GREENWOOD, S.C. — Belmont Abbey sophomore wrestler Maxwell Kiel won all four bouts in the 157-pound weight class to earn the regional championship for the second straight year as he and John Carayiannis qualified for the NCAA Divison II Wrestling Championships Saturday at the Super Region II Championship at Lander.
 
Kiel earned a spot to the national championships with wins via fall, major decision and two by decision. He defeated Lander's Jack Tangen, 7-3, to earn the regional title for the second straight year.
 
Carayiannis won three bouts and advanced to the championship bout to earn a spot at nationals for third straight year. He becomes the first Crusader to do so since Mitch Dean who qualified in 2020, 2021 and 2022. Dean did not compete in 2020 due to the cancelation of the national championships due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Carayiannis has earned All-American status in each of his previous two appearances. Kiel is slated to make his second appearance at the national championships.
 
Elijah Boyd (133) and Kyler Pickard (184) both finished in fourth place in their respective weight classes. Belmont Abbey finished sixth as a team with 64 points.
 
Kiel and Carayiannis will represent Belmont Abbey in the Division II Wrestling Championships slated for March 15-16 at Hartman Arena in Park City, Kansas. The full field of 180 wrestlers will be unveiled Sunday followed by the release of the brackets on Monday night at 6 p.m.
 
BELMONT ABBEY RESULTS
125: Brett Balzan

• Champ. Round 1 - James Joplin (Lander) def. over Brett Balzan (BAC) (TF-1.5 2:54 (19-4))
• Cons. Round 1 - Brett Balzan (BAC) received a bye
• Cons. Round 2 - Tyson Upchurch (King) 9-21 def. Brett Balzan (BAC) (Dec 8-4)

133: Elijah Boyd (Fourth Place)

• Champ. Round 1 - Elijah Boyd (BAC) def. Weston Bare (Coker) (TF-1.5 5:32 (17-1))
• Quarterfinal - Elijah Boyd (BAC) def. Ben Guilliam (Newberry) (MD 11-2)
• Semifinal - Elijah Lusk (Lander) def. Elijah Boyd (BAC) (MD 11-1)
• Cons. Semi - Elijah Boyd (BAC) def. Timothy Luker (Mount Olive) (Dec 4-1)
• 3rd Place Match - Franky Medina (King) def. Elijah Boyd (BAC) 3-2 (Dec 4-3)

141: John Carayiannis (Second Place)

• Champ. Round 1 - John Carayiannis (BAC) def. Christian Gordon (Emmanuel) (MD 17-4)
• Quarterfinal - John Carayiannis (BAC) def. Chad Strickland (Montevallo) 11-14 (TF-1.5 4:14 (16-0))
• Semifinal - John Carayiannis (BAC) def. Omar Armengol (Coker) 20-5 (Fall 3:33)
• 1st Place Match - Isham Peace (Lander) def. John Carayiannis (BAC) (Inj. 2:52)

149: Skyler Caban

• Champ. Round 1 - Skyler Caban (BAC) received a bye
• Quarterfinal - Devan Moore (Newberry) def. Skyler Caban (BAC) (TF-1.5 3:36 (15-0))
• Cons. Round 2 - Skyler Caban (BAC) def. Austin Vincent (Lincoln Memorial) (TF-1.5 5:48 (17-1))
• Cons. Round 3 - Brandon Seawright (Limestone) def. Skyler Caban (BAC) 1-2 (TF-1.5 4:16 (18-2))

157: Maxwell Kiel (REGIONAL CHAMPION)

• Champ. Round 1 - Maxwell Kiel (BAC) def. Graham Rocha (Lincoln Memorial) (Fall 1:33)
• Quarterfinal - Maxwell Kiel (BAC) def. Gage Shetley (Emmanuel) MD 15-2)
• Semifinal - Maxwell Kiel (BAC)  def. Jake Nicolosi (Mount Olive) (Dec 10-3)
• 1st Place Match - Maxwell Kiel (BAC) def. Jack Tangen (Lander) (Dec 7-3)

165: Caleb Moore

• Champ. Round 1 - Caleb Moore (BAC) received a bye 
• Quarterfinal - Trent Mahoney (King) def. Caleb Moore (BAC) (Dec 10-5)
• Cons. Round 2 - Caleb Moore (BAC) def. James Thaxton (Lincoln Memorial) (MD 15-2)
• Cons. Round 3 - Chase Mckinney (Limestone) 12-10 def. Caleb Moore (BAC) (Dec 3-0)

174: Christian Arrington

• Champ. Round 1 - Christian Arrington (BAC) received a bye 
• Quarterfinal - Calan Staub (Mount Olive) def. Christian Arrington (BAC) (TF-1.5 6:50 (21-4))
• Cons. Round 2 - Christian Arrington (BAC) def. Benjamin Newton (Coker) (Dec 14-7)
• Cons. Round 3 - Michael Mccarthy (Emmanuel) def. Christian Arrington (BAC) (Dec 11-4)

184: Kyler Pickard (Fourth Place)

• Champ. Round 1 - Kyler Pickard (BAC) def. Clinton Morrisette (King) (Dec 9-4)
• Quarterfinal - Kyler Pickard (BAC) def. Christopher Dickey (UNC Pembroke) 21-14 (TB-1 2-1)
• Semifinal - Anthony Yacovetti (Lander) def. Kyler Pickard (BAC) (Fall 1:36)
• Cons. Semi - Kyler Pickard (BAC) def. Clinton Morrisette (King) (MD 12-3)
• 3rd Place Match - Jaquez Bostic (Limestone) def. Kyler Pickard (BAC) (Dec 4-2)

197: Mason Kump

• Champ. Round 1 - Noah Williams (UMO) def. Mason Kump (BAC) (Dec 8-2)
• Cons. Round 1 - Mason Kump (BAC) received a bye () (Bye)
• Cons. Round 2 - Mason Kump (BAC) def. Jack Bond (Lander) (MD 15-2)
• Cons. Round 3 - Micha Clemson (Emmanuel) def. Mason Kump (Belmont Abbey) (Fall 4:16)

HWT: Marcus Harnarian

• Champ. Round 1 - Slade Watkins (UMO) def. Marcus Harnarain (BAC) (Dec 14-8)
• Cons. Round 1 - Marcus Harnarain (Belmont Abbey) received a bye 
• Cons. Round 2 - Jacob Telles (King) def. Marcus Harnarain (BAC) (Fall 1:31)