Thursday, March 20
Oklahoma City, Okla.
7:00 PM
Lehigh University
at
NCAA Championships
Lehigh places three in NCAA quarters, two others alive in consolations
3/20/2014 11:08:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
Brackets and Team Scores | Listen to Friday's audio broadcast | Photo Gallery (Updated after round of 16) | Thursday afternoon recap
OKLAHOMA CITY – All three of Lehigh's seeded wrestlers advanced to Friday morning's quarterfinals as the Mountain Hawks wrapped-up day one of the NCAA Championships Thursday at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Sophomore Mason Beckman and freshmen Mitch Minotti and Elliot Riddick went 2-0 Thursday to reach the quarterfinals as the Mountain Hawks advanced five of their eight qualifiers to the second day of competition.
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As a team, Lehigh finished day one with ten points, to tie for 17th place in the team race. The Mountain Hawks went 8-8 on the day, winning three out of four championship bracket matches Thursday night but Lehigh won just one of four in the consolations.
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"The guys who are in the quarters wrestled really well today," said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro. "It's a tough tournament. Every match is a battle and the guys have wrestled really well. They came out and fought. I'm enjoying what I'm seeing."
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Beckman advanced to the quarterfinals with a 5-4 decision over No. 11 seed Ryan Mango of Stanford at 133. The No, 6 seed, Beckman converted an early takedown and built up over two minutes of riding time advantage. Beckman led 3-1 early in the third period before Mango scored a takedown of his own. After an escape and a penalty point awarded to Mango for Beckman's second stall warning; a 2:02 riding time advantage gave Beckman the victory. He will now face the No. 3 seed Tony Ramos of Iowa in the quarterfinals.
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Minotti continued his strong start to his first NCAA tournament with an 8-1 decision over Matthew Frisch of the Citadel. The No. 15 seed at 149, Minotti scored a takedown in each period and added a second period escape plus a 1:47 riding time advantage. In the quarterfinals, Minotti will face No. 10 seed Zach Neibert of Virginia Tech. The bottom half of the 149 pound bracket features four double-digit seeded wrestlers.
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Riddick rode a fast start to an appearance in the quarterfinals. The No. 9 seed at 174 scored four first period takedowns and held off a late charge to defeat Cody Caldwell of Northern Iowa 12-9. Riddick led 10-4 in the second period before Caldwell began his comeback attempt with two takedowns. With the win, Riddick earns a matchup with top seed Chris Perry of Oklahoma State on Friday morning.
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Sophomore Laike Gardner was the only Mountain Hawk to lose in the championship bracket Thursday night. After knocking off No. 16 seed Joe Spisak of Virginia earlier in the day, Gardner ran into top seed Mitchell Port of Edinboro who pinned Gardner in 3:22. Gardner will face Lavion Mayes of Missouri in his first consolation match on Friday.
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The only Mountain Hawk to win in the consolations was freshman Darian Cruz who added a crucial bonus point with an 11-3 win over Dominic Parisi of Appalachian State. Cruz racked up five takedowns including two in the first and two in the third as he moves on to face No. 4 seed Josh Martinez of Air Force in the next consolation round.
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"That bonus point was important," Santoro said. "He's gotten better every single time he's gone out there and he needs to continue to do that tomorrow."
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Three Mountain Hawks were eliminated Thursday night after dropping their first round consolation matches.
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Senior Joey Napoli gave dug himself a hole by giving up takedowns in the first two periods as he fell 6-3 to Justin DeAngelis of Oklahoma. Napoli ends his Lehigh career with a 69-34 record. He was the 2013 EIWA Champion at 157, a three-time NCAA qualifier and so far a two-time member of the NWCA All-Academic Team.
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At 197 sophomore John Bolich's season came to an end with a loss by fall in 2:27 against Pittsburgh's Nick Bonaccorsi. Bolich finishes his season at 16-14.
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In Lehigh's final bout of day one, sophomore heavyweight Max Wessell was eliminated by the No. 15 seed Adam Fager of Utah Valley. Fager scored two takedowns to lead 4-2 after one period and while Wessell scored a second period takedown and escaped to open the third, he could not complete the comeback. Fager countered a Wessell shot for an insurance takedown late and Wessell nearly tied the match with a low double in the final seconds but could not gain full control. He finishes his season at 10-6.
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Penn State holds a five point lead over both Oklahoma State and Minnesota in the team race. The Nittany Lions have 26.5 points and five quarterfinalists. Iowa and Oklahoma are tied for fourth, six points off the pace.
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The NCAA Championships continue Friday from Chesapeake Energy Arena. Friday's morning session, featuring the championship quarterfinals and two rounds of consolations will begin at 10 a.m. CT and will be televised on ESPNU and ESPN3. Friday's evening session featuring semifinals and the All-America round of 12 begins at 7 p.m. CT with television coverage on ESPN and ESPN3. Audio of all Lehigh matches at the NCAA Championships can be heard on Lehighsports.com.
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Like Lehigh Wrestling on Facebook and follow on Twitter for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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Round of 16
133 – No. 6 Mason Beckman (Lehigh) dec. No. 11 Ryan Mango (Stanford) 5-4
141 – No. 1 Mitchell Port (Edinboro) Fall Laike Gardner (Lehigh) 3:23
149 – No. 15 Mitch Minotti (Lehigh) dec. Matthew Frisch (The Citadel) 8-1
174 – No. 9 Elliot Riddick (Lehigh) dec. Cody Caldwell (UNI) 12-9
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First Round Consolations
125 – Darian Cruz (Lehigh) major dec. Dominic Parisi (Appalachian State) 11-3
157 – Justin DeAngelis (Oklahoma) dec. Joey Napoli (Lehigh) 6-3
197 – Nick Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) Fall John Bolich (Lehigh) 2:27
285 – No. 15 Adam Fager (Utah Valley) dec. Max Wessell (Lehigh) 8-6
OKLAHOMA CITY – All three of Lehigh's seeded wrestlers advanced to Friday morning's quarterfinals as the Mountain Hawks wrapped-up day one of the NCAA Championships Thursday at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Sophomore Mason Beckman and freshmen Mitch Minotti and Elliot Riddick went 2-0 Thursday to reach the quarterfinals as the Mountain Hawks advanced five of their eight qualifiers to the second day of competition.
