Three Falcons Remain After First Day of NCAA Wrestling Championships
3/16/2023 10:36:00 PM | Wrestling
TULSA, OK – Air Force's Tucker Owens, Cody Phippen and Wyatt Hendrickson will head into the second day of action with All-America dreams intact after a Thursday packed full of action at the 2023 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Tulsa's BOK Center. As a team, the Falcons are tied for 20th in a field of 67 Division I teams.
QUICK HITS
-Tucker Owens knocked off two higher seeds enroute to the second day, highlighted by an upset win over 17-seed Ethan Berginc of Army who was a top-20 wrestler in 2023.
-Cody Phippen stunned the arena when he turned a reversal into a pin over three-time NCAA qualifier and No. 11-seed Dylan Ragusin at the 2:02 mark.
-Wyatt Hendrickson continued to build his case for the NCAA's Most Dominant wrestler award with two bonus point decisions on the day. Hendrickson pinned (31) Trevor Tinker (POLY) in 1:54 and posted a major decision over (15) Grady Griess (NAVY), 14-1.
-At the end of the first session, Air Force was tied at 14th with Arizona State and Oklahoma State with seven team points. At the end of the day, the Falcons were knotted up with North Dakota State at 20th place with 9.5 points.
FOR THOSE WHO SERVE
Air Force leads service academy rivals Army and Navy in the team race. Navy is tied for 45th with two points while Army is tied at 56th with a half point. Air Force went 2-0 in service academy matches on the day.
(33) Tucker Owens (AF) over (17) Ethan Berginc (ARMY), 9-7 dec
(2) Wyatt Hendrickson (15) over Grady Griess (NAVY), 14-1 MD
A LOOK AT THE BIG 12
With all Big 12 teams but one in attendance (California Baptist), the Falcons are tied with North Dakota State for fifth in the league of 13 teams competing. Missouri leads the conference at third (17.5), Iowa State follow at 13th (12.0), while Northern Iowa is 15th (11.0) and South Dakota State is 16th (10.5).
TOP 25 TEAM SCORES
1 Penn State 26.0
2 Iowa 21.5
3 Missouri 17.5
4 Minnesota 16.5
4 NC State 16.5
6 Cornell 15.5
6 Nebraska 15.5
8 Michigan 14.5
8 Ohio State 14.5
10 Arizona State 13.0
10 Virginia Tech 13.0
10 Wisconsin 13.0
13 Iowa State 12.0
13 Northwestern 12.0
15 Northern Iowa 11.0
16 South Dakota State 10.5
17 Illinois 10.0
17 Oklahoma State 10.0
17 Stanford 10.0
20 Air Force 9.5
20 North Dakota State 9.5
22 Lehigh 9.0
22 North Carolina 9.0
24 Princeton 8.0
25 Maryland 7.5
25 Pittsburgh 7.5
WHAT'S TO COME
Owens will meet with (15) Bret Ungar (Cornell) in tomorrow's opening consolation round while Phippen will take on (12) Chris Cannon of Northwestern. On the championship side of the bracket, Hendrickson meets with (10) Zach Elam (Missouri). Action starts at 11 a.m. CT Friday morning in the BOK Center.
Tucker Owens, 125
Owens checked another box with his first NCAA Tournament win over (32) Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 2-1. In the following round he met with three-time national champ (1) Spencer Lee (Iowa) where he lost by fall. In the first service academy rivalry match of his young career, Owens let it fly and knocked off Army rival (17) Ethan Berginc, 9-7, to keep his All-America dream alive. Owens will meet with (15) Bret Ungar (Cornell) in tomorrow's opening consolation round.
(33) Tucker Owens (AF) over (32) Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 2-1 dec
(1) Spencer Lee (IOWA) over (33) Tucker Owens (AF), fall (0:36)
(33) Tucker Owens (AF) over (17) Ethan Berginc (ARMY), 9-7 dec
Cody Phippen, 133
Phippen let it fly with a slick reversal that led to a pin to knock off three-time NCAA qualifier (11) Dylan Ragusin (MICH) at the 2:02 mark. Phippen met with returning All-American (6) Sam Latona of Virginia Tech. The Hokie narrowly escaped Phippen with a 2-1 decision win—a promising showing for the Falcon wrestler. Phippen will take on two-time All-American (12) Chris Cannon of Northwestern in the opening consolation round of the second day.
