Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
NCAA Championships Day 1
Players Mentioned
Five Alive! Tigers Advance All 5 Wrestlers To Day 2 Of NCAA Championships
March 20, 2015 | Wrestling
The Princeton wrestling team knew it was a big deal to match a program record by sending five Tigers to the NCAA Championships. Rest assured, it's a pretty big deal to send five guys to Day 2 of the Championships. Though none are alive in the championship draw, all five remain in the mix for All-America honors after an impressive first day.
Juniors Abram Ayala (197) and Chris Perez (149), sophomores Brett Harner (184) and Jordan Laster (141), and freshman Jonathan Schleifer each won at least one match Thursday to continue their journeys towards the medal podium in St. Louis, Mo. Princeton hasn't had an All-America since Greg Parker '03 (2003), but each Princeton wrestler is now three wins away from achieving that feat.
All matches are being streamed live on ESPN3, and you can follow each wrestler's progress via @TigerWrestling or @PUTigers_Live.
Ayala, the seventh seed at his weight, was the only one to win in the first round of the championship draw (Laster earned a win in the pigtail round), but he fell in the second round to 10th-seeded Connor Hartmann of Duke by a 5-2 score. Ayala had the first takedown in both of his matches, including a 3-2 win in his opener against Kevin Beazley of Old Dominion. He held a 2-0 lead against Hartmann, but the 2014 All-America honoree escaped and scored a takedown of his own, but it was his long ride through the remainder of the first period that turned the tide of the match.
Hartmann got to 4-2 with another escape and had more than enough riding time for an extra point, which forced Ayala to try and get back with takedowns. Ayala got in a couple times, but Hartmann was able to fend off the attempts for the win.
Ayala's match was a disappointing start to Thursday's evening session, but it would also be the only down moment of the night.
Laster led Princeton with two wins on the day, including one in the first shift of matches during the tournament. He wrestled a pigtail round match against Rider's Chuck Zeisloft, and he scored the only takedown of the match in overtime to move into the first round. He had the unfortunate luck of drawing three-time NCAA champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State, who scored a technical fall over Laster.
The 141-pound EIWA finalist looked to be in trouble in his first consolation match, as he trailed Michigan's George Fisher 4-3 in the final 30 seconds. Laster had gotten close on several shots in the final period, and his last one would finally do the trick. He got in on a high crotch shot and scored the takedown, then rode out Fisher for the 5-4 win.
Laster will next face 15th-seeded Jamel Hudson of Hofstra, though Hudson was forced to default from his second round match due to injury.
Perez, the surprise EIWA finalist at 149 and Thursday TigerCast guest, was an impressive aggressor in his first round match against eighth-seeded Alexander Robertson of Old Dominion. Perez actually had the edge in takedowns 3-2, but it was a late scramble in the first period that ultimately cost Perez. He seemed to have an edge of Robertson, but the eighth seed scrambled for his own takedown and then managed two back points. Those were the difference in an 8-6 win, but Perez was able to move on via medical forfeit and will now face unseeded Ken Theobold of Rutgers.
Perez faced Theobold in February and dropped a close 5-3 decision.
Schleifer dropped his opener 9-3 to third-ranked Isaac Jordan of Nebraska. Jordan scored the first takedown, but Schleifer kept himself in the match with an escape and a second-period takedown. He was never able to draw even, and Jordan built his advantage in the final period to claim the win. Schleifer was in total control of his first consolation match, though, as he defeated Adam Fierro of Cal-State Bakersfield 7-2 to advance to Friday.
Schleifer has the toughest draw of the early Friday session; he will face fourth-seeded Nicholas Sulzer of Virginia. Those two did not meet this season.
The final Tiger in competition was Harner, who suffered a midweek injury in early March that forced him to miss the EIWA Championships. He earned an at-large bid, and was cleared to compete in St. Louis. He dropped his opener 4-0 to Richard Robertson of Wisconsin; of Harner's eight losses this season, four of them have come to Robertson. He bounced back in style with a dominant 7-1 win over West Virginia's Jakob Scheffel, and he will face 16th-seeded Timothy Dudley of Nebraska to open Friday competition.
Dudley defeated Harner 9-5 in the regular season finale for Princeton.
Ayala will resume competition against ninth-seeded Jace Bennett of Cornell, who won the EIWA Championship. Ayala went 2-0 against Bennett on the season.
141 – Jordan Laster
Pigtail: Jordan Laster dec. Chuck Zeisloft (Rider) 4-2 (SV-2)
1st Round: #1 Logan Stieber (Ohio State) TF Jordan Laster 18-1
C1: Jordan Laster dec. George Fisher (Michigan) 5-4
C2: Jordan Laster vs. #15 Jamel Hudson (Hofstra)
149 – Chris Perez
1st Round: #8 Alexander Robertson (Old Dominion) dec. Chris Perez 8-6
C1: Chris Perez def #9 Gabe Moreno (Iowa State), medical forfeit
C2: Chris Perez vs. Ken Theobold (Rutgers)
165 – Jonathan Schleifer
1st Round: #3 Isaac Jordan (Nebraska) dec. Jonathan Schleifer 9-3
C1: Jonathan Schleifer dec. Adam Fierro (Cal-State Bakersfield) 7-2
C2: Jonathan Schleifer vs. #4 Nicholas Sulzer (Virginia)
184 – Brett Harner
1st Round: #15 Richard Robertson (Wisconsin) dec. Brett Harner 4-0
C1: Brett Harner dec. Jakob Scheffel (West Virginia) 7-1
C2: Brett Harner vs. #16 Timothy Dudley (Nebraska)
197 – Abram Ayala
1st Round: #7 Abram Ayala dec. Kevin Beazley (Old Dominion) 3-2
2nd Round: #10 Conner Hartmann (Duke) dec. #7 Abram Ayala 5-2
C2: #7 Abram Ayala vs. #9 Jace Bennett (Cornell)