ITHACA, N.Y. — The Cornell men's wrestling team will send five competitors to the 2026 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, set for March 19–21 at Rocket Arena.
The three-day national tournament will feature the country's top wrestlers across 10 weight classes and will be broadcast across ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU. Every match will also stream on ESPN+, including simultaneous coverage from each mat.
Cornell's NCAA qualifiers are Tyler Ferrara (133), Vince Cornella (141), Jaxon Joy (149), Meyer Shapiro (157) and Simon Ruiz (174). The group heads to Cleveland after capturing the team title at the 2026 Ivy League Wrestling Championships with 132.5 points.
The Big Red finished the 2025-26 dual season with a 10-7 overall record and a 4-1 mark in Ivy League competition.
The Lineup
Sophomore Tyler Ferrara enters the national tournament as the No. 11 seed with a 23-7 record. Ferrara captured the Ivy League title earlier this month with a dominant 12-2 major decision over Penn's Evan Mougalian in the championship match.
Ferrara placed third at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational earlier in the season and has collected several key victories in dual competition. The Chenango Forks, New York native qualified for the NCAA Championships as a freshman and returns to the national stage looking to build on that experience.
Senior captain Vince Cornella carries a 19-1 record into the NCAA Championships and is the No. 11 seed at 141 pounds.
Cornella secured the Ivy League title with a 5-3 victory over two-time All-American CJ Composto of Penn, marking his third win over Composto this season. The Colorado native also captured the Southern Scuffle title earlier this year, navigating a deep bracket that included multiple ranked opponents.
Cornella is competing in his second NCAA Championships after previously qualifying during his sophomore season.
Freshman Jaxon Joy enters the national tournament as the No. 2 seed at 149 pounds with a 24-1 record.
Joy has quickly established himself as one of the top freshmen in the country, earning Ivy League Rookie of the Year honors and three Ivy League Wrestler of the Week awards during his debut season. He captured the Ivy League title with a 2-0 decision over Penn's Cross Wasilewski.
Joy's only loss of the season came in sudden victory overtime against NC State's Koy Buesgens. The Ohio native also captured the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational title earlier in the season with a dominant run through the bracket.
Junior captain Meyer Shapiro enters the NCAA Championships as the No. 3 seed at 157 pounds with a 15-1 record.
Shapiro earned Ivy League Wrestler of the Year honors for the second consecutive season and remains one of the most accomplished wrestlers in the Cornell lineup. His lone loss of the season came in the Ivy League championship match.
A two-time All-American, Shapiro finished fifth at last year's NCAA Championships after placing third as a freshman. Known for his aggressive style and ability to score bonus points, Shapiro will again look to make a deep run through the bracket.
Sophomore captain Simon Ruiz enters the tournament undefeated at 16-0 and is the No. 2 seed at 174 pounds.
Ruiz captured the Ivy League title with an 8-2 decision over Columbia's Nick Fine. His season includes victories over several ranked opponents, including a comeback win over NC State's Matty Singleton.
Ruiz earned All-America honors as a freshman with a fifth-place finish at the NCAA Championships and returns this year as one of the favorites in the weight class.
First-Round Matchups
2026 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships Brackets
The brackets include first-round matchups for all five Cornell qualifiers and will determine each wrestler's path through the national tournament. The 33-wrestler brackets feature seeded competitors alongside automatic and at-large qualifiers from across Division I wrestling. (NCAA.com)
NCAA Championships Schedule
Competition at the NCAA Championships unfolds across six sessions over three days:
Thursday, March 19
Session I — First Round (12 p.m. ET) — ESPN2
Session II — Second Round & Consolations (7 p.m. ET) — ESPN
Friday, March 20
Session III — Quarterfinals & Consolations (12 p.m. ET) — ESPNU
Session IV — Semifinals & Consolations (8 p.m. ET) — ESPN2
Saturday, March 21
Session V — Medal Matches (11 a.m. ET) — ESPNU
Session VI — Championship Finals (6:30 p.m. ET) — ESPN
Cornell at the NCAA Championships
Cornell has long been one of the nation's premier wrestling programs. The Big Red has produced 103 NCAA All-Americans and 25 individual national champions in program history. (
Cornell University Athletics)
Last season, Cornell qualified all 10 starters for the NCAA Championships and finished sixth in the team standings. Three Big Red wrestlers earned All-America honors, including returning qualifiers Meyer Shapiro and Simon Ruiz, who each placed fifth nationally. (The Cornell Daily Sun)
Cornell By the Numbers
5— Cornell wrestlers competing at the NCAA Championships this season
3 — Cornell wrestlers seeded in the top six of their respective brackets
2 — Returning All-Americans in the lineup (Shapiro, Ruiz)
2 — Ivy League Tournament Titles (2025 & 2026)
103 — All-America honors earned by Cornell wrestlers in program history
25 — Individual NCAA national champions produced by Cornell wrestling
28 — EIWA Team Titles
44 — Ivy League Team Titles
