Dan deLalla ’07 put an exclamation point on one of the most successful wrestling careers in school history this past weekend by competing in the NCAA Division III Tournament at Loras College. DeLalla cruised through his first match but dropped the two ensuing decisions, knocking him out of the tournament.

DeLalla said he was calm and relaxed entering the tournament as the seventh seed, allowing him to face off against a lesser opponent, unseeded Jacob Malone of St. John’s. Malone fell prey to deLalla’s mat mastery and the Cards’ top wrestler rolled to a 9-5 decision in the round of 16 on Friday afternoon.

Having moved into the round of eight, deLalla now held one of the lower seeds and had to face-off against tougher competition. His immediate test was Ross Needham of Wisconsin-LaCrosse, the tournament’s second seed.

DeLalla was pinned in the second round by Needham. Nevertheless, deLalla placed into a quarterfinal consolation match against fifth-seeded Elliot Spence of Mount St. Joe’s. Dropping a 14-3 decision to Spence knocked deLalla out of the weekend tournament.

DeLalla did not win it all as he had hoped, but his accomplishments over the past four seasons, especially the last two years, have set a new bar for Wesleyan wrestling. His accolades speak for themselves: two-time All-New England and New England Champion wrestler at 157 pounds, two-time team captain, and 2006 Scholar All-American selection.

This season alone, deLalla compiled a 13-1 record at 157 pounds, a 2-1 record at 165 pounds and a 13-2 tournament record, good for a superb 28-4 overall record. Combined with his three previous seasons of varsity wrestling, deLalla finishes with a 66-18 career record, one of the best recorded this century for the Cardinals.

“He is a young man who trains and prepares himself year round,” said head coach Drew Black. “He’s a fiery competitor.”

No one can doubt that as deLalla will leave Wesleyan as one of the most accomplished and, more importantly, well respected athletes the school has ever had.