Patrick Brucki

Photo by: Beverly Schaefer

Photo by: Beverly Schaefer

Weight:
197
Class:
Sophomore
Hometown:
Orland Park, Ill.
High School:
Carl Sandburg

At Princeton — 2019-20 (21-5): All-American, earning first-team NWCA honors ... second-team All-Ivy ... NWCA Scholar All-American ... third-place finisher at the EIWA Championships ... NCAA qualifier before the event was canceled by the NCAA due to the COVID-19 virus ... EIWA Academic Award honoree ... ranked in the top 10 in the nation by Intermat all season ... had five wins over fellow Intermat-ranked wrestlers, highlighted by wins over Oklahoma State's No. 6 Dakota Geer, Iowa's No. 2 Jacob Warner and North Carolina State's No. 8 Nick Reenan, all in duals ... 2018-19 (33-3): became Princeton's 11th All-American and placed fourth at 197 pounds at 2019 NCAA Championships; it was the team's third-highest finish in 30+ years … avenged only regular-season loss with 8-6 decision over Cornell's Ben Honis to win first career EIWA title … won six matches to become the second Midlands champion in program history, and helped team to best overall Midlands finish (fifth) … ranked as high as #3 throughout the season … posted clinching wins in dual victories over both Lehigh and Rider, which ended long losing streaks to both … earned second-team All-Ivy League honors … went 10-1 against ranked competition before the NCAA Championships, and lost only to higher seeds at NCAAs … team co-captain as a sophomore … won first 22 matches of the season. 2017-18 (28-10): became only the third freshman in Princeton history to qualify for the NCAA Championships, where he upset the 16th seed in his debut match … placed fifth at his first EIWA Championships; reached semifinal before falling to former All-American Frank Mattiace … reached as high as #12 in the national rankings … earned second-team All-Ivy League honors … recipient of the Hooker Trophy as Princeton's most improved freshman … went 10-3 in dual matches, with all three losses coming to opponents ranked in the InterMat Top 3 … defeated two Top-10 opponents (#5 Jake Smith at Midlands, and #9 Frank Mattiace in Penn dual) … opened career with 10 wins in first 11 matches, including championship at Princeton Open and 8-7 win in Lehigh dual … went 4-1 in the Ivy League.

Before Princeton — won the 2017 Illinois state championship … ranked fifth at his weight (195) by InterMat … posted a 175-24 career record in high school; went 94-4 in last two years … placed in top three at Illinois state championships, and made two finals … took third and earned All-American status at the Fargo National Championships … took fifth at the 2015 Fila Cadet Freestyle … defeated the Missouri state champion at the Missouri Border Battle … member of the Illinois Freestyle Junior Dual Team multiple years … three-time Defensive MVP for the football team … broke school tackles record, previously held by current Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald … all-area football player … member of the Student School Improvement Committee and the Student Athletic Leadership Committee … enrolled in the PEOPLE program for promoting athletics for special needs students … SADD promoter … member of the National Honor Society.

Personal — born Dec. 1, 1998 … son of Kenneth and Patricia Brucki … has two older siblings, Jesselyn and Christian; brother wrestles at Central Michigan and was the No. 12 seed at the 2017 NCAA Championships … uncle Ralph McCausland was a 1978 Division II national champion at Eastern Illinois, where he currently serves as head coach … enjoys sports, music and coffee … civil and environmental engineering major.