NCAA DI Championships Quarterfinal Results and Notes
Photo: Zan Fugitt of Wisconsin, after upending No. 3 seed Nasir Bailey of Little Rock in the Round-of-16, pinned No. 6 seed Connor McGonagle of Virginia Tech to reach this evening’s semis. Photo by Sam Janicki.
Session III Notes
125 Quarters:
(8) Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh) dec. (1) Luke Lilledahl Penn State, 2-2 TB-3
The Mountain Hawk fended off several leg attacks from the top-seeded freshman Nittany Lion and accumulated more riding time advantage in the tiebreaker to secure the narrow victory.
(4) Vincent Robinson (NC State) dec. (12) Dean Peterson (Rutgers), 4-2
Robinson’s blast double in the second period proved to be the difference as the Wolfpack freshman punched his ticket to the semis.
(3) Eddie Ventresca (Virginia Tech) dec. (6) Jett Strickenberger (West Virginia), 4-1 SV-1
After several scrambles ensued, it was the Hokie who capitalized on an overtime shot attempt and converted the takedown to secure a slot in the semis while securing his second All-American finish.
(7) Troy Spratley (Oklahoma State) dec. (2) Matt Ramos (Purdue), 5-2
Spratley scored a takedown with 17 seconds remaining in the first period and never looked back, controlling the remainder of the bout to claim a spot in the semis.
133 Quarters:
(1) Lucas Byrd (Illinois) maj. (8) Braeden Davis (Penn State), 12-1
Byrd’s first-period takedown and seven-point takedown and nearfall sequence in the second period sent the Illini to the semis.
(4) Zeth Romney (Cal Poly) dec. (21) Angelo Rini (Indiana), 8-2
Romney scored two early takedowns and accumulated over two minutes of riding time to claim his first All-American honor and a spot in the 133-pound semis.
(14) Zan Fugitt (Wisconsin) fall (6) Connor McGonagle (Virginia Tech), 2:29
The Badger made the most of a front headlock by clamping the Hokie in a cement job for a first period fall while claiming his first career All-American honor.
(2) Drake Ayala (Iowa) maj. (7) Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State), 23-10
Ayala extended the Hawkeyes’ streak of obtaining at least one All-American to 53-straight years, using three first-period takedowns and cruising past his Buckeye counterpart.
141 Quarters:
(1) Brock Hardy (Nebraska) fall (9) Jacob Frost (Iowa State), 4:13
Takedowns in the first and second gave the Husker a comfortable lead before the Utah native came out on top of a scramble and planted the Cyclone for a fall.
(5) Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) dec. (4) Josh Koderhandt (Navy), 2-1 TB-1
The Panther fended off a late scoring attempt from Koderhandt in regulation before escaping in the tiebreaker and denying the Midshipman from a last-gasp takedown.
(3) Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) maj. (6) Vance VomBaur (Minnesota), 17-5
Defending NCAA champ Mendez scored three first-period takedowns and never looked back, as the three-time All-American will square off with multi-year nemesis Beau Bartlett of Penn State in this evening’s semis.
(2) Beau Bartlett (Penn State) dec. (10) CJ Composto (Penn), 5-0
Bartlett’s second period escape and takedown proved to be enough to send the Nittany Lion to the podium for the third time.
149 Quarters:
(1) Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) dec. (8) Jordan Williams (Little Rock), 8-5 SV-1
The pair traded takedowns and escapes in the first two periods, and it took a minute-and-a-half of action in overtime before the defending NCAA champ converted a single leg takedown for the sudden-victory triumph.
(13) Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) dec. (12) Ethan Stiles (Oregon State), 7-3
The Buckeye caught his opponent on his heels early, converting two quick takedowns in the first minute of the bout before fending off a late single leg attempt by the Beaver.
(3) Shayne Van Ness (Penn State) dec. (6) Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina), 7-2
The Nittany Lion will return to the semis after reaching the same round in 2023 via two third period takedowns.
(2) Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) maj. (7) Kannon Webster (Illinois), 12-0
After Lovett defeated Webster by a 1-0 margin in the Big Ten Championships just 12 days ago, the Husker veteran struck early with a quick takedown and four-point nearfall count before adding another set of nearfall late in the match.
157 Quarters:
(8) Joey Blaze (Purdue) dec. (1) Tyler Kasak (Penn State), 5-4
Kasak scored the first takedown, but the Boilermaker, trailing by two, converted a third period takedown and rode the Nittany Lion for the final 45 seconds to clinch a semifinal berth.
(20) Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) dec. (12) Caleb Fish (Oklahoma State), 6-4
Trailing in the third period, the Wildcat scored a reversal, stalling point, and a takedown all to rally and clinch his first All-American finish and a spot in this evening’s semis.
(3) Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) dec. (11) Matty Bianchi (Little Rock), 4-3
Reaching the podium for a second time, this year down a weight class from 165, Taylor scored an escape and takedown in the second period, which proved to be the difference.
(2) Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) dec. (7) Vince Zerban (Northern Colorado), 9-4
The Big Red returning third-place finisher mounted a workmanlike decision, scoring takedowns in the first and third periods while scoring a reversal in the second.
