Wrestling 21-22

[Tcl123]

https://www.nj.com/highschoolsports/2022/03/us-world-medalist-helping-2x-nj-state-wrestling-champs-thrive-at-cornell.html

[abmarks]

https://www.nj.com/highschoolsports/2022/03/us-world-medalist-helping-2x-nj-state-wrestling-champs-thrive-at-cornell.html

Great article. Fun read for everyone here.

[ugarte]

Session 1 is underway. Cornell didn't have anyone in the pigtail rounds so we start at R16.

125: Arujau got a quick takedown and never looked back on his way to a tech. WTF 19-1 6:00; nearly a pin but Vito lost his wrist grip.

133: LaJoie started slow but once he got going it was no contest. WBF 6:30;it would have been a 16-1 tech if LaJoie hadn't pushed for the fall.

141: Wilson gave up the first takedown but reversed. Down 3-2 after 1. Gives up an escape in the second but can't escape in the third. L 5-2.

149: Yianni got a couple of early takedowns then started turning. 14-1 after 1. WTF 20-2 3:54.

157: Richard can't turn his opponent but never gets taken down. 3TDs, a reversal and RT. WMD 9-1.

165: Ramirez may be back to form. Got a takedown a couple of turns and finished it off in the first period. WBF 2:37.

174: Foca gives up a reversal but no takedowns and gets a reversal of his own. WMD 14-4.

184: Loew gets a takedown off the whistle and turns it into a first period fall. WBF 1:48.

197: Cardenas dominant and gets a tech to close out R16 for Cornell. WTF 17-2 4:38.

285: Fernandes with a quick takedown and a pin. WBF 1:14.

[ugarte]

Didn't get to watch the second round live but the upshot is that we have 8 in the semifinals (Arujau, LaJoie, Yianni, Ramirez, Foca, Loew, Cardenas and Fernandes) and one still alive in the consolation bracket (Richard). Only JJ Wilson is out, and even he had a WBF in the consolation bracket and contributed to the team score.

After Day 1 Cornell is in first place.

[blackwidow]

Didn't get to watch the second round live but the upshot is that we have 8 in the semifinals (Arujau, LaJoie, Yianni, Ramirez, Foca, Loew, Cardenas and Fernandes) and one still alive in the consolation bracket (Richard). Only JJ Wilson is out, and even he had a WBF in the consolation bracket and contributed to the team score.

After Day 1 Cornell is in first place.

didnt realize how competitive Penn wrestling has gotten lately. Do you know where I can find the team scoreboard? I saw the Cornell tweet that it has a 2 point lead over Penn (https://twitter.com/CUBigRedGameday/status/1500531354538291203?s=20&t=i5y94gnQhzEWGPKiVXCu3Q)

[dag14]

You can find the stats on Flo -- https://arena.flowrestling.org/event/2e0b33bf-1b9f-4435-9f96-bd7b342e7bb4

When competition is underway, you can follow the matches in real time without a subscription.  Click on the 9 squares icon at the bottom of the screen.

[blackwidow]

You can find the stats on Flo -- https://arena.flowrestling.org/event/2e0b33bf-1b9f-4435-9f96-bd7b342e7bb4

When competition is underway, you can follow the matches in real time without a subscription.  Click on the 9 squares icon at the bottom of the screen.

Ty so much. I was furiously refreshing twitter lol

[dag14]

Flo arena can take a while to get used to.  The red and green avatars show you what position the wrestlers are in and the time will count down when the clock is running.  However, points are awarded without explanation so you either have to be paying close attention or you have to guess as to the sequence of events in some cases.

[ugarte]

Final results

125: Vito Arujau with his first EIWA title, getting revenge on Princeton's Pat Glory who beat him earlier this year and in the 2019 EIWA finals. Arujau dominated the match today, winning 19-6 and nearly getting a tech fall. He was a buzzsaw in this tournament, winning by tech, major, pin before his dominant win in the final. He'll probably be the 2 seed at NCAA behind Michigan's Nick Suriano.

