Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh fourth as team with two runners-up
3/22/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Wrestling
Kansas City, MO - Lehigh's hopes to add individual titles and move up in the team standings were dashed on the final day of the NCAA Championships. Both freshman Troy Letters and junior Jon Trenge were in good position in the final minute of their final bouts but fell victim to spectacular late moves.
At 165, Matt Lackey of Illinois was leading 4-3 when he scored off a sudden and stunning foot sweep that took Letters off his feet and hard to the mat to clinch the 6-3 victory. Lackey retires as an impressive NCAA champion with a third, second and first place, in order.
At 197, Trenge was leading 4-3 with less than a minute left when Minnesota junior Damion Hahn scored two big takedowns, the last with 0:03 to go — the exact clock time of his last three wins — to upset Trenge, 5-4. For the second straight year, Trenge settles for second.
In morning consolations finals action, junior Brad Dillon finished fifth with a win over Oregon State’s Shane Webster, 11-6, and Derek Zinck lost 12-2 to Michigan State’s Gray Maynard to finish eighth as a freshman.
In the heated team battle for third place going into the finals, Oklahoma led Lehigh — 70 to 69. Both schools had two men in the finals, with the Sooners capturing third by winning both their bouts. The Mountain Hawks claimed their first top four finish since a third in 1979. The all-time school mark of 69.75 points scored by the 1979 team will live another year, as well.
Lehigh will be the only Top 20 team to return all of its points scored this weekend, with all eight qualifiers returning. This is the fourth consecutive year that six Lehigh wrestlers have contributed points at NCAAs.
"People are saying to me, ‘nice tourney’ but in some ways we’re disappointed," head coach Greg Strobel said immediately after the finals. "We lost some of our spirit with five of six bouts lost today and I think the team may have lost some of its magic after Brad’s loss last night. I’m still proud of the team and its overall performance."
The sole champion for the EIWA was sophomore Travis Lee of Cornell at 125.
FINAL TEAM POINTS
1-Okla.St------143.0
2-Minnesota--108.5
3-Oklahoma----78.0
4-LEHIGH------69.0
5-ArizonaSt----65.0
6-Penn St-------62.0
7-Michigan-----58.0
8-Iowa-----------57.5
9-Illinois---------53.0
10-Cornell----52.0
Posted Saturday, March 22, 2003.
At 165, Matt Lackey of Illinois was leading 4-3 when he scored off a sudden and stunning foot sweep that took Letters off his feet and hard to the mat to clinch the 6-3 victory. Lackey retires as an impressive NCAA champion with a third, second and first place, in order.
At 197, Trenge was leading 4-3 with less than a minute left when Minnesota junior Damion Hahn scored two big takedowns, the last with 0:03 to go — the exact clock time of his last three wins — to upset Trenge, 5-4. For the second straight year, Trenge settles for second.
In morning consolations finals action, junior Brad Dillon finished fifth with a win over Oregon State’s Shane Webster, 11-6, and Derek Zinck lost 12-2 to Michigan State’s Gray Maynard to finish eighth as a freshman.
In the heated team battle for third place going into the finals, Oklahoma led Lehigh — 70 to 69. Both schools had two men in the finals, with the Sooners capturing third by winning both their bouts. The Mountain Hawks claimed their first top four finish since a third in 1979. The all-time school mark of 69.75 points scored by the 1979 team will live another year, as well.
Lehigh will be the only Top 20 team to return all of its points scored this weekend, with all eight qualifiers returning. This is the fourth consecutive year that six Lehigh wrestlers have contributed points at NCAAs.
"People are saying to me, ‘nice tourney’ but in some ways we’re disappointed," head coach Greg Strobel said immediately after the finals. "We lost some of our spirit with five of six bouts lost today and I think the team may have lost some of its magic after Brad’s loss last night. I’m still proud of the team and its overall performance."
The sole champion for the EIWA was sophomore Travis Lee of Cornell at 125.
FINAL TEAM POINTS
1-Okla.St------143.0
2-Minnesota--108.5
3-Oklahoma----78.0
4-LEHIGH------69.0
5-ArizonaSt----65.0
6-Penn St-------62.0
7-Michigan-----58.0
8-Iowa-----------57.5
9-Illinois---------53.0
10-Cornell----52.0
Posted Saturday, March 22, 2003.
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