Michigan
NCAA Championships (Day 1)
Wolverines Advance Five to NCAA Quarterfinals
3/15/2018 11:10:00 PM | Wrestling
» Michigan sits in fourth place at the NCAA Championships with all eight wrestlers still alive after the first day of action -- five in the quarterfinals and three in the consolation bracket.
» Stevan Micic (133 pounds), Alec Pantaleo (157), Myles Amine (174), Domenic Abounader (184) and Adam Coon (Hwt) all posted 2-0 records to advance to the NCAA quarterfinals.
» Drew Mattin (125), Malik Amine (149) and Logan Massa (165) are all in the wrestlebacks after close decision losses.
Site: Cleveland, Ohio (Quicken Loans Arena)
Event: NCAA Wrestling Championships (Day 1 of 3)
U-M Team Standing: Fourth Place of 58 Teams (23 points)
Next U-M Event: Friday, March 16 -- NCAA Championships, Day 2 (Cleveland, Ohio), 11 a.m.
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CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The University of Michigan wrestling team advanced five into the quarterfinal round at the 2018 NCAA Championships on Thursday (March 15) in front of a crowd of 18,680 at Quicken Loans Arena. The Wolverines have three additional wrestlers alive in the consolation bracket and sit in fourth place (23 points) after the first day of competition.
Junior/sophomore Stevan Micic, senior/junior Alec Pantaleo, junior/sophomore Myles Amine, fifth-year senior Domenic Abounader and graduate student Adam Coon all registered perfect first-day records to advance to the quarterfinals and combined for a 10-0 tally. It is the third NCAA quarterfinal appearance for Coon and second for Micic, Pantaleo and Amine.
Micic, seeded second at 133 pounds, earned back-to-back major decisions to secure bonus points for the Wolverines. He cruised to a 12-3 win against Kent State's Anthony Tutolo in the second round, scoring on four takedowns -- three in the first period -- and riding out the third period to accumulate 3:29 in advantage time. He was equally dominant against North Carolina's Zach Sherman in the first period, winning, 16-5, on four takedowns, a four-point leg turk, a late reversal and 2:28 in riding-time advantage. The Wolverine finished fourth in his NCAA debut last season.
Pantaleo, seeded fifth at 157 pounds, also earned a major decision in his opening bout before he claimed a 3-2 decision against Duke's Mitch Finesilver in the second round on a late counter go-behind in the final 25 seconds of the first period. Earlier, Pantaleo earned his bonus point with a 12-4 win against Lehigh's Ian Brown in the first round to avenge an earlier-season loss in the dual meet. Pantaleo scored five takedowns in that contest, which included a late go-behind to secure the major, and rode for 1:39. Pantaleo was a 149-pound NCAA All-American two years ago before redshirting last season.
Myles Amine, seeded fifth at 174 pounds, was dominant on the day as he outscored his opposition, 24-3, to advance to the quarterfinals for the second time in as many NCAA appearances. He used a big third period to claim an 18-3 technical fall against Appalachian State's Forrest Przbysz in the second round. Amine scored on four takedowns -- one in the waning seconds of the third to secure the tech -- as well as a reversal, four back points and 1:14 riding-time advantage. Amine, who finished fourth at the NCAA tournament a year ago, scored a pair of takedowns and rode for 2:27 to beat Columbia's Tyrel White, 6-0, in the opening round.
Abounader, seeded fifth at 184 pounds, battled through a pair of decision wins to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time in four NCAA appearances. He was in control throughout a 4-0 decision against Minnesota's Brandon Krone before he hung on to claim a wild 11-10 decision against Lock Haven's Corey Hazel in the second round. Abounader, who scored two takedowns and a reversal in the bout, led by one at the start of the third period and, after 13 combined points, still led by one at the conclusion. Hazel knotted up the bout on a takedown with just 13 seconds remaining but was immediately called for locked hands and the penalty point proved the difference.
Coon, seeded second at heavyweight, earned two bonus points on the opening day which included a first-period pin against Lock Haven's Thomas Haines in the second round. Coon earned two feet-to-back scores in the first period, ending the bout at 1:46 with a throw from his over-under position. Coon, already a two-time All-American, also cruised to a 12-3 major decision against George Mason's Matt Voss in the first round. Coon scored on five takedowns and rode for 2:27.
Mattin and Massa dropped their quarterfinal matches to drop into the wrestlebacks at 125 and 165 pounds, respectively, while senior/junior Malik Amine bounced back from a first-round loss to stay alive with a 149-pound wrestleback win.
