Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Sends Three into Second Round at NCAAs
3/19/2009 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
March 19, 2009
Official Site of 2009 NCAA Wrestling Championships
Team Standings Through Session I
Complete Brackets Through Session I
ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- With the first session of the 2009 NCAA Wrestling Championships complete, NU enters Thursday's evening session with three grapplers alive in the championship bracket. Jake Herbert needed just 53 seconds to advance with a pin and win his 16th career NCAA tournament match while Brandon Precin and Jason Welch each won decisions at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.
Northwestern's Keith Sulzer, competing in his second NCAA Championships, fell in his 141-pound match to Iowa State's sixth-seeded Nick Gallick by a 4-2 decision.
Action resumes Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at the Scottrade Center, where an announced crowd of 15,226 took in the competition in Session I.
At 184, Herbert met Duke's John Barone, a junior who came into the match with a 36-6 record. But Barone was overwhelmed by the Northwestern senior, who had his first takedown in less than 10 seconds and quickly went to work setting up his pin. Exactly half of Herbert's 30 wins this season have come by fall.
Herbert can tie former Wildcat Steve DePetro for second on the career wins list at NU (146) with a win tonight against Northern Iowa's Alex Dolly, who also won by pin in the first round against Indiana's Eric Cameron.
Fourth-seeded Precin (125) began his championship weekend against Anthony Mustari of Northern Colorado, a junior who entered Thursday with a 26-8 record. Mustari warded off Precin's offense through the opening three minutes as the bout remained scoreless. The action picked up late in the second when Precin earned a three-point near-fall before Mustari (26-9) immediately scored on a two-point reversal.
Precin (28-3) took a 4-2 lead to start the third and relied on the more than 90 seconds of riding time he amassed during the second period to hold on for the 5-2 victory. The win sets up a second-round bout against Wyoming's Michael Martinez, who improved to 38-9 this year with his first-round victory.
Welch (25-8) faced fellow freshman Jedd Moore (28-14) of Virginia, who took a 2-0 lead on Welch with a first-period takedown before an escape by the NU freshman made it 2-1. Welch began the second frame on the bottom and managed to tie the score with an escape early on. He opted to start the third period in the top position and refused to let Moore out of his grasp for the entire two minutes, eventually winning 3-2 thanks to more than 1:43 in riding time.
Welch faces a difficult test in Session II with a match against Edinboro's Gregor Gillespie, who advanced with a 16-0 tech fall in his opening bout to improve to 38-1 in his senior season.
In Sulzer's match at 141, Gallick (29-4) gained control of the action for a two in the first period and broke open the match in the second with two quick back points to take a 4-1 lead. In the third, Sulzer (19-13) started on the top and managed to negate Gallick's one minute of riding time but was unable to turn the Cyclone for the tying points. Sulzer will face Central Michigan's Anthony D'Alie in Thursday's consolation bracket action.
Northwestern Results
Thursday -- Session I
125: No. 4 Brandon Precin (NU) dec. Anthony Mustari (No. Col.), 5-2
141: No. 6 Nick Gallick (ISU) dec. Keith Sulzer (NU), 4-2
157: Jason Welch (NU) dec. Jedd Moore (UVA), 3-2
184: No. 1 Jake Herbert (NU) FALL John Barone (DUKE), 0:53
Session II Schedule
Championship Bracket
125: No. 4 Brandon Precin (NU) vs. Michael Martinez (Wyoming)
157: Jason Welch (NU) vs. No. 4 Gregor Gillespie (Edinboro)
184: No. 1 Jake Herbert (NU) vs. Alex Dolly (Northern Iowa)
Consolation Bracket
141: Keith Sulzer (NU) vs. Anthony D'Alie (Central Michigan)
