by We continue here in Tulsa. After a brief hiatus from the action, we’re back on the mats for the Round of 16 and Round of Consolation Matches. And we’re here to blog it all for you LIVE in real time from the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
March 16-18 Resumes yesterday at 4:00 PM UTC
2023 NCAA Championships Watch Party
It’s raining here in Tulsa, but it’s still a great night for some NCAA wrestling in my opinion!
A second stunning performance of the national anthem and we’re minutes away.
What do you say? You don’t care about blogs, you just want the results? Okay great, here’s a link to just the results, not a blog. Go check them out and ignore this blog. It’s okay, I’ll get over it.
Round of 16
125 lbs
One minute into the round, Spencer Lee leads Michigan’s Jack Medley 10-0. And it’s a 16-0 technical fall for Spencer Lee. He’s pretty good.
Wyoming’s Jore Volk and Killian Cardinale in a battle between the 21st and 28th seeds, respectively, though Cardinale is in 14th place. Cardinale showed no signs of injury slowing him down this season and 5-1 after 2 bouts. Cardinale makes the decision and is one game away from his second AA medal.
Lock Haven’s Noto is technically the higher seed vs Wisconcin’s Barnett, the Badger All-American is ranked higher, #6 to #10. It’s 3-3 in the third. Barnett escapes to make it 4-3 in his favor late in the third, but Noto is knocked out in the dying seconds to advance to the quarter-finals.
Jarrett Trombley and Matt Ramos in overtime, 4-4. A few scrambles come close to scoring for each wrestler, but the score remains tied and it goes to tiebreakers. Trombley made the Boilermakers fans sweat, but #4 seed Matt Ramos survives the quarterfinals.
Nebraska’s Liam Cronin, the #3 seed who has never had an AA’d, advances to the quarterfinals over UMD’s Braxton Brown.
Glory leads Ungar 4-0 and pours it over his EIWA rival. The Princeton Tiger softens the Cornellian to win with a big win.
Brandon Courtney ends Jack Wagner’s bid for Cinderella. The Sun Devil defeats the Tar Heel by regular decision.
Remarkable consolation results
Northwestern’s 4th-seeded and 12th-seeded Mike DeAugustino wins to knock out App State’s 5th-seeded and 11th-seeded Caleb Smith.
133 lbs
#1 Roman Bravo-Young continues his march to number three. UTC’s Brayden Palmer puts him to work, but RBY takes the win without too much effort.
NC State’s Kai Orine takes on CSU-Bakersfield lone representative Chance Rich. Orine takes it with Major and holds the iguana tongue celebration (I presume) for the sizable Wolfpack contingent in attendance.
UPSET ALERT: #19 Eddie Ventresca knocks off #7 and two-time All-American Pat McKee. This is where McKee thrives though, in the comfort group. He was taken out early in the last two NCAAs finishing 3rd and 5th.
One of the more anticipated bouts of the tournament, at least after the 133-pound bracket was updated once Lehigh’s McGonagle scratched, begins, as ASU’s Michael McGee takes on Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez. McGee never lets Mendez get to his attack and beats the freshmen 6-2.
The red-hot Aaron Nagao has Pitt’s Mickey Phillippi, a three-time bloodrounder looking to make his first trip to the medal round in his final year of eligibility. And Nagao goes into beast mode, rampaging through a scramble and getting two sets of nearfall before securing the pinfall.
Vito Arujau runs the score on Zach Redding, at least for two periods.
Three-time NCAA runner-up Daton Fix, eager to add a title to that list of accolades, is racing to an early lead in the arena closest to his hometown of Sand Springs, Oklahoma. And it’s an 8-4 win for Fix, his 100th win of his collegiate career, stat courtesy of Arena announcer Bryan Hazard. That’s a lot of wins!
Virginia Tech All-American through Alabama Sam Latona gets another near-run victory, this time 2-1 thanks to driving time, over Air Force’s Cody Phippen.
Lucas Byrd of Illinois defeats Michael Colaiocco of Penn in a slight upset, 10th seed 11th rank over 7th seed, 6th place.
141 lbs
Cole Matthews of Pitt (and sponsored by Primanti Brothers) takes the weight class’ first win with a 1-0 victory over Cael Happel.
Ryan Jack from NC State through Connecticut leads Parker Filius from Purdue through Montana in a battle between two wrestlers from states not often represented in NCAAs. And Filius gets the come from behind win – a late ONSET ALERT – and Purdue advances their second wrestler to the quarterfinals.
Real Woods was nearly upset by Ohio State’s Dylan D’Emilio, but Iowan escaped in the act, much to the approval of the Hawkeye fans and the disapproval of just about everyone else in the arena.
