Northwestern University Athletics
All-American Status Within Reach for Andrew Nadhir
3/19/2010 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
March 19, 2010
Updated Brackets Through Session III 
2010 NCAA Wrestling Championships Official Web site
OMAHA, Neb. -- Wrestling aggressively and with a nothing-to-lose mentality, Northwestern junior Andrew Nadhir won back-to-back matches in Session III of the 2010 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Omaha Friday morning to advance in the consolation bracket. A win tonight would guarantee Nadhir no lower than an eighth-place finish at the Championships as well as All-American status.
Nadhir will put his 24-11 record on the line against unseeded Torsten Gillespie of Edinboro in Friday's evening session, which gets underway at the Qwest Center in Omaha at 6 p.m. CT. Gillespie is a three-time NCAA qualifier for the Fighting Scots who earlier in the tournament upset fourth-seeded Kyle Ruschell of Wisconsin.
Live updates for tonight's match are available by following the username @NU_SportsLIVE on Twitter.
Coming off a win on Thursday evening, Nadhir squared off with North Carolina State's Bobby Ward to open the action on Friday. Nadhir got on the scoreboard first against Ward with a takedown just as the action carried out of bounds, but Ward answered out of the ensuing restart with a reversal to tie the match at two. Even at three in the second, Nadhir scored a quick takedown out of his escape to take a 5-3 lead.
With Ward then trailing 5-4 and looking for the go-ahead takedown, Nadhir was able to fend him off and pick up a late two in the final 20 seconds, which he used to erase Ward's riding time advantage on the way to the 7-5 decision.
Approximately 90 minutes later, Nadhir was back on the mat to face Buffalo's 11th-seeded Desi Green, who ranked 18th in the final regular season Intermat polls. Green pounced first with a takedown but Nadhir, after tying the score with two escapes, gained a 4-2 edge with a hard-earned takedown in the second period.
After Nadhir opened up a 6-3 lead, a quick flurry of action that featured a takedown by Green and ensuing reversal by Nadhir set the score at 7-6 in Nadhir's favor with one minute remaining. The NU junior refused to surrender any more points despite Green's best efforts, closing the match with a 9-6 decision win.
Friday Results
Session III (Wrestlebacks): Andrew Nadhir (NU) dec. Bobby Ward (NCST), 7-5
Session III (Wrestlebacks): Andrew Nadhir (NU) dec. #11 Desi Green (BUFF), 9-6
Friday Schedule
Session IV
Wrestlebacks: Andrew Nadhir (NU) vs. Torsten Gillespie (EDIN), 6 p.m.
