GORHAM, Maine – Following their successful rookie campaigns as members of the University of Southern Maine Huskies' wrestling team, freshman grapplers Daniel Del Gallo (Gardiner, Maine) and Carl Luth (Milford, Conn./Foran) have been named to the National Wrestling Coaches' Association (NWCA) NCAA Scholar All-American Team.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must carry a grade point average of at least 3.20 (cumulative) and meet on of three criteria: qualify for the NCAA Championships, place in the top six at the NCAA qualifier or win more than 66 percent of matches and wrestle in 50 percent of scheduled dates.
Competing at 141-pound, Luth wrestled in 37 bouts for the Huskies compiling an outstanding 27-10 record as a freshman. Luth finished the 2013-2014 season with a record of 14-3 in dual meets and a 13-7 mark in tournaments. Highlighted by a first place finish at the 2014 North Atlantic Wrestling Championship, Luth also placed fifth at the Roger Williams Invitational and second at the Huskies' annual Ted Reese Invitational. Luth had 13 wins by fall this season to pace the Huskies. Luth is an Exercise Science major and has a GPA of 3.71.
Del Gallo's first season with the Huskies was a tremendous success culminating in a record of 20 wins and eight losses at 149 pounds. Del Gallo narrowly missed out on all-region honors at the NCAA Division III Northeast Regional Championship posting a 2-2 record against some of the toughest competition in the country. His strong wrestling throughout the season earned him New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) Rookie of the Week honors on February 11 and saw him ranked as high as fourth individually. During the season, Del Gallo placed second at the Ted Reese Invitational and took the 149-pound title at the North Atlantic Wrestling Championship. Del Gallo has a 4.0 GPA and is majoring in Sociology/Philosophy.
Del Gallo and Luth are the sixth and seventh Huskies' wrestlers to earn Scholar All-American honors in the history of the program. They join former Huskies' standouts Doug Christensen (2009, 2010), Mike Morin (2010), Billy Cole (2010, 2012), Cinjin Goewey (2011) and current team captain senior Rick Chipman(Harpswell, Maine/Mt. Ararat) (2012)