Wrestling 2019-20

[ugarte]

Incredible start to the EIWA tournament for the Big Red. (# is seed, not rank - there are up to 17 in each weight class)

125: #11 Dom LaJoie was up against Navy's #6 Logan Treister. He got the only takedown of the match and won 4-2. His situation got even better when the 3 seed from Penn was upset in the first round and instead he'll face a wrestler from Drexel with a 7-12 record on the season. Because 125 is so deep in the conference, there are 7 bids available, so if he wins this and gets to the semi... he's in!

133: Only 15 entrants, #1 seed Chas Tucker got a bye. He'll face the #8 Angelo Rini of Columbia.

141: #5 Noah Baughman rolled to a 16-3 MD over Sacred Heart. #4 Trybus from Navy awaits in the QF. Huge match. A win puts him in the semis and he can finish no worse than 6th, and there are 5 bids up for grabs. A 6th place finish would also leave him in pretty good position for an at-large. Baughman has come really close to qualifying twice and I really want him to get over the hump.

149: #3 Hunter Richard took a 13-5 MD over Columbia. Up next is #6 from Bucknell, who he beat in a close one earlier this year. 149 is a very weird weight class because two really, really talented wrestlers missed most of the season, so they are seeded 4 and 5, meaning that if he doesn't make the final, he will probably have to beat one of them to finish in the top 4. A real bummer for a 3 seed, though to be fair, if the other guys wrestled all year he'd probably be the 5 seed. But to be LESS fair, he'd be the 5 seed in a 5 bid conference.

157: #12 Adam Santoro had a rematch from the Columbia dual. In that match, he took an early lead and was trying to hold on for a win late when the kid from Columbia put a really nice move on him for a pin. Today, revenge. Santoro took out Mosher 7-3. Up next is #4 Kropman from Drexel. Winnable.

165: This was an unstable weight for Cornell all year and nobody knew who our rep would be. #9 Milik Dawkins won a wrestle-off back in Ithaca for the right to wrestle at the tournament and in the first round he beat #8 from Lehigh with a really smart takedown on the edge in Sudden Victory overtime. Very cool. Up next is #1 Skidgel from Navy. Not optimistic but how great would it be?

174: #4 Brandon Womack missed almost the entire second semester with (based on the wrap he's wearing) a shoulder injury. In this one, he made quick work of #13 from F&M and pinned him in 1:14. Up next, #5 O'Malley from Drexel.

184: #5 Jonathan Loew had no trouble with #12 from LIU, taking an 8-0 major.

197: #2 Ben Darmstadt blew through Binghamton's #15 DePrez with a 16-1 tech. Some measure of revenge for losing to the older DePrez brother winning early in the season when Darmstadt was at 184. Up next, #7 Urbas of Penn, who Darmstadt pinned in 24 seconds when they met at the dual meet.

285: #7 Brendan Furman finished off a perfect morning for the Big Red with a 5-2 win over #10 Pelusi of F&M. It was a perfect morning for F&M as well, as they went 0-10. Up next for Furman is #2 Sullivan. Ordinarily I'd think this was a walk for Sullivan but he may have gotten hurt in his first round match.

After the morning session Cornell is in 3rd, barely ahead of a 3-way tie for 4th. Lehigh way out in front after racking up pins.

Code Select Expand


Lehigh     22
Army       17.5
Cornell    15.5
Binghamton 15
Navy       15
Princeton  15


[ugarte]

Second session, as expected, not as rosy but still some very good results.

125: What a day for Dom LaJoie. After getting an upset win and then a golden draw when #14 knocked off #3, he took some extra time but beat Maninno 4-2 in rideouts to advance to the semifinals and clinch his first trip to NCAAs. Great work.

133: Chas Tucker rolls into the semifinals. He's opened up his scoring so he was winning by more than one today. He's got Casey Cobb (Navy) next and is a heavy favorite to punch his ticket. If he loses he needs an at-large bid but there is no doubt that he'd get one.

141: Noah Baughman lost his second bout of the day, 8-0 to Trybus (Navy) but bounced back with a win over Brown. He's now got two winnable matches in a row: Gil from F&M then the loser of a match between Columbia and Lehigh. If he loses the first, he's out and on the bubble for an at-large. If he loses the second, he's still got a chance to win the 5th place match.

149: Hunter Richard is in the semifinals after a second quality match, winning a second major. Up next is the 2 seed, Hoffman, and it's definitely a winnable match. The tricky part is that if he loses he probably has a *harder* must-win match waiting for him. His chances of an at-large bid are not bad, though, imo.

157: Adam Santoro lost badly on the top bracket and then survived in the consolation. Only 3 bids so he can't lose again. a winnable match against Hofstra followed by... a much less winnable one.

165: Milik Dawkins has really stepped up for the tournament. He lost his second match, but it was a noble defeat: 2-0 to the top seed and a national top 10 wrestler. In his consolation match, he schooled the kid from F&M. up next is a winnable match against Hofstra, and if he wins it he's in the tournament.

