes at the two-day conference tournament. It marked Lock Haven's debut at the MAC Championships. Luke Werner finished third at 125, and DJ Fehlman and Kyle Shoop both placed fifth at 133 and 141, respectively. FULL MAC CHAMPIONSHIP RECAP - -
 
SALUTE TO THE SENIOR CLASS:
Prior to the start of the home match vs. Cornell on February 22, the Bald Eagles honored their eight 2019-20 graduating seniors: DJ Fehlman, Kyle Shoop, Collin Glorioso, Alex Klucker, Jared Siegrist, Corey Hazel and Ray Bernot and Trey Hartsock. These eight LHU student-athletes firmly planted Lock Haven wrestling and Mat-Town USA back on the national wrestling scene. This group combined to secure over 500 individual wins, helped Lock Haven win two Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships, led the Bald Eagles to two straight Eastern Wresting League (EWL) team titles, powered LHU to back-to-back top-20 finishes at the NCAA Division I Tournament and they led LHU into the MAC. Full Senior Day/Match Recap - -
 
ACADEMIC HONORS:
In early April, the Mid-American Conference released its 2020 Academic All-MAC Wrestling Team and four members of the Lock Haven University wrestling team were honored with a place on the prestigious squad. Seniors DJ Fehlman, Trey Hartsock, Alex Klucker were joined by sophomore Brock Port on the 2019-20 All-Academic MAC wrestling team. All four represented Lock Haven at the 2020 MAC Tournament and the Bald Eagle foursome certainly played an instrumental role this season as LHU wrestling ushered in a new era. The Academic All-MAC honor is for a student-athlete who has excelled in athletics and academics. To qualify, a student must have at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA.
 
BALD EAGLES IN THE OFFICIAL NCAA RANKINGS:
Heading into the postseason, the NCAA released updated Division I Coaches' Panel and RPI rankings, and LHU was well represented in both polls.
 
Coaches' Panel - -
125: Luke Werner #12
133: DJ Fehlman #27
141: Kyle Shoop #22
157: Alex Klucker #30
 
RPI - -
Werner (125) #14
Fehlman (133) #15
Shoop (141) #13
Klucker (157) #25
Jared Siegrist (174) #25
Corey Hazel (184) #33
 
LHU IN THE NATIONAL MEDIA POLLS:
After the regular season came to a close, several LHU wrestlers found themselves ranked in the various national media polls. Standouts Luke Werner, DJ Fehlman and Kyle Shoop were all ranked. Werner, LHU's junior 125-pound superstar, was ranked as high as No. 8 by InterMat. He was ranked No. 10 by TrackWrestling and FloWrestling had him slotted at No. 13. Fehlman was ranked No. 18 nationally by InterMat and No. 28 by TrackWrestling. Shoop was nationally ranked by both TrackWrestling (No. 17) and FloWrestling (No. 23).
 
A LOOK BACK AT THE REGULAR SEASON:
The Bald Eagles went 7-7 overall in dual action and finished their first regular season in the MAC at 3-4 overall. Lock Haven was 3-3 in MAC East duals with wins over local-rival Bloomsburg, George Mason and longtime-rival Edinboro. Behind Luke Werner's run to the 125-pound Southern Scuffle finals and three overall placewinners, LHU finished 10^th at the mid-season Southern Scuffle.
 
REDSHIRT-ROSS DOMINATES:
Jonathan Ross capped his brilliant redshirt-season with a National Collegiate Open title on March 1. In doing so, Ross became Lock Haven's first National Collegiate Open champion since the Bald Eagles crowned a champ in 2009 at the inaugural outing. This was one of several individual titles for the Bald Eagles' redshirt 157-pounder. Ross finished the 2019-20 season with over 50 wins.
 
100 WIN CLUB:
Earlier this season standout DJ Fehlman (133) picked up his 100^th win, and in doing so, he became Lock Haven's 22^nd member of the 100-win club. He finished his remarkable career with 113 wins, which ties him for 10^th all-time. Kyle Shoop (141) hit 100 wins last season and finished his sensational career with 130 wins, the second most in LHU history. Shoop racked up 45 career tech falls, the most of any Bald Eagle wrestler in history.
 
RETURNING CONFERENCE CHAMPS:
When the 2019-20 season started, seniors DJ Fehlman (133), Kyle Shoop (141), Alex Klucker (157) and Corey Hazel (184) were all returning conference champions as each won Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) titles last season in 2019. Klucker and Hazel are two-time EWL champs.
 
HISTORIC EXPANSION:
The 2019-20 season marks Lock Haven's first as a MAC member. Last March (2019), it was announced that Lock Haven, along with the other members of the Eastern Wrestling League (EWL), would be joining the Mid-American Conference for the sport of wrestling this season. It was a historic moment for college wrestling and one that made the MAC the second largest wrestling conference in the country. In the sport of wrestling, the MAC's Eastern Division was made up of Bloomsburg, Clarion, Edinboro, George Mason, Lock Haven, Rider and Old Dominion. The Western Division consists of Buffalo, Central Michigan, Cleveland State, Kent State, Missouri, Northern Illinois, Ohio and SIU-Edwardsville.
 
DOMINATING THE MAC EARLY ON:
On February 26, 157-pounder Alex Klucker was named the Mid-American Conference Eastern Division Athlete of the Week. In doing so, he became the fourth different Bald Eagle to be named MAC East Wrestler of the Week during the regular season. Returning All-American Kyle Shoop (141) was named MAC East Wrestler of the Week on February 12, and before that, both Luke Werner (125) and DJ Fehlman (133) accounted for six total athlete of the week awards, as each won the honor three different times. Overall, LHU was awarded eight athlete of the week awards during the regular season.
 
Lock Haven's 2019-20 MAC East Wrestlers of the Week - -
December 4, 2019 – Luke Werner, 125
December 18, 2019 – DJ Fehlman, 133
December 23, 2019 – DJ Fehlman, 133
January 8, 2020 – Luke Werner, 125
January 22, 2020 – Luke Werner, 125
February 5, 2020 – DJ Fehlman, 133
February 12, 2020 – Kyle Shoop, 141
February 26, 2020 – Alex Klucker, 157
 
TOP NOTCH TALENT IN THE LINEUP:
Last season (2018-19), Lock Haven sent a total of six Bald Eagles to the 2019 NCAA Division I National Championships in Pittsburgh. Four of those six returned this season in the form of redshirt-seniors DJ Fehlman (133), Kyle Shoop (141), Alex Klucker (157) and Corey Hazel (184). Shoop was an All-American in 2019.
 
BACK-TO-BACK EWL CHAMPS:
The Bald Eagles entered the 2019-20 season and their time in the MAC on a high note as they were coming off two straight Eastern Wrestling League titles. Saturday, March 9, 2019 proved to be a historic and dominant day for LHU wrestling, as the nationally-ranked Bald Eagles crowned six individual champions and soared by the tournament field on the way to the 2019 EWL Championship. It marked LHU's second straight conference title. The six champions were the most for Lock Haven in EWL Tournament history and all six individual EWL champions booked trips to the 2019 NCAA Championships. The championship title was made more special as it marked the 44th and final EWL Championship, as it was announced earlier that same week that LHU, along with the six other EWL teams would join the MAC for 2019-20.