BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Navy's Josh Koderhandt (141) won his second-consecutive title during Saturday's second day of the 121st Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Championship hosted by Lehigh at the Stabler Arena.

The Mids and Army each totaled 116.5 points to tie for third place in the team standings. Lehigh won the tournament with 143.5 team points and Bucknell earned second place with 122.5 points.

Koderhandt became the 28th Navy wrestler to become a two-time EIWA champion and the first since Cody Trybus in 2020 and 2021.   He continued his dominant run in the tournament when he squared off against third-seeded Dylan Chappell from Bucknell in the finals. The senior from Belleville, Ill., pinned Chappell 1:56 into the first period to record his sixth victory by fall this season.

Danny Wask (174) finished in second place in his weight class. The sophomore met second-seeded Brevin Cassella of Binghamton in the final. Neither wrestler generated much offense through seven minutes as the bout went into overtime in a 1-1 tie. Wask was taken down in the second tiebreaker period to fall, 4-1.

Fifth-seeded Kaemen Smith took third place at 149 pounds after he won both of his matches on Saturday. Smith kicked off his day in the consolation semifinals where he defeated 11th-seeded Braden Bower out of Bucknell, 5-3.  In the third-place bout, Smith went head-to-head against sixth-seeded Noah Tapia from Hofstra. Smith successfully executed two takedowns including one to win the match in sudden victory to secure his bronze medal finish by the score of 8-5.

Jonathan Ley also reached the podium as he took third place at 157 pounds after he won a pair of close matches by decision. In his first match of the day against 11th-seeded Jack Nies from American, Ley's first period takedown and an escape in the second won him the match, 4-1.   Ley went into the final period of his third-place match against fourth-seeded Cade Wirnsberger of Bucknell tied 1-1.  He then rode out the entire third period to secure the riding time point and win, 2-1.

Freshman Dylan Elmore (165) was Navy's final wrestler to place in the top three as he finished third. He first advanced by way of a medical forfeit by Army's second-seeded Gunner Flipowicz.  Elmore then went against fifth-seeded Carter Baer out of Binghamton to battle for third place. Elmore scored all four points in the second period with an escape and a takedown en route to a 4-3 victory.

Payton Thomas finished his first EIWA Championship with a fourth-place finish at 197 pounds and an automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA Championship in two weeks.

Thomas advanced Saturday with a victory in the consolation semifinals against sixth-seeded Cayden Bevis from Binghamton, 10-6. Thomas battled back from a 6-5 deficit in the third period by scoring an escape and a takedown in the final minute of the match. He amassed over a minute of riding time for an additional point.

Thomas fell in the first period to third-seeded Mickey O'Malley from Drexel in the third-place bout.

Nick Treaster (125) and Brendan Ferretti (133) each posted 2-2 records on the day to take seventh in their respective weight classes.

Koderhandt, Wask and Thomas each qualified for the NCAA Championship. Koderhandt will be making his fourth-straight appearance, Wask qualified for the second year in a row and Thomas will make his debut in the national tournament.

Elmore will wait to see if he qualifies for nationals as an at-large selection. The 43 at-large qualifiers will be selected by the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee on March 11.

The NCAA Championship will be held from March 20-22 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pa. Brackets and seeding will be announced on March 12 on NCAA.com.

EIWA Championship Standings

1. 143.5 points - Lehigh

2. 122.5 - Bucknell

3. 116.5 - Army

3. 116.5 - Navy

5. 113.0 - Bucknell

6. 105.5 - Binghamton

7. 79.5 - Hofstra

8. 61.0 - American

9. 52.0 - LIU

10. 31.0 - Franklin & Marshall

11. 25.5 - Morgan State

12. 25.0 - Sacred Heart

Navy Individual EIWA Results

125 – (6) Nick Treaster (2-2, 7th Place)

·       Rd of 16: defeated (11) Chris Nucifora, Bucknell / Major / 13-0

·       Quarterfinals: lost to (3) #32 Desmond Pleasant, Drexel / Major / 18-7

·       Cons. of 8 #2: bye

·       Cons. of 4: lost to (7) Coen Bainey, American / Major / 11-1

·       Seventh Place: defeated (No. 10) Julian Dawson, Morgan State / Tech Fall / 15-0

