#1 Augsburg faces #2 Wartburg on Thursday, January 30, in Waverly, Iowa,  at 7 p.m. in the annual Battle of the Burgs rivalry.

Good news for wrestling fans. Iowa Public Television will broadcast the meet live. Click here to watch for free. 

Augsburg or Wartburg has won every D3 NCAA championship since 1995, and each school has 15 NCAA titles apiece. One of these teams will break the tie unless another team ends the streak. 

The rivalry is so fierce that it was featured on the front page of “The New York Times” sports page on March 5, 2012, in a story called Locked in a Struggle for Supremacy. It received top billing over Tiger Woods and the NBA. 

These two dynasties will settle the score this week — for now. 

Wartburg has also scheduled a watch party for the documentary “The Battle of the Burgs” before the dual. Fans can attend a 5 p.m. or 6 p.m. showing on January 30 in the W East Classroom and attend the dual immediately following.  

The 50-minute documentary highlights the annual dual between Wartburg and Augsburg and the team race that unfolded at the 2024 NCAA Championships. Click here for more information.

In the finals of the 2025 NWCA National Duals held on January 11, Augsburg defeated Wartburg 17-16. Below is the box score and links to each match. The marquee match on Thursday is at 197 pounds, where #2 Tyler Venz (Augsburg) faces #1 Massoma Endene (Wartburg). 

125: Wyatt Kaczrowski (AUG) dec. Brett Birchman (WAR) 4-0 (Augsburg 3-0)
133: Josh Gervey (WAR) dec. Chance Suddeth (AUG, 19-6) 4-1 (TIED 3-3)
141: Tommy Thongseg (WAR) dec. Cade Willis (AUG) 7-2 (Wartburg 6-3)
149: Matthew Randolph (AUG) dec. Ian Crapp (WAR) 5-3 (TIED 6-6)
157: Karsen Otis (AUG, 17-3) maj. dec. Blaine Christie (WAR) 12-1 (Augsburg 10-6)
165: Cooper Willis (AUG) maj. dec. Carter Profitt (WAR) 11-2 (Augsburg 14-6)
174: Seth Goetzinger (AUG, 14-3) dec. Matt Rogge (WAR) 6-0 (Augsburg 17-6)
184: Kasey Ross (WAR) dec. Brandt Bombard (AUG, 18-4) 2-0 (Augsburg 17-9)
197: Massoma Endene (WAR) dec. Parker Venz (AUG) 8-6 (Augsburg 17-12)
285: Mitchell Williamson (WAR) maj. dec. Tyler Raway (AUG, 17-4) 11-3 (Augsburg 17-16)

Here are a few things you should know about this iconic rivalry. 

The SwensMilboy Belt

The belt is named after Augsburg’s Jeff Swenson and Wartburg’s Jim Miller. Both coaches led their teams to 10 national titles during their head coaching careers.

NCAA Team Titles

Augsburg (15 titles): 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2015, 2019, 2023, 2024

Wartburg (15 titles): 1996, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2022

The Streak

1995: Augsburg
1996: Wartburg
1997: Augsburg
1998: Augsburg
1999: Wartburg
2000: Augsburg
2001: Augsburg
2002: Augsburg
2003: Wartburg
2004: Wartburg
2005: Augsburg
2006: Wartburg
2007: Augsburg
2008: Wartburg
2009: Wartburg
2010: Augsburg
2011: Wartburg
2012: Wartburg
2013: Wartburg
2014: Wartburg
2015: Augsburg
2016: Wartburg
2017: Wartburg
2018: Wartburg
2019: Augsburg
2020: Cancelled (COVID)
2021: Cancelled (COVID)
2022: Wartburg
2023: Augsburg
2024: Augsburg

Individual NCAA Champions

Augsburg (40 for 55 titles)
Bob Adams — 1983 (134)
Steve Gliva — 1984 (118)
Shea Kennedy — 1984 (150)
John Beatty — 1988 (134), 1990 (142)
Chester Grauberger — 1991 (HWT)
Gary Kroells — 1992, 1993 (150)
Nick Fornicoia — 1993 (118)
Joe Hoialmen — 1993 (134)
Jesse Armbruster — 1995 (126)
Tom Layte — 1995 (150)
Dan Lewandowski — 1996, 1997 (190)
Henry Gerten — 1997, 1998 (118)
Jim Peterson — 1998 (167)
John Marchette — 1999 (133)
Josh Cagle — 2000 (149)
Nick Slack — 2000 (174)
Josh Clausen — 2000 (197)
Ben Bauer — 2000, 2001 (HWT)
Darin Bertram — 2001 (125)
Nik Lewandowski — 2001 (184)
Tony Abbott — 2002 (165)
Marcus LeVesseur — 2003, 2004, 2005 (157), 2007 (165)
Matt Shankey — 2004, 2005 (125)
Mark Matzek — 2004, 2005 (133)
Joe Moon — 2004, 2005 (174)
Quincy Osborn — 2007 (141)
Jeremy Anderson — 2007 (157)
Seth Flodeen — 2008 (125)
Jared Massey — 2009 (197)
Zach Molitor — 2011 (174)
Chad Johnson — 2012, 2013 (HWT)
Mike Fuenffinger — 2014, 2015 (125)
Donny Longendyke — 2015 (HWT)
Ryan Epps — 2018, 2019 (157)
Lucas Jeske — 2018, 2019 (165)
David Flynn — 2019 (141)
Lance Benick — 2019 (197)
Sam Stuhl — 2023 (141)
Bentley Schwanebeck-Ostermann — 2024 (184)
Tyler Kim — 2024 (285)

