Lewis beats top-seeded Marinelli as NCAA semifinals are set for Friday

PITTSBURGH – The semifinals are set for 2019 NCAA Championships after an action-packed quarterfinal round on Friday morning inside the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Penn State, looking for its eighth NCAA team title in nine years, leads the team race with 80 points and six semifinalists. Ohio State punched five through to the next round for 66.5 points, and Oklahoma State put four in the semis to end the session in third with 56 points.

Eight other schools advanced two wrestlers to tonight’s semifinals, including Arizona State, Cornell, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Princeton and Rutgers.

Of note, this is the first time in history that Princeton and Rutgers have advanced multiple wrestlers to the semis.

At 125 pounds, fans can expect to see an exciting rematch with No. 2 Nick Piccininni of Oklahoma State taking on No. 3 Spencer Lee of Iowa.

Lee owns two wins over Piccininni, but the last time these two met, the Cowboy recorded second-period pin at the dual in Stillwater, Okla.

To get to the semis, both wrestlers were dominant. Lee stuck No. 6 Sean Russell of Minnesota in 5:59, and Piccininni earned a 10-5 decision over No. 7 Patrick Glory from Princeton.

On the top half of the bracket, No. 1 seed Sebastian Rivera of Northwestern routed No. 8 Vitali Arujau, a freshman for Cornell, 6-2. Rivera will meet up with Virginia’s Jack Mueller, the 5-seed, who edged out No. 4 Ronnie Bresser of Oregon State in the second tie-breaker period, 4-1.

At 133 pounds, No. 1 Daton Fix, a freshman for Oklahoma State, will go head-to-head with Ohio State’s fifth-seeded Luke Pletcher. The winner of that match will face the winner of Micic/Suriano in the finals.

2018 NCAA runner-up Stevan Micic, the No. 2 seed from Michigan, brought the crowd to its feet when he defeated No. 7 Austin DeSanto of Iowa, 3-2, in the quarters. A fall from No. 3 Nick Suriano of Rutgers over No. 6 Ethan Lizak of Minnesota, put the first Scarlet Knight into tonight’s semis.

Micic and Suriano met up earlier this season in the dual, where Micic claimed a 3-2 win.

“We wrestled at Rutgers, and he had a solid gameplan,” Micic said. “After that match and getting the takedown in the third period, I think I have a good feel for tonight.”

There are two attention-getting rematches in the semis at 141 pounds.

Returning NCAA champion Yianni Diakomihalis of Cornell is slated to battle No. 5 Jaydin Eierman from Missouri, who captured his third All-America honor with a quarterfinal win.

Both wrestlers have wins over each, with Diakomihalis holding a 2-1 advantage in the series. The last time they met up was in the dual earlier this season. The Big Red wrestler won a 3-1 decision over the Tiger.

On the bottom side, Joey McKenna, the second-seed from Ohio State, will face No. 3 Nick Lee of Penn State in a rubber match for the 2018-19 season.

Lee edged out McKenna in the dual in February, 7-6, and then McKenna avenged the loss in the Big Ten finals, defeating Lee, 5-4, for the title.

The 149-pound quarterfinals saw the No. 3 seed, Mitch Finesilver of Duke, go down as sixth-seeded Austin O’Connor from North Carolina scored a takedown in sudden victory for a 3-1 victory to move onto the semis.

Tonight O’Connor will face No. 2 seed and now-three-time All-American Micah Jordan of Ohio State, who overpowered 10th-seed Pat Lugo of Iowa in the quarters 10-3.

Jordan owns a 7-3 win over O’Connor from the Cliff Keen Invitational in November.

The other semi will feature No. 1 Anthony Ashnault of Rutgers and No. 5 Matthew Kolodzik of Princeton. Ashnault scored a 10-2 major decision over Kolodzik in the dual earlier this season.

With his 10-3 quarterfinal win over No. 8 Jarrett Degen of Iowa State, Ashnault made history, becoming the first four-time All-American for Rutgers wrestling.

We’ll see a rematch of the 2018 NCAA finals in tonight’s 157-pound semis as 2018 NCAA runner-up Hayden Hidlay of NC State will challenge two-time NCAA champion Jason Nolf of Penn State.

Nolf advanced to the semis with a dominating 23-6 tech fall over No. 9 Christian Pagdilao of Arizona State, and Hidlay, ranked No. 5, took out fourth-seeded Alec Pantaleo of Michigan in sudden victory, 5-3.

No. 6 Kaleb Young from Iowa shocked No. 3 Ryan Deakin from Northwestern with a takedown in overtime for a 7-5 quarterfinal win to guarantee himself a spot in the semifinals and his first All-America honor.

Tonight, Young will face second-seeded and two-time All-American Tyler Berger of Nebraska. The last time Young and Berger wrestled was in a dual earlier this season, where Berger emerged with a 3-1 win in sudden victory.

Highlighting the session was an upset at 165 pounds, where No. 8 Mekhi Lewis of Virginia Tech scored a last-second takedown in regulation against No. 1 Alex Marinelli of Iowa for a 3-1 win and a spot in the semifinals.