Mattin split a pair of matches against seeded opponents. He picked up a pin -- his fifth of the season -- against Northern Iowa's 16th-seeded Jay Schwarm, while trailing, 3-0, in the second period. Schwarm started down in the frame and when he attempted a roll, Mattin caught him and put him on his back for the pin at 3:50. The Wolverine freshman fell to Lehigh's top-seeded -- and the defending NCAA champion -- Darian Cruz, 1-0, on a second-period escape in the second round.
Massa, seeded seventh, dropped a 9-6 decision to Wisconsin's 10th-seeded Evan Wick in the second round; the Badger wrestler has handed Massa three losses on the season. Massa took the initial lead but couldn't finish on several shots and ensuing scrambles, one that resulted in a Wick takedown on review in the second. Wick added another counter takedown to ice the bout in the third. Massa earned bonus in the first round and cruised to a 16-5 major decision against SIU-Edwardsville's Nate Higgins on seven takedowns -- four in the first period -- and 3:12 riding-time advantage.
Amine nearly pulled off a major upset in the first round when he went to tiebreakers with Ohio State's fifth-seeded Ke-Shawn Hayes before falling, 6-5, on a stall point and reversal. Amine scored first on a takedown in the opening period and rode out the third period to force overtime. He scored a reversal to take a two-point lead in the first of two 30-second goes in the tiebreaker but could not hang on.
Amine bounced back with a gutty win in the evening wrestleback round, when he used a late reversal to edge American's Michael Sprague, 7-6, to stay alive for another day. Amine knotted up the score with a scramble takedown with just two seconds left in the second period and, after being ridden for the majority of the third to give up riding time, he hit a reversal with just 25 seconds remaining and rode out the bout for the win.
Michigan will resume competition at the NCAA Championships on Friday (March 16) at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. The morning session will begin at 11 a.m. and will feature quarterfinal matches and continued wrestleback competition.
Top 10 Teams (After Day 1)
1. Ohio State                 36.0 2. Penn State                  28.5 3. Iowa                        27.0 4. MICHIGAN                   23.0 5. NC State                    20.0 6. Missouri                    19.0 7. Cornell                     15.0 Oklahoma State        15.0 9. Lehigh                      14.5 Virginia Tech              14.5
Michigan Results (Day 1)
Numbers listed are tournament seedings
125 Pounds -- Drew Mattin
First Round - pinned #16 Jay Schwarm (Northern Iowa), 3:50
Second Round - dec. by #1 Darian Cruz (Lehigh), 1-0
Consolations - vs. Gabe Townsell (Stanford)
133 Pounds -- #2 Stevan Micic
First Round - major dec. Zach Sherman (North Carolina), 16-5
Second Round - major dec. Anthony Tutolo (Kent State), 12-3
Quarterfinals - vs. #7 Austin DeSanto (Drexel)
149 Pounds -- Malik Amine
First Round - dec. by #5 Ke-Shawn Hayes (Ohio State), 6-5 TB
Consolations - dec. Michael Sprague (American), 7-6
Consolations - vs. #6 Justin Oliver (Central Michigan)
157 Pounds -- #5 Alec Pantaleo
First Round - major dec. Ian Brown (Lehigh), 12-4
Second Round - dec. #12 Mitch Finesilver (Duke), 3-2
Quarterfinals - #13 Luke Zilverberg (South Dakota State)
165 Pounds -- #7 Logan Massa
First Round - major dec. Nate Higgins (SIUE), 16-5
Second Round - dec. by #10 Evan Wick (Wisconsin), 9-6
Consolations - vs. #8 Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma State)
174 Pounds -- #5 Myles Amine
First Round - dec. Tyrel White (Columbia), 6-0
Second Round - tech. fall #12 Forrest Przbysz (Appalachian State), 18-3 (7:00)
Quarterfinals - vs. #4 Jordan Kutler (Lehigh)
184 Pounds -- #5 Domenic Abounader
First Round - dec. Brandon Krone (Minnesota), 4-0
Second Round - dec. Corey Hazel (Lock Haven), 11-10
Quarterfinals - vs. #4 Pete Renda (NC State)
Heavyweight -- #2 Adam Coon
First Round - major dec. Matt Voss (George Mason), 12-3
Second Round - pinned #15 Thomas Haines (Lock Haven), 1:46
Quarterfinals - vs. #7 Nathan Butler (Stanford)
Players Mentioned
