Geoffrey Riccio

Owen Reber

Men's Wrestling 3/13/2026 10:31:00 PM Nick Anderson (Assistant Sports Information Director)

Golden Wolves Close Season at the NCAA DIII National Championships

Cedar Rapids, Iowa (March 13, 2026) - Alvernia University ended its 2025-2026 campaign at the NCAA DIII National Championships Friday at the Alliant Energy Power House in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Alvernia's Chance Babb and Owen Reber were the two Golden Wolves representing Alvernia at the 2026 NCAA DIII National Championships with Babb competing in the 149 pound bracket and Reber in the 285 pound weight class.

Sophomore heavyweight Owen Reber led the Golden Wolves at the championships and made a run at an All-American bid in his championship debut but fell short in the final seconds of the third period to close out the season for the Golden Wolves. Chance Babb dropped his second match in sudden victory to close out his career as a Golden Wolf.

How it Happened

Owen Reber: 285 lbs.

Owen Reber started his day facing off against Norwich's Rory Nolan in the first round of the championships. Nolan recorded a takedown in the final five seconds of the first period and then turned Reber and recorded a pin to send Reber to the consolation bracket. Reber then received a medical forfeit in the consolation prelim round to advance to the Friday evening session and keep his All-American hopes alive.
Reber would face off against #5 seeded Logan Flynn from Arcadia in the consolation bracket and Flynn recorded two victories over Reber during the season including in the 285 title bout at the MAC Championships. After a scoreless first period, Flynn tallied an escape after the start of the period to take a 1-0 lead into the final period. Reber then took down Flynn just under a minute into the final period of wrestling to take a 3-1 lead over Flynn but Flynn squeaked his way out to earn another escape point and made it 3-2. Reber then went right back to work and recorded another takedown in the final 20 seconds, put Flynn on his back and kept his evening alive with a pin in the final 18 seconds of the match to advance to the next round.
Reber faced off against #11th seeded Andrew Vanscoy from Baldwin Wallce with a chance to become an All-American on the line. After a scoreless first period, Reber recorded an escape to start the period and took that 1-0 lead into the third period. Vanscoy then chose bottom at the start of the third period and tallied an escape to tie the match at one. Reber and Vanscoy would wrestle around the mat over the next minute and a half before Vanscoy fired one last shot on Reber and landed it for a takedown and secured the 4-1 victory over Reber. Reber ended his NCAA National Championship debut with a 2-2 record and a victory over the #5 seeded heavyweight and ended his sophomore campaign with a 37-12 overall record.

Chance Babb: 149 lbs.

Chance Babb faced first-year Caleb Olson out of Wartburg College in the first round of the day. Olson got a quick jump on Babb, recording a takedown in 11 seconds into the bout. After a scoreless remainder of the first period, Olson got another point on an escape to open the second period and take a 4-0 lead. A minute later, Olson took the win over Babb with a pin.
Babb then took on #10 seeded Chase Fiser from Loras College in the consolation prelim round. After a scoreless first period, Fiser recorded an escape at the start of the second period but that was the only point he scored as the match headed to the third period with Fiser holding a 1-0 lead. Babb then chose bottom to start the third period and worked his way out of the hold of Fiser and earned an escape point to tie the match at one. Neither wrestler could score a point in the final 1:50 of the period as the match headed to overtime tied at one. Fiser then recorded a takedown 34 seconds into the overtime period to secure the 4-1 sudden victory over Babb. Babb ended his senior season with a 27-9 overall record and ended his Alvernia career with a 94-27 overall record and a three time NCAA National Qualifier.

Friday marked the end of the 2025-2026 campaign for the Golden Wolves and marked the sixth time that the Golden Wolves sent at least two wrestlers to the NCAA DIII National Championships.

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Players Mentioned

Chance Babb: 149/157; 5' 9"; Senior

Owen Reber: 285; 6' 2"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Chance Babb
: 5' 9"; Senior
: 149/157

Owen Reber
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: 285