March 19, 2010
NCAA Championships Official Web site
OMAHA, Neb. -- After reeling off three consecutive wins in the wrestleback bracket, Northwestern junior Andrew Nadhir had his run at the 2010 NCAA Championships halted just one win shy of securing All-American status at 149 pounds. Nadhir gave it all he had but ultimately fell to Edinboro's Torsten Gillespie 4-2 Friday night at the Qwest Center in Omaha.
Nadhir's stellar junior season ends with a career-high 24 wins against just 12 losses, which was good enough to keep him ranked in the top 15 nationally all season. In his first trip to the NCAA Championships, the native of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., finished with a 3-2 tournament record.
After a scoreless first period, Gillespie began the second period on top and managed to ride Nadhir for more than 1 minute 40 seconds to gain a significant riding time advantage. During that time Gillespie worked hard to tilt Nadhir for near-fall points but the NU junior managed to recover and get back to his stomach each time.
Nadhir allowed Gillespie to escape unchallenged to start the third and immediately went to work fighting for a takedown. Instead it was Gillespie who earned the next two, taking a 3-1 lead on the scoreboard with one minute remaining. Nadhir managed to escape with 50 seconds remaining but never really threatened a takedown down the stretch as Gillespie hung on to win 4-2 with riding time factored in.
Gillespie advances into the consolation quarterfinals to determine whether he will compete in the seventh, fifth, or potentially third-place match.
Next season, Nadhir will join NU's Brandon Precin and Jason Welch--who each used their redshirt seasons in 2009-10--as returning NCAA qualifiers in Northwestern's starting lineup.
Friday's Session IV Results
Consolation Quarterfinals: Torsten Gillespie (EDIN) dec. Andrew Nadhir (NU), 4-2
Tune into ESPN's broadcast of the 2010 NCAA Wrestling Championships on Saturday, March 20. The Championship Medal Round will be aired beginning at 10 a.m. CT with former NU national champion Jake Herbert joining the ESPN broadcast team of Todd Harris, Tim Johnson, Jeff Blatnick and Quint Kessenich. The tournament culminates with the NCAA Finals, which hit the airwaves on ESPN at 6:30 p.m. CT.