Cottrell, Scheffel Third at Big 12s
KANSAS CITY (March 6, 2016) – A pair of third-place finishes by Dylan Cottrell (157) and Bubba Scheffel (184) led the way for the West Virginia University wrestling team as the Mountaineers finished sixth at the 2016 Big 12 Championship at Sprint Center in Kansas City on Sunday.
In addition, both Scheffel and Cottrell earned automatic bids to the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.
Connor Flynn finished fourth at 165 pounds, while Tony DeAngelo placed fifth at 141 pounds. Keegan Moore and Jacob A. Smith each finished sixth at 133 and 197 pounds, respectively, as did Ross Renzi at 174.
West Virginia finished sixth with 65.5 points in the first year of the new-look Big 12, which added six affiliate members this offseason for a total of 10 wrestling program. Oklahoma State won the team title with 161 points, while Oklahoma took second with 100 team points. Iowa State was third 87 points.
“I’m very proud of our men and the way we battled,” said coach Sammie Henson. “As always, we wanted more but I truly believe we are on the verge of something great here at WVU with our wrestlers, coaches and support staff. We will look to see how many wrestlers we can get into NCAAs in New York City. We appreciate the family, friends and fans for their loyalty and support.”
Cottrell won a 4-2 decision over Wyoming’s Archie Colgan in the consolation semifinals. Colgan, the No. 4 seed, had defeated Cottrell earlier this season at the Southern Scuffle before Cottrell got his revenge. His third-place bout was also a revenge match, as Cottrell saw No. 4 seed Eleazor De Luca who defeated him in the quarterfinals. Cottrell avenged his earlier loss by winning a 6-0 decision to take third and earn a bid into the NCAA Championships.
At 184 pounds, Scheffel took third place for the second straight year and third time in his career and earned his third NCAA qualification. Scheffel started with a 13-7 decision against No. 8 Benjamin Stroh of Wyoming in the consolation semifinals before advancing to the third-place match. He then won a 4-0 decision against No. 4 seed Dane Pestano of Iowa State to earn his spot on the podium.
Flynn won a 7-3 decision over No. 9 Matt Billingsley of Air Force in the consolation semifinals, but dropped a 5-0 decision to No. 3 seed Clark Glass of Oklahoma in the third-place match to earn his spot on the podium in fourth.
DeAngelo, the No. 8 seed, suffered an 8-4 setback to No. 2 seed Bryce Meredith of Wyoming in the consolation semifinals to move to the fifth-place match. Facing No. 4 Mitch Bengston of North Dakota State, DeAngelo found himself up 1-0 late in the third before a takedown in the closing seconds seemed to hand Bengston the 2-1 win. However, officials called Bengston for a technical violation in the final second to tie the bout 2-2 and send it to overtime. DeAngelo used an escape in the tiebreaker to win the match, 3-2, and take fifth.
At 174, Renzi dropped a heartbreaker in the second tiebreaker, 3-2, to No. 4 David Kocer of South Dakota State in the consolation semifinals. He then fell to No. 5 Ross Taylor of Utah Valley in 2:31 to take sixth place.
