The West Virginia Wrestling Team took to the mats in Philadelphia, PA at the Wells Fargo Center for the first day of the NCAA Championships. Five Mountaineers represented WVU, with Jett Strickenberger and Peyton Hall being the standouts of the night. Read more WVU Wrestling Wraps Up Day 1 at NCAA Championships.
Representing WVU
The five Mountaineers to represent WVU are Jett Strickenberger (125, senior), Jordan Titus (141, redshirt junior), Peyton Hall (165, fifth-year), Dennis Robin (184, redshirt senior), and Ian Bush (197, redshirt sophomore).
Round 1 Recap
Senior Jett Strickenberger, weighing in at 125, secured a solid 7-2 victory over Tristan Daugherty, who represented North Dakota State.
Peyton Hall (165) was ranked in the No. 2 seed and dominated with his performance over Wisconsin’s Cody Goebel. His victory came with a 19-1 technical fall.
Jordan Titus (141) put up a strong fight but ultimately fell to No. 2 Beau Bartlett of Penn State in a 4-2 decision.
Dennis Robin (184) and Ian Bush (197) both unfortunately lost their respective matches to Berge 8-2, and Ferrari 8-1.
Round 1 Results:
125: No. 6 Jett Strickenberger dec. No. 27 Tristan Daugherty, 7-2
141: No. 2 Beau Bartlett dec. No. 31 Jordan Titus, 4-2
165: No. 2 Peyton Hall tech. fall No. 31 Cody Goebel, 19-1
184: No. 5 Bennett Berge dec. No. 28 Dennis Robin, 8-2
197: No. 3 AJ Ferrari dec. No. 30 Ian Bush, 8-1
READ: WVU Baseball Uses Strong Pitching to Defeat James Madison to Reach 18-1
Round 2 Recap
With two crucial victories in the second round, the Mountaineers came back to life. Continuing his strong run, Strickenberger earned a major decision of 18-6 over No. 11 Rivera (Wisconsin).
Hall also performed impressively once again, defeating Mayfield (Northwestern) by a technical fall, 20-4, securing his spot in the quarterfinals.
Bush fought hard to win his first consolation match against Floyd of Appalachian State, by a 5-4 decision. This win quickly dissipated with an unfortunate loss to Glazier of SDSU in a close 4-3 decision.
Titus and Robin were unable to advance, as Titus lost in overtime to Olivieri (4-1) and Robin fell to DuVall (13-0) in the consolation bracket.
Round 2 Results
125: Jett Strickenberger major dec. No. 11 Nicolar Rivera, 18-6
141: No. 15 Joseph Olivieri dec. No. 31 Jordan Titus, 4-1 (OT)
165: No. 2 Peyton Hall tech. fall No. 18 Maxx Mayfield, 20-4
184: No. 21 Malachi DuVall major dec. No 28 Dennis Robin, 13-0
197: No. 30 Ian Bush dec. No. 33 Carson Floyd, 5-4
197: No. 14 Zach Glazier dec. No. 30 Ian Bush, 4-3
Looking Ahead
Both Strickenberger and Hall will advance to the quarterfinals tomorrow, March 21st. Titus, Robin, and Bush will attempt to make their way through the consolation bracket to extend their runs in the championships.
The remainder of the NCAA Championships will take place on March 21st (Noon/8pm) and 22nd (11a.m./7p.m.)
You can find the matches on ESPN.
