AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Freshman David Craig won a pair of matches to reach the All-American round to lead the Lehigh contingent Friday morning at the 77th NCAA wrestling championships at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Craig picked up two wins, including one by fall and will wrestle Edinboro’s Alex Clemsen on Friday night with the winner earning All-American honors at 184.
Craig opened the day strong with a first period pin of Stanford’s Zack Giesen. In the third round consolations against No. 11 seed John Dergo of Illinois, Craig turned Dergo for three points in the second period and added a third period escape and riding time for a 5-0 victory. Craig will wrestle Clemsen, the No. 7 seed, looking to become Lehigh’s first true freshman All-American in 27 years. Clemsen defeated Craig 3-3 on riding time earlier this season at the Pennsylvania Duals.
In other Lehigh action, senior Matt Ciasulli advanced to the third round of consolations at 141, scoring a late second period takedown to defeat Kyle Terry of Oklahoma 4-3. In the third round consolations, West Virginia’s Brandon Rader showed tremendous scored several early takedowns to build a lead over Ciasulli, and went on to a 15-6 major decision. Ciasulli’s season ends at 31-8 and for his career the three-time NCAA qualifier finshes with a mark of 94-31.
Two Mountain Hawks saw their seasons end in the second round consolations. Dave Nakasone was ousted by Drexel’s Ryan Hluschak 5-2 at 157, while Paul Weibel yielded three takedowns to Iowa’s No. 7 seed Matt Fields, before Fields turned Weibel and pinned him in 6:01. Weibel’s career wraps up with an 88-49 record. He was a four-time EIWA place winner and two time NCAA qualifier.
In the team standings, Lehigh has 10 points, good for 35th place. Minnesota and Iowa State are locked in a tight battle for first place. The Golden Gophers lead the Cyclones by 3.5 points, with Oklahoma State, Missouri and Hofstra rounding out the top five.
The 77th NCAA Championships continue on Friday evening with the national semifinals and two rounds of consolations including the round of 12 matches to determine the final four All-Americans at each weight class, beginning at 7:00 pm. The semifinals will be televised on ESPNU (DirecTV channel 609) and audio coverage of Lehigh’s action can be heard online at lehighsports.com with streaming powered by Yahoo! Sports.
Second Round Consolations
|
Weight |
Match-up |
Result |
|
Score |
|
141 |
Matt Ciasulli (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Kyle Terry (Oklahoma) |
4-3 |
|
157 |
Ryan Hluschak (Drexel) |
dec. |
Dave Nakasone (Lehigh) |
5-2 |
|
184 |
David Craig (Lehigh) |
WBF |
Zack Giesen (Stanford) |
2:28 |
|
285 |
Matt Fields (Iowa) |
WBF |
Paul Weibel (Lehigh) |
6:01 |
Third Round Consolations
|
Weight |
Match-up |
Result |
|
Score |
|
141 |
Brandon Rader (WVU) |
maj. dec. |
Matt Ciasulli (Lehigh) |
15-6 |
|
184 |
David Craig (Lehigh) |
dec. |
John Dergo (Illinois) |
5-0 |
Team Scores
|
1. Minnesota |
66 |
|
2. Iowa State |
62.5 |
|
3. Oklahoma State |
48.5 |
|
4. Missouri |
44.5 |
|
5. Hofstra |
41 |
|
6. Penn State |
39.5 |
|
7. Iowa |
37 |
|
8. Northwestern |
34.5 |
|
9. Wisconsin |
31.5 |
|
10. Michigan |
29 |
|
35. LEHIGH |
10 |