133: Dom LaJoie had a great run to the semifinals and then to third place. Unfortunately, 133 was a two-bid conference so he has to rely on the committee to give him an at-large bid. There are four available and only two of the wrestlers who earned bids for their conference lost them. To be considered for an at-large bid, you need at least two of a list of criteria and LaJoie has at least three (finished on the bubble, beat a national qualifier during the year (two, actually), top 33 RPI and maybe top 33 CR). Fingers crossed. Don't know when they release the results.

141: JJ Wilson was thrust into the starting role and made the most of it. Despite some good wins during the season, it wasn't to be here. He was seeded 13th, which tells you he probably wasn't expected to win a match. Despite that, he pinned the 12 seed before getting eliminated. He's got one more year, though, to be honest, if he is the starter next year I would be very surprised.

149: Yianni Diakomihalis won his third EIWA title.  He was unstoppable this weekend. He won by tech, and a pair of majors, with his semifinal opponent taking a medical forfeit. He'll be the top seed and prohibitive favorite for the NCAA title.

157: Hunter Richard had the toughest road to an NCAA bid. 5 bids available and he finished in 6th, losing close twice to Penn's Zapf and once to the top seed, Lehigh's Humphreys. 157 has 5 at-large bids available and three "stolen" AQs. Richard's at-large bid profile is similar to LaJoie's except that he definitely will be both top-33 CR and RPI. I'd be surprised if he were passed over but I haven't given a deep look at the other contenders.

165: Julian Ramirez went in as the 1 seed and finished in 4th, good enough for an AQ. Disappointing all the same. Lost in the semifinals to a guy he was beating before the concussion that upended his season. Also lost badly in the third place match.

174: Chris Foca was cruising through the tournament, into the semifinals and up 2-1 when for the second time this season he got headbutted and immediately checked out with what looked like another concussion. He slid to 6th with the forfeits in a 4-bid conference, so he has to count on an at-large bid. Of course, he has an outstanding at-large profile and it's inconceivable that he'd be passed over. More concerned about his health than whether he makes the tournament.

184: Jonathan Loew won his first EIWA championship and qualified for the NCAA's for the second time. This will he his first trip since COVID cancellations started between the conference tournament and NCAAs. Loew beat Travis Stefanik for the third straight time since his loss at the 2019 Princeton dual, "cost" Cornell the Ivy title for the first time in 17 years. Every time he beats him, I hope that loss hurts a little less.

197: Jacob Cardenas cruised to the semifinals before losing a pair of matches to wrestlers he beat earlier this year, Princeton's Stout and Penn's Urbas. He recovered to take 5th place and earn an automatic bid.

285: Lewis Fernandes coasted into the finals with 2 pins and a 5-0 win before losing to Lehigh's Wood, a 2019 All-American 2-0, a much closer match than their last meeting. Second place is more than good enough to get an automatic bid.

In the end, Cornell qualified 6 (Arujau, Diakomihalis, Ramirez, Loew, Cardenas and Fernandes) and placed three on the bubble with great to decent chances of at-large bids (Foca, Richard and LaJoie).

The team won the EIWA title back for the first time since Lehigh started a five year win streak (on the heels of Cornell's 11 years at the top). We pulled away from Penn in the last session with three titles and two more wins in placement matches. Hope that we can hang on to it for a while.

[scoop85]

Final results

125: Vito Arujau with his first EIWA title, getting revenge on Princeton's Pat Glory who beat him earlier this year and in the 2019 EIWA finals. Arujau dominated the match today, winning 19-6 and nearly getting a tech fall. He was a buzzsaw in this tournament, winning by tech, major, pin before his dominant win in the final. He'll probably be the 2 seed at NCAA behind Michigan's Nick Suriano.

133: Dom LaJoie had a great run to the semifinals and then to third place. Unfortunately, 133 was a two-bid conference so he has to rely on the committee to give him an at-large bid. There are four available and only two of the wrestlers who earned bids for their conference lost them. To be considered for an at-large bid, you need at least two of a list of criteria and LaJoie has at least three (finished on the bubble, beat a national qualifier during the year (two, actually), top 33 RPI and maybe top 33 CR). Fingers crossed. Don't know when they release the results.

