March 20, 2009
Results by Weight Class:
125:
James Nicholson (1-2)
Session I: 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.
Session II: 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.
Session III: Nicholson then faced Obenson Blanc (Oklahoma State) on Friday morning, and was eliminated by the Cowboy wrestler. Blanc and Nicholson faced eachother earlier in the season with Nicholson taking a 5-3 decision against the then sixth-ranked Cowboy grappler. In today's action, though, Blanc got the better of the ODU wrestler, winning 3-2.
Nicholson wraps up the 2008-09 season with a 36-4 record, with all four losses coming to NCAA Qualifiers. Nicholson ranked as high as fourth in the nation in his sophomore campaign and won his second straight CAA Championship.
133:
Kyle Hutter (2-2)
Session I: 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.
Session II: 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.
Session III: Hutter started Friday with a big momentum win, but was stopped short of a run to the podium in the fourth round of consolations by another tough draw. Hutter defeated Liberty's Christian Smith, 9-5, to start the day, but had to face the #3 seed James Kennedy (Illinois) just a few hours later. Hutter lost a 10-1 major decision to Kennedy, ending his 2008-09 campaign.
Hutter struggled for much of this season, but did finish second in the CAA Championships and make his second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. He ends the year with a 24-14 record.
141:
Ryan Williams (4-0)
Session I: 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. 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.
Session II: In the second round, Williams faced Joe Caramanica (NCSU) 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. The win moved Williams into a tie for the all-time wins mark at Old Dominion, with 135.
Session III: Williams won his third match of the tournament in dramatic fashion, becoming the all-time leader in wins at ODU, an All-American, and just the third Division I semi-finalist for Old Dominion. Williams faced Ryan Prater (Illinois) who was coming off a pin of #1 seeded Kellen Russell (Michigan). Prater beat Williams last season at the Virginia Duals, 10-6, but this time, Williams would get the better of Prater, 8-6. Prater had a dramatic takedown with 20 seconds remaining in the match to tie it up, but Williams slipped out and reversed the Illini grappler as time expired for the win.
Session IV: Friday night was a historic one for both Williams and the ODU wrestling program as the Monarch senior became just the second wrestler in school history to reach the NCAA Division I Finals. Williams dropped Alex Krom (Maryland) in a 4-1 decision, leading the whole way. Williams win gives him a program-high 137 for his career and 39 this season. He has now won 25 straight dating back to December 29.
165:
Chris Brown (1-2)
Session I: 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 Andy Rendos (Bucknell) 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.
Session II: In the consolation bracket, Brown faced Mike Galante from Lehigh. 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 (1-2)
Session I: 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.
Session II: 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.
Session III: His tournament did not get any easier this morning as he faced #9 seed Newly McSpadden (Oklahoma State) in the second round of consolations. McSpadden won a 4-1 decision to end Decker's season.
Decker finished his first season with a 27-20 record.
197:
Jesse Strawn (3-2)
Session I: In the first round, Jesse Strawn won a match against North Carolina's Dennis Drury by decision, 11-4. After the win, the ODU junior was slated to face the #1 seed Craig Brester (Nebraska) in the second round.
Session II: In the second round, Strawn got sent to the consy's by the #1 seed Craig Brester (Nebraska) in a major decision loss. Brester won a 14-5 major in the second round.
Session III: On Friday morning, Strawn had a pair of upset victories over seeded wrestlers in rematches from earlier this season. First, in the second round of consolations, Strawn dropped #11 Andrew Anderson (UNI) in a 6-1 decision, after Anderson defeated the Monarch in a tight match earlier this season, 6-4. Then, Strawn faced #8 seed Clayton Foster (Oklahoma State) in another rematch. Foster had pinned Strawn in dual action earlier this season, but Strawn returned the favor Friday morning with a pin of the Cowboy grappler. Foster led going into the third, 4-2, but Strawn scored a reversal to tie it up. Foster then escaped to lead, but the ODU junior scored another takedown to go ahead before turning Foster and getting the pin at 6:01.
Session IV: Strawn's run through the consolation bracket ended Friday night, in the fifth round of consolations. Strawn was dropped by major decision by 7-seed Brandon Halsey (CSU-Bakersfield). Despite the loss, Strawn still finished with a career-best record of 36-13.