Big Ten Championships Session II: Three Punch Tickets to NCAAs
Mar 06 | Wrestling
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – Sebastian Rivera (141), Michael VanBrill (149) and John Poznanski (184) all secured spots at nationals after Session II of the 2021 Big Ten Wrestling Championships on Saturday night at Penn State. VanBrill worked back-to-back wins over ranked opponents in his consolation bracket to punch his ticket to the NCAA Championships, held March 18-20 in St. Louis.
Rivera and Poznanski both lost their championship semifinal matches, with Rivera losing a nail biter in overtime to No. 2 seed Nick Lee (Penn State), while Poznanski fell by bonus to No. 1 seed Aaron Brooks (Penn State). It marked the third time in four seasons Rutgers wrestling had multiple semifinalists at the championships under head coach Scott Goodale, as Poznanski became the first true freshman to wrestle in a Big Ten semifinal since Anthony Ashnault in 2015.
With three still alive for top-eight finishes, Rutgers is 10th with 35 team points heading into Sunday's Session III. Poznanski, Rivera and VanBrill will all wrestle tomorrow morning and can finish as high as third in their respective weight classes. Dylan Shawver (125), Brett Donner (165) and Jackson Turley (174) will also wrestle tomorrow morning in their respective ninth-place brackets.
Sunday's Session III begins at noon ET and can be watched on BTN and BTNPlus.
Session II Recap
133: (14) Shane Metzler (0-3)
141: (3) Sebastian Rivera (2-1)
149: (8) Michael VanBrill (2-1)
165: (13) Brett Donner (1-2)
174: (7) Jackson Turley (1-2)
184: (5) John Poznanski (2-1)
197: (11) Billy Janzer (1-2)
HWT: (10) Christian Colucci (1-2)
Rivera and Poznanski both lost their championship semifinal matches, with Rivera losing a nail biter in overtime to No. 2 seed Nick Lee (Penn State), while Poznanski fell by bonus to No. 1 seed Aaron Brooks (Penn State). It marked the third time in four seasons Rutgers wrestling had multiple semifinalists at the championships under head coach Scott Goodale, as Poznanski became the first true freshman to wrestle in a Big Ten semifinal since Anthony Ashnault in 2015.
With three still alive for top-eight finishes, Rutgers is 10th with 35 team points heading into Sunday's Session III. Poznanski, Rivera and VanBrill will all wrestle tomorrow morning and can finish as high as third in their respective weight classes. Dylan Shawver (125), Brett Donner (165) and Jackson Turley (174) will also wrestle tomorrow morning in their respective ninth-place brackets.
Sunday's Session III begins at noon ET and can be watched on BTN and BTNPlus.
Session II Recap
- Rivera went back-and-forth with No. 2 Lee, as he opened the highly-anticipated matchup with a takedown and another in the second. Rivera's escape in the third period moved the match to overtime, where Lee landed a last-second takedown on a wild scramble for the win.
- Poznanski wrestled hard against Brooks, who entered as the No. 1 184-pounder in the country, but was unable to earn the upset as he lost by 10-2 major decision.
- VanBrill faced No. 2 seed Max Murin (Iowa) in his first consolation bout and used a six-point move to earn the biggest win of his collegiate career. Tied 1-1 midway through the final period, VanBrill landed a takedown and then caught Murin on his back for the four-point near fall. After a Murin escape, VanBrill held on for the 7-2 decision. Murin, a 2020 All-American, entered Saturday No. 6 in the country at 149 pounds by Intermat. VanBrill then followed with a 7-2 overtime decision over No. 3 Griffin Parriott (Purdue) after he landed a takedown and four-point nearfall in the first tiebreaker to advance to the consolation semifinals. Parriot is currently ranked No. 14 by Intermat and a two-time national qualifier.