"I wanted to get out there before the match and soak it all in because this is my first experience in this tournament, and I wanted to be ready,” Lewis said. “I was real excited to get the feel before the match. As the match was going, it just got louder and louder, so you could not even hear your coaches. I was just wrestling out there on my own at one point."

Lewis, a redshirt freshman for the Hokies, will face fourth-seeded and 2018 All-American Evan Wick of Wisconsin in the semifinals. Wick defeated Lock Haven’s Chance Marsteller in his quarterfinal.

It was the second time in his career that Wick recorded a pin over Marsteller at the NCAA tournament. Last year, Wick pinned Marsteller in the NCAA third-place match.

In the bottom half of the bracket, two-time NCAA champion Vincenzo Joseph of Penn State escaped to the semis with a 3-1 win against Nebraska’s Isaiah White, thanks to an inside trip for two points in sudden-victory.

Tonight, Joseph will take on Josh Shields of Arizona State, who he beat in the dual earlier this year, 11-2.

At 174 pounds, two NCAA champions advanced to the semifinals in 2017 champ and No. 1 Mark Hall of Penn State and defending champion and third-seeded Zahid Valencia of Arizona State.

Hall will face Michigan’s Myles Amine for the third time this year. Hall defeated Amine twice this season, both wins were 3-2 decisions.

Valencia, who picked up a first-period pin over No. 22 Ben Harvey from Army in the quarters, is set to battle Missouri’s Daniel Lewis, who has collected pins in all three of his wins this weekend.

Last time the Sun Devil and Tiger met, Lewis won by fall in dual competition.

2016 NCAA champion Myles Martin from Ohio State sailed to the semifinals at 184 pounds, beating No. 8 Ryan Preisch of Lehigh with an 11-2 major decision.

He’ll face Max Dean of Cornell, who blanked No. 13 Nino Bonaccorsi of Pitt in the quarterfinals, 6-0. Martin won the dual matchup in February with a decisive 13-6 win.

There were a pair of quarterfinal upsets on the bottom side of the bracket as No. 6 Drew Foster of Northern Iowa knocked off No. 3 Zack Zavatsky, a 2018 All-American, 6-2, and No. 15 Chip Ness from North Carolina defeated No. 10 Samuel Colbray of Iowa State in overtime, 6-4.

Foster and Ness will go at it tonight for a spot in the finals. Foster has two wins over Ness from the 2017-18 season.

We’ll see the top-four seeds battle for finals spots at both 197 pounds and heavyweight.

Two-time NCAA champion Bo Nickal of Penn State looks to make his fourth-straight NCAA finals appearance, taking on No. 4 Patrick Brucki, a sophomore from Princeton, in the semis at 197. Tonight will be their first meeting.

The other semi features two-time All-American and No. 2 Kollin Moore of Ohio State and 2017 All-American Preston Weigel of Oklahoma State, the 3-seed.

Moore defeated Weigel in the 2017 NCAA Championships, 13-5.

Both heavyweight semifinals will be rematches from earlier this season.

No. 1 Derek White of Oklahoma State will go up against No. 4 Jordan Wood form Lehigh, who he defeated in a dual, 3-2.

One of the most anticipated rematches of the entire tournament will go down tonight as No. 2 Anthony Cassar of Penn State is set to battle No. 3 Gable Steveson of Minnesota.

Steveson, a freshman for the Golden Gophers, strung together a perfect season and was widely expected to win his first Big Ten title last month. However, Cassar stopped the freshman in his tracks, scoring a late takedown for a 4-3 win in the conference championship finals.

"I feel real good right now,” Steveson said. “I am ready for these semis, and I am ready to avenge a loss. I am coming."

One of the most exciting rounds in college wrestling, the semifinals will take place Friday night at 8 p.m. ET live on ESPN.

2019 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
at PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, Pa. (March 21-23)

Team scores
1. Penn State – 80
2. Ohio State – 66.5
3. Oklahoma State – 56
4. Iowa – 43.5
5. Michigan – 40
6. Missouri – 37
7. Minnesota – 32
8. Rutgers – 29.5
9. NC State – 29
10. Cornell – 26.5

Semifinal matchups
125 pounds
#1 Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern) vs. #5 Jack Mueller (Virginia)
#3 Spencer Lee (Iowa) vs. #2 Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State)

133 pounds
#1 Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) vs. #5 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State)
#3 Nick Suriano (Rutgers) vs. #2 Stevan Micic (Michigan)

141 pounds
#1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) vs. #5 Jaydin Eierman (Missouri)
#3 Nick Lee (Penn State) vs. #2 Joey McKenna (Ohio State)

149 pounds
#1 Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) vs. #5 Matthew Kolodzik (Princeton)
#6 Austin O’Connor (North Carolina) vs. #2 Micah Jordan (Ohio State)

157 pounds
#1 Jason Nolf (Penn State) vs. #5 Hayden Hidlay (North Carolina State)
#6 Kaleb Young (Iowa) vs. #2 Tyler Berger (Nebraska)

