SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio -- Notre Dame raised its championship banner at Murphy Gymnasium as the College celebrated the exploits of the 2010-11 Wrestling Falcons on Monday.

NDC's NAIA National Duals and NAIA National Championship trophies were on display in front of an array of speakers that included Notre Dame President Dr. Andre P. Roth, Vice-President for Enrollment and General Counsel Dave Armstrong, Director of Athletics Susan Hlavacek and Head Wrestling Coach #Frank Romano#. The 45-minute presentation, complete with accompaniment from the Notre Dame Pep Band, was capped off by NDC raising its second national championship banner which will hang in Murphy Gymnasium beside its 2010 mate.

Speaking on behalf of the Wrestling Falcons, who earned their second straight title on March 5, was senior co-captain #Thomas Straughn#, who notched his third NAIA All-America award at the national tournament when he placed second at 157 pounds. “I want to thank my coaches, teammates, the faculty and everyone who supports us,” said Straughn. “My experiences at Notre Dame on and off the mat have been positive ones. Your support definitely helped motivate us to give our best.”

Straughn was joined by eight other NDC grapplers earning All-America status earlier this month when the Blue & White scored 170 points in the NAIA National Championships which were held in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, March 4-6. Two of those wrestlers -- senior #Dante Rini# (125 pounds) and sophomore #Orlando Scales# -- won individual titles at the tournament, becoming the sixth and seventh Falcon wrestlers to do so in the five-year history of the program.

In winning the 2011 title, Notre Dame became the ninth team to repeat as NAIA champions and the first Ohio program to win two national wrestling titles.