- In a rematch from earlier in the season, Billy Janzer (197) muscled a 3-2 decision over No. 9 seed Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State). However, Janzer bowed out of the tournament after his 7-4 loss to No. 5 seed Lucas Davison (Northwestern). Christian Colucci (HWT) also worked a consolation win over Garrett Kappes (Maryland) during Session II.
| Round 1 | (4) Patrick McKee (Minnesota) | W-D, 6-5 |
| Quarters | (5) Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) | L-TF, 20-4 |
| Conso Rd 2 | (10) Robert Howard (Penn State) | L-MD, 10-1 |
| 9th Place Rd 1 | (12) Jacob Moran (Indiana) | W-D, 11-7 |
| 9th Place Semis | (2) Liam Cronin (Nebraska) | Sunday - 12 p.m. ET |
133: (14) Shane Metzler (0-3)
| Round 1 | (3) Lucas Byrd (Illinois) | L-Fall (6:06) |
| Conso Round 1 | (11) Jordan Hamden (Michigan State) | L-MD, 8-0 |
| 9th Place Rd 1 | (10) Tucker Sjomeling (Nebraska) | L-Fall (5:57) |
141: (3) Sebastian Rivera (2-1)
| Round 1 | (14) Dominic Dentino (Wisconsin) | W-Fall (0:39) |
| Quarters | (11) Cayden Rooks (Indiana) | W-D, 6-1 |
| Semis | (2) Nick Lee (Penn State) | L-SV1, 8-6 |
| Consi Semis | (9) Parker Filius (Purdue) | Sunday - 12 p.m. ET |
149: (8) Michael VanBrill (2-1)
| Round 1 | (9) Peyton Omania (Michigan State) | L-D, 9-6 |
| Conso Rd 1 | Bye | |
| Conso Rd 2 | (2) Max Murin (Iowa) | W-D, 7-2 |
| Conso Quarters | (3) Griffin Parriott (Purdue) | W-TB1, 7-2 |
| Consi Semis | (5) Kanen Storr (Michigan) | Sunday - 12 p.m. ET |
165: (13) Brett Donner (1-2)
| Round 1 | (4) Camerone Amine (Michigan) | L-MD, 11-2 |
| Conso Rd 1 | (!2) David Ferrante (Northwestern) | L-D, 7-6 |
| 9th Place Rd 1 | (11) Jonathan Spadafora (Maryland) | W-MD, 12-3 |
| 9th Place Semis | (2) Dan Braunagel (Illinois) | Sunday - 12 p.m. ET |
174: (7) Jackson Turley (1-2)
| Round 1 | (10) Drew Hughes (Michigan State) | W-MD, 8-0 |
| Quarters | (2) Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) | L-D, 11-9 |
| Conso Rd 2 | (9) Jake Allar (Minnesota) | L-Fall (2:44) |
| 9th Place Rd 1 | Bye | |
| 9th Place Semis | (14) Philip Spadafora (Maryland) | Sunday - 12 p.m. ET |
184: (5) John Poznanski (2-1)
| Round 1 | (12) Jaden Bullock (Michigan) | W-D, 7-1 |
| Quarters | (4) Owen Webster (Minnesota) | W-Fall (4:55) |
| Semis | (1) Aaron Brooks (Penn State) | L-MD, 10-2 |
| Consi Semis | (3) Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) | Sunday - 12 p.m. ET |
197: (11) Billy Janzer (1-2)
| Round 1 | (7) Michael Beard (Penn State) | L-D, 7-3 |
| Conso Rd 1 | Bye | |
| Conso Rd 2 | (9) Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) | W-D, 3-2 |
| Conso Quarter | (5) Lucas Davison (Northwestern) | L-D, 7-4 |
HWT: (10) Christian Colucci (1-2)
| Round 1 | (6) Trent Hilger (Wisconsin) | L-D, 2-1 |
| Conso Rd 1 | (14) Garrett Kappes (Maryland) | W-D, 5-1 |
| Conso Rd 2 | (4) Luke Luffman (Illinois) | L-D, 5-2 |
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