141: JJ Wilson was thrust into the starting role and made the most of it. Despite some good wins during the season, it wasn't to be here. He was seeded 13th, which tells you he probably wasn't expected to win a match. Despite that, he pinned the 12 seed before getting eliminated. He's got one more year, though, to be honest, if he is the starter next year I would be very surprised.

149: Yianni Diakomihalis won his third EIWA title.  He was unstoppable this weekend. He won by tech, and a pair of majors, with his semifinal opponent taking a medical forfeit. He'll be the top seed and prohibitive favorite for the NCAA title.

157: Hunter Richard had the toughest road to an NCAA bid. 5 bids available and he finished in 6th, losing close twice to Penn's Zapf and once to the top seed, Lehigh's Humphreys. 157 has 5 at-large bids available and three "stolen" AQs. Richard's at-large bid profile is similar to LaJoie's except that he definitely will be both top-33 CR and RPI. I'd be surprised if he were passed over but I haven't given a deep look at the other contenders.

165: Julian Ramirez went in as the 1 seed and finished in 4th, good enough for an AQ. Disappointing all the same. Lost in the semifinals to a guy he was beating before the concussion that upended his season. Also lost badly in the third place match.

174: Chris Foca was cruising through the tournament, into the semifinals and up 2-1 when for the second time this season he got headbutted and immediately checked out with what looked like another concussion. He slid to 6th with the forfeits in a 4-bid conference, so he has to count on an at-large bid. Of course, he has an outstanding at-large profile and it's inconceivable that he'd be passed over. More concerned about his health than whether he makes the tournament.

184: Jonathan Loew won his first EIWA championship and qualified for the NCAA's for the second time. This will he his first trip since COVID cancellations started between the conference tournament and NCAAs. Loew beat Travis Stefanik for the third straight time since his loss at the 2019 Princeton dual, "cost" Cornell the Ivy title for the first time in 17 years. Every time he beats him, I hope that loss hurts a little less.

197: Jacob Cardenas cruised to the semifinals before losing a pair of matches to wrestlers he beat earlier this year, Princeton's Stout and Penn's Urbas. He recovered to take 5th place and earn an automatic bid.

285: Lewis Fernandes coasted into the finals with 2 pins and a 5-0 win before losing to Lehigh's Wood, a 2019 All-American 2-0, a much closer match than their last meeting. Second place is more than good enough to get an automatic bid.

In the end, Cornell qualified 6 (Arujau, Diakomihalis, Ramirez, Loew, Cardenas and Fernandes) and placed three on the bubble with great to decent chances of at-large bids (Foca, Richard and LaJoie).

The team won the EIWA title back for the first time since Lehigh started a five year win streak (on the heels of Cornell's 11 years at the top). We pulled away from Penn in the last session with three titles and two more wins in placement matches. Hope that we can hang on to it for a while.

Great recap as always. Vito and Yianni were stellar. I'm probably most disappointed with Cardenas' result; hopefully he can have a good showing at the NCAA's

[ugarte]

Great recap as always. Vito and Yianni were stellar. I'm probably most disappointed with Cardenas' result; hopefully he can have a good showing at the NCAA's

Thanks. I'm more worried about Ramirez than Cardenas tbh.

Cardenas and Stout are pretty evenly matched and the worst part of Cardenas' game is once he's on bottom. He took a bad shot and Stout countered him well and that was it. After Cardenas scored off the opening whistle, Stout went into a shell. Cardenas didn't adjust. He should be willing to get a little deeper to make his shots cleaner. I haven't watched Cardenas' match against Urbas but I did watch the Penn dual and ... Urbas isn't good enough for Cardenas to be so cautious on his feet. He has to score from neutral, which the rest of the conference seemed able to do. It's doubly true because once Urbas is laying on his back, Cardenas can't get up. Even in his win over Urbas earlier this season, Cardenas ended the period where he chose bottom on bottom.

I haven't watched Ramirez's loss to Columbia's Ogunsanya yet, but it's definitely disappointing. He was up 5-1 early in the Columbia dual before the concussion that ended the match and ruined the season. His lost to Bucknell's Hartmann was a blowout and I'm not sure what to make of it. Quality opponent and low stakes (since he earned the bid either way).