Wrestlers who did not earn automatic bids at the Big 12 Championship may still be eligible for at-large bids to the NCAA Championships. The 2016 NCAA Champions will be held March 17-19 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
WVU Summary Big 12 Championship
125
Quarterfinal: No. 6 Chasen Tolbert (UVU) def. No. 3 Zeke Moisey (WVU), injury default
2nd Consolation: No. 8 Kyle Larson (ISU) def. No. 3 Zeke Moisey (WVU), injury default
133
Prelim: No. 8 Keegan Moore (WVU) major dec. No. 9 Drake Foster (WYO), 13-2
Quarterfinal: No. 1 Cody Brewer (OU) major dec. No. 8 Keegan Moore (WVU), 14-5
1st Consolation: No. 8 Keegan Moore (WVU) fall No. 10 Nico Colunga (NDSU), 3:53
2nd Consolation: No. 8 Keegan Moore (WVU) dec. No. 5 Brance Simms (SDSU), 3-2
Cons. Semifinals: No. 6 Gary Wayne Harding (OSU) fall No. 8 Keegan Moore (WVU), 7:22 SV-1
5th Place: No. 3 Josh Martinez (AF) major dec. No. 8 Keegan Moore (WVU), 10-2
141
Prelim: No. 8 Tony DeAngelo (WVU) tech. fall No. 9 Ben Polkowske (UNC), 16-0 (2:42)
Quarterfinals: No. 1 Dean Heil (OSU) dec. No. 8 Tony DeAngelo (WVU), 7-2
1st Consolation: No. 8 Tony DeAngelo (WVU) dec. No. 7 Nathan Boston (ISU), 4-3
2nd Consolation: No. 8 Tony DeAngelo (WVU) fall No. 5 Jarod Maynes (UVU), 4:43
Consolation semifinals: No. 2 Bryce Meredith (WYO) dec. Tony DeAngelo (WVU), 8-4
5th Place: No. 8 Tony DeAngelo (WVU) dec. No. 4 Mitch Bengtson (NDSU), 3-2 TB-2
149
Prelim: No. 8 Trevor Wilson (UVU) dec. No. 9 Zachary Moore (WVU), 11-5
1st Consolation: No. 10 John Meeks (ISU) dec. No. 9 Zachary Moore (WVU), 4-2
157
Quarterfinal: No. 6 Eleazar De Luca (UNC) dec. No. 3 Dylan Cottrell (WVU), 2-1
2nd Consolation: No. 3 Dylan Cottrell (WVU) major dec. No. 8 Raider Lofthouse (UVU), 15-6
Consolation Semifinal: No. 3 Dylan Cottrell (WVU) dec. N. 4 Archie Colgan (WYO), 4-2
3rd Place: No. 3 Dylan Cottrell (WVU) dec. Eleazar De Luca (UNC), 6-0
165
Quarterfinal: No. 4 Connor Flynn (WVU) dec. No. 5 Luke Zilverburg (SDSU), 4-2
Semifinal: No. 1 Alex Dieringer (OSU) tech. fall No. 4 Connor Flynn (WVU), 16-1 (4:05)
Consolation Semifinals: No. 4 Connor Flynn (WVU) dec. No. 9 Matt Billingsley (AF), 7-3
3rd Place: No. 3 Clark Class (OU) dec. No. 4 Connor Flynn (WVU), 5-0
174
Quarterfinal: No. 3 Lelund Weatherspoon (ISU) dec. No. 6 Ross Renzi (WVU), 5-3
2nd Consolation: No. 6 Ross Renzi (WVU) major dec. No. 7 Aaron Jackson (AF), 11-3
Consolation Semifinal: No. 4 David Kocer (SDSU) dec. No. 6 Ross Renzi (WVU), 3-2 TB-2
5th Place: No. 5 Ross Taylor (UVU) fall No. 4 Ross Renzi (WVU), 2:41
184
Quarterfinal: No. 3 Bubba Scheffel (WVU) dec. No. 6 Andrew Dixon (OU), 3-2
Semifinal: No. 2 Nolan Boyd (OSU) major dec. No. 3 Bubba Scheffel (WVU), 10-1
Consolation Semifinals: No. 3 Bubba Scheffel (WVU) dec. No. 8 Ben Stroh (WYO), 13-7
3rd Place: No. 3 Bubba Scheffel (WVU) dec. No. 4 Dane Pestano (ISU), 4-0
197
Quarterfinal: No. 9 Pat Downey (ISU) dec. No. 1 Jacob A. Smith (WVU), 4-1
1st Consolation: No. 1 Jacob A. Smith (WVU) dec. No. 10 Logan Paxton (NDSU), 4-1
2nd Consolation: No. 1 Jacob A. Smith (WVU) dec No. 4 Parker Hines (AF), 7-4
Consolation Semifinals: No. 3 Trent Noon (UNC) dec. No. 1 Jacob A. Smith (WVU), 3-2
5th Place: No. 6 Derek Thomas (UVU dec. No. 1 Jacob A. Smith (WVU), 4-2 SV-1
HWT
Prelim: No. 8 A.J. Vizcarrondo (WVU) dec. No. 9 Alex Macki (SDSU), 2-0
1st Consolation: No. 8 A.J. Vizcarrondo (WVU) dec. No. 10 Jack Kuck (UNC), 5-1
2nd Consolation: No. 4 Ben Tynan (NDSU) dec. A.J. Vizcarrondo (WVU), 7-1
WVU Sixth After Two Sessions at Big 12s
KANSAS CITY (March 5, 2016) – After a rocky first session, the West Virginia University wrestling team used a pair of pins in the consolation bracket to move up to sixth place after day one of action at the 2016 Big 12 Wrestling Championship at Sprint Center in Kansas City on Saturday.
