Senior Art Martinez of the Case Western Reserve University wrestling team was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the 2026 University Athletic Association Championship on Saturday night at the John A. Paulson Center in Manhattan, New York, on the campus of New York University.
Martinez and senior Thomas Wagner received All-UAA honors for the first time in their careers after going 2-0 at the meet. Martinez won by fall and technical fall, and Wagner secured a pair of decisions. Martinez is the eighth Spartan to receive Most Outstanding Wrestler honors and the first since Isaac Dukes in 2011.
First-year Hunter Keane and sophomores Chase Crutchley and Robert Minden all added wins for CWRU. The Spartans dropped to 11-4 in dual meets with a pair of losses in conference play. The 15th-ranked Violets, who won the team championship, improved to 22-4, while the 11th-ranked University of Chicago Maroons moved to 10-5.
All-UAA
- Martinez, 133 pounds
- Wagner, 157 pounds
#11 Chicago 33, CWRU 11
- 125: Senior E.J. Alizio lost by major decision, 11-0
- 133: Martinez def. Matteo Littman by technical fall, 19-2
- 141: Keane lost by pin in 6:20
- 149: Minden lost by technical fall, 16-0
- 157: Wagner def. Dan Gunlogson by sudden victory-1, 6-3
- 165: Senior Justin Sweeney lost by technical fall, 20-3
- 174: Crutchley def. Hutch Lynott by decision, 7-2
- 184: Junior Mathew Gummere lost by major decision, 13-2
- 197: Senior Aidan Gassel lost by pin in 1:45
- 285: First-year Alexander Goldman lost by decision, 6-3
#15 NYU 33, CWRU 19
- 125: Alizio lost by pin in 1:21
- 133: Martinez def. Jacob Venezia by pin in 1:05
- 141: Keane def. James Carlock by major decision, 10-1
- 149: Minden def. John Mairano by pin in 4:50
- 157: Wagner def. Robert Leeds by decision, 3-0
- 165: Sweeney lost by pin in 4:21
- 174: Crutchley lost by technical fall, 18-1
- 184: Gummere lost by technical fall, 19-1
- 197: Gassel lost by technical fall, 20-3
- 285: Goldman lost by pin in 5:40
Spartan Notes
- Martinez is the fourth all-time Spartan to earn All-UAA honors at 133 pounds and the first since Jacob Frisch in 2020
- Wagner secured the first All-UAA honor by a Spartan at 157 pounds since 2005 when Russ Tischer was honored by the conference. He is the third-ever CWRU wrestler to be recognized by the league at the weight class
- CWRU fell to 3-3 against teams ranked in the top 25 of the NWCA Dual Rankings this season
Up Next
The Spartans will send a contingent of wrestlers to the Regional Futures Invitational, hosted by Adrian College on Saturday, February 21. The NCAA Region V Tournament begins the following Friday in University Heights, Ohio.
