CEDAR RAPIDS, IA – RIT senior Josh Harkless won the 285-pound national championship at the 2026 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. Harkless, the No. 3 seed, defeated top-seeded and defending national champion Mitch Williamson (Wartburg), 4-1, in Saturday's championship match for his first national championship.

Harkless was named the Division III Most Dominant Wrestler for 2025-26. The Most Dominant Wrestler standings are calculated by adding the total number of team points awarded through match results and dividing that number by the total number of matches wrestled.

After a scoreless first period, Harkless took a 1-0 lead with an escape early in the second period. Williamson escaped early in the third period to tie the score 1-1. Harkless took his shot late in the third period, taking down Williamson with two seconds remaining to secure the win, while avenging the 3-2 OT loss to Williamson during last year's NCAA Tournament semifinals - his only loss the entire season. 
 
Harkless advanced to Saturday's championship with a 6-1 win over No. 2 Carl DiGiorgio in the semifinals earlier in the day.



Harkless is RIT's first national champion since RIT Athletics Hall of Fame member Matt Hamill won in 1999. A three-time All-American, Harkless finishes his career third in program history with a 141-23 record.      

Harkless won two matches on the first day of action on Friday to advance to Saturday's semifinals. He pinned Benjamin Katz (Springfield) 1:41 into his opening bout and went on to beat No. 11 Andrew Vanscoy (Baldwin Wallace), 11-2 in the quarterfinals. 

In other action, Tiger sophomore Jack Lamson lost to No. 12 Zach Needles, 8-2 in his opening bout at 174 pounds. Lamson, who was competing in his first NCAA Championship, lost to No. 7 Thomas West (Baldwin Wallace) in his consolation match.