March 19, 2009
Results by Weight Class:
125:
James Nicholson (1-1)
Nicholson, the six seed at 125 lbs, won his first round matchup in a tough first bout against 13th ranked Brad Pataky (Penn State) but was upset by #11 seed Zachary Sanders (Minnesota) in the second round. Pataky was 28-9 coming in, but the ODU grappler was too much for him, winning in an 11-6 decision. Nicholson went up 7-1 in the second period, but then was forced to use 1:23 of his injury time at the start of the third. Pataky got a takedown right out of the timeout to cut the lead to 7-4, but Nicholson escaped and scored a third takedown again and added the riding time advantage point for the win.
Against Sanders, Nicholson was leading for the bulk of the match, up 3-0 headed into the third. After Sanders scored a takedown, Nicholson escaped, still up 4-2 in the final minute. Sanders, though, would get a late takedown to tie and rode out the period, adding the riding time advantage point for the win. It was just the third loss of the season for the ODU sophomore, who falls to 36-6 and into the consolation bracket.
Nicholson will face the Obenson Blanc (Oklahoma State) in tomorrow morning's consolation matchup. Blanc and Nicholson faced eachother earlier in the season with Nicholson taking a 5-3 decision against the then sixth-ranked Cowboy grappler.
133:
Kyle Hutter (1-1)
Hutter had a very tough draw in the first round, forced to face the 4th ranked 133-pounder in the nation Andrew Hochstrasser (Boise State), and suffered a first period pin. Hochstrasser scored a takedown early and turned Hutter with 40 seconds remaining in the first period for the win.
The ODU junior bounced back in the first round of consolation wrestling though, with a 7-3 win over Oregon State's Kelly Kubec. Kubec led off with a takedown in the first, but Hutter would take over from there. Hutter had an escape in the first and then, in the top position to start the second period, would get back points to go ahead 3-2. Kubec escaped to tie it up, 3-3, headed into the third, but Hutter escaped in the third and added another takedown, plus the riding time advantage point for the win.
Tomorrow morning Hutter will face off against Liberty's Christian Smith, who is 24-13 coming into their bout.
141:
Ryan Williams (2-0)
The ODU senior, seeded 8th at 141 lbs, continued his dominant streak of wins with a 7-1 decision over Penn State's Frank Molinaro and a 10-5 decision over NC State's Joe Caramanica. With the victories he tied the all-time leader in wins at ODU, with 135.
Against Molinaro, the two were tied at zero at the end of the second period when Williams scored in a flurry during the third for the win. Williams had an escape, two takedowns, and a penalty point in the third, plus added the riding time advantage point for the final spread, 7-1.
Then, in the second round, Williams faced Caramanica for the second time this month. Williams had a 9-6 decision over the Wolfpack grappler in dual meet action to end the season and matched it in St. Louis with a 10-5 decision to move into the quarterfinals. Williams had four takedowns in the match.
Williams is now just one win away from guaranteeing himself All-American status. The 141-pound weight has been full of upsets, as well, including Williams' opponent tomorrow morning, Ryan Prater (Illinois) pinning #1 seeded Kellen Russell (Michigan). Prater beat Williams last season at the Virginia Duals, 10-6.
165:
Chris Brown (1-2)
Brown won his pigtail match but was dropped to the consolation bracket by familiar foe, Andy Rendos from Bucknell. He was then eliminated Thursday night after a heartbreaking 5-3 decision to Lehigh's Mike Galante.
Brown defeated Michigan's Justin Zeerip 4-0 in the opening match, with an escape and takedown in the third, plus the riding time advantage. Against Rendos though, an opponent Brown is very familiar, he suffered a 2-0 loss and got bounced to the consolation bracket. Rendos was able to escape from Brown in the second period, and ride out Brown in the third for the 2-0 victory.
Then, in the consolation bracket, Brown faced Galante. Galante took down the Monarch grappler twice and escaped Brown's hold in the third period, while Brown was only able to score a pair of escapes and a penalty point in the third.
The redshirt junior from Chesapeake ends his season with 103 career victories and a 28-8 overall record this season. The two-time CAA Champion will return for his final season in 2009-10.
174:
Eric Decker (1-1)
In Decker's second career trip to the NCAA Tournament, he was charged with facing the third ranked wrestler in the nation at his weight, Brandon Browne (Nebraska). Browne dispatched the ODU grappler by major decision, 12-4, with five takedowns.
The ODU 174-pounder would bounce back with a win in the consolation bracket, dropping Buffalo senior Nate Rock by decision, 4-1. Decker's takedown in the first would be enough, but he added an escape in the second and the riding time advantage point for the 4-1 win.
His tournament does not get any easier tomorrow morning, though, as he'll be facing #9 seed Newly McSpadden (Oklahoma State) in the second round of consolations.
197:
Jesse Strawn (1-1)
Strawn won a match in the championship bracket, but then was sent to the consy's by the #1 seed Craig Brester (Nebraska) in a major decision loss. Strawn defeated North Carolina's Dennis Drury easily, 11-4, but Brester returned the favor with a 14-5 major in the second round.
Strawn improved to 34-12 this season, adding to his career high, and will face UNI's Andrew Anderson first thing tomorrow morning. The two matched up in a home dual meet earlier this season and both were nationally ranked at the time. Anderson got the better of Strawn in a very tight match, winning 6-4.