The UNI wrestling team will be tied for fifth as they head into the Mid-American Conference tournament on March 5 and 6. Three Panthers are currently ranked No. 1 in the MAC and have made great progress this season in their individual weight classes.

Iowa native Dylan Peters will head to the MAC Tournament after a successful year in the 125lb. weight.

As a junior, Peters currently rests sixth in career falls for the Panthers, taking his 32nd fall by pinning Hofstra’s Bryan Damon. Throughout this year, Peters has defeated three top-20 nationally ranked wrestlers and seeks to continue that pattern yet this season.

Continuing to strengthen his career record throughout his junior year, Cooper Moore stands No. 1 in the 165lb. bout for the Panthers.

In addition to finishing eighth in the Cliff Keen Invite in Las Vegas this season, Moore was named MAC Wrestler of the Week after defeating Iowa State’s Tanner Weatherman, who is currently ranked eighth in the NCAA in the 165lb. weight class.

Competing in his final season with the UNI wrestling team, Senior Blaize Cabell proved to be an asset to the team for the fourth year in a row. Cabell also defeated the No. 8 NCAA opponent in his weight, Billy Smith—knocking him off 9-3 in the third dual of the season.

In addition to notching 11 takedowns against Ohio’s Jesse Webb and earning 12 takedowns against Missouri’s James Romero, Cabell went undefeated in MAC duals for the second consecutive year.

When it comes to number of spots in this year’s NCAA Division I National Wrestling Championships, the MAC is reanked third.

Of the 284 wrestlers placed in the NCAA brackets, the MAC holds 41 of those places—falling only to the Big Ten and the Easters Intercollegiate Wrestling Association.

Following the MAC Tournament, 33 wrestlers in each weight class will be selected to compete in the 2016 NCAA Championships—these positions will be posted on March 9.