2009 NCAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
SCOTTRADE CENTER
ST. LOUIS, MO.

March 19-21, 2009

WVU Exits from NCAA Wrestling Championships

By Ira Green
WVU Sports Information Office

Final team scores and brackets AT THIS LINK

ST. LOUIS (March 20, 2009) – The West Virginia University wrestling team completed its run in the 2009 NCAA Wrestling Championships on Friday afternoon at the Scottrade Center. Three of the team’s four losses were decided by two points or less.

In a rematch of a bout that took place earlier this season between Lehigh’s Trevor Chinn and WVU’s David Jauregui, it was Jauregui who took the win with a takedown in sudden victory. Jauregui, however, could not repeat success as he fell 6-4 on a last-second takedown. After a scoreless first period, Chinn opened the second with an escape after starting in the defensive position. Less than a minute later, Chinn recorded a takedown, but Jauregui was able to reverse it, trailing 3-2. After Chinn escaped, Jauregui earned a stalling point to stay within reach, down 4-3, going into the final session. Electing the defensive position, Jauregui slithered free for the escape to tie the match at four apiece. The match appeared to be heading into overtime, but Chinn registered the winning takedown on the edge of the mat with less than three seconds remaining for the victory.

Redshirt junior Donnie Jones’ match at 165 pounds came down to the final period. Jones fell behind early after Penn State’s Dan Vallimont scored on a takedown, but Jones was able to reverse it to tie the match at two apiece. After Vallimont escaped, he was able to record his second takedown near the edge of the mat. Jones closed out the period with an escape, trailing 5-3. In the second, the only point came from Jones’ escape, as he closed the gap, 5-4. Vallimont chose the defensive position to start the final session and escaped less than 20 seconds into the period. Jones, however, tied the bout at six apiece with a takedown. Jones conceded the escape since Vallimont had more than two minutes in riding time, but was unable to tie the match and Vallimont went on to win 8-6.

Fifth-year senior Kurt Brenner (174) dropped a close, six-period decision to Indiana’s Trevor Perry. The two scrapped in the first period, but could not score. In the second, Perry scored on a reversal from the defensive position to start. Brenner was able to escape, but still trailed 2-1. In the third, Brenner tied the score with an escape, forcing the bout into extra time. Neither wrestler scored in sudden victory, but the pair tallied escapes to start the fifth and six periods. Perry, however, was able to record a takedown with less than 20 seconds remaining near the edge of the mat to pull ahead 5-3. Brenner escaped, but could not track down Perry for a takedown to win, falling 5-4.

Jauregui, Brenner and Rogers all closed out magnificent careers with their losses at the national tournament today. Jauregui, a Santa Ana, Calif., resident tallied a 78-31 overall mark in his career, while Brenner went 95-32 during his time at WVU. Rogers, a Corning, Calif., native, ends his career with a 52-25 mark.

Session III
Wrestlebacks
149: #12 seed David Jauregui (Lehigh) DEC David Jauregui (WVU), 6-4
165: Dan Vallimont (Penn State) DEC Donnie Jones (WVU), 8-6
174: Trevor Perry (Indiana) DEC #10 seed Kurt Brenner (WVU), 5-4 (t.b. p2)
HWT: Joey Fendone (Edinboro) FALL Dustin Rogers (WVU), 1:22

Mountaineers Roll in Session II

By Ira Green
WVU Sports Information Office
ST. LOUIS, Mo. (March 19, 2009) – Fifth-year senior David Jauregui upset the No. 2 seed Bubba Jenkins in the 149-pound wrestlebacks in session two of the NCAA Wrestling Championships Thursday evening at the Scottrade Center.

Jauregui jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead on Jenkins and after the Penn State wrestler broke loose, Jauregui recorded another takedown to go ahead 4-1 heading into the second session, also tacking owning 1:15 in riding time. After enlarging his lead to 6-1 in the second, the Santa Ana, Calif., resident scored a takedown early in the third and then was awarded a stalling point. With the 4:18 in riding time, Jauregui secured a 10-1 major decision over Jenkins and will move on to face Lehigh’s Trevor Chinn, a No. 12 seed. Jauregui defeated Chinn at WVU earlier this season, 6-4, in sudden victory.

