BROCKPORT, NY – For many college athletes, the transition from high school to collegiate competition can take time. For SUNY Brockport freshmen Trevor Middendorf and Mike Welsh, that adjustment has come quickly.
After securing second-place finishes in their respective weight classes at the regional tournament, the two freshman wrestlers punched their ticket to the 2026 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. Middendorf and Welsh represented the Golden Eagles on the national stage in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, March 13-14.
Their success is part of what has already become a historic season for the Brockport wrestling program. Earlier this year, the Golden Eagles captured a conference championship title for the first time since 2006.
Middendorf credits teamwork for his success.
“If you just buy into the program and listen to what the coaches say, you’ll get a lot better. My teammates push me every day to be better and I have a lot of good partners to work with. We have a really good coaching staff here too,” Middendorf said.
After committing to Brockport, Middendorf said he expected to be part of a strong program. What he didn’t expect was how quickly the success would follow.
At 125 pounds, Middendorf secured his trip to nationals after a strong run through the regional bracket, finishing second and contributing 17.5 team points. He opened the tournament with a dominant 21–6 technical fall before earning back-to-back victories to advance to the championship match.
Just a month before earning his spot at nationals, the freshman had also claimed a SUNYAC title at the conference championship tournament.
“I already believed in myself that I was going to do it, but it’s definitely a big sense of relief just knowing that my hard work has paid off,” Middendorf said.
At heavyweight, Welsh also delivered an impressive performance at regionals, finishing second at 285 pounds and contributing 18.5 points to Brockport’s team total. In the semifinals, he battled through a close match and won in overtime, which earned him a spot in the finals and qualified him for the national tournament.
For Welsh, the semifinal victory was more than just a ticket to nationals.
“The kid I wrestled to qualify was the kid that beat me in the state semifinals in high school my senior year,” Welsh said, “I’ve been thinking about that moment for a long time, so to qualify like that was a big accomplishment for me.”
From the start of his freshman season, Welsh said qualifying for the national tournament was one of his main goals. Trusting Head Coach Troy Seymour played a key role in helping him achieve that goal.
The trust Welsh places in Seymour reflects the culture the head coach has worked to build since taking over the program. In just his second season leading Brockport, Seymour has found great success recruiting athletes like Welsh and Middendorf, two freshmen who have quickly become key contributors.
“Really, it’s about finding good people first,” Seymour said, “when your best people are your best wrestlers, that’s when good things start to happen. They’re both really good kids and they really love the sport.”
Seymour said that both wrestlers bring unique qualities that have helped them succeed early in their collegiate careers.
“Mike is just a mean son of a gun; you can’t really teach that in wrestling. Trevor just wrestles really hard through every position; most guys don’t,” Seymour said.
While Seymour praised their toughness and work ethic, the national stage proved to be a challenging test for both freshmen.
At 125, Middendorf fell in round one to Nikko Beato of the Coast Guard in an 8-1 decision. Moving to the preliminary consolation round, Middendorf finished his impressive debut season with the Golden Eagles, falling to Andrew Marchese of Castleton 6-0.
At 285, Welsh came up just short to Benjamin Katz of Springfield with a 7-5 decision. Welsh finished out his first season at Brockport in the preliminary consolation round with a 5-1 decision taken by Kamdyn Dorchester of Ithaca.
Despite the early exits, both freshmen showed they can compete at the national level—an encouraging sign for what’s ahead in their careers.
