SAN FRANCISCO – Four San Francisco State student-athletes were named to the NCAA Division II All-Academic wrestling team as announced this week by the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA).
Senior
Markham Bertron (San Jose, Calif., West Valley College) was a second-team selection, while fellow classmates
Lucas Duckwall (Santa Cruz, Calif., West Valley College),
Jamil Smart (Pittsburg, Calif.) and
Ian Wrenn (Truckee, Calif., Marion Military Institute) received honorable mention. Duckwall and Smart were named to the honorable mention squad a year ago, while Bertron and Wrenn collected their first career all-academic awards. With their recognition, the Gators have now earned 42 Academic All-NWCA certificates during head coach
Lars Jensen's 27-year tenure.
Bertron, a kiniesiology major, wrestled in the 174-pound weight class for most of the season before competing at 165 in the NCAA Division II Super 4 Regional Championships. He posted a 14-22 record with six pins in his two years at SF State, including a 4-7 mark in 2009-10.
Duckwall is a kinesiology major as well, who has compiled a 9-18 record at 174 in his two-year Gator career. He went 3-6 this past season, featuring a pin at the Fullerton Open. Last season, he cracked the starting lineup in five dual meets and wrestled at the regional meet.
Smart enjoyed his finest season in his four years at SF State, posting a 7-6 record at 141, including a second-place finish at the Gators' home tournament, the California Collegiate Open. Another kinesiology major, Smart also recorded career highs of 21 takedowns and 16 escapes for the year and received a start in a dual meet against Cal Poly.
Wrenn, meanwhile, competed for two seasons at SF State after transferring from Marion Military Institute in Alabama. During the 2009-10 campaign, he picked up a pair of victories in the 157-pound weight class at the Menlo Invitational and also started eight of the Gators' 14 dual meets at 165. A history major, Wrenn also ranked seventh on the squad this year with 30 escapes.
The 2009-10 Division II All-Academic Wrestling team consists of 133 student-athletes from 32 universities and colleges. A total of 36 members were named to the first team, 33 to the second team, while 64 received honorable mention.
In order for a student-athlete to be nominated for the Division II All-Academic team, he needed to have a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade-point average on a 4.0 scale. He must also be in at least his second full year at his school, be a varsity member or a key reserve, demonstrate a degree of skill and have a minimum of two letters of recommendation (academic advisor and coach) submitted on his behalf.