(22) Cody Phippen (AF) over (11) Dylan Ragusin (MICH), fall (2:02)
(6) Sam Latona (VT) over (22) Cody Phippen (AF), 2-1 dec
Dylan Martinez, 149
Martinez took (3) Kyle Parco of Arizona State in his opening bout, dropping the contest by major decision. In the second session, Martinez was first to battle in the consolation bracket, dropping a tight match to (32) Isaiah Delgado (UVU), 5-2. Martinez concludes his time at Air Force with two Big 12 podiums and 55 career wins. He will serve as a Civil Engineering officer upon graduation.
(3) Kyle Parco (ASU) over (30) Dylan Martinez (AF), 18-6 MD
(32) Isaiah Delgado (UVU) over (30) Dylan Martinez (AF), 5-2 Dec.
Sam Wolf, 174
Wolf took on (17) Donnel Washington of Indiana in his opening bout. Despite nagging injury, Wolf left it all on the mat but ultimately fell to the Hoosier. Wolf met with (33) John Worthing in the consolation bracket. Fighting through the persistent injury, Wolf refused to back down. At the final whistle, Wolf was unable to turn on a scoring offense, falling to Worthing, 12-1. Wolf concludes his 2022-23 campaign with an impressive 14-4 overall record and a perfect 5-0 mark in Big 12 dual action.
(17) Donnel Washington (IND) over (16) Sam Wolf (AF), 17-2 TF
(33) John Worthing (CLAR) over (16) Sam Wolf (33), 12-1 MD
Wyatt Hendrickson, 285
Hendrickson continued to make his case for Most Dominant wrestler with a pair of bonus point wins en route to the quarter finals. Wyatt began the journey by pinning (31) Trevor Tinker (Cal Poly) in 1:54. Hendrickson was one-of-two heavyweights to win by fall in the opening round. In Air Force's final bout of day one, Hendrickson met with (15) Grady Griess (NAVY). Hendrickson scored his first takedown just six seconds into the bout and escaped from the second-period bottom position in just four seconds. With more than five minutes of riding time in his favor, Hendrickson began to tally offensive points in the third period, landing a 14-1 major decision of the Midshipman. Tomorrow, Hendrickson meets with Big 12 foe (10) Zach Elam (Missouri).
(2) Wyatt Hendrickson over (31) over Trevor Tinker (POLY), fall (1:54)
(2) Wyatt Hendrickson (15) over Grady Griess (NAVY), 14-1 MD
QUICK HITS
-Tucker Owens knocked off two higher seeds enroute to the second day, highlighted by an upset win over 17-seed Ethan Berginc of Army who was a top-20 wrestler in 2023.
-Cody Phippen stunned the arena when he turned a reversal into a pin over three-time NCAA qualifier and No. 11-seed Dylan Ragusin at the 2:02 mark.
-Wyatt Hendrickson continued to build his case for the NCAA's Most Dominant wrestler award with two bonus point decisions on the day. Hendrickson pinned (31) Trevor Tinker (POLY) in 1:54 and posted a major decision over (15) Grady Griess (NAVY), 14-1.
-At the end of the first session, Air Force was tied at 14th with Arizona State and Oklahoma State with seven team points. At the end of the day, the Falcons were knotted up with North Dakota State at 20th place with 9.5 points.
FOR THOSE WHO SERVE
Air Force leads service academy rivals Army and Navy in the team race. Navy is tied for 45th with two points while Army is tied at 56th with a half point. Air Force went 2-0 in service academy matches on the day.
(33) Tucker Owens (AF) over (17) Ethan Berginc (ARMY), 9-7 dec
(2) Wyatt Hendrickson (15) over Grady Griess (NAVY), 14-1 MD
A LOOK AT THE BIG 12
With all Big 12 teams but one in attendance (California Baptist), the Falcons are tied with North Dakota State for fifth in the league of 13 teams competing. Missouri leads the conference at third (17.5), Iowa State follow at 13th (12.0), while Northern Iowa is 15th (11.0) and South Dakota State is 16th (10.5).
