Graduate student 157-pounder Trevor Chumbley made a Cinderella run to fourth place at the NCAA Championships this weekend, winning his first All-American honor and the program’s best individual finish since 2022.
Chumbley was one of four Wildcats (4-7, 2-6 Big Ten) who qualified for the tournament. Redshirt senior 165-pounder Maxx Mayfield and redshirt junior 197-pounder Evan Bates both received automatic spots from podium finishes at the Big Ten Championships while Chumbley and redshirt freshman 149-pounder Sam Cartella received at-large bids for the strength of their overall seasons.
Coach Matt Storniolo said his team had a “mixed bag” of performances en route to a 33rd-place finish in Philadelphia’s national championships. He expected Cartella, Mayfield and Bates to progress far in the tournament, but all three bowed out after meeting top-three-seeded wrestlers early on. In the consolation brackets, Cartella fell in the first round, followed by Bates in the second and Mayfield in the third.
Chumbley had wrestled at nationals every year he had been in the starting lineup, but he said it was the first time he had not qualified automatically through the conference championships. Hampered by a bad knee, he went 2-3 and placed tenth at the Big Ten Championships two weeks ago.
He said he was physically, mentally and emotionally drained after that weekend, but a combination of comfort and tough love from friends and family put him back on the right track.
“I owe it to my support system and all the people here at Northwestern,” Chumbley said. “I couldn’t have done it without them.”
Because of his performance at the conference championships, Chumbley was seeded 20th in the 157-pound bracket despite being consistently ranked in the top 15 throughout the season. His lower seeding, however, allowed him to catch many wrestlers by surprise.
Chumbley pulled off three upsets in a row to start the tournament, beating the No. 13, No. 4 and No. 12 seeds in succession.
“(Getting the No. 20 seed) kind of did a disservice to a lot of the other guys in the bracket,” he said. “I think I was the worst possible draw for anybody in that bracket.”
His quarterfinal win over Oklahoma State’s No. 12 seed Caleb Fish secured his first career All-American honor and podium finish. After scoring the winning takedown in the last thirty seconds, the final whistle prompted an outpouring of gratitude for the Wildcat captain as he celebrated, he said.
A close 4-2 semifinal loss to No. 8 seed Joey Blaze of Purdue sent him to the consolation bracket, but he rebounded, knocking off Northern Colorado’s No. 7 seed Vincent Zerban to secure his spot in the top four.
His fourth-place finish is the best by a No. 20 seed or higher since NU’s own Yahya Thomas placed third as a No. 25 seed, also with an at-large bid, in 2021. It’s also the best individual finish for NU since 2022 when Ryan Deakin won the 157-pound title.
Chumbley started his collegiate wrestling career as Thomas and Deakin’s understudy and didn’t break into the starting lineup until his third year. Storniolo said Chumbley was a model for younger wrestlers to maintain a strong work ethic, even when on the bench.
A Chicago area native who regularly hosted teammates over breaks, Chumbley said it was a privilege to carry the Wildcat flag as the last NU wrestler standing this season.
“I’ve seen guys like Ryan, Yahya, Lucas (Davison), Mike (DeAugustino), Chris (Cannon) and all those guys before me be All-Americans and be like, ‘Wow, I want to be like them,’” he said. “I was just trying to give it my all … and hopefully be an inspiration for this next generation of guys.”
Storniolo said starters Chumbley and graduate student 184-pounder Jon Halvorsen are out of athletic eligibility. Cannon and Mayfield have one more year each, but Cannon will more than likely call it a career, and Mayfield is currently deciding whether or not to return. Bates is set to make a 2026 farewell tour for his last year of eligibility, Storniolo said.
Seven redshirting freshmen will gain full eligibility for the ’Cats next season. They will be joined by two Class of 2025 recruits in potential 149-pounder Billy Dekraker and potential 197-pounder Alex Smith.
Email: siddarthsivaraman2028@u.northwestern.edu
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