The Oregon wrestling team’s hopes for a top-10 finish at the NCAA Tournament were dealt a major blow Thursday.
Luck was not on the Ducks’ side in Iowa City, Iowa, as favorites fell victim to upset. No Oregon wrestlers remain alive in championship competition after every Duck entrant suffered at least one loss.
“We aren’t where we had hoped to be when we came here,” Oregon head coach Chuck Kearney said in a released statement. “But this is a tough tournament, and now we’ll focus on what these individuals can do.”
The Ducks were dealt a setback even before the competition began when sophomore Brian Watson failed to make weight at 133 pounds. Watson, the No. 9 seed, had been unable to practice the past two weeks due to a severe knee injury.
Senior All-American Doug Lee was the only Duck to make it out of first-round action, routing Duquesne’s Jeffrey Moskyok, 15-4. Lee’s title run ended four hours later when he was pinned by Oklahoma’s unseeded Josh Lambrecht. The loss was Lee’s first since Jan. 6.
Lee, who placed fourth at last year’s NCAA Tournament, still has a chance at second place in the wrestle-back bracket. Lee will face the winner of a match between Edinborough’s Justin Millard and Northern Iowa’s Kyle Hanson.
Senior Chael Sonnen, Oregon’s other sixth seed in the tournament, suffered a major upset against Wyoming’s Craig Rumsey in the first round. Sonnen led the match 7-5 going into the third period, when Rumsey escaped and scored a takedown to pull ahead, 8-7.
Junior Eugene Harris bounced back in a big way after a first-round setback. After being edged by No. 7 seed Cole Sanderson of Iowa State, Harris pinned Michigan’s Pat Owen and earned a major decision against Dennis Papaddos of Hofstra to advance to the consolation quarterfinals.
Junior Shaun Williams was knocked out of the first round by No. 5 seed Matt Ridlings of Ohio State, 11-4, but bounced back in wrestle-back action, defeating Hofstra’s Tom Noto 11-8.
Oregon’s remaining entrants saw their seasons come to an end after consecutive first-round losses. Sophomore Tony Overstake dropped two decisions at 149 pounds in his first NCAA appearance. Overstake finished the season 18-16.
Freshman Luke Larwin, one of Oregon’s few freshman qualifiers ever, faced long odds at 165 pounds. No. 1 ranked Don Pritzlaff of Wisconsin soundly defeated Larwin 26-8 in the first round. However, Larwin bounced back from defeat and beat Tony Howard of George Mason in overtime, 16-14, in the consolation bracket.
“In something like this you go through a wide range of emotions,” Kearney said. “We feel for Doug Lee and how he lost, but we’re excited for Luke Larwin, who came back to win after being down. We feel for Chael losing his last match like that, but then we’re excited for Eugene Harris, who battled through a sore knee to win two matches today.”
Minnesota led the team competition after the first day, compiling 27 points with eight wrestlers still alive in championship action. The Ducks are currently tied for 24th with eight team points.
The NCAA Tournament continues today and tomorrow, with quarterfinal and semifinal action today, followed by finals on Saturday.