ST. LOUIS—Iowa State advances all but one of its tournament high 10 qualifiers, taking the lead after the first round of the NCAA wrestling championships with 25 points.
Top-ranked Iowa, the prohibitive favorite to repeat as champion, was second with 22 points and eight wrestlers alive in the championship bracket. Ohio State was third with 17.5 points and Boise State and Nebraska were tied for fourth at 15.
Iowa State, coached by four-time champion Cael Sanderson, was the only school to qualify a wrestler in every class. The Cyclones shared the Big 12 title with Nebraska and entered the tournament ranked third behind Iowa and Cornell.
Iowa State’s David Zabriskie, the top seed at heavyweight, needed a takedown in overtime to beat Christopher Bircler of East Stroudsburg 6-4. Iowa’s Brent Metcalf (34-0), the defending champion and top seed at 149, ran his winning streak to 66 in a row with a pin over Bucknell’s Kevin LeValley.
Cornell’s Mack Lewnes was the lone top seed to lose, falling 4-3 to unseeded Ryan Patrovich of Hofstra at 165 pounds. Lewnes had been 35-0 and one of 12 unbeaten wrestlers entering the tournament.
Iowa State’s David Zabriskie, the top seed at heavyweight, needed a takedown in overtime to beat Christopher Birchler of East Stroudsburg.
Nebraska 197-pound Craig Bressler was the only top seed to wrestle twice in the opening round, running up big scores with a 16-3 victory over Charles Silber of American in a pigtail match and Joe Fagiano of Hofstra 10-3.
Notes:@ Reece Humphrey of Ohio State pinned Pittsburgh’s Jimmy Conroy in 12 seconds, the third-fasted fall in modern tournament history. The fastest pin is nine seconds by Clarence Richardson of Louisiana State at 177 pounds in the opening round in 1983. … The Big Ten led all conferences with five top seeds, with the Big 12 getting three. … Northern Illinois’ Tristen DeShazer earned his 16th pin in 34 matches.
