March 19, 2005
ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Freshman Jake Herbert (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) defeated Illinois' Pete Friedl, 6-3, to claim third place at the NCAA Championships Saturday morning in session five. The win avenges Herbert's last-second loss to Friedl in the Big Ten Championship two weeks ago.
The win also bumps Northwestern up to 14th place, with the championship matches still to come this afternoon at 4 p.m. Oklahoma State has clinched its third-consecutive NCAA title with 133.0 points. Michigan, Oklahoma, Cornell, Minnesota and Illinois are still scrapping for second place.
Herbert finishes the tournament with a 7-1 record, improving his season mark to a team-leading 33-3.
With a narrow, 3-2 lead in the final round, Herbert bulldozed over Friedl with one minute to go, secured the takedown and a more comfortable, 5-2 lead.
"I knew a one point lead wasn't going to be enough against Friedl," Herbert said. "He's a tough competitor, so I had to keep coming at him."
With a bonus point for riding time, Herbert closed out the 6-3 decision.
Earlier Saturday morning, Herbert advanced to the third-place bout by defeating Cornell's Joe Mazzurco, 6-2, with a 1:58 riding time advantage.
Team Standings after Session 5
1. Oklahoma State - 133.0
2. Michigan - 79.0
3. Oklahoma - 73.5
4. Cornell - 72.5
4. Minnesota - 72.5
6. Illinois - 70.5
7. Iowa - 66.0
8. Lehigh - 60.0
9. Iowa State - 57.0
10. Indiana - 54.5
14. Northwestern - 39.0
Wildcats' Session 5 Results
174 - No. 4 Jake Herbert (NU) dec. No. 5 Joe Mazzurco (Cornell), 6-2
174 - Herbert dec. No. 3 Pete Friedl (Illinois), 6-3
Television Coverage
ESPN will air the championship bouts live at 4 p.m. Saturday, March 19.
NCAA Championship Matchups
125 - No. 3 Kyle Ott (Illinois) vs. No. 5 Joe Dubuque (Indiana)
133 - No. 1 Travis Lee (Cornell) vs. No. 2 Shawn Bunch (Edinboro)
141 - No. 1 Nate Gallick (Iowa State) vs. No. 2 Teyon Ware (Oklahoma)
149 - No. 1 Zack Esposito (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 2 Phillip Simpson (Army)
157 - No. 2 Ryan Bertin (Michigan) vs. No. 8 Joe Johnston (Iowa)
165 - No. 3 Johny Hendricks (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 4 Mark Perry (Iowa)
174 - No. 1 Chris Pendleton (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 2 Ben Askren (Missouri)
184 - No. 1 Greg Jones (West Virginia) vs. No. 7 Tyler Baier (Cornell)
197 - No. 2 Jake Rosholt (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 5 Sean Stender (Northern Iowa)
Hwt. - No. 1 Steve Mocco (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 2 Cole Konrad (Minnesota)
*Six competitors from five Big Ten schools will battle for titles
*Oklahoma State has the most wrestlers in the championship round with five
For complete coverage of the 2005 NCAA Wrestling Championships, click here.