Brucki, Kolodzik, Glory Lead Princeton To Third Top-15 NCAA Finish In Program History

Session Recaps: Thursday Morning l Thursday Afternoon l Friday Morning l Friday Afternoon
Brackets: Through Session V

Check out the "Beyond The Stripes" feature on Matthew Kolodzik

Year after year, step forward after step forward, the Princeton wrestling program has continued to make its move towards the highest tier of the sport. On Saturday, after his team posted only its third Top-15 NCAA finish in team history, sophomore captain Patrick Brucki declared that his team was finished climbing uphill.

"We're here," Brucki said after placing fourth at the 2019 NCAA Championships, one of a program-record three Top-6 finishes at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

Brucki (fourth, 197) joined fellow co-captain Matthew Kolodzik (fifth, 149) and freshman Patrick Glory (sixth, 125) in helping Princeton break into the Top 15 during the final day of the NCAA Championships. The Tigers finished 15th overall with 35 team points; the only other times Princeton has finished in the Top 15 was 1951 (fifth) and 1978 (14th).

After an amazing 2018-19 season, @tigercoachayres reflects on all the progress made. pic.twitter.com/PQiSTwi8qj
— Princeton Wrestling (@tigerwrestling) March 23, 2019

Brucki bounced back from the disappointment of his semifinal loss to top-seeded Bo Nickal and took down Fresno State standout Josh Hokit 8-3 in the consolation semifinal. He grabbed early momentum with a quick takedown, and he never allowed Hokit to get close to an offensive score of his own. His final takedown in the third was insurance in a 8-3 win.

He ended up placing fourth after coming up on the wrong end of a first-period scramble with third-seeded Preston Weigel of Oklahoma State. The two ended up on the edge of the mat, and Weigel was able to get position and swipes for the 6-0 advantage. Brucki couldn't get a takedown of his own and finished the season with a 7-1 loss.

Brucki's incredible season includes his first All-American honor, his first EIWA title and his first Midlands title — no Princetonian can claim that trifecta. A sophomore captain, he finished the season with a team-best 33 victories and had memorable match-clinching wins against Lehigh and Rider.

"We're here."

Captain Patrick Brucki reflects on a tough Day 3 at NCAAs and where his team has come this year. pic.twitter.com/XMfSqGyCnG
— Princeton Wrestling (@tigerwrestling) March 23, 2019

Kolodzik ended up placing fifth following a dominant victory over fourth-seeded Brock Mauller of Missouri. Kolodzik had a pair of takedowns in the first period, but he remained the aggressor throughout and continued to grab points. After dropping a 2-0 decision in the consolation semifinal to third-seeded Mitch Finesilver, Kolodzik completed an NCAA weekend with a 10-6 victory.

Princeton's first three-time All-American in wrestling, Kolodzik wasn't taken down a single time throughout the weekend. The program's first Midlands champion ever, Kolodzik ends another brilliant season with 25 wins among his other historic accomplishments.

A 5th place finish after a 7th and 3rd ... Matthew Kolodzik reflects on his NCAAs and notes there is only one odd number remaining for him! pic.twitter.com/7IerJYy2f2
— Princeton Wrestling (@tigerwrestling) March 23, 2019

Glory ended up placing sixth, but that doesn't begin to tell the story of the final day of his incredible freshman season. He opened with top-seeded Sebastian Rivera of Northwestern, and he went after him immediately. He scored three of the first four takedowns of the match, then added a reversal late in the second period to take a 9-7 lead.

Rivera started the third period in the down position and escaped, and then he took down Glory with 40 seconds remaining to grab his first lead of the match. Glory tried a late scramble to escape, but Rivera turned it into swipes to grab a 14-9 win en route to an eventual third-place finish.

That sent Glory to a third matchup against second-seeded Nick Piccininni of Oklahoma State, and once again Glory was the aggressor. Glory had takedowns in both the first and second periods to lead 4-2 in the third, but Piccininni capitalized on his best position in the third. He started in the top position and put Glory on his back for a fall at 5:29.

Glory's sixth-place finish is officially the best for any freshman in program history. He lived up to every bit of his highly anticipated debut season, winning 30 matches and an EIWA title before becoming only the second Princeton freshman to ever earn All-America honors.

Patrick Glory, the highest freshman finisher in program history, reflects on his @ncaawrestling debut, how the weekend met his expectations and how much the Tiger faithful support meant to him. pic.twitter.com/T6JUOZ6E1I
— Princeton Wrestling (@tigerwrestling) March 23, 2019

125 – #7 Patrick Glory
1^st – Glory TF #26 Alonzo Allen (Chattanooga) 16-0
2^nd – Glory mdec. #10 Brent Fleetwood (North Dakota State) 10-0
QF —#2 Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State) dec. Glory 9-5
Cons Round of 12 — Glory dec. #12 Michael McGee (Old Dominion) 7-1
Cons Round of 8 — Glory mdec. #9 RayVon Foley (Michigan State) 13-5
Cons Semifinal — #1 Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern) dec. Glory 14-9
5th place — #2 Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State) WBF Glory 5:29

149 – #5 Matthew Kolodzik
1^st – Kolodzik dec. #28 Michael Sprague (American) 3-2
2^nd – Kolodzik dec. #12 Brady Barge (Penn State) 8-5
QF — Kolodzik dec. #4 Brock Mauller (Missouri) 5-3
SF — #1 Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers) dec. Kolodzik 2-0
Cons Semifinal — #3 Mitch Finesilver (Duke) dec. Kolodzik 2-0
5th place — Kolodzik dec. #4 Brock Mauller (Missouri) 10-6

157 – #26 Quincy Monday
1^st – #7 Larry Early (Old Dominion) mdec. Monday 10-0
1^st Cons – #23 Chase Straw (Iowa State) dec. Monday 13-12, TB-1

174 — #31 Travis Stefanik
1^st – #2 Daniel Lewis (Missouri) WBF Travis Stefanik 1:13
1^st Cons — #18 Andrew Morgan (Campbell) dec. Stefanik 8-4

184 — #31 Kevin Parker
1^st – #2 Shakur Rasheed (Penn State) mdec. Parker 11-2
1^st Cons — #18 Tate Samuelson (Wyoming) mdec. Parker 14-2

197 — #4 Patrick Brucki
1^st – Brucki dec. #29 Brandon Whitman (UNC) 8-2
2^nd — Brucki dec. #13 Malik McDonald (NC State) 3-2
QF — Brucki dec. #21 Thomas Lane (Cal Poly) 4-3
SF —#1 Bo Nickal (Penn State) WBF Brucki 4:41
Cons Semifinal — Brucki dec. #16 Josh Hokit (Fresno State) 8-3
3^rd Place — #3 Preston Weigel (Oklahoma State) dec. Brucki 7-1

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