University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, March 21
Cleveland, OH
10:00 AM
University of Minnesota
vs
NCAA Championships - Session V
Players Mentioned
285 lbs.
/ Wrestling
184 lbs.
/ Wrestling
157 lbs.
/ Wrestling
165 lbs.
/ Wrestling
125 lbs.
/ Wrestling
141 lbs.
/ Wrestling
Photo by: Austin Janning
Sparks Places Fifth, Volk Seventh at NCAAs
3/21/2026 12:31:00 PM | Wrestling
CLEVELAND, Ohio – A pair of Gophers cemented their spots on the podium Saturday as Session V wrapped up inside Rocket Arena in Cleveland.
Sixth-year senior Andrew Sparks finished in fifth place at 184 pounds, while senior Jore Volk claimed seventh place at 125 pounds. Coupled with Max McEnelly's spot in the 184-pound championship match Saturday night, it's the second straight season with at least three All-Americans for Minnesota, the seventh time it's happened under head coach Brandon Eggum and the 31st time with at least that many in program history.
In the team standings, Minnesota is in ninth place with Virginia Tech at 44.5 points. Penn State has already clinched the team title and has 164.0 points, followed by Oklahoma State (119.0) and Nebraska (101.5).
The No. 13 seed, Sparks earned his fifth-place finish via a medical forfeit by No. 2 seed Joey Blaze of Purdue. Sparks' finish is the best by a Gopher at 165 pounds since Jacob Volkmann was fourth in 2004. It's also the best finish by a Gopher seeded 13th or higher since Patrick McKee claimed third in 2021 as the No. 15 seed.
Sparks fell to the fifth-place match after a 5-2 loss to No. 12 Cesar Alvan of Columbia in the consolation semifinals. Alvan got the lone takedown of the match in the first period and used a strong top game to limit Sparks to a pair of escapes.
At 125 pounds, the sixth-seeded Volk closed out his debut season at Minnesota with a dominant 14-1 major decision victory in the seventh-place match. What ended up being the deciding takedown came in the first period when Volk got around the waist of No. 11 Tyler Klinsky of Rider, dropped him on his back and added three nearfall points. Volk added takedowns in each of the final two periods, piling up close to three minutes of riding time.
The seventh-place result equals the best of Volk's career, also claiming seventh in 2024 while at Wyoming. He finished this season with a 26-7 record, including a 12-4 dual record, 6-2 mark in the Big Ten and a spot in the finals at the Big Ten Championships.
The 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships conclude Saturday night with McEnelly facing No. 1 Rocco Welsh of Penn State in the 184-pound championship match. The finals start at 5:30 p.m. CT on ESPN.
Minnesota Results through Session V
125
First Round: #6 Jore Volk dec. #27 Brady Roark (South Dakota State), 8-2
Round of 16: #6 Jore Volk dec. #11 Tyler Klinsky (Rider), 2-0
Quarterfinals: #14 Jacob Moran (Indiana) dec. #6 Jore Volk, 5-4
Blood Round: #6 Jore Volk dec. #17 Jett Strickenberger (West Virginia), 7-2
Consolation Quarterfinals: #12 Vincent Robinson (NC State) dec. #6 Jore Volk, 4-1 SV1
7th-Place Match: #6 Jore Volk MD #11 Tyler Klinsky (Rider), 14-1
7th Place: 4-2 record
141
First Round: #8 Vance VomBaur MD #25 Tom Crook (Virginia Tech), 14-2
Round of 16: #8 Vance VomBaur dec. #24 Nash Singleton (Oregon State), 8-3
Quarterfinals: #1 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) MD #8 Vance VomBaur, 16-4
Blood Round: #11 CJ Composto (Penn) dec. #8 Vance VomBaur, 4-3
Did not place: 2-2 record
157
First Round: #21 Charlie Millard dec. #12 Vinny Zerban (Iowa State), 12-6
Round of 16: #5 Landon Robideau (Oklahoma State) dec. #21 Charlie Millard, 7-3
Consolation - R2: #27 Dylan Evans (Pitt) dec. #21 Charlie Millard, 4-2
Did not place: 1-2 record
165
First Round: #13 Andrew Sparks MD #20 Ty Whalen (Princeton), 10-1
Round of 16: #4 Nicco Ruiz (Arizona State) dec. #13 Andrew Sparks, 2-1 TB1
Consolation - R2: #13 Andrew Sparks dec. #30 Thomas Snipes (The Citadel), 7-2
Consolation - R3: #13 Andrew Sparks dec. #5 LaDarion Lockett (Oklahoma State), 10-3
Blood Round: #13 Andrew Sparks dec. #10 Will Denny (NC State), 8-7
Consolation Quarterfinals: #13 Andrew Sparks MD #16 Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State), 10-2
Consolation Semifinals: #12 Cesar Alvan (Columbia) dec. #13 Andrew Sparks, 5-2
5th-Place Match: #13 Andrew Sparks MFF #2 Joey Blaze (Purdue)
5th Place: 6-2 record
184
First Round: #3 Max McEnelly TF #30 Tyler Bienus (Bucknell), 22-6 (4:00)
Round of 16: #3 Max McEnelly dec. #14 Jaden Bullock (Virginia Tech), 12-6
Quarterfinals: #3 Max McEnelly dec. #6 Eddie Neitenbach (Wyoming), 8-6
Semifinals: #3 Max McEnelly dec. #7 Angelo Ferrari (Iowa), 2-2 TB2
285
First Round: #14 Koy Hopke dec. #19 Nate Schon (Drexel), 11-7
Round of 16: #3 Taye Ghadiali (Michigan) TF #14 Koy Hopke, 15-0 (5:33)
Consolation - R2: #14 Koy Hopke dec. #13 Spencer Lanosga (Navy), 2-0
Consolation - R3: #12 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) MD #14 Koy Hopke, 13-1
Did not place: 2-2 record
Sixth-year senior Andrew Sparks finished in fifth place at 184 pounds, while senior Jore Volk claimed seventh place at 125 pounds. Coupled with Max McEnelly's spot in the 184-pound championship match Saturday night, it's the second straight season with at least three All-Americans for Minnesota, the seventh time it's happened under head coach Brandon Eggum and the 31st time with at least that many in program history.