174: Brandon Womack had a tough road with a shoulder injury. He was strong, and could work on the mat, but he wasn't very good on his feet. He lost twice and is out of the tournament. I am pretty bearish on his chances at an at-large but it's possible. He had an interesting career but I don't want to write about it right now.

184: Jonathan Loew got outworked in his QF match then got a little gassed but survived his consolation match against Sacred Heart. He needs to win two to get an automatic bid. The first one, at least, should be a W.

197: Ben Darmstadt hasn't been challenged. He's got a tech and a pin and he's into the semis and that's enough to earn his second trip to NCAAs. He's the favorite to win his second EIWA title even though he's the 2 seed.

285: Brendan Furman caught a huge break and the 2 seed came into his match stiff and slow from his injury in the morning. Still strong as hell, he held off Furman for almost the whole match, but a takedown with under 10 seconds left sent Furman into the semis. His opponent in the semis is a top 10 guy but there's a plausible path to the third bid on the bottom of the bracket.

5 in the semis, 4 alive for an AQ, 2 bids already earned. After the second session, Cornell is still in third. Looks like Lehigh is going to run away with the title with 7 in the semis and 2 more still alive for third.  

Code Select Expand


                 Ch   Co
Lehigh     87.5   7    2
Army       73.5   6    3
Cornell    68.5   5    4
Navy       61.5   4    3
Princeton  56     4    2


[scoop85]

Great summary as always.  How big a surprise is Army in 2d?

[ugarte]

Great summary as always.  How big a surprise is Army in 2d?

not that big - army and princeton were expected to fight it out for second.

[scoop85]

Great summary as always.  How big a surprise is Army in 2d?

not that big - army and princeton were expected to fight it out for second.

I didn't realize they had such a strong team this year.

[ugarte]

Great summary as always.  How big a surprise is Army in 2d?

not that big - army and princeton were expected to fight it out for second.

I didn't realize they had such a strong team this year.

not many in the national elite but a ton in the top 3 of the conference iirc

[ugarte]

Quick update:

125: Dom LaJoie lost the semi then lost the consolation semi and will wrestle for 5th.

133: Chas Tucker beat Cobb (Navy), moved on to the finals and punches his ticket for NCAAs. Up next, 3 seed Nick Farro in the final.

141: Noah Baughman beat Gil in what looks like a wild one - 12-11 - and then scores with a second left in SV to move on to the third place match and FINALLY EARNS A BID TO NCAA. So happy for him.

149: Hunter Richard beat the 2 seed, Hoffman, and is in the finals and  earns an NCAA bid.

157: Adam Santoro wins against Hofstra. Now, the hard part. He needs two big upsets for a bid.

165: Milik Dawkins losses to Hofstra. He'll wrestle for 7th but the conference only sends 6. Great work for the team though.

184: Jonathan Loew wins one. Keep going.

197: Ben Darmstadt into the finals.

285: Brendan Furman loses to Wood. Needs to win his next two to get in.

[ugarte]

157: Adam Santoro wins against Hofstra. Now, the hard part. He needs two big upsets for a bid.

165: Milik Dawkins losses to Hofstra. He'll wrestle for 7th but the conference only sends 6. Great work for the team though.

184: Jonathan Loew wins one. Keep going.

285: Brendan Furman loses to Wood. Needs to win his next two to get in.

157: Santoro loses and he'll wrestle for 5th. No chance at an autobid or a wildcard but can get another team point with a W.

165: Dawkins wins the 7th place match, earning another team point. Great tournament for him.

184: Loew loses the consi semi and he'll wrestle for 5th. 4 autobids available but 5th would help his chances at a wildcard.

285: Furman wins the consi semi and will wrestle the 4 seed for 3rd place and an autobid. Awesome.

[ugarte]

Holy cow

125: LaJoie loses takes 6th but that's enough. Going to NCAAs.

133: Tucker. Champ. Going to NCAAs.

141: Baughman wins again. Third. Going to NCAAs.

149: Richard finished in second. Going to NCAAs.

157: Santoro finished in 6th.

165: Dawkins finished in 7th.

174: Womack didn't place. On the bubble for a wild card.

184: Loew finished in 5th. On the bubble for a wild card.

197: Darmstadt. Champ. Going to NCAAs.

285: Furman. THIRD PLACE! GOING TO NCAAS!

6 autobids. 2 on the bubble. And the Big Red finished in second place. Incredible.

[scoop85]

Nice to see such a strong performance. Tucker is up to 30-0, but in so many of those matches his margin for error was so thin. Ugarte, what's his realistic outlook in the NCAA's?

[ugarte]

Nice to see such a strong performance. Tucker is up to 30-0, but in so many of those matches his margin for error was so thin. Ugarte, what's his realistic outlook in the NCAA's?