Wartburg (36 for 50 titles)
Dean Gavin — 1989 (190)
Tom Hogan — 1993 (150)
Lance Christensen — 1993 (167)
Zane Braggs — 1994 (118)
Tom Smith — 1996, 1997 (126)
Jamal Fox — 1996 (142)
Dusty Rhodes — 1997 (134)
Ben Shane — 1998 (142), 1999 (149)
Zac Weiglein — 1999, 2000 (125)
Heath Ropp — 2003 (125)
Wil Kelly — 2003 (141)
LeRoy Gardner — 2003 (285)
Dustin Hinschberger — 2004, 2005, 2006 (141)
Bart Mehlert — 2004 (149)
Ryan Sturm — 2004 (184)
Akeem Carter — 2004, 2005 (197)
Tyler Hubbard — 2006 (125)
TJ Miller — 2007 (197)
Blake Gillis — 2007 (285)
JD Naig — 2008 (149)
Aaron Wernimont — 2008, 2009 (157)
Romeo Djoumessi — 2008 (184)
Justin Hanson — 2009 (165)
Byron Tate — 2010, 2011, 2012 (197)
John Helgerson — 2011 (285)
Kenny Anderson — 2012 (125), 2013, 2014 (133)
Kodie Silvestri — 2012 (141)
Landon Williams — 2012 (165), 2014 (174)
Cole Welter — 2014 (165)
Kenny Martin — 2015, 2016 (149)
Eric DeVos — 2017 (174)
Brock Rathbun — 2018 (133)
Cross Cannone — 2018 (149)
Kyle Fank — 2018 (197)
Zane Mulder — 2023 (174)
Massoma Endene — 2023, 2024 (197)

Notable Battle of the Burgs NCAA Tournament Moments

1993: Augsburg 93, Wartburg 92
Wartburg was in the title hunt during Jim Miller’s second season as head coach but Augsburg earned a one-point win. The Knights built what appeared to be an insurmountable lead but lost the title to the Auggies down the homestretch. The loss still drives Miller crazy even though he has 10 NCAA team championships. 

1999: Wartburg 117.5, Augsburg 116
The Auggies won the previous three NCAA championships and were on the cusp of winning four in a row had it not been for a complete meltdown. Augsburg coach Jeff Swenson said that losing the title still haunts him. His teams won the next two titles, which could have meant six NCAA wrestling titles in a row — a record for Division III — had they won in 1999. 

2003: Wartburg 166.5, Augsburg 84.5
The Knights set the all-time D3 point record with three champs, six finalists, and 10 All-Americans — and placed 82 points ahead of the Auggies. Ladies and gentlemen, Wartburg has left the building. 

2004: Wartburg 156.5, Augsburg 140.5
Wartburg and Augsburg each had four individual NCAA champions, but the Knights had seven finalists and nine All-Americans to earn a 16-point win. 

2007: Augsburg 135.5, Wartburg 99.5
Swenson led his team to a 40-point victory over Wartburg during his final season as head coach. It was his 10th and final title before becoming athletic director at Augsburg. 

2015: Augsburg 100, Wartburg 89.5
Wartburg appeared to be a lock entering the tournament after dismantling Augsburg 25-7 in a dual earlier in the year. The Auggies had an inspired performance led by bonus point after bonus point. Current Wartburg coach Eric Keller boycotted Hersey’s candy bars afterward since the championships were held in Hersey, Pennsylvania. 

Wartburg's Record Performance: 166.5 Points

Wartburg set the record for points at the 2003 NCAA DIII tournament with 166.5 points. Every wrestler earned All-American honors, including three NCAA champions and three runner-ups. It was the third of 10 NCAA championships during Jim Miller's tenure as head wrestling coach.

The starting line-up was Heath Ropp (125 1st at 125), Ozzie Saxton (2nd at 133), Wil Kelly (1st at 141), Bart Mehlert (3rd at 149), Kevin Bratland (2nd at 157), Ryan Sturm (4th at 165), Mark Sturm (6th at 174), Sonny Alvarez (2nd at 184), Alain Djoumessi (3rd at 197), and LeRoy Gardner (1st at 285). Eric Keller, Dave Malecek, Nick Mitchell, Steve Walker, and Matt Walker were assistants.