By Tim Glon
Five Ohio Northern wrestlers earned All-Ohio Athletic Conference honors and ONU swept the three special awards for 2012-13 in voting conducted by the league's six head coaches.
Senior three-time All-American and defending national champion Kyle Kwiat was named the John Summa OAC Wrestler of the Year and sophomore Cody Lovejoy won the Most Falls in the Least Amount of Time award.
Head coach Ron Beaschler was named the OAC Coach of the Year for the second straight season and for the third time in his 25-year career.
Kwiat and Lovejoy were also First Team All-Conference honorees, while senior Jeremy Jones, junior Michael Pawlitz and sophomore J.P. Hoopes were named Second Team All-OAC.
Kwiat is ranked No. 1 nationally at 174 pounds and boasts a 36-3 record and he leads the nation with 22 tech falls.
He is a three-time OAC Champion and is now the top wrestler in his weight class in four consecutive seasons in the league.
Kwiat is ONU's all-time career wins leader with a 149-16 record and a school record 53 tech falls.
Lovejoy is now a two-time All-OAC honoree at heavyweight after finishing runner-up at the 2012 OAC Tournament.
He is 27-11 overall and went a perfect 5-0 in OAC duals this season. In OAC dual meet action, Lovejoy had a league-best three poins in a combined time of 7:40.
Lovejoy leads the team with 17 pins and ranks 55th all-time with a 53-27 career record.
Jones is a three-time All-OAC honoree, winning the 133-pound weight class crown in 2012 and finishing runner-up in 2011.
He participated in the 2012 NCAA III Championships and ranks 28th all-time at ONU with a 72-58 career record and 33 pins.
Pawlitz is a two-time All-OAC honoree after finishing runner-up at the 2012 OAC Championships.
This season, he is 26-7 on the season with 14 pins.
In his three seasons as a Polar Bear, Pawlitz ranks 40th all-time with a 64-20 career record with 36 pins.
Hoopes is making his first appearance on the All-Conference squad after missing the 2011-12 season due to injury.
This year, he is 12-8 overall and went 3-1 in OAC action.
In his two seasons at Ohio Northern, Hoopes is 31-20 with eight falls.
The Polar Bears will return to action Saturday when they host the inaugural NCAA III Mideast Regional tournament at 9 a.m. at the ONU Sports Center.