TOP 25 TEAM SCORES
1 Penn State 26.0
2 Iowa 21.5
3 Missouri 17.5
4 Minnesota 16.5
4 NC State 16.5
6 Cornell 15.5
6 Nebraska 15.5
8 Michigan 14.5
8 Ohio State 14.5
10 Arizona State 13.0
10 Virginia Tech 13.0
10 Wisconsin 13.0
13 Iowa State 12.0
13 Northwestern 12.0
15 Northern Iowa 11.0
16 South Dakota State 10.5
17 Illinois 10.0
17 Oklahoma State 10.0
17 Stanford 10.0
20 Air Force 9.5
20 North Dakota State 9.5
22 Lehigh 9.0
22 North Carolina 9.0
24 Princeton 8.0
25 Maryland 7.5
25 Pittsburgh 7.5
WHAT'S TO COME
Owens will meet with (15) Bret Ungar (Cornell) in tomorrow's opening consolation round while Phippen will take on (12) Chris Cannon of Northwestern. On the championship side of the bracket, Hendrickson meets with (10) Zach Elam (Missouri). Action starts at 11 a.m. CT Friday morning in the BOK Center.
Tucker Owens, 125
Owens checked another box with his first NCAA Tournament win over (32) Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 2-1. In the following round he met with three-time national champ (1) Spencer Lee (Iowa) where he lost by fall. In the first service academy rivalry match of his young career, Owens let it fly and knocked off Army rival (17) Ethan Berginc, 9-7, to keep his All-America dream alive. Owens will meet with (15) Bret Ungar (Cornell) in tomorrow's opening consolation round.
(33) Tucker Owens (AF) over (32) Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 2-1 dec
(1) Spencer Lee (IOWA) over (33) Tucker Owens (AF), fall (0:36)
(33) Tucker Owens (AF) over (17) Ethan Berginc (ARMY), 9-7 dec
Cody Phippen, 133
Phippen let it fly with a slick reversal that led to a pin to knock off three-time NCAA qualifier (11) Dylan Ragusin (MICH) at the 2:02 mark. Phippen met with returning All-American (6) Sam Latona of Virginia Tech. The Hokie narrowly escaped Phippen with a 2-1 decision win—a promising showing for the Falcon wrestler. Phippen will take on two-time All-American (12) Chris Cannon of Northwestern in the opening consolation round of the second day.
(22) Cody Phippen (AF) over (11) Dylan Ragusin (MICH), fall (2:02)
(6) Sam Latona (VT) over (22) Cody Phippen (AF), 2-1 dec
Dylan Martinez, 149
Martinez took (3) Kyle Parco of Arizona State in his opening bout, dropping the contest by major decision. In the second session, Martinez was first to battle in the consolation bracket, dropping a tight match to (32) Isaiah Delgado (UVU), 5-2. Martinez concludes his time at Air Force with two Big 12 podiums and 55 career wins. He will serve as a Civil Engineering officer upon graduation.
(3) Kyle Parco (ASU) over (30) Dylan Martinez (AF), 18-6 MD
(32) Isaiah Delgado (UVU) over (30) Dylan Martinez (AF), 5-2 Dec.
Sam Wolf, 174
Wolf took on (17) Donnel Washington of Indiana in his opening bout. Despite nagging injury, Wolf left it all on the mat but ultimately fell to the Hoosier. Wolf met with (33) John Worthing in the consolation bracket. Fighting through the persistent injury, Wolf refused to back down. At the final whistle, Wolf was unable to turn on a scoring offense, falling to Worthing, 12-1. Wolf concludes his 2022-23 campaign with an impressive 14-4 overall record and a perfect 5-0 mark in Big 12 dual action.
(17) Donnel Washington (IND) over (16) Sam Wolf (AF), 17-2 TF
(33) John Worthing (CLAR) over (16) Sam Wolf (33), 12-1 MD
Wyatt Hendrickson, 285
Hendrickson continued to make his case for Most Dominant wrestler with a pair of bonus point wins en route to the quarter finals. Wyatt began the journey by pinning (31) Trevor Tinker (Cal Poly) in 1:54. Hendrickson was one-of-two heavyweights to win by fall in the opening round. In Air Force's final bout of day one, Hendrickson met with (15) Grady Griess (NAVY). Hendrickson scored his first takedown just six seconds into the bout and escaped from the second-period bottom position in just four seconds. With more than five minutes of riding time in his favor, Hendrickson began to tally offensive points in the third period, landing a 14-1 major decision of the Midshipman. Tomorrow, Hendrickson meets with Big 12 foe (10) Zach Elam (Missouri).
(2) Wyatt Hendrickson over (31) over Trevor Tinker (POLY), fall (1:54)
(2) Wyatt Hendrickson (15) over Grady Griess (NAVY), 14-1 MD
Players Mentioned
HWT
/ Wrestling
149
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
125/133
/ Wrestling
174
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