Tsirtsis to Wrestle in #Midlands53 Semifinals Wednesday
12/29/2015 9:50:00 PM | Wrestling, Ken Kraft Midlands Championships
Updated #Midlands53 Brackets
Session I Recap
EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern junior and defending Midlands champion Jason Tsirtsis will vie for a second straight trip to the finals after advancing to the semifinals during Session II Tuesday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
The second-seeded Tsirtsis will meet third-seeded Alexander Richardson of Old Dominion.
"Jason continued to look better in each match he wrestled today," interim head coach Matt Storniolo said. "He is a great competitor, and I am excited to see him open up in his semifinal match tomorrow."
Tsirtsis earned his spot among the final four wrestlers at 149 lbs. with an 8-2 decision over Iowa State's Gabe Moreno, the 16th-ranked wrestler in the country. He went 3-0 on the day and outscored his opponents 30-7.
Dominick Malone was also impressive in the second session, cruising past both of his opponents in dominant fashion. The 133-pounder pinned Carlos Herrera of CSU Bakersfield in just 58 seconds and then went on to tech fall Purdue's Luke Welch in his next match, 16-0, just seconds into the second period.
Mitch Sliga advanced to Wednesday's Session III with a pair of consolation wins as well, taking down Columbia's Zack Fernandez, the tournament's 10th seed, by a 2-1 score before narrowly defeating Northern Iowa's Drew Foster, 4-2. Sliga is one win away from guaranteeing himself a spot on the podium.
"I am extremely proud of the way our guys battled in the consolation matches," Storniolo said. "We were trailing late in several matches, and instead of hanging their heads, our guys fought hard and found ways to win. That is what it is all about."
Session III of the 53rd annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships begins at noon tomorrow. The finals will begin at 8 p.m. and be televised live on Big Ten Network.
#Midlands53 Results • Session II
5th Place • 42.5 points
Quarterfinals
125: #6 Ronnie Rios (Oregon State) maj. dec. Garrison White (NU), 13-4
149: #3 Jason Tsirtsis (NU) dec. #16 Gabe Moreno (Iowa St.), 8-2
Consolations
133: Dominick Malone (NU) Fall Carlos Herrera (CSU Bakersfield), 0:58
133: Dominick Malone (NU) Tech Fall Luke Welch (Purdue), 16-0
174: Mitch Sliga (NU) dec. Zack Hernandez (Columbia), 2-1
174: Mitch Sliga (NU) dec. Drew Foster (UNI), 4-2
184: Ryan Christensen (WIS) maj. dec. Regis Durbin (NU), 13-2
197: Austin Coburn (ODU) dec. Jacob Berkowitz (NU), 7-5
285: Joseph Fagiano (Cal Baptist) dec. Zack Chakonis (NU-unatt.), 3-2
285: Conan Jennings (NU) Fall Mike Brown (OKLA), 6:24
285: Joseph Fagiano (Cal Baptist) dec. Conan Jennings (NU), 3-2
Session I Recap
EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern junior and defending Midlands champion Jason Tsirtsis will vie for a second straight trip to the finals after advancing to the semifinals during Session II Tuesday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
The second-seeded Tsirtsis will meet third-seeded Alexander Richardson of Old Dominion.
"Jason continued to look better in each match he wrestled today," interim head coach Matt Storniolo said. "He is a great competitor, and I am excited to see him open up in his semifinal match tomorrow."
Tsirtsis earned his spot among the final four wrestlers at 149 lbs. with an 8-2 decision over Iowa State's Gabe Moreno, the 16th-ranked wrestler in the country. He went 3-0 on the day and outscored his opponents 30-7.
Dominick Malone was also impressive in the second session, cruising past both of his opponents in dominant fashion. The 133-pounder pinned Carlos Herrera of CSU Bakersfield in just 58 seconds and then went on to tech fall Purdue's Luke Welch in his next match, 16-0, just seconds into the second period.
Mitch Sliga advanced to Wednesday's Session III with a pair of consolation wins as well, taking down Columbia's Zack Fernandez, the tournament's 10th seed, by a 2-1 score before narrowly defeating Northern Iowa's Drew Foster, 4-2. Sliga is one win away from guaranteeing himself a spot on the podium.
"I am extremely proud of the way our guys battled in the consolation matches," Storniolo said. "We were trailing late in several matches, and instead of hanging their heads, our guys fought hard and found ways to win. That is what it is all about."
Session III of the 53rd annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships begins at noon tomorrow. The finals will begin at 8 p.m. and be televised live on Big Ten Network.
#Midlands53 Results • Session II
5th Place • 42.5 points
Quarterfinals
125: #6 Ronnie Rios (Oregon State) maj. dec. Garrison White (NU), 13-4
149: #3 Jason Tsirtsis (NU) dec. #16 Gabe Moreno (Iowa St.), 8-2
Consolations
133: Dominick Malone (NU) Fall Carlos Herrera (CSU Bakersfield), 0:58
133: Dominick Malone (NU) Tech Fall Luke Welch (Purdue), 16-0
174: Mitch Sliga (NU) dec. Zack Hernandez (Columbia), 2-1
174: Mitch Sliga (NU) dec. Drew Foster (UNI), 4-2
184: Ryan Christensen (WIS) maj. dec. Regis Durbin (NU), 13-2
197: Austin Coburn (ODU) dec. Jacob Berkowitz (NU), 7-5
285: Joseph Fagiano (Cal Baptist) dec. Zack Chakonis (NU-unatt.), 3-2
285: Conan Jennings (NU) Fall Mike Brown (OKLA), 6:24
285: Joseph Fagiano (Cal Baptist) dec. Conan Jennings (NU), 3-2
Players Mentioned
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