LEBANON, Tenn.--The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics announced the qualifiers for the 2026 NAIA Wrestling National Championships, and Cumberland will send 11 wrestlers to compete on the national stage in Park City, Kansas.
The 69th annual NAIA Wrestling National Championships will be held March 5-7 at Heartland Credit Union Arena, featuring six sessions across three days. A total of 320 wrestlers across 10 weight classes were selected, including 70 at-large qualifiers chosen by the NAIA's 16-member national selection committee.
Grand View (Iowa), Indiana Tech, Life (Ga.), Southeastern (Fla.), Cumberlands (Ky.) and Southern Oregon are all bringing 12 student-athletes to Wichita to compete for a national title. Cumberland, Providence (Mont.), Marian (Ind.) and Oklahoma City are each bringing 11.
Cumberland brings a strong mix of veteran leadership and emerging talent into this year's championship field. Cumberland's 11 national qualifiers include
Chase Walker (125),
Sammy Shires and
Jared Dinh (141),
Victor Guzman (149),
Antonio Parker and
Elijah Griffin (157),
Ethan Gomez (165),
Anthony Pyron (174),
Rocco Horvath and
Logan Heckert (184), and
Tyler Rowland (197).
Sammy Shires headlines the group as a two-time NAIA All-American, finishing fifth in 2023 and eighth in 2024 at 134 pounds. Shires will be making his third appearance on the national stage and looks to climb even higher on the podium this season.
Victor Guzman returns after earning All-American honors with a third-place finish last year, while
Jared Dinh also enters the tournament as a previous All-American after placing fifth at nationals. Dinh will make another run at the podium as one of the Phoenix's most experienced competitors.
Rocco Horvath is set for his third national appearance, and
Ethan Gomez returns for his second after competing at nationals last season.
Anthony Pyron and
Elijah Griffin will each make their second trip to the championships after qualifying in 2024.
Cumberland will also feature several first-time national qualifiers. Freshmen
Chase Walker and
Antonio Parker will make their debut at the NAIA National Championships, along with
Logan Heckert. Their emergence has helped the Phoenix expand their national presence across multiple weight classes.
Seeding and preliminary brackets will be announced on NAIA.org by 5 p.m. (CST) on Friday, February 27.
