Indiana Wins Navy Classic

Saturday, November 19

Annapolis, MD

All Day

Indiana University

Navy Classic

11/20/2016 6:42:00 PM | Wrestling

FloArena Brackets & Team Scores (PDF)

Jackson, Martin tournament champions; seven other Hoosiers land on podium

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Indiana wrestling team capped a stellar weekend in the DMV with a team championship at the 2016 Navy Classic, hosted by the United States Naval Academy. The Hoosiers saw two grapplers—#6 Nate Jackson (184) and Bryce Martin (165)—earn individual championships, with seven additional Hoosiers landing on the podium. As a team Indiana compiled 155.5 points on Saturday afternoon, putting a 41-point gap between them and second-place Navy.

Jackson (8-0) remains unbeaten after winning his fourth tournament championship in his varsity career, his first at 184 lbs. He began the day with a 20-2 technical fall in 4:10, and advanced to the quarterfinal after securing a 76-second pin. Another tech fall went Jackson's way in the semifinal bout, a 21-6 fall in 3:15.

In the championship match, Jackson met his first ranked opponent in his time at 184 lbs., Binghamton's #16 Steven Schneider. Jackson triumphed in a 12-4 major decision on his way to the top of the podium. The returning All-American has won with bonus points in all eight of his matches this season, including four pins and a pair of tech falls.

Martin (6-1) picks up his second tournament win as a varsity grappler with his Navy Classic title. He advanced to the round of 16 through a forfeit, after leading 17-3, and followed with a 24-9 tech fall to reach the quarterfinals. A 7-3 decision over D.J. Hollingshead (Bucknell) and a tight 5-4 decision over Christian LaBrie (Brown) set Martin up for a championship bout with Quentin Perez (Bucknell).

Perez led 1-0 after the first period on a stalling call, and took a 3-0 lead with a takedown to start the second. Martin flipped the script with a reversal and a takedown to square the bout, 4-4, heading into the final period. Perez took a one-point lead with an escape, but Martin finished emphatically with two takedowns and the riding time point for a 9-6 win.

Three IU grapplers clinched a third-place finish: #12 Elijah Oliver (125), freshman Garrett Pepple (133), and freshman Devin Skatzka (174). Oliver (7-1) earned a major decision and a win by fall before dropping his first match of the season, a narrow 6-5 decision in the semifinals. He won the consolation bracket with a 21-4 tech fall over Patrick Kearney (The Citadel) in 5:20 and pinned Steve Bulzomi (Binghamton) at 5:43 in the third-place match. Oliver shares the team's pin tally with Jackson, earning four apiece through eight matches.

Skatzka (7-1) earned a quick 39-second pin in the opening round and a 12-8 decision over Patrick Davis, his dual combatant in Thursday's win at George Mason. He suffered the first loss of his varsity career in the semifinals, a 6-4 decision to 16^th-ranked and two-time NCAA qualifier Jadaen Bernstein (Navy). A pinner by trade, Skatzka continued in the consolation semifinals with a 74-second fall over Arsen Arshughyan (Ohio) and a 6-4 decision win over Jon Viruet (Brown), which he won with a decisive takedown in the third period.

Pepple (6-2) achieved his first varsity podium finish after placements at the Michigan State Open and the Alma Open as a redshirt last season. He won a 6-0 decision to kick off his day, and followed with a 9-8 decision in a rematch with Lio Quezzada (George Mason). He dropped out of championship contention with a 9-5 decision to Cameron Kelly (Ohio) in the semifinal, but finished with a 15-3 major decision and an 8-2 decision against Zach Firestone (Bucknell).

Sophomore Fletcher Miller (285) received his first collegiate podium finish, going 3-2 on his way to fourth place. Miller (5-3) opened with a 10-1 major decision against Ethan Stanley (Navy) and a 3-2 decision against Zack Parker (Ohio), and won a 17-5 major decision in the consolation semifinals to enter the third-place bout. He met Parker again, only this time Parker edged miller with an 8-6 decision in sudden victory.

Luke Blanton (149), Jake Danishek (157), and Jake Hinz (197) notched fifth-place finishes in the tournament. Blanton (6-3) began the day with a major decision, and won with two decisions before winning by forfeit in the fifth-place bout. Danishek (7-3) dropped his first match, but dominated the wrestle-backs with five wins, including a 2:47 pin and a 12-3 major decision. Hinz (5-3) lost two matches against #11 Tom Sleigh (Bucknell), but picked up four wins with two decisions, a major decision, and a 34-second pin in the fifth-place match.

Up Next: Indiana (2-1) vs. North Dakota State (1-1) / at SIU-Edwardsville (0-0)
Sunday, December 4 • Sam M. Vadalabene Center • Edwardsville, Ill.
2 p.m. ET – IU vs. NDSU | 3:30 p.m. ET – SIUE vs. NDSU | 5 p.m. ET – SIUE vs. IU

The Hoosiers return to dual action in their next competition, a tri dual at SIU-Edwardsville with the hosting Cougars and the North Dakota State Bison. The early storyline for this tri is the matchup potential at 125 lbs. Indiana's #12 Elijah Oliver could square off against #6 Josh Rodriguez (North Dakota State) and #13 Freddy Rodriguez (SIU-Edwardsville). SIUE's Rodriguez ended Oliver's first NCAA Championships campaign in the second round of the wrestle-backs last season.

The event will be the second of four tri duals for Indiana this season, and it precedes Indiana's home opener against #13 Wisconsin on Friday, December 9.