He's so good but he's also 5'3" which is very short even by the standards of guys wrestling at 133. He's a brick wall and his defense is amazing and he's quick enough to score on most mortals but his lack of length makes it hard for him to turn opponents for back points. He's undefeated but ranked only 4 or 5 because the top 5 guys in the Big 10 basically only lose to each other.

Realistically I think he finishes between 4 and 8 depending on his draw. The top 3 - Gross, Rivera and RBY - are something else. With his style, if his defense falters, though, he doesn't have much margin for error. Which is why it has never faltered this year.

[klehner]

Nice to see such a strong performance. Tucker is up to 30-0, but in so many of those matches his margin for error was so thin. Ugarte, what's his realistic outlook in the NCAA's?

He's so good but he's also 5'3" which is very short even by the standards of guys wrestling at 133. He's a brick wall and his defense is amazing and he's quick enough to score on most mortals but his lack of length makes it hard for him to turn opponents for back points. He's undefeated but ranked only 4 or 5 because the top 5 guys in the Big 10 basically only lose to each other.

Realistically I think he finishes between 4 and 8 depending on his draw. The top 3 - Gross, Rivera and RBY - are something else. With his style, if his defense falters, though, he doesn't have much margin for error. Which is why it has never faltered this year.

The top four ranked guys are meeting in the B1G semi-finals.  Two of them will lose.  The Flo announcer for the EIWA 133 final was saying that could conceivably move him to the #3 seed, making it a bit easier to go deeper.

[ugarte]

Nice to see such a strong performance. Tucker is up to 30-0, but in so many of those matches his margin for error was so thin. Ugarte, what's his realistic outlook in the NCAA's?

He's so good but he's also 5'3" which is very short even by the standards of guys wrestling at 133. He's a brick wall and his defense is amazing and he's quick enough to score on most mortals but his lack of length makes it hard for him to turn opponents for back points. He's undefeated but ranked only 4 or 5 because the top 5 guys in the Big 10 basically only lose to each other.

Realistically I think he finishes between 4 and 8 depending on his draw. The top 3 - Gross, Rivera and RBY - are something else. With his style, if his defense falters, though, he doesn't have much margin for error. Which is why it has never faltered this year.

The top four ranked guys are meeting in the B1G semi-finals.  Two of them will lose.  The Flo announcer for the EIWA 133 final was saying that could conceivably move him to the #3 seed, making it a bit easier to go deeper.

I think he's seeded 4 at best, but 3 would be great.

[ugarte]

Nice to see such a strong performance. Tucker is up to 30-0, but in so many of those matches his margin for error was so thin. Ugarte, what's his realistic outlook in the NCAA's?

He's so good but he's also 5'3" which is very short even by the standards of guys wrestling at 133. He's a brick wall and his defense is amazing and he's quick enough to score on most mortals but his lack of length makes it hard for him to turn opponents for back points. He's undefeated but ranked only 4 or 5 because the top 5 guys in the Big 10 basically only lose to each other.

Realistically I think he finishes between 4 and 8 depending on his draw. The top 3 - Gross, Rivera and RBY - are something else. With his style, if his defense falters, though, he doesn't have much margin for error. Which is why it has never faltered this year.

The top four ranked guys are meeting in the B1G semi-finals.  Two of them will lose.  The Flo announcer for the EIWA 133 final was saying that could conceivably move him to the #3 seed, making it a bit easier to go deeper.

I think he's seeded 4 at best, but 3 would be great.

listening to the Flo Wrestling podcast and it looks like Tucker at 3 based on seeding criteria, which is more mechanical than i realized. i thought it was smoke-filled room.

[mountainred]

Nice to see such a strong performance. Tucker is up to 30-0, but in so many of those matches his margin for error was so thin. Ugarte, what's his realistic outlook in the NCAA's?

He's so good but he's also 5'3" which is very short even by the standards of guys wrestling at 133. He's a brick wall and his defense is amazing and he's quick enough to score on most mortals but his lack of length makes it hard for him to turn opponents for back points. He's undefeated but ranked only 4 or 5 because the top 5 guys in the Big 10 basically only lose to each other.

Realistically I think he finishes between 4 and 8 depending on his draw. The top 3 - Gross, Rivera and RBY - are something else. With his style, if his defense falters, though, he doesn't have much margin for error. Which is why it has never faltered this year.

The top four ranked guys are meeting in the B1G semi-finals.  Two of them will lose.  The Flo announcer for the EIWA 133 final was saying that could conceivably move him to the #3 seed, making it a bit easier to go deeper.

I think he's seeded 4 at best, but 3 would be great.

listening to the Flo Wrestling podcast and it looks like Tucker at 3 based on seeding criteria, which is more mechanical than i realized. i thought it was smoke-filled room.

In fairness, that is the right default setting when thinking of the NCAA.

#3 seed would be great for Tucker, but it will be white knuckle the entire way. His defense needs to be perfect, though it normally is.