March 18, 2007

NC STATE

NC State's Caldwell Ousted, Wolfpack Finished In NCAA Wrestling

Ohio State's J Jaggers pinned NC State's Darrion Caldwell at the 5:49 mark in the fourth round of the wrestlebacks at 141 pounds, eliminating Caldwell from the NCAA Wrestling Championships. Caldwell was the last Wolfpack wrestler alive in the tournament. Caldwell led for parts of the first and second periods, but a late takedown resulted in Jaggers getting Caldwell on his back. Caldwell finished the season with a 20-6 record.

Caldwell Advances to NCAA Wrestling Quarterfinals

Freshman 141-pounder Darrion Caldwell advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Wrestling Championships with a pair of victories on the opening day of the event in Detroit, Mich. Caldwell, who improved to 20-4 on the season and now has won six matches in a row and 13 of his last 14, defeated eighth-seeded Andy Simmons of

Senior heavyweight Jainor Palma, the No. 8 seed in the heavyweight division, won his first bout, 7-3 over Chris Cowan of Drexel 7-3, but fell 3-2 to ninth-seeded Michael Spaid of Bloomsburg. Palma, now 27-6, will face Colton Nichols of Cal State Bakersfield in the second-round consolation bracket on Friday morning.

At 197 pounds, sophomore the Wolfpack's Ryan Goodman fell 9-3 to fourth-seeded Phil Davis of Penn State in the opening round, but recovered in the consolation round by pinning Jeremie Cook of Lock Haven at the 6:28 mark.

NORTH CAROLINA

Sola Eliminated At NCAA Championships

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Two-time All-America and three-time ACC champion Evan Sola saw his North Carolina career come to an end Friday with a loss to Iowa's Mario Galanakis at the 2007 NCAA Wrestling Championships at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Sola is one of the most decorated wrestlers in Tar Heel history and ends his career among the program's all-time leaders in career victories and pins.

Sola Stays Alive At Nationals

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Two-time All-America Evan Sola bounced back from an opening round lost to score a pin in his first match in the consolation bracket to lead North Carolina Thursday on the opening day of the 2007 NCAA Wrestling Championships at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Additionally, heavyweight Spencer Nadolsky saw his season come to an end with a pair of overtime losses.

The No. 10 seed at 133, Sola rebounded from his first-round loss to pin Bloomsburg's Ricky Donald late in the first period at the 2:48 mark. The Wernersville, Pa., native will now face Iowa's Matt Galanakis Friday morning to try to keep his senior season alive. Sola is now 15-4 on the season, and his win Thursday was the 117th of his career, which is good for a tie for fourth on the UNC career list. He also now has 27 career pins, which stands ninth all-time.

MARYLAND

Taylor Falls Short Of All-America Status By A Point At NCAA Championships

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Redshirt freshman Hudson Taylor lost by a point, 4-3, against fifth-seeded Jerry Rinaldi of Cornell and fell just short of All-America honors at the Division I Wrestling Championships at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Michigan. The winner of the match would have been guaranteed an eighth-place finish or better as the top eight placers earn All-America accolades.

Terps Finish Day One At NCAA Championships

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - The three Maryland wrestlers representing the Terrapins at the 2007 Division I Wrestling Championships all suffered a loss on the first day of action. Senior Jason Kiessling (165) and redshirt freshman Hudson Taylor (197) both won their second round matches before losing in the third round while freshman Mike Letts (174) lost in the first round but won two matches in the wrestleback.

VIRGINIA

UVa Wrestlers Bow Out at NCAAs

Auburn Hills, MI - Virginia wrestlers Eric Albright and Rocco Caponi were knocked out of the competition at the 2007 NCAA Wrestling Championships. Both Cavaliers lost their opening matches Thursday to drop into the consolation wrestleback.

Albright managed a pair of wins in the 133-pound wrestleback Thursday but was eliminated from the tournament Friday when he dropped a 6-3 decision to Missouri's Tyler McCormick.

UVa Wrestlers Lose in NCAA Main Draw

Auburn Hills, MI - Both Virginia wrestlers competing at the NCAA Championships lost their opening matches and are now competing in the consolation bracket.

Eric Albright, wrestling in the 133-pound division, lost to Northern Iowa's Kyle Anson 8-2 in the opening round of competition. Albright rebounded with a 12-1 win against Cory VomBaur of Wyoming 12-1 in his first match in the consolation bracket. Late Thursday he defeated Pittsburgh's Drew Headlee 4-2 to advance in the wrestleback. It was the second time this year Albright had defeated the Pitt wrestler.

Rocco Caponi fell to fifth-seeded Raymond Jordan of Missouri 3-2 in the second round of the 184-pound division. Caponi had a first-round bye. It was the second time this year Jordan defeated Caponi. In December Jordan handed Caponi a 14-3 loss at the Cliff Keen Invitational.

VIRGINIA TECH

Decker eliminated from NCAAs

Virginia Tech freshman Eric Decker was eliminated from the 2007 NCAA Wrestling Championships Friday morning, getting pinned by Minnesota's Tyler Safratowicz in the third round of consolations at the 165-pound weight class.

Bonilla-Bowman eliminated from Championships

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Virginia Tech freshman wrestler Jon Bonilla-Bowman was eliminated from the 2007 NCAA Wrestling Championships Thursday night with a 4-2 loss to Jacob Murphy of Purdue in the 157-pound consolation bracket.

Bonilla-Bowman, Decker drop to consolation brackets

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Both Jon Bonilla-Bowman and Eric Decker dropped their opening matches at the 2007 NCAA Wrestling Championships Thursday morning at The Palace. Bonilla-Bowman dropped an 18-12 decision to Drexel's Ryan Hluschak in a 157-pound pigtail match and then Eric Decker fell to third-seeded Eric Tannenbaum of Michigan, 9-3, at 165 pounds.