Already armed with their third straight team title, the University of Iowa claimed three individual titles in the finals of the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships Saturday night at Qwest Center in Omaha.
Of the five Hawkeyes who competed in the title matches, Matt McDonough, Brent Metcalf, and Jay Borschel were crowned champs. The last time Iowa had a trio of individual champs was 12 years ago, when Mike Ironside, Jeff McGinness, and Joe Williams brought home titles from the 1998 NCAAs in Cleveland.
Cross-state rival Iowa State sent three wrestlers into the finals, and two came out with individual titles: Jake Varner, and David Zabriskie.
Cornell University was the only other program to have more than one finalist. The Big Red had two wrestlers vying for individual titles, and one — freshman Kyle Dake — was crowned champ.
A dozen schools sent wrestlers into the finals. Among the programs that could claim winners (in addition to Iowa, Iowa State and Cornell): Minnesota, Harvard, Wisconsin, and Missouri.
It was a particularly historic night for Harvard and Missouri, in that both schools now have three wrestlers who have won NCAA wrestling titles. Harvard’s J.P. O’Connor joins 1938 champ John Harkness and 2004 titlewinner Jesse Jantzen as national mat champs for the Crimson; Max Askren joined older brother Ben Askren and 2009 NCAA heavyweight champ Mark Ellis as Mizzou matmen who’ve earned collegiate wrestling crowns for the Tigers, all in this decade.
In addition, two freshmen won NCAA titles in Omaha: Iowa’s Matt McDonough, and Cornell’s Kyle Dake.
Finals results:
125: No. 2 Matt McDonough (Iowa) dec. No. 5 Andrew Long (Iowa State), 3-1
133: No. 1 Jayson Ness (Minnesota) dec. No. 2 Daniel Dennis (Iowa), 6-4
141: No. 1 Kyle Dake (Cornell) dec. No. 6 Montell Marion (Iowa), 7-3
149: No. 2 Brent Metcalf (Iowa) dec. No. 1 Lance Palmer (Ohio State), 3-2
157: No. 1 J.P. O’Connor (Harvard) dec. No. 7 Chase Pami (Cal Poly), 6-4
165: No. 1 Andrew Howe (Wisconsin) dec. No. 6 Dan Vallimont (Penn State), 9-3
174: No. 2 Jay Borschel (Iowa) dec. No. 1 Mack Lewnes (Cornell), 6-2
184: No. 6 Max Askren (Missouri) dec. No. 1 Kirk Smith (Boise State), 10-3
197: No. 1 Jake Varner (Iowa State) vs. No. 2 Craig Brester (Nebraska), 5-2
Heavyweight: No. 1 David Zabriskie (Iowa State) vs. No. 2 Jared Rosholt (Oklahoma State), 3-2
Final team standings (top ten teams):
1. Iowa, 134.5 points
2. Cornell, 90
3. Iowa State, 75
4. Wisconsin, 70
5. Oklahoma, 69
6. Oklahoma State, 65
7. Minnesota, 63
8. Ohio State, 62
9. Penn State, 49
10. Missouri, 48
Other awards:
NWCA Bill Koll Outstanding Wrestling Award: Minnesota’s Jayson Ness
NWCA Coach of the Year: Wisconsin’s Barry Davis
Gorriaran Award (most pins in the least amount of time): Virginia’s Brent Jones … 2 in 1:13.
NOTE: In the coming days, College Wrestling Examiner will provide additional information from the 2010 NCAAs, including more detailed analysis of the finals bouts… fun facts about NCAA All-Americans… and more.
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Resources
College Wrestling Examiner: March Matness — Your guide to the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships (including Mat Bracketology series)
TheMat.com Special Coverage Section
TheOpenMat.com: Special Coverage Section
InterMat: Day Three recap (including finals)… 2010 NCAA photos by Morgan Hennessy
TheMat.com: Video interviews with finalists (after semifinals wins), other video clips
2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships: Official website… List of seeds/qualifiers by weight… Brackets
TheMat.com: College postseason tournament schedule and scores
College Wrestling 101: Links to articles answering basic questions about wrestling, including rules, scoring, uniforms, more
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