ST. LOUIS -- Andrew Dunn Jr. (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic), the top-ranked and top-seeded heavyweight, carried the banner for No. 6 Kutztown University, Friday, on the opening day of the 2022 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships at Chaifetz Arena.

Dunn Jr. won his first two matches to advance to Saturday's semifinals as he looks to defend his 2019 national championship. He's already cemented his place as KU's third three-time All-American, joining Kohlby O'Donnell (1998, 2001, 2002) and Ziad Haddad (2013, 2014, 2015).

Dunn Jr. got off to a quick start against Indianapolis' Cale Gray in the first round, recording a pair of takedowns in the opening minute. The second of those led to a pin at the 1:41 mark, pushing the Bethlehem native into the quarterfinals.

Steven Hajas of Augustana battled Dunn Jr. to the end, but Kutztown's three-time Super Region 1 champion broke a 2-2 tie with a takedown in the final 10 seconds of the second period and went on to a 5-2 decision for his 60th consecutive victory dating back to Jan. 5, 2019.

A highly anticipated rematch with St. Cloud State's Kameron Teacher awaits Dunn Jr. Saturday morning with a spot in the national title match on the line. In 2019, Dunn Jr. slipped past Teacher, then ranked No. 1 in the country and wrestling for Notre Dame College, 7-6, in the semifinals on his way to the national championship.

It was a tough afternoon for Kutztown's remaining qualifiers, who were all competing at nationals for the first time as Golden Bears.

Fifth-ranked and sixth-seeded 133-pounder Collin Wickramaratna (Marlton, N.J./Cherokee) fell behind Limestone's Majid Corbett 5-1 in his opening match before rallying within 6-5 with 38 seconds to go, but the necessary takedown to force overtime never came as Corbett added a riding time point to hold on for a 7-5 win.

Wickramaratna bounced back with a 13-7 decision over Newberry's Timothy Luker in the consolation bracket, but fell to fifth-seeded and sixth-ranked Reece Barnhardt of UMary by major decision, 14-5, one win shy of guaranteed All-America status.

Brian Kennerly (Drexel Hill, Pa./Upper Darby), ranked and seeded fourth at 197, also came within a win of his first All-America honor. Using a big third period in his first round match, Kennerly downed Donnie Negus of Colorado Mesa, 6-4. In the quarterfinals, fifth-ranked and seeded Nick Mason of Tiffin got the best of the graduate student from Drexel Hill with a 2:28 pin.

Kennerly took on eighth-ranked Gino Sita of Alderson Broaddus in the second round of consolations, but couldn't overcome a 5-1 deficit after two in a 9-6 defeat. Kennerly fought to the end with a pair of escapes and a takedown in the third, before ultimately ending his season with a 25-5 record.

Matthew Weinberg (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan), ranked 10th in the final NWCA rankings at 184, suffered a loss by pin (3:26) to sixth-ranked and seeded Marty Verhaeghe of Fort Hays State in the first round.

The Philadelphian almost came back to win his first match at nationals in a consolation bout with Notre Dame College's Logan Hall, erasing a 6-3 disadvantage going into the third with a reversal and penalty point on account of Hall's stalling. Hall prevailed, however, getting an escape with 37 seconds remaining and adding a riding time point for an 8-6 decision.

Kutztown currently ranks tied for 20th of 52 represented schools in the team standings with 11.5 points. Nebraska-Kearney leads with 67.5 points, 15.5 clear of second-place Central Oklahoma. St. Cloud State (42.5), West Liberty (35.5) and Indianapolis (30.0) make up the remainder of the top five.

Dunn Jr. will be in action during the championship semifinals, which get underway Saturday morning at 11 a.m. Eastern (10 a.m. locally).