Of course the biggest worry is Foca. This is his second concussion from an accidental headbutt in a month and his first competition back since taking a month off after the first one. He'll get a bid but an alternate will be on-call for a lucky call-up if he can't wrestle.

Fingers crossed for all of the bubble boys to get invited to NCAAs.

[scoop85]

Great recap as always. Vito and Yianni were stellar. I'm probably most disappointed with Cardenas' result; hopefully he can have a good showing at the NCAA's

Thanks. I'm more worried about Ramirez than Cardenas tbh.

Cardenas and Stout are pretty evenly matched and the worst part of Cardenas' game is once he's on bottom. He took a bad shot and Stout countered him well and that was it. After Cardenas scored off the opening whistle, Stout went into a shell. Cardenas didn't adjust. He should be willing to get a little deeper to make his shots cleaner. I haven't watched Cardenas' match against Urbas but I did watch the Penn dual and ... Urbas isn't good enough for Cardenas to be so cautious on his feet. He has to score from neutral, which the rest of the conference seemed able to do. It's doubly true because once Urbas is laying on his back, Cardenas can't get up. Even in his win over Urbas earlier this season, Cardenas ended the period where he chose bottom on bottom.

I haven't watched Ramirez's loss to Columbia's Ogunsanya yet, but it's definitely disappointing. He was up 5-1 early in the Columbia dual before the concussion that ended the match and ruined the season. His lost to Bucknell's Hartmann was a blowout and I'm not sure what to make of it. Quality opponent and low stakes (since he earned the bid either way).

Of course the biggest worry is Foca. This is his second concussion from an accidental headbutt in a month and his first competition back since taking a month off after the first one. He'll get a bid but an alternate will be on-call for a lucky call-up if he can't wrestle.

Fingers crossed for all of the bubble boys to get invited to NCAAs.

The reason I was more disappointed about Cardenas is because not only did he previously beat the guys he lost to this past weekend, but he didn't have the injury issue Ramirez has been dealing with, and which has clearly affected Ramirez's performance.

[ugarte]

The reason I was more disappointed about Cardenas is because not only did he previously beat the guys he lost to this past weekend, but he didn't have the injury issue Ramirez has been dealing with, and which has clearly affected Ramirez's performance.

for sure, i just am more worried that the concussion is having lasting effects than i am that gwiz won't beat some aggression into cardenas at practice

[ugarte]

133: Dom LaJoie had a great run to the semifinals and then to third place. Unfortunately, 133 was a two-bid conference so he has to rely on the committee to give him an at-large bid. There are four available and only two of the wrestlers who earned bids for their conference lost them. To be considered for an at-large bid, you need at least two of a list of criteria and LaJoie has at least three (finished on the bubble, beat a national qualifier during the year (two, actually), top 33 RPI and maybe top 33 CR). Fingers crossed. Don't know when they release the results...

157: Hunter Richard had the toughest road to an NCAA bid. 5 bids available and he finished in 6th, losing close twice to Penn's Zapf and once to the top seed, Lehigh's Humphreys. 157 has 5 at-large bids available and three "stolen" AQs. Richard's at-large bid profile is similar to LaJoie's except that he definitely will be both top-33 CR and RPI. I'd be surprised if he were passed over but I haven't given a deep look at the other contenders.

174: Chris Foca was cruising through the tournament, into the semifinals and up 2-1 when for the second time this season he got headbutted and immediately checked out with what looked like another concussion. He slid to 6th with the forfeits in a 4-bid conference, so he has to count on an at-large bid. Of course, he has an outstanding at-large profile and it's inconceivable that he'd be passed over. More concerned about his health than whether he makes the tournament.

It's a party. LaJoie, Richard and Foca all receive at-large bids and are heading to Detroit. Cornell qualified 9 for NCAAs. Penn qualified 9 as well, with Lehigh (7) and Princeton (6) the other top EIWA teams.

[upprdeck]

now hopefully all can show up healthy