We’re going here to Tulsa. After a short break from the action, we return to the mats for the round of 16 and consolation matches. And we’re here to broadcast it all for you LIVE in real time from the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
16.-18. March · Continued yesterday at 16:00 UTC
2023 NCAA Championship viewing party
It’s raining here in Tulsa, but it’s still a great night for NCAA wrestling in my opinion!
Another stunning rendition of the national anthem and we’re minutes away.
What are you saying? Don’t care about blogging, just want results? Okay, great, here’s a link to just the results, no blog. Check them out and ignore this blog. It’s okay, I’ll get over it.
The eighth finals
125 pounds
One minute into the round, Spencer Lee leads 10-0 over Michigan’s Jack Medley. And it’s a 16-0 TKO for Spencer Lee. It’s pretty good.
Wyoming’s Jore Volk and Killian Cardinale battle for 21 and 28 picks, respectively, although Cardinale is ranked No. 14. Cardinale is showing no signs of the injury that has slowed him down this season and is 5-1 after 2 periods. The Cardinals will take it by decision and are one match away from their second AA medal.
Lock Haven’s Noto is technically a higher seed than Wisconsin’s Barnett, the Badger All-American is ranked higher, from #6 to #10. It’s 3-3 in the third period. Barnett runs to 4-3 in his favor late in the third, but Noto is denied in the final seconds to advance to the quarterfinals.
Jarrett Trombley and Matt Ramos in overtime, 4-4. Several grapplers come close to scoring for each wrestler, but the score remains tied and goes to a tiebreak. Trombley made Boilermakers fans sweat, but No. 4 seed Matt Ramos survived the quarter.
Nebraska’s Liam Cronin, the No. 3 seed who has never had an AA, advances in the quarter ahead of UMD’s Braxton Brown.
Glory lead Ungar 4-0 and water it to their rival EIWA. Princeton Tiger sweeps Cornellian to win by major.
Brandon Courtney interrupts Jack Wagner’s bid for Cinderella. Sun Devil defeats Tar Heel by regular decision.
Significant consolation results
Fourth-ranked and No. 12 Mike DeAugustino of Northwestern wins by eliminating No. 5 seed and No. 11 Caleb Smith of App State.
133 pounds
#1 Roman Bravo-Young continues his march to third place. UTC’s Brayden Palmer makes him work, but RBY picks up the win without too much trouble.
NC State’s Kai Orine against CSU-Bakersfield’s sole representative, Chance Rich. Orine takes the major and celebrates the iguana tongue (I assume) in front of a large number of Wolfpack in attendance.
UPSET ALERT: #19 Eddie Ventresca took down #7 and two-time All-American Pat McKee. Here, however, McKee succeeds, in the consolation category. He was eliminated early in the last two NCAA events where he finished 3rd and 5th.
One of the more anticipated matchups of the tournament, at least since the 133-pound class was updated after Lehigh’s McGonagle was scratched, begins, as ASU’s Michael McGee takes on Ohio State’s Jesse Mendez. McGee doesn’t let Mendez get the offense and takes down the freshman 6-2.
A red-hot Aaron Nagao has Pitt’s Mickey Phillippi, a triple bloodhead looking for his first shot at a medal in his final year of eligibility. And Nagao goes into beast mode, working his way through a scramble and getting two sets of nearfalls before securing the pinfall.
Vito Arujau has a better record than Zach Redding, at least through two-thirds.
Three-time NCAA runner-up Daton Fix, desperate to add a title to that list of accolades, races to an early lead inside 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, a stat courtesy of Arena announcer Bryan Hazard. That’s a lot of wins!
Sam Latona, a Virginia Tech All-American by way of Alabama, scores another close victory, this time 2-1 thanks to riding time, over Air Force’s Cody Phippen.
Illinois’ Lucas Byrd defeats Penn’s Michael Colaiocco in slight upset, 10th seed 11th seed over 7th seed, 6th seed.
141 pounds
Cole Matthews of Pitt (and sponsored by the Primanti Brothers) picks up his first win in the weight class with a 1-0 victory over Cael Happel.
NC State’s Ryan Jack over Connecticut leads Purdue’s Parker Filius over Montana in a battle between two wrestlers from states that often don’t have much representation in the NCAA tournament. And Filius gets a come-from-behind win — a late UPSET ALERT — and Purdue advances its second wrestler to the quarterfinals.
Real Woods was nearly upset by Ohio State’s Dylan D’Emilio, but the Iowan narrowly escaped, to the approval of Hawkeye fans and the disapproval of nearly everyone else in the arena.