Early Pins Highlight Minnesota’s First Session at NCAA Championships
March 20, 2008
The defending national champion Golden Gopher wrestling
team enjoyed a solid first session at the 2008 NCAA Championships as
they began their quest for a second straight title. Minnesota won six
of nine matches during Thursday morning’s opening session at the
Scottrade Center in St. Louis; the six winners will wrestle in Thursday
evening’s championship second round. The other three wrestlers will be
forced to make their way back up the bracket through wrestleback
competition.
Minnesota was tied for fourth place with 15.5 points after the first session, 3.5 behind Big Ten champion Iowa (18).
The Gophers’ vaunted lightweight lineup breezed through Thursday’s
opening matches, with Jayson Ness (125 pounds), Mack Reiter (133) and
Manny Rivera (141) all scoring bonus points in their first competitions
of the tournament. Ness picked up his 19th pin of the year in his
opening-round match against UC Davis’ Marcus Orozco, while Reiter
pinned Jeffery Schell (Brown) and Rivera won by technical fall over
Edinboro’s Torsten Gillespie.
Brothers Dustin (149) and C.P. Schlatter (157) advanced with
surprisingly close first round matches, as did returning two-time
All-American Roger Kish (184). But Big Ten runner-up Gabe Dretsch was
upset in overtime by Boise State’s Nathan Lee at 174 pounds, and
unseeded wrestlers Justin Bronson (197) and Ben Berhow (Hwt.) dropped
to the wrestlebacks with losses during Thursday’s action.
In his first match since losing his Big Ten title two weeks ago in
Minneapolis, Ness came out of the gate aggressively against Orozco. The
2007 All-American built up a commanding lead in the opening minutes of
the first period before turning Orozco on his back for the pin at 2:09.
With 19 pins, Ness is now just one shy of tying the Golden Gophers’
single season mark of 20, set by current Minnesota head assistant coach
Marty Morgan 18 years ago.
Reiter also looked impressive in his first-round match-up. He wasted
little time corralling Brown’s Schell and pinned him in just 2:13,
advancing to a second-round rematch with Wisconsin’s Zach Tanelli.
Tanelli and Reiter have met twice already this season, with each
wrestler picking up a victory.
The Schlatter brothers took care of business themselves as they look to
repeat as national champions. Dustin and Boise State’s Adam Hall were
locked in a tight match for the first two periods before Schlatter
pulled away with a third-period takedown in his 5-3 win. Older brother
C.P. battled it out with Northern Iowa’s Tyson Reiner in a close 4-2
victory.
After a stellar performance at the Big Ten Championships, Dretsch’s
opening-round loss was a definite blow to the Gophers’ title hopes. The
Frazee, Minn. native and Boise State’s Lee managed just an escape
apiece during seven minutes of regulation, sending the match into
sudden victory overtime. But Dretsch got caught underneath just 36 into
the frame, giving Lee the upset win and sending the Gopher senior to
the wrestlebacks.
Wearing a large brace on his shoulder (dislocated during the Big Ten
semifinals), Kish took to the mat against Tennessee-Chattanooga’s Josh
Edmundson in the first round at 184 pounds. Kish notched two takedowns
and two escapes and held his own in a 6-3 win to advance to a second
round match against Arizona State’s Brent Chiswell.
Bronson was the first Gopher to hit the mat Thursday morning, but his
pigtail round loss could mean a quick end for the senior’s first (and
only) career NCAA appearance. Bronson took Army’s Richard Stark into
overtime but lost in the second sudden victory period 5-2, dropping him
to Thursday night’s wrestlebacks.
The redshirt freshman Berhow wrestled tough his first-ever NCAA
Championships match, this one against ninth-seeded Jermail Porter of
Kent State. The Hayward, Minn. native kept things close through two
periods despite being significantly out-weighed by Porter, and tied the
score briefly at six in the third period with a quick takedown. But
Porter proved too physical in his 8-6 win and sent the Gopher
heavyweight to Thursday evening’s wrestlebacks.
Thursday’s evening schedule is set to get underway at 6:30 p.m. at the
Scottrade Center. Live updates for Minnesota’s matches will be
available via gophersports.com and InterMat. Television coverage begins
Friday at 10 a.m. (CT), with ESPNU broadcasting three hours of early
round action and Friday night’s semifinals (beginning at 6 p.m.)
Session I Results:
125 – No. 2 Jayson Ness, Second Seed
First Round: Ness pinned Marcos Orozco (UC Davis), 2:09