From NYU Wrestling
The New York University wrestling team had its best-ever
finish at the NCAA Division III East Regional Championship on
Sunday, March 1, in Roanoke, VA. In addition to the squad finishing
the event in second place, NYU crowned two individual champions and
will send four wrestlers to the upcoming NCAA
Championships.,
Brandon Jones (141) and Patrick
Sheehan (184) each won championships at their
respective weight classes, while Jacob
Donato (125) and Nathan
Pike (133) each finished in second. All four will
represent NYU on the national stage.
Ranked #22 by the National Wrestling Coaches Association
(NWCA), NYU amassed 122 total team points, only one point behind
first-place Delaware Valley College.
"This was a great showing from our squad," said NYU Head
Coach Bruce Haberli. "To have nine guys place out
of 10 is incredible. I'm so proud of this team."
Haberli was named the region's top head coach, while Senior
Assistant Head Coach Corey Luce took home top
assistant coach honors.
NYU started the day well, as all 10 competing members won
their first-round matchups and advanced to the quarterfinals. Six
of them won by fall to add even more points to the team
total.
The grapplers continued their fast start in the quarterfinals
as seven members of the team won their bouts to earn berths in the
semifinals.,
Four of those seven semifinalists -- Donato, Pike, Jones, and
Sheehan -- all won their bouts to earn a spot in the regional final
and an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Championships. Donato and
Jones each defeated nationally-ranked semifinal opponents who
bested them earlier in the season.
Jones was the first NYU grappler to win a title on Sunday.
The senior captain won his third consecutive regional title on a
first-period pin. Sheehan followed that up with a dramatic 9-4
sudden victory decision to stand atop the podium for the first time
in his career.
"Brandon and Patrick are outstanding leaders. They are great
people with unbelievable work ethics," added Haberli. ,"They both
deserve this. Their attitude and approach to wrestling is going to
pay great dividends as our younger guys mature."
The four NCAA qualifiers represent the most in team
history.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- Matt DiGiovanni (157) finished the day in fifth place.
The senior won three bouts to finish the season 13-5.
"Matt's leadership is irreplaceable. He had a great career here and
he has nothing to hang his head about," explained Haberli. "We're
definitely going to miss him in the wrestling room."
- Matthew Coppola (149) and John Messinger (165) each
finished the event in fourth place in their respective weight
classes. The duo of sophomores each won three matches on the
day.
- Raymond Jazikoff (174) battled back after losing his
quarterfinal match to finish in sixth place. The rookie currently
has a team-best 34 wins.,
- William Gockel-Figge (197) won three matches on the day to
finish in fifth place. His fifth-place bout victory came against an
opponent from Hunter College who defeated him earlier in the
afternoon.,
- Brian Anderson wrestled up a weight class at heavyweight and
won his first match of the day. The junior finished his season with
an impressive 24-13 record.
NYU's four qualifiers will be back in action at the NCAA Division
III National Championships on Friday and Saturday, March 13-14. The
event will be hosted by Elizabethtown College at the Giant Center
in Hershey, PA.,
"Everyone wants to be a national champion. Now its time for the
guys to work extra hard and fulfill those goals," concluded
Haberli.