MOUNT VERNON – Cornell's men's wrestlers will battle for NCAA Division III individual berths Thursday and Friday at the Lower Midwest Region Championships, hosted by the American Rivers Conference at Alliant Energy Powerhouse in Cedar Rapids.
 
Coach Brent Hamm leads his young Rams into a tough 19-team field, which features seven rated programs and 42 nationally-ranked individuals.
 
The Championships begin at 1 p.m. Thursday with quarterfinals set for 3:30 p.m. Friday's action starts at 10 a.m. with semifinals, followed by all place matches at 1:30 p.m.  
 
Fans can follow the tournament via live results and the Championships page.
 
The top three finishers in each of the 10 weight classes qualify for the NCAA Championships March 15-16 in La Crosse, Wis.
 
The Rams return five wrestlers – and four placewinners – from last year's regional lineup that finished sixth in the team race, marking the program's best showing since 2016.
 
Cornell has three rated individuals in No. 12 senior Treyten Steffen (21-6) at 197 pounds, No. 13 junior Cael McLaren (17-8) at 184 and No. 15 sophomore Gabriel Smith (22-7) at 157.
 
Steffen is a two-time regional placewinner, taking seventh in 2023 and fifth in 2022. He is among five ranked wrestlers in the 197-pound bracket, which includes No. 1 Massoma Endene of Wartburg.
 
McLaren, the team's active leader with 77 career wins, placed fourth a year ago. His weight class includes Wartburg's No. 4 Kasey Ross and Coe's No. 15 Jared Voss.
 
Smith is among five rated individuals at 157. He did not place in his 2023 regional debut.
 
Junior Landon Card (19-7 at 149) is making his third regional appearance, finishing fifth in 2023. Sophomore Jase Van Pelt (10-13 at 125) is also back in the lineup after taking seventh a year ago.
 
Cornell has five regional newcomers set to compete in sophomore Eli Sneed (16-12 at 133), freshman AJ Parrish (15-19 at 141), sophomore Scotty Scheidecker (11-19 at 165), freshman Brian Petry (23-16 at 174) and sophomore Jackson Brinker (23-11 at 285).
 
This year's field features nationally-ranked teams in No. 1 Wartburg, No. 4 North Central, No. 16 Central, No. 19 Coe, No. 21 Millikin, No. 23 Dubuque and No. 23 Augustana, and includes Buena Vista, Cornell, Eureka, Fontbonne, Huntingdon, Loras, Luther, Nebraska Wesleyan, Ozarks, Schreiner, Simpson and Westminster.