Central Michigan University Athletics
Bennett Moves on to Quarterfinals at NCAA Championships
3/16/2012 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
NCAA Championships Central | Watch: Coach Borrelli Interview
ST. LOUIS - Ben Bennett will represent Central Michigan in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Wrestling Championships.
Bennett posted his second major decision in as many matches Thursday night, scoring takedowns in each period and racking up 3:48 of riding time in a 9-0 victory over Edinboro's Victor Avery.
Bennett, who has out-scored his first two opponents 18-1 as the No. 3 seed, will face a more formidable challenge in his quarterfinal match Friday morning. His opponent will be the No. 6 seed, Penn State's Quentin Wright, who last year won the national title as the No. 9 seed. Wright enters the quarterfinals 29-3 overall this season.
Bennett leads a contingent of five Chippewas who are still alive in the tournament. CMU is in a three-way tie for 15th in the team standings with 14 points through the tournament's first two sessions.
"Obviously Ben's wrestling well, but we have some guys in the wrestlebacks who have to keep getting their hands raised," said CMU head coach Tom Borrelli. "We have a lot of things we have to work on with our young guys to be ready for this level of competition, but we've also had some quality wins."
Both Zach Horan (133 pounds) and Peter Sturgeon (heavyweight) dropped their second-round matches and will wrestle in the consolations Friday morning. A third-period reversal drew Horan within 3-2 against No. 5 seed Joe Colon (Northern Iowa), but Colon tacked on a late takedown and three back points for a 9-2 decision.
Sturgeon was defeated by the No. 2 seed, Minnesota's Anthony Nelson, 6-0.
Two other Chippewas remain alive in the wrestlebacks. Joe Roth (125 pounds) and Scott Mattingly (141 pounds) both picked up consolation wins in bonus-point fashion Thursday night. Roth scored five takedowns in a 12-3 major decision over Old Dominion's Jerome Robinson, while Mattingly pinned Arizona State's Nathan Hoffer in the second period.
Donnie Corby (157 pounds) and Mike Ottinger (165 pounds) were eliminated from the tournament with their second loss Thursday night.
Action resumes at the NCAA Championships Friday at 11 a.m. Eastern Time. The quarterfinals will air on ESPNU and be streamed online on ESPN3.com.
Notes
- Ben Bennett enters the quarterfinals 32-3 overall with 26 bonus-point victories. His 32 overall wins are a new career high.
- Ben Bennett is a quarterfinalist for the second straight season. Last year, as the No. 6 seed at 174 pounds, he lost to No. 3 seed Mack Lewnes (Cornell), 7-3, in the quarterfinals.
- Winners in the quarterfinals in each weight class secure All-America honors. Ben Bennett is attempting to become the third three-time Division I All-American at CMU.
- Joe Roth's wrestleback win Thursday night was his 35th victory this season. He needs one more win to move into a tie for 10th on CMU's single-season victories list.
- Scott Mattingly was one of just six individuals in the field of 330 wrestlers to enter the tournament with a losing record. All six are still alive in the tournament.
- With his win in the first round, Zach Horan became the first CMU true freshman to win a match at the NCAA Championships since Scotti Sentes in 2009.
Complete Central Michigan Results
125 Pounds: Joe Roth
First Round: L, dec. Camden Eppert (Purdue), 4-3
Consolation First Round: W, maj. dec. Jerome Robinson (Old Dominion), 12-3
Consolation Second Round: No. 7 Jarrod Patterson (Oklahoma)
133 Pounds: Zach Horan
First Round: W, dec. No. 12 Bryan Ortenzio (Penn), 5-4
Second Round: L, dec. No. 5 Joe Colon (Northern Iowa), 9-2
Consolation Second Round: Mason Beckman (Lehigh)
141 Pounds: Scott Mattingly
First Round: L, dec. Michael Nevinger (Cornell), 5-0
Consolation First Round: W, pin Nathan Hoffer (Arizona State) at 4:21
Consolation Second Round: No. 12 Tyler Small (Kent State)
157 Pounds: Donnie Corby
First Round: L, dec. No. 12 Steven Monk (North Dakota State), 1-0
Consolation First Round: L, dec. Josh Demas (Ohio State), 2-1 TB1
165 Pounds: Mike Ottinger
First Round: L, dec. Coleman Gracey (Army), 3-2
Consolation First Round: L, dec. Gabriel Burak (Northern Colorado), 9-2
184 Pounds: No. 3 Ben Bennett
First Round: W, maj. dec. Erich Schmidtke (Oklahoma), 9-1
Second Round: W, maj. dec. Victor Avery (Edinboro), 9-0
Quarterfinals: No. 6 Quentin Wright (Penn State)
285 Pounds: Peter Sturgeon
First Round: W, dec. Kyle Frey (Drexel), 5-4 TB1
Second Round: L, dec. No. 2 Anthony Nelson (Minnesota), 6-0
Consolation Second Round: No. 12 Matthew Gibson (Iowa State)
ST. LOUIS - Ben Bennett will represent Central Michigan in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Wrestling Championships.
