photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com
After more than 700 days between competitions, the NCAA DI Wrestling Championships are back. With one day in the books from the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri, the top-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes lead, as expected. The margin, however, is not as wide as one may have anticipated over second-ranked Penn State. Iowa leads by five and a half points heading into tomorrow’s quarterfinal round. Iowa has eight wrestlers who have secured places in the quarters, while Penn State has seven. Let’s take a look at some of the notable occurrences from day one at the national tournament.
125 - For the most part, the seeds held up. Devin Schroder’s win as the ninth seed was barely an upset and accounted for the only one in the Round of 16. Perhaps the biggest shock was that 2020 Hodge Trophy winner, Spencer Lee, was taken down twice in his second bout of the day, against Killian Cardinale.
133 - Minor upsets occurred as #9 Chris Cannon and #10 Louie Hayes pushed through to the semis. Cannon notched a fall after an incredible sequence between him and #8 Michael McGee. Hayes was able to secure the winning takedown in sudden victory against super-freshman Lucas Byrd.
141 - Real Woods continued to look like the 2019-20 version of himself that only lost one match as a freshman. He avenged his Pac-12 loss to Grant Willits (Oregon State) in the opening round, then dug deep for a four-point move in sudden victory to take out All-American Dom Demas.
149 - Sammy Sasso was pushed to the brink by Kyle Parco in the Round of 16. He was the only top-seed that was on the ropes during day one. That flew under the radar because of the officiating circus that took place in the second round bout between Boo Lewallen and Josh Heil. With seven seconds left during a restart in sudden victory, Lewallen was close to getting the winning takedown. Unfortunately, the clock never started. Much to the dismay of Campbell head coach, Scotti Sentes, the officials did not allow any time to run off or a video review of the scenario and rewrestled the situation with seven seconds on the clock. As luck would have it, Lewallen was able to get the winning takedown this time.
Also at this weight, Max Murin reversed a loss from the Big Ten tournament to Ridge Lovett and moved on to the quarters. For a second straight match, #25 Yahya Thomas took down a top-ten seeded opponent. He controlled #9 Legend Lamer from the get-go in a 10-4 win.
157 - Unfortunately, returning All-American Kendall Coleman had to be carried off the mat with an apparent leg injury which allowed Jared Franek to advance via injury default. 12th seeded Brady Berge helped his team by pulling an upset over Iowa’s Kaleb Young, 3-2.
165 - Chalk prevailed at this weight. 2019 NCAA Champion Mekhi Lewis had to dig deep to pull out a win over #13 Tanner Skidgel (Navy), the EIWA runner-up. Lewis was in obvious pain wearing a large shoulder harness, but still fought off a late charge from the Midshipman.
174 - The big upset at 174 lbs was when Pac-12 champion #12 Bernie Truax was able to nullify a Logan Massa attack in sudden victory and reattack for a winning takedown. Also in extra time, Andrew McNally pulled out a 6-4 win over Austin Murphy.
184 - The top-eight wrestlers at this weight advanced to a highly anticipated set of quarterfinals.
197 - As some predicted, 197 lbs was the weight that kind of exploded, particularly the bottom half of the bracket. Owen Pentz pulled the upset of the tournament when he rolled second-seeded Eric Schultz (Nebraska) and held him there for a fall in the opening round. Pentz ran into a buzzsaw in the second round, in the form of Penn State freshman Michael Beard. The 15th seeded Nittany Lion breezed into the quarters with a 17-8 major decision. He’ll face the #26 seed Jake Woodley. Jake knocked off undefeated freshman #7 Rocky Elam in the opening round and #10 Cameron Caffey in the Round of 16. Also of note, Stephen Buchanan pinned Noah Adams in the second round, his third win over the NCAA #2 seed from 2020.
285 - Thor is back on track! Trent Hillger moved on to the quarterfinals after outlasting fellow All-American #3 Matt Stencel in the second match of the day. The 8/9 match saw the freshman Greg Kerkvliet pull the ever-so-slight upset when he majored two-time All-American Jordan Wood. That set the stage for a meeting with top-ranked Gable Steveson. The two had one of the most anticipated matches of the 2017-18 high school season when Kerkvliet bumped up to meet Steveson.
