Wrestling Sends Five to 2021 NCAA Championships

Thursday, March 18

St. Louis, MO

Rutgers University

NCAA Championships

Photo by: Ben Solomon/Rutgers Athletics

Wrestling Sends Five to 2021 NCAA Championships

Mar 17 | Wrestling

2021 NCAA Championship Notes 2021 NCAA Bracket Full ESPN Coverage Schedule Radio: WRSU (88.7 FM)Scott Goodale Press Conference: NCAA Preview Live Results

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers wrestling finishes its season at the 2021 NCAA Wrestling Championships from March 18-20 in St. Louis. Five Scarlet Knights – Sebastian Rivera (141), Michael VanBrill (149), Jackson Turley (174), John Poznanski (184) and Billy Janzer (197) – will vie for All-America status and national titles during the three-day tournament.

ESPN will once again provide coverage of every match of the NCAA Championships, with a full coverage breakdown for all three days found below. WRSU (88.7 FM) will also broadcast all of the Scarlet Knights' matches, which begin with Session I at 11 a.m. ET on Thursday.

Thursday Schedule

Time (ET)	Session	TV/Stream
11 a.m.	Session 1A (First Round, 5 weight classes)	ESPNU/ESPN3
2 p.m.	Session 1B (First Round, 5 weight classes)	ESPNU/ESPN3
6 p.m.	Session 2A (Second Round and Wrestlebacks)	ESPN2/ESPN3
9 p.m.	Session 2B (Second Round and Wrestlebacks)	ESPN2/ESPN3

Friday Schedule

Time (ET)	Session	TV/Stream
11 a.m.	Session 3 (Quarterfinals and Wrestlebacks)	ESPNU/ESPN3
3 p.m.	Session 4 (Quarterfinals and Wrestlebacks)	ESPNU/ESPN3
8 p.m.	Session 5 (Semifinals and Wrestlebacks)	ESPN/ESPN3

Saturday Schedule

Time (ET)	Session	TV/Stream
11 a.m.	Session 6 (Medal Rounds)	ESPN2/ESPN3
6 p.m.	Session 7 (Finals)	ESPN

NCAA Lineup

Wrestler	Hometown	Seed	2021 Record	B1G Finish
Sebastian Rivera (141)	Toms River, N.J.	No. 3	8-1	Third
Michael VanBrill (149)	Mullica Hill, N.J.	No. 10	5-4	Third
Jackson Turley (174)	Chester, Va.	No. 26	6-3	DNP
John Poznanski (184)	Colonia, N.J.	No. 6	7-2	Third
Billy Janzer (197)	Elk Twp., N.J.	No. 33	3-5	Eighth

What to Know

• With its five qualifiers, RU has now qualified five or more student-athletes for the national tournament for the seventh consecutive season under head coach Scott Goodale.
• Rivera (No. 3), Poznanski (No. 6) and VanBrill (No. 10) all earned top-10 seeds for this year's NCAA Championships, just the second time Rutgers has had three or more top-10 seeds at the tournament under Goodale.
• The Scarlet Knights look to secure two or more All-Americans for the sixth consecutive season, as Nicolas Aguilar (125) and Sammy Alvarez (133) were named NWCA All-Americans last year by the coaches after the 2020 NCAA Championships were cancelled due to COVID-19.
• Rutgers went three-for-three in its consolation final matches at the Big Ten Championships in its last time out, as Poznanski, Rivera, VanBrill all finished third in their respective weight classes last weekend at Penn State. It marked the most top three individual results at the conference tournament since the Scarlet Knights joined in 2015. With eighth-place finisher Janzer, RU produced four podium finishes at Big Tens heading into this weekend's NCAA Championships.

Last Time at the NCAA Championships

• Rutgers made history in its last NCAA Championships appearance, as Nick Suriano (133) and Anthony Ashnault (149) captured the first individual titles for the program at the 2019 NCAA Championships in Pittsburgh. The titles helped the Scarlet Knights secure their first top-10 finish at the national tournament, as head coach Scott Goodale was named NCAA Tournament Coach of the Year.
• Suriano downed No. 1 seed Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) in a wild overtime match to claim the 133-pound title, while Ashnault defeated No. 2 seed Micah Jordan (Ohio State) to earn the 149-pound individual crown. Suriano rallied for a 4-2 triumph in the second sudden-victory period. Ashnault earned a 9-4 win to complete an undefeated 32-0 season.
• With Peter Lipari, John VanBrill, Joseph Grello and Nicholas Gravina also wrestling at nationals, Rutgers finished with a program-record 51.5 team points for its ninth-place finish.

More NCAA Context

• The five at NCAAs this season marks the seventh consecutive season five or more wrestlers have qualified for nationals under head coach Scott Goodale.
• In total, 81 Scarlet Knights have qualified for NCAAs during Goodale's tenure, the most in program history.
• Seven individuals have combined for 12 All-America accolades since Goodale took over the program during the 2007-08 season, also a program standard.
• Rutgers has had two or more All-Americans in each of the past six seasons after Nicolas Aguilar and Sammy Alvarez collected NWCA honors a year ago. For context, RU only finished with multiple All-Americans once prior to Goodale taking over the program, when Emil Perona (157) and Ray Vohden (177) both finished fourth in 1952.

Follow Rutgers Athletics on Facebook (/RutgersAthletics) and Twitter (@RUAthletics) for all of the latest news and updates. For specific updates regarding Rutgers wrestling, follow the program on Twitter (@RUWrestling) and Instagram (@RUWrestling). Fans can receive timely information, including special offers and giveaways throughout the year on our social media outlets along with www.ScarletKnights.com. For additional updates, please download the Gameday App.