Washington and Jefferson College Men's Wrestling

Prairie (Williams (Mass.) '05; Sixth Year) enters his sixth year as the Washington & Jefferson College head wrestling coach during the 2016-17 academic year. In his five seasons, W&J wrestlers have made 10 NCAA Division III national championship appearances under Prarie's guidance, and Nick Carr '16 became the first wrestling national champion in W&J history when he claimed the 157-pound championship in 2015. Carr finished his career as a President with a 41-1 (.976) overall record, the best winning percentage in program history. His lone defeat came in his sophomore season in the national championship match of the 165-pound bracket. Jacob Spearman '16 and Sonnieboy Blanco '17 both earned All-America status and top-five finishes in 2016 after entering the national championships unseeded. Josh Etzel '14 qualified three times for the national tournament and became W&J's first All-American since 2002 after taking sixth place at 157 pounds in 2013.  Etzel also earned a spot in the 2012 championship field at 141 pounds after claiming the NCAA Midwest Regional title. In 2014, Nick Carr earned All-America honors and was an NCAA finalist at 165 pounds. Etzel also excelled in the classroom under Prairie's leadership, twice being named a First Team Capital One Academic All-American by the College Sports Information Directors of America, just the 12th W&J student-athlete to earn the honor multiple times. Etzel was also one of 29 winter student-athletes from all divisions to win a prestigious NCAA postgraduate scholarship. Jacob Spearman '16 became the first W&J freshman in recent history to compete at the national championships after he took second place at the regional tournament in the 125-pound weight class.  Spearman won one match at the NCAA championship.  Prairie's wrestlers have won eight Presidents' Athletic Conference individual championships and his 2011-12 squad was honored with the PAC Sportsmanship Award.  A 2005 graduate of Williams College (Mass.), Prairie came to W&J after spending four seasons as the head wrestling coach at Plymouth State University (N.H.). In the 2011 season, he helped the Panthers to their best finish (4th) at the New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) Championships since 2003. One PSU wrestler, Mike Willey, qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships after compiling a 21-match win streak. Following the 2008 season, Prairie was honored as the NEWA Rookie Coach of the Year. Five Plymouth State wrestlers were named NWCA Scholar All-Americans under his leadership. A 2001 Blair Academy (N.J.) graduate, Prairie was inducted into the New England Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2010. He had a standout career at Williams College as a three-time NCAA Division III All-American (125 pounds), becoming the first Eph wrestler to accomplish the feat. In 2005, he finished as the national runner-up and was named the South Jersey College Wrestler of the Year. As a sophomore, he posted a 30-1 record and finished third at the national championships. He followed that season up with a fourth-place showing at the 2004 national tournament. Prairie owned a 106-8 collegiate record and was a three-time NEWA champion. Prairie has also spent time as an assistant coach at Cumberland University (2005-06), where he earned his MBA, and Delran High School in New Jersey. Prairie attended Delran High School before spending one year at Blair Academy. At Williams, he earned his bachelors degree in political science. In 2009, Prairie was selected to the National Wrestling Leadership Academy and in 2013 he was inducted into the Delran Athletic Hall of Fame. Tommy Prairie  (Williams (Mass.) '05; Sixth Year) enters his sixth year as the Washington & Jefferson College head wrestling coach during the 2016-17 academic year.