Bennett posted his second major decision in as many matches Thursday night, scoring takedowns in each period and racking up 3:48 of riding time in a 9-0 victory over Edinboro's Victor Avery.
Bennett, who has out-scored his first two opponents 18-1 as the No. 3 seed, will face a more formidable challenge in his quarterfinal match Friday morning. His opponent will be the No. 6 seed, Penn State's Quentin Wright, who last year won the national title as the No. 9 seed. Wright enters the quarterfinals 29-3 overall this season.
Bennett leads a contingent of five Chippewas who are still alive in the tournament. CMU is in a three-way tie for 15th in the team standings with 14 points through the tournament's first two sessions.
"Obviously Ben's wrestling well, but we have some guys in the wrestlebacks who have to keep getting their hands raised," said CMU head coach Tom Borrelli. "We have a lot of things we have to work on with our young guys to be ready for this level of competition, but we've also had some quality wins."
Both Zach Horan (133 pounds) and Peter Sturgeon (heavyweight) dropped their second-round matches and will wrestle in the consolations Friday morning. A third-period reversal drew Horan within 3-2 against No. 5 seed Joe Colon (Northern Iowa), but Colon tacked on a late takedown and three back points for a 9-2 decision.
Sturgeon was defeated by the No. 2 seed, Minnesota's Anthony Nelson, 6-0.
Two other Chippewas remain alive in the wrestlebacks. Joe Roth (125 pounds) and Scott Mattingly (141 pounds) both picked up consolation wins in bonus-point fashion Thursday night. Roth scored five takedowns in a 12-3 major decision over Old Dominion's Jerome Robinson, while Mattingly pinned Arizona State's Nathan Hoffer in the second period.
Donnie Corby (157 pounds) and Mike Ottinger (165 pounds) were eliminated from the tournament with their second loss Thursday night.
Action resumes at the NCAA Championships Friday at 11 a.m. Eastern Time. The quarterfinals will air on ESPNU and be streamed online on ESPN3.com.
Notes
- Ben Bennett enters the quarterfinals 32-3 overall with 26 bonus-point victories. His 32 overall wins are a new career high.
- Ben Bennett is a quarterfinalist for the second straight season. Last year, as the No. 6 seed at 174 pounds, he lost to No. 3 seed Mack Lewnes (Cornell), 7-3, in the quarterfinals.
- Winners in the quarterfinals in each weight class secure All-America honors. Ben Bennett is attempting to become the third three-time Division I All-American at CMU.
- Joe Roth's wrestleback win Thursday night was his 35th victory this season. He needs one more win to move into a tie for 10th on CMU's single-season victories list.
- Scott Mattingly was one of just six individuals in the field of 330 wrestlers to enter the tournament with a losing record. All six are still alive in the tournament.
- With his win in the first round, Zach Horan became the first CMU true freshman to win a match at the NCAA Championships since Scotti Sentes in 2009.
Complete Central Michigan Results
125 Pounds: Joe Roth
First Round: L, dec. Camden Eppert (Purdue), 4-3
Consolation First Round: W, maj. dec. Jerome Robinson (Old Dominion), 12-3
Consolation Second Round: No. 7 Jarrod Patterson (Oklahoma)
133 Pounds: Zach Horan
First Round: W, dec. No. 12 Bryan Ortenzio (Penn), 5-4
Second Round: L, dec. No. 5 Joe Colon (Northern Iowa), 9-2
Consolation Second Round: Mason Beckman (Lehigh)
141 Pounds: Scott Mattingly
First Round: L, dec. Michael Nevinger (Cornell), 5-0
Consolation First Round: W, pin Nathan Hoffer (Arizona State) at 4:21
Consolation Second Round: No. 12 Tyler Small (Kent State)
157 Pounds: Donnie Corby
First Round: L, dec. No. 12 Steven Monk (North Dakota State), 1-0
Consolation First Round: L, dec. Josh Demas (Ohio State), 2-1 TB1
165 Pounds: Mike Ottinger
First Round: L, dec. Coleman Gracey (Army), 3-2
Consolation First Round: L, dec. Gabriel Burak (Northern Colorado), 9-2
184 Pounds: No. 3 Ben Bennett
First Round: W, maj. dec. Erich Schmidtke (Oklahoma), 9-1
Second Round: W, maj. dec. Victor Avery (Edinboro), 9-0
Quarterfinals: No. 6 Quentin Wright (Penn State)
285 Pounds: Peter Sturgeon
First Round: W, dec. Kyle Frey (Drexel), 5-4 TB1
Second Round: L, dec. No. 2 Anthony Nelson (Minnesota), 6-0
Consolation Second Round: No. 12 Matthew Gibson (Iowa State)
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