Isaiah Martinez - University of Illinois
Isaiah Martinez – University of Illinois
Isaiah Martinez in high school: CIF State Championship Finals
Senior year – 2013
Junior year – 2012
Sophomore year – 2011
Isaiah Martinez – University of Illinois
ST. LOUIS (AP) — NCAA wrestling organizers flipped the competition order so Logan Stieber’s bid for a fourth national championship came last instead of third in the order. That was the lone suspense remaining from Ohio State’s first national title run.
Stieber didn’t disappoint, wrapping up an unbeaten season at 141 pounds and a huge meet for the Buckeyes on Saturday night. He’s just the fourth to win four individual titles, joining Kyle Dake of Cornell (2010-13), Cael Sanderson of Iowa State (1999-2002), and Pat Smith of Oklahoma State (1990-92, 1994).
Ohio State clinched the championship before the final round began and also got a title from Nathan Tomasello at 125. The Buckeyes bettered runner-up finishes in 2008 and ’09 scored 102 points. Iowa finished with 84.
Edinboro was third with 751/2 points followed by Missouri at 731/2 and Cornell at 711/2 with four-time defending champion Penn State sixth at 671/2.
The Buckeyes’ lone disappointment in the finals was at 197 where Kyle Snyder couldn’t follow up a semifinal upset over top-seed J’den Cox was pinned by Kyven Gadson of Iowa State in the first period.
Stieber (29-0) decisioned second seed Mitchell Port of Edinboro 10-5, adding to a pin, two technical falls and a major decision in the tourney. Tomasello followed up a semifinal victory over top-seed Alan Waters of Missouri with an 8-5 decision over Zeke Moisey of West Virginia.
Freshman Isaiah Martinez of Illinois (34-0), Alex Dieringer of Oklahoma State (34-0) and Nick Gwiazdowski of North Carolina State (35-0) also wrapped up unbeaten seasons.
Martinez, whose only close call of the meet came in A one-point semifinal win over James Green of Nebraska, defeated second-seeded Brian Realbuto of Cornell 10-2 at 157. Afterward, he did not shy away from comparisons with Sanderson, who was unbeaten as a freshman. “Am I ready for it?” Martinez said. “I was made ready for it. Wrestling is my life.”
ARCH MATNESS: Illinois senior Jackson Morse finished fourth at 165 pounds. He was the Illini’s only other all-American. Morse blanked North Carolina’s Ethan Ramos 6-0 in the consolation semifinals, then got caught in a banana split and was pinned in 1:00 by Ohio State freshman Bo Jordan in the consolation finals. Morse finished his career with 106 wins, 16th all-time on the Illini career list.