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As a team, Lehigh finished day one with ten points, to tie for 17th place in the team race. The Mountain Hawks went 8-8 on the day, winning three out of four championship bracket matches Thursday night but Lehigh won just one of four in the consolations.
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"The guys who are in the quarters wrestled really well today," said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro. "It's a tough tournament. Every match is a battle and the guys have wrestled really well. They came out and fought. I'm enjoying what I'm seeing."
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Beckman advanced to the quarterfinals with a 5-4 decision over No. 11 seed Ryan Mango of Stanford at 133. The No, 6 seed, Beckman converted an early takedown and built up over two minutes of riding time advantage. Beckman led 3-1 early in the third period before Mango scored a takedown of his own. After an escape and a penalty point awarded to Mango for Beckman's second stall warning; a 2:02 riding time advantage gave Beckman the victory. He will now face the No. 3 seed Tony Ramos of Iowa in the quarterfinals.
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Minotti continued his strong start to his first NCAA tournament with an 8-1 decision over Matthew Frisch of the Citadel. The No. 15 seed at 149, Minotti scored a takedown in each period and added a second period escape plus a 1:47 riding time advantage. In the quarterfinals, Minotti will face No. 10 seed Zach Neibert of Virginia Tech. The bottom half of the 149 pound bracket features four double-digit seeded wrestlers.
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Riddick rode a fast start to an appearance in the quarterfinals. The No. 9 seed at 174 scored four first period takedowns and held off a late charge to defeat Cody Caldwell of Northern Iowa 12-9. Riddick led 10-4 in the second period before Caldwell began his comeback attempt with two takedowns. With the win, Riddick earns a matchup with top seed Chris Perry of Oklahoma State on Friday morning.
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Sophomore Laike Gardner was the only Mountain Hawk to lose in the championship bracket Thursday night. After knocking off No. 16 seed Joe Spisak of Virginia earlier in the day, Gardner ran into top seed Mitchell Port of Edinboro who pinned Gardner in 3:22. Gardner will face Lavion Mayes of Missouri in his first consolation match on Friday.
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The only Mountain Hawk to win in the consolations was freshman Darian Cruz who added a crucial bonus point with an 11-3 win over Dominic Parisi of Appalachian State. Cruz racked up five takedowns including two in the first and two in the third as he moves on to face No. 4 seed Josh Martinez of Air Force in the next consolation round.
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"That bonus point was important," Santoro said. "He's gotten better every single time he's gone out there and he needs to continue to do that tomorrow."
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Three Mountain Hawks were eliminated Thursday night after dropping their first round consolation matches.
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Senior Joey Napoli gave dug himself a hole by giving up takedowns in the first two periods as he fell 6-3 to Justin DeAngelis of Oklahoma. Napoli ends his Lehigh career with a 69-34 record. He was the 2013 EIWA Champion at 157, a three-time NCAA qualifier and so far a two-time member of the NWCA All-Academic Team.
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At 197 sophomore John Bolich's season came to an end with a loss by fall in 2:27 against Pittsburgh's Nick Bonaccorsi. Bolich finishes his season at 16-14.
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In Lehigh's final bout of day one, sophomore heavyweight Max Wessell was eliminated by the No. 15 seed Adam Fager of Utah Valley. Fager scored two takedowns to lead 4-2 after one period and while Wessell scored a second period takedown and escaped to open the third, he could not complete the comeback. Fager countered a Wessell shot for an insurance takedown late and Wessell nearly tied the match with a low double in the final seconds but could not gain full control. He finishes his season at 10-6.
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Penn State holds a five point lead over both Oklahoma State and Minnesota in the team race. The Nittany Lions have 26.5 points and five quarterfinalists. Iowa and Oklahoma are tied for fourth, six points off the pace.
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The NCAA Championships continue Friday from Chesapeake Energy Arena. Friday's morning session, featuring the championship quarterfinals and two rounds of consolations will begin at 10 a.m. CT and will be televised on ESPNU and ESPN3. Friday's evening session featuring semifinals and the All-America round of 12 begins at 7 p.m. CT with television coverage on ESPN and ESPN3. Audio of all Lehigh matches at the NCAA Championships can be heard on Lehighsports.com.
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Like Lehigh Wrestling on Facebook and follow on Twitter for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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Round of 16
133 – No. 6 Mason Beckman (Lehigh) dec. No. 11 Ryan Mango (Stanford) 5-4
141 – No. 1 Mitchell Port (Edinboro) Fall Laike Gardner (Lehigh) 3:23
149 – No. 15 Mitch Minotti (Lehigh) dec. Matthew Frisch (The Citadel) 8-1
174 – No. 9 Elliot Riddick (Lehigh) dec. Cody Caldwell (UNI) 12-9
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First Round Consolations
125 – Darian Cruz (Lehigh) major dec. Dominic Parisi (Appalachian State) 11-3
157 – Justin DeAngelis (Oklahoma) dec. Joey Napoli (Lehigh) 6-3
197 – Nick Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) Fall John Bolich (Lehigh) 2:27
285 – No. 15 Adam Fager (Utah Valley) dec. Max Wessell (Lehigh) 8-6
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