Little Rock Crowned Pac-12 Tournament Champions

LITTLE ROCK – Six years ago, the Little Rock wrestling team stepped into the arena at Stanford for their first-ever Pac-12 Championships. The Trojans finished dead last. The next year, same story: bottom of the tournament, again. Fast forward to 2025, and Little Rock is sending a program-high six wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament after walking away with their first-ever conference tournament title.

"What a day, what a tournament," exclaimed head coach Neil Erisman. "The guys wrestled their tails off. So proud of them and all that they've accomplished. It took a lot of grit to do what we've done not just today, but since the inception of this program."

"Very thankful for our fans, our supporters, the athletes and our families," Coach Erisman added. "It's a great day for a Little Rock Wrestling, Little Rock Athletics, and the state of Arkansas. God is good! Go Trojans."

Five Trojans had perfect days to claim individual Pac-12 Champion titles: Nasir Bailey, Jordan Williams, Matty Bianchi, Joseph Bianchi and Tyler Brennan. All five, with the addition of second-place finisher Stephen Little, punched their ticket to the National Tournament.

For Bailey and Joey Bianchi, they repeated as champions in their respective weight classes: 133 pounds and 165 pounds. True sophomore Bailey continues to show his dominance in the conference year-over-year while the older Bianchi is wrapping up his career at the top of his game, as seen by a gutsy overtime dub in the finals.

Meanwhile, Matty (157 pounds), Williams (149 pounds), and Brennan (174 pounds) are each first-timers in the champ club; however, the latter also is a brand-new NCAA qualifier. The younger Bianchi wrestled for the Trojans with an at-large bid last season, while Williams placed second at the Big 12 Championships while representing Oklahoma State.

For Brennan, it's a cherry on top for the sixth-year senior who has been with the program since day one back in 2019. Notably, his win was also the one that locked in the team title for the Trojans. His 11-0 major decision along with a pin in the first round contributed the most team points to the Trojans on the day.

Williams and Bailey shared the Wrestler of the Meet accolade: Williams for going 2-0 against two top-10 opponents in the 149 pound weight class and Bailey for taking out the no. 7 wrestler in the nation in the finals following a first-period pin in the preliminary round. It marks the second time in as many years that Bailey has received the award.

Little and Brennan Van Hoecke finished as runners-up in their respective brackets. The former's weight class featured three top-10 wrestlers, including Little himself, and the redshirt sophomore only allowed a 2-0 decision to the top seed in the final. Every team point counted, and Van Hoecke's bonus points in his first-round match helped contribute to the total.

The Trojans scored 86.5 points, finishing 5 points ahead of host team Oregon State – half a point more than they scored over the Beavers last year in a race for second place.

What's next? On to Nationals! The six Trojans will compete at the NCAA Tournament in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from March 20-22. The NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee will select the remaining 43 at-large qualifiers as well as announce full brackets and seeding on March 11.

For the latest information on Little Rock Wrestling, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockWRES on Facebook, Instagram, and X.

• Brackets
• Archived matches

1. Little Rock, 86.5

2. Oregon State, 81.5

3. Cal Poly, 70.0

4. Cal State Bakersfield, 47.0

1st – Maximo Renteria (Oregon State) maj. dec. Koda Holeman (Cal Poly), 11-2

3rd – Richard Castro-Sandoval (CSU Bakersfield) tech. fall Jayden Carson (Little Rock), 16-1

True 2nd – Richard Castro-Sandoval (CSU Bakersfield) fall Koda Holeman (Cal Poly), 2:20

1st – Nasir Bailey (Little Rock) dec. Zeth Romney (Cal Poly), 4-1 SV-1

3rd – Damion Elliott (Oregon State) dec. Santino Sanchez (CSU Bakersfield), 7-1

1st – Nash Singleton (Oregon State) fall Brennan Van Hoecke (Little Rock), 6:22

3rd – Hayden Zinkin (CSU Bakersfield) dec. Korbin Shepherd (Cal Poly), 9-3

1st – Jordan Williams (Little Rock) maj. dec. Ethan Stiles (Oregon State), 15-5

3rd – Chance Lamer (Cal Poly) tech. fall Brock Rogers (CSU Bakersfield), 19-4

1st – Matty Bianchi (Little Rock) dec. Christopher Hamblin (Oregon State), 6-4

3rd – Legend Lamer (Cal Poly) tech. fall Jose Farias (CSU Bakersfield), 17-1

1st – Joseph Bianchi (Little Rock) dec. Luka Wick (Cal Poly), 4-1 SV-1

3rd – Guillermo Escobedo (CSU Bakersfield) dec. Kekana Fouret (Oregon State), 8-4

1st – Tyler Brennan (Little Rock) maj. dec. Murphy Menke (Oregon State), 11-0

3rd – Cash Stewart (Cal Poly) maj. dec. Chris Neal (CSU Bakersfield), 14-2

1st – TJ McDonnell (Oregon State) dec. Daschle Lamer (Cal Poly), 8-5 SV-1

3rd – Gerrit Nijenhuis (CSU Bakersfield) maj. dec. Brock Delsignore (Little Rock), 11-2

1st – AJ Ferrari (CSU Bakersfield) dec. Stephen Little (Little Rock), 2-0

3rd – Trey Munoz (Oregon State) maj. dec. Cole Jackson (Cal Poly), 13-5

1st – Trevor Tinker (Cal Poly) maj. dec. Jake Andrews (CSU Bakersfield), 8-0

3rd – Brett Mower (Oregon State) tech. fall Branson Britten (Little Rock), 19-3

True 2nd – Jake Andrews (CSU Bakersfield) dec. Brett Mower (Oregon State), 4-1 SV-1