Round of 16 Results
125 - Spencer Lee (IA) maj Killian Cardinale (WVU) 15-5
125 - Devin Schroder (Pur) dec Rayvon Foley (MSU) 2-1
125 - Brody Teske (UNI) dec Michael DeAugustino (NW) 2-0
125 - Drew Hildebrandt (CMU) dec Liam Cronin (Neb) 2-1
125 - Brandon Courtney (ArSt) dec Eric Barnett (Wisc) 9-7
125 - Jakob Camacho (NCSU) dec Dylan Ragusin (Mich) 10-8
125 - Taylor LaMont (UVU) dec Robbie Howard (PSU) 2-1
125 - Sam Latona (VT) dec Patrick McKee (Minn) 3-1
133 - Daton Fix (OkSt) fall Malyke Hines (Leh) 3:40
133 - Chris Cannon (NW) fall Michael McGee (ArSt) 3:00
133 - Micky Phillipi (Pitt) dec Jarrett Trombley (NCS) 6-1
133 - Austin DeSanto (IA) fall Ryan Sullivan (WVU) 1:36
133 - Korbin Myers (VT) dec Zach Price (SDSU) 6-4
133 - Matt Schmitt (Mizz) maj Mario Guillen (OU) 9-0
133 - Louie Hayes (UVA) dec Lucas Byrd (Ill) 6-4SV
133 - Roman Bravo-Young (PSU) maj Kyle Burwick (Wisc) 11-3
141 - Jaydin Eierman (IA) dec Cole Matthews (Pitt) 5-3
141 - Dresden Simon (CMU) dec Chad Red Jr (Neb) 6-3
141 - Real Woods (Sta) dec Dom Demas (OU) 5-1SV
141 - Tariq Wilson (NCS) dec Brian Courtney (UVA) 7-3
141 - Sebastian Rivera (Rut) dec Dylan Duncan (Ill) 10-4
141 - Allan Hart (Mizz) dec Cody Trybus (Navy) 4-1
141 - Zach Sherman (UNC) maj Colin Valdiviez (NW) 14-1
141 - Nick Lee (PSU) maj Clay Carlson (SDSU) 14-3
149 - Sammy Sasso (OhSt) dec Kyle Parco (FSU) 11-10
149 - Yahya Thomas (NW) dec Legend Lamer (CP) 10-4
149 - Max Murin (IA) dec Ridge Lovett (Neb) 5-3
149 - Boo Lewallen (OkSt) dec Josh Heil (Cam) 7-6TB
149 - Brock Mauller (Mizz) dec Michael Blockhus (Minn) 4-2
149 - Bryce Andonnian (VT) dec Kanen Storr (Mich) 10-7
149 - Jonathan Millner (ApSt) dec Triston Lara (UNI) 9-8
149 - Austin O’Connor (UNC) dec Griffin Parriott (Pur) 8-3
157 - Ryan Deakin (NW) dec Requir van der Merwe (Sta) 4-2
157 - Jared Franek (NDSU) injdef Kendall Coleman (Pur)
157 - Brady Berge (PSU) dec Kaleb Young (IA) 3-2
157 - Jesse Dellavecchia (Rid) dec Hunter Willits (OrSt) 4-2
157 - David Carr (ISU) dec Will Lewan (Mich) 10-2
157 - Brayton Lee (Minn) dec Jacori Teemer (ArSt) 4-3
157 - Jacob Wright (Wyo) dec Johnny Lovett (CMU) 2-1TB
157 - Hayden Hidlay (NCS) tech Cade DeVos (SDSU) 20-3
165 - Alex Marinelli (IA) maj Thomas Bullard (NCS) 13-2
165 - Shane Griffith (Sta) dec Luke Weber (NDSU) 7-5
165 - Zach Hartman (Buck) dec Peyton Hall (WVU) 6-0
165 - Mekhi Lewis (VT) dec Tanner Skidgel (Navy) 3-2
165 - Jake Wentzel (Pitt) dec Peyton Robb (Neb) 8-1
165 - Keegan O’Toole (Mizz) dec Cameron Amine (Mich) 5-2
165 - Ethan Smith (OhSt) dec Travis Wittlake (OkSt) 4-3
165 - Anthony Valencia (ArSt) dec Izzak Olejnik (NIU) 6-4SV
174 - Michael Kemerer (IA) tech Ben Pasiuk (Army) 17-1
174 - Daniel Bullard (NCS) dec Donnell Washington (Ind) 6-4
174 - Bernie Truax (CP) dec Logan Massa (Mich) 3-1SV
174 - Mikey Labriola (Neb) dec Trey Munoz (ArSt) 5-3
174 - Carter Starocci (PSU) dec Hayden Hastings (Wyo) 8-2
174 - Andrew McNally (KSU) dec Austin Murphy (Cam) 6-4SV
174 - Kaleb Romero (OhSt) dec Peyton Mocco (Mizz) 5-1
174 - Demetrius Romero (UVU) dec Dustin Plott (OkSt) 11-5
184 - Aaron Brooks (PSU) dec Owen Webster (Minn) 5-0
184 - Taylor Venz (Neb) dec Jeremiah Kent (Mizz) 10-4
184 - Hunter Bolen (VT) dec Nelson Brands (IA) 6-2
184 - Parker Keckeisen (UNI) maj David Key (Navy) 16-5
184 - Louie DePrez (Bing) dec Caleb Hopkins (Cam) 4-1
184 - John Poznanski (Rut) dec Dakota Geer (OkSt) 7-3
184 - Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois) dec Charles Small (Hofstra) 5-2
184 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) tech Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) 20-5
197 - Myles Amine (Mich) dec Jake Jakobsen (Leh) 4-2
197 - Stephen Buchanan (Wyo) fall Noah Adams (WVU) 1:59
197 - Jacob Warner (IA) dec Lucas Davison (NW) 3-0
197 - AJ Ferrari (OkSt) dec Tanner Sloan (SDSU) 4-0
197 - Kordell Norfleet (ArSt) dec Thomas Penola (Pur) 8-4
197 - Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) maj Jay Aiello (UVA) 13-3
197 - Jake Woodley (OU) dec Cameron Caffey (MSU) 4-3
197 - Michael Beard (PSU) maj Owen Pentz (NDSU) 17-8
