Benedictine College Athletic Director Charlie Gartenmayer announced the hire of Gregory Barner as the next head coach for the Raven Wrestling program in May 2022.
In his first year, the program saw its first NAIA-ranked individual wrestler in four years in Michael Lucas. They earned a Heart dual win over NAIA-ranked Baker University 20-17, beating the Wildcats for just the second time in program history. Helped improve the academic level of the program, guiding three National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Scholar All-Americans.
Coach Barner joined the Ravens after serving as head coach and Director of Strength and Conditioning at Cleary University in Howell, Mich. In his time at Cleary, he increased the wrestling program's roster size and set school records for team wins, individual wins, and the highest team GPA (3.11). Additionally, he coached six all-conference wrestlers as well as four academic all-conference wrestlers.
Coach Barner competed as a wrestler at Central College in Pella, Iowa. Coach Barner has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Exercise Science from Central College and earned his Master of Arts in Management from Briar Cliff University.
Coach Barner becomes the fourth head coach for the Raven Wrestling Program and has high expectations for his program beyond helping guide them to success on the mat.
