Skatzka Takes Fourth at University Freestyle Nationals
6/4/2017 8:20:00 PM | Wrestling
Nine Hoosiers touched the mat in the UWW’s annual summer championships
AKRON, Ohio – For the second season running, Indiana University and the Hoosier Wrestling Club have placed a wrestler on the podium at the University Freestyle Nationals on the campus of Akron University. Rising redshirt sophomore Devin Skatzka (80 kg) earned fourth-place in his bracket, his highest career finish at the event, after a superb run to the championship semifinals.
Skatzka's podium campaign began on Saturday with four outright victories, including a two-minute technical fall in the round of 64. The 2017 NCAA Championships qualifier etched his position in the quarterfinals in the last match of the day, with a 6-2 decision over Iowa's Kaleb Young.
Skatzka opened Sunday's final session in a fury, taking out two-time All-American Chad Walsh with a 10-0 technical fall in 52 seconds. Skatzka met Jacob Smith (Titan Mercury WC) in the semifinals, and the Hoosier grappler pushed the two-time NJCAA Champion to an 11-6 decision on his way to the consolation bracket.
Off the championship path but not the podium, Skatzka earned a 12-6 win in the consolation semifinals before meeting another two-time NCAA All-American, Daniel Lewis (Missouri), in the third-place match. Lewis' technical fall victory, 13-2, cemented Skatzka's finish at fourth-place.
Three additional Hoosiers—Liam Cronin (57 kg), Bryce Martin (80 kg) and Fletcher Miller (125 kg)—gave valiant efforts in the wrestle-backs, ending their weekends a couple matches shy of the podium.
Cronin, a former junior freestyle standout in his prep career, was eager to test his mettle with his first appearance at the University Freestyle Nationals. The rising sophomore rebounded from an opening round loss to score three victories in the wrestle-backs.
After taking a bye in the first consolation round of 32, Cronin scored back-to-back technical falls over Derek Spann (Buffalo RTC) and Britain Longmire (Team Nevada). His final win of the weekend came from a surging comeback in the second period, where Cronin erased a 6-0 deficit for the 12-10 decision victory.
Martin entered the same bracket as Skatzka and scored a 2:33 win by fall after receiving a first round bye. He fell out of the bracket with a loss to Jordan Kutler (Lehigh Valley WC), but battled for an additional four matches while facing elimination.
Martin opened the wrestle-backs with a tight 4-2 decision over Luke Drugac (Virginia Beach RTC), in the round of 16, Martin scored two technical falls, the first in 2:27 over Tyler McNutt (Bison WC). Martin's weekend came to a conclusion too early, when Iowa's Kaleb Young pulled out a 3-2 decision in the round of eight.
Miller split his two matches in the championship bracket, earning a 7-0 decision before falling in 5:43 in the round of 32. He rebounded in the wrestle-backs, however, with an 8-4 deicision over Antonio Pelusi (Lancaster Alliance) and an 11-4 decision against David Jensen (Nebraska WTC). Miller won his second Round of 16 match, 10-7, pulling away in the final 30 seconds. He bowed out of podium contention with a technical fall loss to two-time NCAA All-American Tanner Hall (Sunkist Kids WC).
Six additional Hoosiers—Liam Cronin (57 kg), Cole Weaver (65 kg), Norman Conley (86 kg), Jake Hinz (86 kg), Spencer Irick (86 kg), and Jake Kleimola (97 kg)—entered the freestyle nationals, bringing Indiana's travel party to nine.
The annual event pits the top collegiate and cadet wrestlers in the United States against one another in both Freestyle and Greco-Roman disciplines. Entrants must be currently pursuing a degree or received their degree in the year preceding the event, and must be at least 17 years of age and no older than 28.
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Skatzka's podium campaign began on Saturday with four outright victories, including a two-minute technical fall in the round of 64. The 2017 NCAA Championships qualifier etched his position in the quarterfinals in the last match of the day, with a 6-2 decision over Iowa's Kaleb Young.
Skatzka opened Sunday's final session in a fury, taking out two-time All-American Chad Walsh with a 10-0 technical fall in 52 seconds. Skatzka met Jacob Smith (Titan Mercury WC) in the semifinals, and the Hoosier grappler pushed the two-time NJCAA Champion to an 11-6 decision on his way to the consolation bracket.
Off the championship path but not the podium, Skatzka earned a 12-6 win in the consolation semifinals before meeting another two-time NCAA All-American, Daniel Lewis (Missouri), in the third-place match. Lewis' technical fall victory, 13-2, cemented Skatzka's finish at fourth-place.
Three additional Hoosiers—Liam Cronin (57 kg), Bryce Martin (80 kg) and Fletcher Miller (125 kg)—gave valiant efforts in the wrestle-backs, ending their weekends a couple matches shy of the podium.
Cronin, a former junior freestyle standout in his prep career, was eager to test his mettle with his first appearance at the University Freestyle Nationals. The rising sophomore rebounded from an opening round loss to score three victories in the wrestle-backs.
After taking a bye in the first consolation round of 32, Cronin scored back-to-back technical falls over Derek Spann (Buffalo RTC) and Britain Longmire (Team Nevada). His final win of the weekend came from a surging comeback in the second period, where Cronin erased a 6-0 deficit for the 12-10 decision victory.
Martin entered the same bracket as Skatzka and scored a 2:33 win by fall after receiving a first round bye. He fell out of the bracket with a loss to Jordan Kutler (Lehigh Valley WC), but battled for an additional four matches while facing elimination.
Martin opened the wrestle-backs with a tight 4-2 decision over Luke Drugac (Virginia Beach RTC), in the round of 16, Martin scored two technical falls, the first in 2:27 over Tyler McNutt (Bison WC). Martin's weekend came to a conclusion too early, when Iowa's Kaleb Young pulled out a 3-2 decision in the round of eight.
Miller split his two matches in the championship bracket, earning a 7-0 decision before falling in 5:43 in the round of 32. He rebounded in the wrestle-backs, however, with an 8-4 deicision over Antonio Pelusi (Lancaster Alliance) and an 11-4 decision against David Jensen (Nebraska WTC). Miller won his second Round of 16 match, 10-7, pulling away in the final 30 seconds. He bowed out of podium contention with a technical fall loss to two-time NCAA All-American Tanner Hall (Sunkist Kids WC).
Six additional Hoosiers—Liam Cronin (57 kg), Cole Weaver (65 kg), Norman Conley (86 kg), Jake Hinz (86 kg), Spencer Irick (86 kg), and Jake Kleimola (97 kg)—entered the freestyle nationals, bringing Indiana's travel party to nine.
The annual event pits the top collegiate and cadet wrestlers in the United States against one another in both Freestyle and Greco-Roman disciplines. Entrants must be currently pursuing a degree or received their degree in the year preceding the event, and must be at least 17 years of age and no older than 28.
Follow Indiana Wrestling on Facebook and Twitter.
#GoIU
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