Sebastian Rivera is not the only Rutgers wrestler that will be standing on the podium Saturday night. True freshman John Poznanski clinched his first All-American status with an 8 – 4 win over Lou DePrez.
Poznanski, by seeding, was the underdog in this match. DePrez, who came into the tournament as the third seed, had not been beaten all season. The winner of the bout would move on to the semi-finals of the 184-lb bracket, and secure a top six placement in the tournament.
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Poznanski was down 2 – 1 heading into the second period, when he shifted control of the match. In the second period Poznanski chose defense, and was successful in reversing DePrez, making the score 2 – 1 in favor of Poznanski. DePrez was unable to get out before the end of the second period, influencing his decision to choose neutral for the start of the third period.
DePrez did take Poznanski down, but gave Poznanski an escape shortly after, which tied the match at 4 – 4. DePrez was able to get back into a leg attack, but was ruled out of bounds before he could secure the takedown. The Binghamton corner challenged the call twice, being unsuccessful both times.
On the restart, with short time, Poznanski hit a low double-leg to score two points on DePrez, while putting DePrez to his back for a two-point near-fall count. Poznanski would keep DePrez down the rest of the match to win by decision, 8 – 4. This is the first, of what will likely be many, All-American finishes for Poznanski in his career.
In tonight’s semi-final, Poznanski will face the second seed Trent Hidlay. Hidlay and Poznanski wrestle very similar styles, where both wrestlers like to wrestle fast paced matches and stay aggressive. The winner of the bout will see Aaron Brooks or Parker Keckeisen in the 184-lb final tomorrow night.
Jackson Turley may not be on the podium, yet, but he kept his All-American hopes alive this afternoon. Turley would wrestle two matches in the Friday afternoon session. First, taking on Donnell Washington of Indiana.
Washington, who came in as the ninth seed, was completely dominated by Turley. Turley put up fourteen points in the first period, with a series of takedowns and tilts. Turley would go into the second period up 14 – 2.
To start the second period, Turley chose defense, with just two points away from a technical fall. Turley reversed Washington in short time, giving him the 16 – 2 victory early in the second period. That would set Turley up with a match against Ben Pasiuk of Army. Pasiuk was the seventeenth seed, and fell to top-seeded Michael Kemerer in the pre-quarterfinals.
Turley started a bit slower this match, being taken down by Pasiuk in the first period. Turley was able to escape, with the period ending 2 – 1 with Pasiuk out in front.
In the second period Jackson Turley’s motor kicked in. Turley escaped from Pasiuk right off the whistle, and ended up in a front head position. Pasiuk reached up with his right arm, giving Turley the opportunity for a cement-job pin attempt. Turley ran Pasiuk right over, and had his shoulders flat in seconds for a Jackson Turley pinfall.
This sends Turley to one of the most exciting rounds in all of wrestling – the bloodround. If Turley wins, he secures a spot on the 174-lb podium. With a loss, Turley’s All-American chances and season come to an end.
Turley’s opponent will be the sixth seed Andrew McNally of Kent State. McNally, who is a three-time national qualifier, lost hist quarterfinal match to Penn State’s Carter Starocci, 6 – 3.
Wrestling will resume at 8:00 PM ET, where all three remaining Scarlet Knights will wrestle. Fans will be able to watch the semi-finals on ESPN, with the wrestleback matches being streamed on ESPN 3.
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