NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships page

WATCH LIVE: Saturday session 3

OMAHA, Neb. – Redshirt senior Shane Mallory won his first two matches to advance to the semifinals and redshirt sophomore Adam Hluschak also knocked off a nationally-ranked wrestler in his first match before falling in the quarterfinals on Friday at the NCAA Division II Championships at Nebraska-Omaha.

Mallory (184) upset No. 2 Derek Skala (St. Cloud State) with a 7-6 decision in the first round and won a 5-2 decision over Derek Ross (Nebraska-Kearney) to earn a match-up with No. 4 Tim Darling (Kutztown) in the semifinals on Saturday morning.

Mallory (25-8) and Darling will face each other for the third time in a month and split a pair of close decisions in the first two meetings. Mallory earned an 8-6 decision in ESU's dual vs. Kutztown to hand Darling his only loss of the season on February 16, while Darling had a 5-4 decision in the rematch in the semifinals of the Super Region 1 tournament on February 27.

Hluschak (141) earned a 10-9 decision over No. 6 Jimmy Savala (Chadron State) and fell to No. 3 Mario Morgan of host Nebraska-Omaha, 8-3, in the quarterfinals.

Hluschak will also face a familiar opponent in his next match, taking on Andrew Milanak (Gannon) in the wrestlebacks on Saturday morning in a rematch of Hluschak's 4-3 decision in the quarterfinals at the Super Region 1 tournament. Hluschak was the runner-up in the region and has a 21-15 record entering Saturday's action.

Mallory and Hluschak will both look to become ESU's first wrestling All-Americans since 1989 when the championships conclude on Saturday. ESU is in its first year competing at the Division II level after reclassifying from Division I following last season.