133 – (10) Brendan Ferretti (2-2, 7th Place)

·       Rd of 16: lost to (7) Raymond Lopez, American / Fall / 4:17

·       Cons. of 8 #2: defeated (8) Mason Leiphart, Franklin & Marshall / Decision / 8-4

·       Cons. of 4: lost to (5) Micah Roes, Binghamton / Decision / 4-1 SV-1

·       Seventh Place: defeated (6) Braxton Fries-Appello, Sacred Heart / Fall / 1:08

141 – (1) Josh Koderhandt (3-0, Champion)

·       Rd of 16: bye

·       Quarterfinals: defeated (8) Justin Hoyle, Hofstra / Decision / 5-2

·       Semifinals: defeated (5) Bryce Kresho, Franklin & Marshall / Decision / 11-5

·       Finals: defeated (3) #24 Dylan Chappell, Bucknell / Fall / 1:56

149 – (5) Kaemen Smith (4-1, 3rd Place)

·       Rd of 16: defeated (12) Yannis Charles, Morgan State / Injury Default / :57

·       Quarterfinals: defeated (4) Dakota Asuncion, Sacred Heart / Decision / 7-5

·       Semifinals: lost to (1) #31 Trae McDaniel, Army / Major / 16-2

·       Cons. Semifinals: defeated (11) Braden Bower, Bucknell / Decision / 5-3

·       Third Place: defeated (6) Noah Tapia, Hofstra / Decision / 8-5 SV-1

157 – (3) Jonathan Ley (3-1, 3rd Place)

·       Rd of 16: bye

·       Quarterfinals: defeated (6) Dakota Morris, Army / Decision / 4-1

·       Semifinals: lost to (2) #31 Luke Nitcher, Drexel / Fall / 3:13

·       Cons. Semifinals: defeated (11) Jack Nines, American / Decision / 4-1

·       Third Place: defeated (4) Cade Wirnsberger, Bucknell / Decision / 2-1

165 – (4) Dylan Elmore (4-1, 3rd Place)

·       Rd of 16: bye

·       Quarterfinals: lost to (5) Carter Baer, Binghamton / Major / 11-3

·       Cons. of 8 #2: defeated (11) James Johnston, Long Island / Tech Fall / 16-1

·       Cons. of 4: defeated (8) Cody Walsh, Drexel / Major / 13-3

·       Cons. Semifinals: defeated (2) #17 Gunner Flipowicz, Army / Forfeit

·       Third Place: defeated (5) Carter Baer, Binghamton / Decision / 4-3

174 – (1) Danny Wask (2-1, 2nd Place)

·       Rd of 16: bye

·       Quarterfinals: defeated (9) Aidan Zarrella, Sacred Heart / Tech Fall / 17-2

·       Semifinals: defeated (5) #33 Dalton Harkins, Army / Decision / 4-1

·       Finals: lost to (2) #12 Brevin Cassella, Binghamton / Decision / 4-1 TB2

184 – (7) Daniel Williams (2-2, Did Not Place)

·       Rd of 16: defeated Lucas White, American / Decision / 3-0

·       Quarterfinals: defeated (2) #32 Giuseppe Hoose, Drexel / Decision / 8-4

·       Semifinals: lost to (3) Caden Rogers, Lehigh / Decision / 2-0

·       Cons. Semifinals: lost to (8) Anthony D'Alesio, Long Island / Decision / 4-1

197 – (5) Payton Thomas (3-2, 4th Place)

·       Rd of 16: defeated Chris DeLena, Sacred Heart / Tech Fall / 17-2

·       Quarterfinals: defeated (4) #28 Wolfgang Frable, Army / Decision / 7-4

·       Semifinals: lost to (1) #5 Michael Beard, Lehigh / Fall / 4:47

·       Cons. Semifinals: defeated (6) Cayden Davis, Binghamton / Decision / 10-6

·       Third Place: lost to (3) #19 Mickey O'Malley, Drexel / Fall / 0:53

285 – (12) Jacob Lucas (0-2, Did Not Place)

·       Rd of 16: lost to (5) Xavier Doolin, Morgan State / Decision / 8-1

·       Cons. of 8 #2: lost to (6) Ibrahim Ameer, Drexel / Decision / 4-1