The Mountaineers found themselves in ninth place after the preliminary and quarterfinal matches, but scored 31.5 points in Session II to move into sixth place. Oklahoma State sits atop the leaderboard with 140.5 points, followed by Iowa State in second with 72 and Oklahoma in third with 70.5.
No. 4 seed Connor Flynn won a 4-2 decision over South Dakota State’s Luke Zilverburg, the No. 5 seed, to in the 165-pound quarterfinals to advance to the evening semifinals. He dropped a 16-1 tech. fall to No. 1 Alex Dieringer in the semis to move to the consolation semifinals where he will face No. 9 Michael Billingsley of Air Force.
Bubba Scheffel, the No. 3 seed at 184 pounds, won a 3-2 decision over No. 6 Andrew Dixon of Oklahoma to move to the semifinals. He dropped a 10-1 decision to No. 2 Nolan Boyd of Oklahoma State and will wrestle in Sunday’s consolation semifinals against No. 8 seed Benjamin Stroh of Wyoming.
No. 8 Keegan Moore won a 13-2 major decision over Wyoming’s No. 9 Drake Foster in the 133-pound preliminaries before dropping a 14-5 major to defending National Champion and No. 1 seed Cody Brewer of Oklahoma. In the consolation bracket, he pinned No. 10 seed Nico Colunga of North Dakota State in 3:53 before winning a 3-2 decision over No. 5 seed Brance Simms of South Dakota State to earn his spot in the consolation semifinals. He will face Oklahoma State’s Gary Wayne Harding, the No. 6 seed.
Tony DeAngelo entered as the No. 8 seed at 141 and started with a 16-0 first-period tech. fall of No. 9 Ben Polkowske of Northern Colorado before dropping a 7-2 decision to No. 1 Dean Heil of OSU. DeAngelo bounced back with a 4-3 decision against No. 7 Nathan Boston of Iowa State before a thrilling pin of No. 5 Jarod Maynes of Utah Valley in 4:43. He will take on No. 2 Bryce Meredith of Wyoming in the consolation semifinals.
After dropped a 2-1 decision to No. 6 Eleazer DeLuca in the 157-pound quarterfinals, No. 3 Dylan Cottrell bounced back with a 15-6 major decision of No. 8 Raider Lofthouse of UVU. He is set to square off with No. 4 Archie Colgan of Wyoming Sunday morning.
No. 6 seed Ross Renzi dropped his quarterfinal bout, 5-3, to No. 3 Lelund Weatherspoon at 165 before winning an 11-3 major decision over No. 7 Andrew Jackson of Air Force. He will meet No. 4 David Kocer of South Dakota State in the consolation semifinals.
After a shocking loss to No. 9 Pat Downey of Iowa State in the 197-pound quarterfinals in a 4-1 decision, No. 1 seed Jacob A. Smith won a 4-1 decision over NDSU’s Logan Paxton, the No. 10 seed, and took a 7-4 decision from No. 4 Parker Hines of Air Force. He will face UNC’s No. 3 Trent Noon in Sunday’s session.
Session II starts at 10 a.m. ET Sunday morning at Sprint Center. Wrestlers who advance in from the consolation semifinals will wrestle in the third-place match, while wrestlers who drop their semifinal bouts will compete in the fifth-place match Sunday morning.
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