In the team standings, Minnesota is in ninth place with Virginia Tech at 44.5 points. Penn State has already clinched the team title and has 164.0 points, followed by Oklahoma State (119.0) and Nebraska (101.5).
The No. 13 seed, Sparks earned his fifth-place finish via a medical forfeit by No. 2 seed Joey Blaze of Purdue. Sparks' finish is the best by a Gopher at 165 pounds since Jacob Volkmann was fourth in 2004. It's also the best finish by a Gopher seeded 13th or higher since Patrick McKee claimed third in 2021 as the No. 15 seed.
Sparks fell to the fifth-place match after a 5-2 loss to No. 12 Cesar Alvan of Columbia in the consolation semifinals. Alvan got the lone takedown of the match in the first period and used a strong top game to limit Sparks to a pair of escapes.
At 125 pounds, the sixth-seeded Volk closed out his debut season at Minnesota with a dominant 14-1 major decision victory in the seventh-place match. What ended up being the deciding takedown came in the first period when Volk got around the waist of No. 11 Tyler Klinsky of Rider, dropped him on his back and added three nearfall points. Volk added takedowns in each of the final two periods, piling up close to three minutes of riding time.
The seventh-place result equals the best of Volk's career, also claiming seventh in 2024 while at Wyoming. He finished this season with a 26-7 record, including a 12-4 dual record, 6-2 mark in the Big Ten and a spot in the finals at the Big Ten Championships.
The 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships conclude Saturday night with McEnelly facing No. 1 Rocco Welsh of Penn State in the 184-pound championship match. The finals start at 5:30 p.m. CT on ESPN.
Minnesota Results through Session V
125
First Round: #6 Jore Volk dec. #27 Brady Roark (South Dakota State), 8-2
Round of 16: #6 Jore Volk dec. #11 Tyler Klinsky (Rider), 2-0
Quarterfinals: #14 Jacob Moran (Indiana) dec. #6 Jore Volk, 5-4
Blood Round: #6 Jore Volk dec. #17 Jett Strickenberger (West Virginia), 7-2
Consolation Quarterfinals: #12 Vincent Robinson (NC State) dec. #6 Jore Volk, 4-1 SV1
7th-Place Match: #6 Jore Volk MD #11 Tyler Klinsky (Rider), 14-1
7th Place: 4-2 record
141
First Round: #8 Vance VomBaur MD #25 Tom Crook (Virginia Tech), 14-2
Round of 16: #8 Vance VomBaur dec. #24 Nash Singleton (Oregon State), 8-3
Quarterfinals: #1 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) MD #8 Vance VomBaur, 16-4
Blood Round: #11 CJ Composto (Penn) dec. #8 Vance VomBaur, 4-3
Did not place: 2-2 record
157
First Round: #21 Charlie Millard dec. #12 Vinny Zerban (Iowa State), 12-6
Round of 16: #5 Landon Robideau (Oklahoma State) dec. #21 Charlie Millard, 7-3
Consolation - R2: #27 Dylan Evans (Pitt) dec. #21 Charlie Millard, 4-2
Did not place: 1-2 record
165
First Round: #13 Andrew Sparks MD #20 Ty Whalen (Princeton), 10-1
Round of 16: #4 Nicco Ruiz (Arizona State) dec. #13 Andrew Sparks, 2-1 TB1
Consolation - R2: #13 Andrew Sparks dec. #30 Thomas Snipes (The Citadel), 7-2
Consolation - R3: #13 Andrew Sparks dec. #5 LaDarion Lockett (Oklahoma State), 10-3
Blood Round: #13 Andrew Sparks dec. #10 Will Denny (NC State), 8-7
Consolation Quarterfinals: #13 Andrew Sparks MD #16 Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State), 10-2
Consolation Semifinals: #12 Cesar Alvan (Columbia) dec. #13 Andrew Sparks, 5-2
5th-Place Match: #13 Andrew Sparks MFF #2 Joey Blaze (Purdue)
5th Place: 6-2 record
184
First Round: #3 Max McEnelly TF #30 Tyler Bienus (Bucknell), 22-6 (4:00)
Round of 16: #3 Max McEnelly dec. #14 Jaden Bullock (Virginia Tech), 12-6
Quarterfinals: #3 Max McEnelly dec. #6 Eddie Neitenbach (Wyoming), 8-6
Semifinals: #3 Max McEnelly dec. #7 Angelo Ferrari (Iowa), 2-2 TB2
285
First Round: #14 Koy Hopke dec. #19 Nate Schon (Drexel), 11-7
Round of 16: #3 Taye Ghadiali (Michigan) TF #14 Koy Hopke, 15-0 (5:33)
Consolation - R2: #14 Koy Hopke dec. #13 Spencer Lanosga (Navy), 2-0
Consolation - R3: #12 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) MD #14 Koy Hopke, 13-1
Did not place: 2-2 record
ESPN Postgame: Max McEnelly
Saturday, March 21
Highlights: Max McEnelly Advances to Finals
Friday, March 20
Gopher Round Table: Wrestling
Wednesday, March 11
Highlights: Big Ten Wrestling Session II
Saturday, March 07