Top 10 Matches At The 2025 NWCA National Duals
Top 10 Matches At The 2025 NWCA National Duals
A breakdown of the top potential matches at the 2025 NWCA Nationals duals in the NCAA DI men's division.
The 2025 Multi-Divisional National Dual Championships are going down January 10-11 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. This tournament will feature almost 60 ranked NCAA Division 1 wrestlers with several incredible matchups throughout the two-day event. Check out the article below for a breakdown of the top matches that could go down at this year’s National Duals.
More National Duals Content
Schedule | All-Ranked Wrestlers | NAIA Preview | Iowa vs North Central Preview
Top Day 1 Matches
#3 AJ Ferrari, CSU-Bakersfield vs #19 Mickey O'Malley, Drexel/#12 Joey Novak, Wyoming
National Champ AJ Ferrari will wrestle either Novak or O’Malley in his second match at the national duals. Ferrari has only wrestled two ranked wrestlers this year - #23 Remy Cotton (Ferrari won 13-4) and #21 Nick Stemmet (Ferrari won 5-0). Both O’Malley and Novak are interesting tests for AJ - O’Malley is great upper body and Novak is about as solid wrestler as they come at 197 with notable wins over Luke Surber, Luke Geog, and Wyatt Voelker. Either O’Malley or Novak will be a good challenge for Ferrari and show how close he is to National Championship form.
#4 Zeth Romney, Cal Poly vs #9 Nasir Bailey, Little Rock
This potential match could be the bout of the tournament. Zeth Romney announced himself as a title contender when he won the CKLV by defeating #7 Nic Bouzakis, #5 Evan Frost, and #19 Jacob Van Dee. Though Bailey placed 4th at the NCAA Tournament last year, he’s had an up-and-down season losing to #21 Blake Boarman, #2 Lucas Byrd, and #6 Braeden Davis. This match could be an opportunity for Bailey to climb back closer to the top 5 or for Romney to legitimize himself further as a title contender.
#5 Nick Incontrera, Penn vs #9 Garrett Thompson, Ohio
Nick Incontrera and Garret Thompson are two of the best guys in the country who have yet to earn All-Americn honors. Incontrera is currently 10-1 on the year with ranked wins over #14 Simon Ruiz, #19 Danny Braunagle, and #18 Luca Augustine with his only loss coming to #4 Lorenzo Norman. Thompson is 18-3 on the season and placed third in a deep CKLV field win notable wins over #7 Cade DeVos, #16 Jared Simma, and #14 Simon Ruiz. This match should be phenomenal and feels like a matchup we could see in the round of 12 at the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
#4 Ryder Downey, UNI vs #10 Peyten Kellar, Ohio
Both Kellar and Downey surprised a lot of people with the seasons they put together last year - Kellar placed 5th at NCAAs and Downey finished 1 match shy of All-American honors in the round of 12. Downey is riding the hot hand into national duals and is fresh off an overtime win over All-American #5 Antrell Taylor. Kellar had a tough CKLV losing to #9 Joey Blaze and #13 Rafael Hipolito but that doesn’t change the fact that Kellar is a dangerous wrestler and capable of defeating anyone in the country. If this match happens, it should be phenomenal.
#8 Chance Lamer, Cal Poly vs #16 Jordan Williams, Little Rock
Jordan Williams has wrestled great this year after transferring from Oklahoma State to Little Rock. Williams, fresh off his Southern Scuffle title, is currently 13-1 on the season with his only loss coming against #2 Shayne Van Ness. Chance Lamer will be a big step up in competition compared to anyone Williams faced at the Scuffle. Lamer and Williams have only wrestled once in their college careers - in that match Lamer won a one takedown, 4-1 match.
Lamer's win over Williams:
Top Day 2 Matches
#1 Andrew Alirez, N. Colorado vs #5 Cael Happel, UNI
Andrew Alirez is only 3-0 on the year and hasn’t competed since November 16. Cael Happel would be a tough challenge for Alirez coming off a two-month layoff. Happel is fresh off a win over Brock Hardy in UNI’s dual win over Nebraska. The two have only wrestled once in their college careers - all the way back at the 2022 Big 12 Championships. Alirez won that match 7-2 but if they meet on Saturday, I expect it to be a little closer.
#4 Ryder Downey, UNI vs #17 Vincent Zerban, N. Colorado
Ryder Downey could wrestle some really tough competition with ranked matches against Kellar and Zerban. This season, Zerban suffered a surprising loss to Missouri’s James Conway that dropped him significantly in the rankings. Despite that, Zerban is still an All-American threat at 157 if he’s wrestling his best. In fact, last season Zerban rose to #2 in the country after defeating Daniel Cardenas.
#6 Bennett Berge, SD State vs #10 Brock DelSignore, Little Rock
Bennett Berge had a fantastic freshman season last year culminating in a 4th place finish at the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Despite that finish, Berge actually lost to DelSignore last season - 11-3 at the 2023 Patriot Open. DelSignore, a transfer from NC State, has put together a solid season so far starting for Little Rock with a 7-2 record and only losing to Missouri’s Colton Hawks. The potential match between Berge and DelSignore will tell us if DelSignore is ready to challenge for All-American honors this year or if his win over Berge last year was a fluke.
DelSignore's win over Berge:
#2 Parker Keckeisen, UNI vs #6 Bennett Berge, SD State
This match will only happen if both Northern Iowa and South Dakota State make the finals. However, they’re the two top seeds and I’d be surprised if we don’t see this match happen.
Keckeisen and Berge have already wrestled once this year during Northern Iowa’s dual win over South Dakota State with Keckeisen winning 8-3. In that match, neither wrestler scored in the first period but Keckeisen secured an escape and takedown in the second. Keckeisen then closed the match out with another takedown in the third. Their potential match at the National Duals will tell us if Berge is capable of closing the gap or if Keckeisen is still levels above.
Keckeisen's win over Berge:
#9 Nasir Bailey, Little Rock vs #13 Dominick Serrano, N. Colorado
This potential match will be a rematch of their recent Southern Scuffle finals where Bailey won in overtime, 4-1. However, Serrano defeated Bailey last year at the Scuffle, 5-3. That means this could be the rubber match in what should be a fantastic bout!
Bailey's win over Serrano:
Serrano's win over Bailey:
