The New York University wrestling team sits in fifth place out of 62 teams with 41 points after the opening day of the 2026 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships on Friday at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse in Cedar Rapids, IA.
Four Violets have already secured All-America honors: Alexander Diaz, Ty Finn, Justin Mayes, and Mo Talebi, marking a program record for NYU at the NCAA Championships. Finn and Talebi remain on the championship side of the bracket and will each have the opportunity to compete for an individual national title on Saturday, while Diaz and Mayes continue their runs in the consolation bracket heading into the final day.
Six members of the NYU wrestling team qualified for the national tournament, the largest group the program has ever sent to the NCAA Championships. Diaz, Talebi, Finn, Mayes, Nicky Bell, and Jacob Venezia competed for the Violets today in Cedar Rapids.
At 174 lbs Finn, turned in one of the top performances of the day. The #4 seed opened his tournament with a 10-1 major decision over Milwaukee School of Engineering's Toren Vandenbush before securing All-America honors with a 4-1 sudden victory win over Springfield's Jake Deguire. Finn will look to capture a national title on Saturday when he competes in the semifinal round.
At 197 pounds, Talebi also delivered one of the biggest wins of the day for NYU. The #9 seed first edged Baldwin Wallace's Joseph Petrella 6-5 before picking up a huge 10-8 win over TCNJ's DJ Henry. It was a great win for Talebi and secured his All- America honors while keeping him in the championship side of the bracket heading into Saturday.
At 184 pounds, Mayes opened the tournament with a 10-2 major decision over Wisconsin Stevens Point's Easton Hull. After falling to #2 Kasey Ross of Wartburg in the quarterfinals Mayes responded with an 11-3 major decision over Loras' Landry Barker in the consolation bracket to secure All-America honors and continue his tournament run.
At 125 lbs, Diaz opened his tournament with a 10-3 decision over Coast Guard's Nikko Beato. Diaz later fell to Coe's Brayden Parke before bouncing back with a 3-0 decision over Chicago's Matthew Barlay in the consolation bracket to secure All- America honors and move on to Saturday.
Venezia began his run at 133 pounds with a fall over John Carroll's Ty Daugherty. After dropping a decision to Luther's Connor Kidd in the championship bracket, Venezia battled back with two wins in the consolation bracket. He posted 12-1 major decision over Washington and Lee's Vincent Ziccardi and a 16-6 victory over Centenary's Daniel Haws, however his run came to an end later in the consolation rounds after a close 10-8 decision to Wartburg's Patrick Mullen.
Competing in the final national tournament of his career, senior captain Bell represented NYU at 165 pounds, but fell in both of his bouts. He closed his career with 82 wins, an NCAA qualification, and recognition as an NCAA Scholar All- American.
Competition concludes Saturday in Cedar Rapids with the semifinals, consolation rounds, and placement matches.