285 - Gable Steveson (Minn) tech Wyatt Hendrickson (AFA) 17-2
285 - Greg Kerkvliet (PSU) maj Jordan Wood (Leh) 12-2
285 - Tony Cassioppi (IA) maj Tate Orndorff (OhSt) 11-0
285 - Cohlton Schultz (ArSt) disq Brian Andrews (Wyo)
285 - Trent Hillger (Wisc) dec Matt Stencel (CMU) 2-1
285 - Gannon Gremmel (ISU) dec Zach Elam (Mizz) 3-1
285 - Ethan Laird (Rid) dec Deonte Wilson (NCS) 7-2
285 - Mason Parris (Mich) tech Carter Isley (UNI) 17-1
Quarterfinal Matchups
125 - #1 Spencer Lee (Iowa) vs. #9 Devin Schroder (Purdue)
125 - #5 Brody Teske (Northern Iowa) vs. #4 Drew Hildebrandt (Central Michigan)
125 - #3 Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) vs. #6 Jakob Camacho (NC State)
125 - #7 Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley) vs. #2 Sam Latona (Virginia Tech)
133 - #1 Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) vs. #9 Chris Cannon (Northwestern)
133 - #5 Micky Phillipi (Pittsburgh) vs. #4 Austin DeSanto (Pittsburgh)
133 - #3 Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech) vs. #6 Matt Schmitt (Missouri)
133 - #10 Louie Hayes (Virginia) vs. #2 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State)
141 - #1 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) vs. #9 Dresden Simon (Central Michigan)
141 - #21 Real Woods (Stanford) vs. #4 Tariq Wilson (NC State)
141 - #3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) vs. #6 Allan Hart (Missouri)
141 - #10 Zach Sherman (North Carolina) vs. #2 Nick Lee (Penn State)
149 - #1 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) vs. #25 Yahya Thomas (Northwestern)
149 - #12 Max Murin (Iowa) vs. #4 Boo Lewallen (Oklahoma State)
149 - #3 Brock Mauller (Missouri) vs. #6 Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech)
149 - #7 Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State) vs. #2 Austin O’Connor (North Carolina)
157 - #1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. #8 Jared Franek (North Dakota State)
157 - #12 Brady Berge (Penn State) vs. #4 Jesse Dellavecchia (Rider)
157 - #3 David Carr (Iowa State) vs. #6 Brayton Lee (Minnesota)
157 - #23 Jacob Wright (Wyoming) vs. #2 Hayden Hidlay (NC State)
165 - #1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) vs. #8 Shane Griffith (Stanford)
165 - #5 Zach Hartman (Bucknell) vs. #4 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech)
165 - #3 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) vs. #6 Keegan O’Toole (Missouri)
165 - #7 Ethan Smith (Ohio State) vs. #2 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State)
174 - #1 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) vs. #8 Daniel Bullard (NC State)
174 - #12 Bernie Truax (Cal Poly) vs. #4 Mikey Labriola (Nebraska)
174 - #3 Carter Starocci (Penn State) vs. #6 Andrew McNally (Kent State)
174 - #7 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) vs. #2 Demetrius Romero (Utah Valley)
184 - #1 Aaron Brooks (Penn State) vs. #8 Taylor Venz (Nebraska)
184 - #5 Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech) vs. #4 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa)
184 - #3 Louie DePrez (Binghamton) vs. #6 John Poznanski (Rutgers)
184 - #7 Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois) vs. #2 Trent Hidlay (NC State)
197 - #1 Myles Amine (Michigan) vs. #8 Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming)
197 - #5 Jacob Warner (Iowa) vs. #4 AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State)
197 - #3 Kordell Norfleet (Arizona State) vs. #6 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh)
197 - #26 Jake Woodley (Oklahoma) vs. #15 Michael Beard (Penn State)
285 - #1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. #9 Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State)
285 - #5 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) vs. #4 Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State)
285 - #14 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) vs. #6 Gannon Gremmel (Iowa State)
285 - #7 Ethan Laird (Rider) vs. #2 Mason Parris (Michigan)
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