165 Quarters:
(1) Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) dec. (8) Cam Amine (Oklahoma State), 5-0
After a scoreless first period, the Nittany Lion scored an escape and takedown in the second period before adding a point for riding time advantage by riding out the third period.
(12) Christopher Minto (Nebraska) dec. (4) Terrell Barraclough (Utah Valley), 8-7
In a back-and-forth thriller, Barraclough led 7-5 with under 10 seconds remaining on the strength of first and second period takedowns, but the Husker rallied for a spin-behind takedown and mat return to beat the buzzer with a match-winning takedown as time expired.
(3) Mikey Caliendo (Iowa) dec. (6) Beau Mantanona (Michigan), 7-2
After a scoreless first period, the Hawkeye broke open the scoring with a second period takedown with 13 ticks to go before adding a third period takedown to extend his margin of victory.
(2) Peyton Hall (West Virginia) dec. (7) Hunter Garvin (Stanford), 6-5
The Mountaineer surrendered the first takedown but escaped and scored one of his own with one second remaining in the opening frame. Hall added a second period reversal, which proved to be enough to clinch his third All-American finish.
174 Quarters:
(1) Keegan O’Toole (Missouri) maj. (24) Lennox Wolak (Virginia Tech), 13-1
The Mizzou Tiger clinched his fifth All-American honor with a commanding major decision over returning AA Wolak, using four takedowns to distance himself from the Hokie.
(13) Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) dec. (5) Simon Ruiz (Cornell), 4-2
A long challenge contributed to the length of this marathon match, but DeVos’ first period takedown was enough to propel the returning All-American Jackrabbit to his first semi appearance.
(3) Dean Hamiti (Oklahoma State) dec. (11) Patrick Kennedy (Iowa), 8-6
Hamiti’s two takedowns to Kennedy’s one proved to be the difference, as the Hawkeye was in deep late in the third period before Hamiti kicked free to secure his third All-American finish.
(2) Levi Haines (Penn State) dec. (7) Danny Wask (Navy), 7-2
The Nittany Lion scored takedowns in the first and third periods to earn a workmanlike decision over the Midshipman and claim his third AA honor in the process.
184 Quarters:
(1) Carter Starocci (Penn State) maj. (8) Jaxon Smith (Maryland), 9-1
The Nittany Lion punched his ticket to the semis for a fifth time with two takedowns, an escape, a stalling point, and a point for riding time advantage.
(4) Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) dec. (12) Silas Allred (Nebraska), 12-5
The returning NCAA finalist Cowboy used three takedowns, two in the first period, to cruise by the Husker and punch his ticket to the semis against Starocci.
(3) Max McEnelly (Minnesota) dec. (6) Chris Foca (Cornell), 10-7
In a back-and-forth takedown fest between the rookie Gopher and veteran Big Red wrestler, McEnelly’s third period escape and takedown made the difference for the freshman All-American.
(2) Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) maj. (10) Edmond Ruth (Illinois), 13-5
The defending NCAA champion Panther accumulated a takedown in the first period and two more in the third frame to pull away from the returning seventh-place finisher.
197 Quarters:
(1) Jacob Cardenas (Michigan) dec. (24) Gabe Sollars (Indiana), 10-5
The senior Wolverine used a first period takedown and four-point nearfall to pull away early from the upset-minded Hoosier.
(4) Josh Barr (Penn State) maj. (5) Michael Beard (Lehigh), 14-3
The Nittany Lion freshman converted repeated double leg attempts to record his second major decision of the season over the Mountain Hawk senior.
(3) AJ Ferrari (CSU-Bakersfield) dec. (6) Mac Stout (Pitt), 2-0
A second period escape and third period rideout made the difference for the former NCAA champion to return to the podium three years removed from winning a title with Oklahoma State in 2021.
(3) Stephen Buchanan (Iowa) TF (23) Seth Shumate (Ohio State), 18-3 6:35
Despite surrendering the first takedown to the upset-minded Buckeye, Buchanan responded in a big way with a takedown of his own in the second period and successive tilts from the top position to pull away late.
285 Quarters:
(1) Gable Steveson (Minnesota) TF (9) Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State), 20-5
In a battle of Olympians, Schultz had no answer for Steveson’s onslaught of attacks, as the Gopher scored six takedowns, two in each period, and added an escape and stalling point to secure the tech fall.
(4) Owen Trephan (Lehigh) dec. (5) Ben Kueter (Iowa), 4-2
The mid-season transfer from NC State secured the bout’s only takedown with 40 seconds remaining in the second period to become the first All-American from the state of South Carolina since TJ Dudley accomplished the feat with Nebraska (2015-17).
(3) Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) dec. (6) Josh Heindselman (Michigan), 5-0
The defending NCAA champ Nittany Lion scored an early takedown and added an escape and riding time point to coast to a decision victory.
(2) Wyatt Hendrickson (Oklahoma State) fall (7) Isaac Trumble (NC State), 2:15
The graduate senior Cowboy scored two quick takedowns and then planted his Wolfpack foe on his back for a first period fall while securing his third All-American finish and first at Oklahoma State.