165 pounds
#8 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) vs. #4 Evan Wick (Wisconsin)
#3 Josh Shields (Arizona State) vs. #2 Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State)

174 pounds
#1 Mark Hall (Penn State) vs.  #4 Myles Amine (Michigan)
#3 Zahid Valencia (Arizona State) vs. #2 Daniel Lewis (Missouri)

184 pounds
#1 Myles Martin (Ohio State) vs. #5 Max Dean (Cornell)
#6 Drew Foster (Northern Iowa) vs. #15 Chip Ness (North Carolina)

197 pounds
#1 Bo Nickal (Penn State) vs. #4 Patrick Brucki (Princeton)
#3 Preston Weigel (Oklahoma State) vs. #2 Kollin Moore (Ohio State)

285 pounds
#1 Derek White (Oklahoma State) vs. #4 Jordan Wood (Lehigh)
#3 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. #2 Anthony Cassar (Penn State)

Quarterfinal results

125 pounds
#1 Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern) dec. #8 Vitali Arujau (Cornell), 6-2
#5 Jack Mueller (Virginia) dec. #4 Ronnie Bresser (Oregon State), 4-1 SV2
#3 Spencer Lee (Iowa) fall #6 Sean Russell (Minnesota), 5:59
#2 Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State) dec. #7 Patrick Glory (Princeton), 9-5

133 pounds
#1 Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) MD #8 John Erneste (Missouri), 11-3
#5 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State) dec. #4 Mickey Phillipi (Pitt), 3-1
#3 Nick Suriano (Rutgers) fall #6 Ethan Lizak (Minnesota), 4:25
#2 Stevan Micic (Michigan) dec. #7 Austin DeSanto (Iowa), 3-2

141 pounds
#1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) dec. #9 Dom Demas (Oklahoma), 5-1
#5 Jaydin Eierman (Missouri) dec. #13 Kyle Shoop (Lock Haven), 8-3
#3 Nick Lee (Penn State) dec. #22 Max Murin (Iowa), 4-1
#2 Joey McKenna (Ohio State) MD #7 Mitch McKee (Minnesota), 11-1

149 pounds
#1 Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) dec. #8 Jarrett Degen (Iowa State), 10-3
#5 Matthew Kolodzik (Princeton) dec. #4 Brock Mauller (Missouri), 5-3
#6 Austin O’Connor (North Carolina) dec. #3 Mitch Finesilver (Duke), 3-1 SV1
#2 Micah Jordan (Ohio State) dec. #10 Pat Lugo (Iowa), 10-3

157 pounds
#1 Jason Nolf (Penn State) TF #9 Christian Pagdilao (Arizona State), 23-6
#5 Hayden Hidlay (North Carolina State) dec. #4 Alec Pantaleo (Michigan), 5-3 SV1
#6 Kaleb Young (Iowa) dec. #3 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern), 7-5 SV1
#2 Tyler Berger (Nebraska) dec. #7 Larry Early (Old Dominion), 5-2

165 pounds
#8 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) dec. #1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa), 3-1
#4 Evan Wick (Wisconsin) fall #5 Chance Marsteller (Lock Haven), 1:25
#3 Josh Shields (Arizona State) dec. #11 Bryce Steiert (Northern Iowa), 6-0
#2 Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State) dec. #7 Isaiah White (Nebraska), 3-1 SV1

174 pounds
#1 Mark Hall (Penn State) dec. #8 Taylor Lujan (Northern Iowa), 5-3
#4 Myles Amine (Michigan) dec. #5 Jordan Kutler (Lehigh), 4-2 SV2
#3 Zahid Valencia (Arizona State) fall #22 Ben Harvey (Army), 2:11
#2 Daniel Lewis (Missouri) fall #10 Michael Labriola (Nebraska), 4:28

184 pounds
#1 Myles Martin (Ohio State) MD #8 Ryan Preisch (Lehigh), 11-2
#5 Max Dean (Cornell) dec. #13 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt), 6-0
#6 Drew Foster (Northern Iowa) dec. #3 Zack Zavatsky (Virginia Tech), 6-2
#15 Chip Ness (North Carolina) dec. #10 Samuel Colbray (Iowa State), 6-4 SV1

197 pounds
#1 Bo Nickal (Penn State) MD #8 Nathan Traxler (Stanford), 14-4
#4 Patrick Brucki (Princeton) dec. #21 Thomas Lane (Cal Poly), 4-3
#3 Preston Weigel (Oklahoma State) fall #11 Christian Brunner (Purdue), 0:58
#2 Kollin Moore (Ohio State) dec. #10 Tom Sleigh (Virginia Tech), 17-11

285 pounds
#1 Derek White (Oklahoma State) dec. #9 Matt Stencel (Central Michigan), 3-1
#4 Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec. #28 Sam Stoll (Iowa), 2-0
#3 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) MD #6 Amar Dhesi (Oregon State), 11-1
#2 Anthony Cassar (Penn State) dec. #7 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin), 4-0