Kansas City, Mo. - Led by junior grappler Brenden Shelton, the Central Methodist men's wrestling team continues to receive votes in the fourth edition of the NAIA Men's Wrestling Coaches' Top 20 Poll, announced by the national office Thursday.
Other Heart programs featured or mentioned in the Top 20 poll include; No. 1 Grand View, No. 20 Baker, (RV) Missouri Valley, and (RV) William Penn.
Shelton represents Central on the individual side, as he is ranked No. 7 in the 285-pound weight class for the fourth consecutive week.
The Eagles are set to next compete against Missouri Valley Friday, Jan. 28 at 7:00 p.m. in Marshall, Mo.
To view the poll methodology and the complete Top 20 poll, please see below.
Poll Methodology
- The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the nine conferences.
- Two days prior to the national poll, each qualifying group rater submits the top six individuals from each weight class in his conference into the system. Only wrestlers listed on a conference ballot are considered for the national ballot.
- The top 20 individuals in each weight class are based on how each voter ranks the best individuals. An individual receives 20 points for each first-place vote, 19 for second place, and so on through the list. This same point system is used to determine the team ranking.
- The highest and lowest ranking for each team (a non-rating is considered a low rating) is removed and the team's ranking will be recalculated with an additional point added to each team for every ballot
- The postseason poll is determined using the individual and team results from the national championship
- For the complete Top 20 calendar, click here.
| Rank | Team | League | Points |
| 1 | Grand View (Iowa) | Heart of America | 212 |
| 2 | Life University | Mid-South | 191 |
| 3 | Indiana Tech | WHAC | 113 |
| 4 | Reinhardt University (Ga.) | AAC | 108 |
| 5 | Doane University | GPAC | 95 |
| 5 | Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | Mid-South | 95 |
| 7 | Southeastern (Fla.) | Mid-South | 86 |
| 8 | Menlo (Calif.) | Cascade | 78 |
| 8 | Montana State-Northern | Cascade | 78 |
| 8 | Marian University (Ind.) | WHAC | 78 |
| 11 | Cumberland (Tenn.) | Mid-South | 71 |
| 12 | Cumberlands (Ky.) | Mid-South | 67 |
| 13 | Ottawa University | KCAC | 61 |
| 14 | Hastings (Neb.) | GPAC | 57 |
| 15 | Lourdes University | WHAC | 52 |
| 16 | Thomas More | Mid-South | 51 |
| 17 | Eastern Oregon | Cascade | 48 |
| 18 | Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) | Cascade | 46 |
| 19 | Campbellsville (Ky.) | Mid-South | 44 |
| 20 | Baker (Kan.) | Heart of America | 39 |
Receiving Votes: Vanguard (Calif.) 38; Morningside (Iowa) 35; Providence (Mont.) 34; Missouri Valley 32; Oklahoma City 32; Brewton-Parker (Ga) 27; Texas Wesleyan 26; Wayland Baptist (Texas) 24; Southern Oregon 23; Briar Cliff (Iowa) 19; St. Ambrose (Iowa) 19; Midland (Neb.) 17; Montreat (N.C.) 16; William Penn (Iowa) 16; York (Neb.) 16; Central Methodist (Mo.) 14; Corban (Ore.) 12; Lincoln (Ill.) 12; Williams Baptist (Ark.) 10; Concordia (Neb.) 9; Bluefield (W. Va.) 8; Saint Mary (Kan.) 8; Hannibal-LaGrange (Mo.) 5; Cornerstone (Mich.) 3; Oklahoma Wesleyan 3; Northwestern (Iowa) 2
Top-Ranked Individuals | Individual Rankings
125 – Esco Walker, Grand View (Iowa)
133 – Conner Gimson, Indiana Tech
141 – Baterdene Boldmaa, Doane University (Neb.)
149 – Cole Luallen, Reinhardt (Ga.)
157 – Giovanny Bonilla, Grand View (Iowa)
165 – Cole Smith, Cumberland (Tenn.)
174 – Joe Koontz, Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)
184 – Ben Lee, Grand View (Iowa)
197 – Isaac Bartel, Montana State-Northern
285 – Greg Hagan, Grand View (Iowa)
#TakeFlight