Redshirt junior Donnie Jones continued the Mountaineers’ momentum in his wrestleback match against Millersville’s Jeremy Brooks. Determined to fight back after a close decision in his first match, Jones opened the bout with a takedown less than 10 seconds into the match. After Brooks fought to get loose, Jones continued the scoring, registering three more takedowns in the opening period to lead 8-4. In the second period, Jones tacked on his fifth takedown of the match and went ahead, 10-5, going into the third session. Jones, a Slickville, Pa., native added three more points and accumulated 1:37 in riding time for the 13-6 victory. He will face Penn State’s Dan Vallimont in the next round.

Fifth-year senior Kurt Brenner also recorded a win, WVU’s third of the session, over George Mason’s Bagna Tovuujav. After a scoreless first period, Tovuujav earned an escape after starting the period in the defensive position. Brenner, however, recorded a takedown and was tied 2-2 at the end of the second session. Tovuujav cut Brenner’s riding time to less than a minute, riding Brenner for nearly 20 seconds, but the WVU 174-pounder recorded an escape and that proved to be the difference, registering a 3-2 victory. Brenner will face Indiana’s Trevor Perry in the next round.

In an extremely close, down-to-the-wire match, fifth-year senior Dustin Rogers fell to No. 1 seed David Zabriskie of Iowa State, 9-8. Rogers led through the first two periods, 6-4, but could not hang on for the upset. After scoring a takedown, Zabriskie broke loose, but Rogers scored another takedown and registered two near fall points to lead 6-1 through the first session. Zabriskie began his comeback in the second with an escape and a takedown to trail 6-4. In the final period, Rogers squirmed out of Zabriskie’s grasp, but was hit with his second stall. Rogers broke free, but the top ranked Iowa State wrestler notched a takedown with less than 10 seconds in the match for the victory. Rogers will take on the winner of the match between Edinboro’s Joey Fendone and Gardner Webb’s Dustin Porter.

Session II Championship Bracket
HWT: #1 seed David Zabriskie (Iowa State) DEC Dustin Rogers (WVU), 9-8

Wrestlebacks
149: David Jauregui (WVU) MAJOR #2 seed Bubba Jenkins (Penn State), 10-1
157: Jonny Bonilla-Bowman (Hofstra) DEC Ryan Goodman (WVU), 18-10
165: Donnie Jones (WVU) DEC Jeremy Brooks (Millersville), 13-6
174: Kurt Brenner (WVU) DEC Bagna Tovuujav (George Mason), 3-2

Rogers Earns Win in Session I

By Ira Green
WVU Sports Information Office

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Fifth-year senior heavyweight Dustin Rogers recorded a 12-2 major decision over Cornell’s Zach Hammond in session one at the 2009 NCAA Wrestling Championships at the Scottrade Center.

As Rogers’ match progressed, the Corning, Calif., native seemingly got stronger. Ahead 2-1 entering the second period, Rogers tacked on three more points (one escape and one takedown). In the third session, he scored a quick takedown near the edge of the mat and nearly pinned Hammond, but was awarded two back points. Rogers recorded one more takedown and accumulated 3:14 in riding time for the victory. He will faced top-seed David Zabriskie of Iowa State.

Redshirt junior Donnie Jones (165) also had an extremely exciting match against third-seeded Ryan Morningstar. The Slickville, Pa., native went ahead 2-0 on a takedown, but Morningstar earned a reversal to tie the match heading into the second period. Morningstar chose the defensive position and was able to escape and then score a takedown to jump ahead 5-2. Not giving up, Jones earned an escape off the start of the third period and then registered a takedown near the edge of the mat to tie the score. In sudden victory, Jones nearly scored a takedown, but Iowa’s 165-pounder was able to sweep around behind Jones for the winning takedown. Jones will face Millersville’s Jeremy Brooks in the wrestlebacks.

Fifth-year David Jauregui (149) will take on Penn State’s Bubba Jenkins, a No. 2 seed in the wrestlebacks. Classmate Kurt Brenner (174) will also compete in the wrestlebacks, slated to face Bagna Tovuujav of George Mason.

Redshirt freshman Ryan Goodman (157), who lost to No. 2 seed Mike Poeta of Illinois, will face Jonny Bonilla-Bowman of Hofstra in the wrestlebacks.

Session two today starts promptly at 7:30 ET.

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