Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Adam Krop Becomes Third Tiger Wrestler To Reach NCAA Championships
March 07, 2012 | Wrestling
Sophomore Adam Krop, whose late-season injury left his postseason hopes in jeopardy, learned Wednesday that he earned one of the four at-large bids to the NCAA Wrestling Championships at 141 pounds.
Krop, who was 15th in the final NCAA Coaches Panel rankings this season, wll join senior Daniel Kolodzik (157) and junior Garrett Frey (125) in St. Louis when the 2012 NCAA Championships are held March 15-17.
Krop posted a 30-10 record this season and placed third at the prestigious Midlands Championships, a run that included a victory over eventual EIWA champion Matt Mariacher of American. Krop, who suffered an injury in the regular season finale at Lehigh and needed to default, worked tirelessly to get back into the mix for the EIWAs, held last weekend at Jadwin Gym.
He opened with a win over Army's Casey Smith, then squared off with Mariacher in the quarterfinal. Though he nearly had Mariacher pinned at one point, he re-aggravated an injury and could not finish the tournament. The injury default kept him from getting one of the six automatic bids, but his terrific regular season was too strong for the committee to overlook.
"I'm thrilled that Adam got an invitation that he richly deserved," head coach Chris Ayres said. "His attitude over the last few weeks has never wavered, and I think he's going to be dangerous in St. Louis.
"This has been a great week for Princeton Wrestling," Ayres added. "To have the privilege of hosting EIWAs and qualifying both Garrett Frey and Daniel Kolodzik was very exciting. Being able to also bring Adam really makes it special. It will be nice to have multiple wrestlers in Princeton colors when he make our way to nationals."
The official brackets will be announced Wednesday night at 6 p.m. on NCAA.com.