NEW LONDON, Conn. –

After sending four last year, Coast Guard exceeded that number by two in 2026, sending six men to the national championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. As a team, the Bears placed 3rd of 19 teams in the school's first time hosting the NCAA Regionals. 

Leading the charge for the Bears were three champions. 149 Nathan Fitt(Branchville, NJ) cruised in the semifinal, holding commanding leads of 3-0 and 7-1 before winning by a score of 8-2. In the finals, Fitt's opponent forfeited giving the senior the title and his third trip to nationals. 

Nate Fitt

The second victor of the evening was 197 pounder Gabriel Monroe. Monroe, now a back to back champ at 197, took a dramatic and gruesome route to the podium. In the semifinal, Monroe and his opponent from Castleton were tied 0-0 after one. In the second, Monroe went down 0-1 on an escape but scored nearly immediately on a takedown. He added another three with under 10 to go in the second to lead 6-2 into the third. In the third, Monroe was badly scratched, and left with blood rushing down his face. Reminiscient of NCAA basketball legend Tyler Hansbrough, Monroe battled through to win the semifinal, clinch his berth in Cedar Rapids, and earn the new nickname "Psycho G". 

In the finals Gabriel Monroe(Kirkwood, NY) walked on the mat looking like Darth Vader in an intimidating black face mask, head wrapped tight with black tape covering up his seven new stitches. He walked off the mat a champion just over two minutes later with a pin to send the packed bleachers of Alumni Gymnasium into a frenzy. 

The final bout of the night was heavyweight Carl DiGiorgio(Doylestown, PA). Carl, whose status as a legend on the campus of CGA was long ago cemented, added to his prolific career with yet another Region One 285 championship. DiGiorgio defeated worthy opponent Benjamin Katz of Springfield in the finals. Katz and DiGiorgio have had many intense battles over the years including a wild semifinal bout last year at regionals. DiGiorgio took Katz down early in the first but Katz was unfortunately injured and unable to return giving Carl the 3-0 win. For his 4-0 run through the bracket, DiGiorgio was named Co-Wrestler of the Tournament along with CT local Jack Richardson(Killingly) of Johnson & Wales.

The lone second place finisher for the Bears was 133 Marvin Armistead(Reading, PA) who clinched his first berth at the National Championships with a crazy semifinal victory earlier in the day. Marvin, who led 10-2 in the final 10 seconds, narrowly avoided a pin to hang on to the win by a thread before jumping into his coach's arms in celebration. Marvin was unfortunately unable to compete in the finals but will look to continue his hot streak in two weeks in Iowa.

Armistead and Coach Dylan Foley

The first 3rd place match of the second session was a rematch of last year with Coast Guard's Nikko Beato(San Diego, CA) and WPI's Charlie Pavis. After coming so close so many times his first three years, Beato broke through to punch his ticket to the National Championships. On that ever-so-important third place mat, Beato got a takedown in the first and second to take a 6-1 lead into the third. With just 15 seconds remaining, Beato delivered the dagger of a takedown to clinch the win. Upon victory, Nikko let out a scream in celebration of four years of hard work coming to fruition before embracing his brothers Kenji and Jun, both of whom are a part of the wrestling program at Coast Guard, Kenji as a 2023 grad and Jun as a current freshman 125 pounder on the team.

The final qualifier for Coast Guard was 184 Caden Stout(St. Clairsville, OH). After losing in the semifinal, Stout kept himself alive with an 8-5 win in the consolation bracket. In the third place game, Stout would enter as the underdog, facing the #1 ranked 184 pound wrestler in the region. Facing tough odds, Stout beared down and refused to back down. Caden took an early 3-1 lead on a takedown before a late first period takedown gave him a 6-2 advantage into the second. From there, Stout hung on for dear life and survived with an inspiring 7-5 win to advance to his first National Championships.

The other Bear competing in the third place round was 165 Landon Kearns(East Brunswick, NJ) who fought valiantly back from the consolation bracket but fell by a score of 6-0 in a tight three round bout to Henry Forte of Williams College. The final man on the podium for CGA was freshman 174 Mason Gourley(Clarion, PA) who placed 8th.

The National Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa at the Alliant Energy Power House will kick off at 10 AM on Friday March 13th.