June 12, 2010
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World Team Trials Official Website
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa -- Jake Herbert, the former two-time NCAA champion and Hodge Trophy winner for Northwestern, earned the 84-kg roster spot on the United States World Team for the second consecutive year by winning the 2010 World Team Trials in Council Bluffs, Iowa, on Saturday. After putting forth the best effort of any American at the 2009 World Championships by claiming a silver medal, Herbert will have another shot to go for gold at the 2010 event Sept. 6-12 in Moscow.
By virtue of his No. 1 seed, Herbert earned an automatic bid in Saturday night's championship match of the World Team Trials, where he defeated former Pittsburgh NCAA champion Keith Gavin in a best-of-three series. Herbert won the decisive third round 1-0, 1-0, to again secure his spot on the United States' senior freestyle world team.
Earlier in the day, another Wildcat was making his debut in the World Team Trials and managed to go above and beyond expectations. Returning two-time Northwestern All-American Brandon Precin, who placed seventh at the U.S. Open tournament in April, displayed great determination in wrestling all the way to third place in his first trip to the Trials.
Precin's tournament began with a 2-1, 6-0 loss to former Michigan State grappler Nick Simmons, sending Precin into the wrestleback draw against current Minnesota All-American Zach Sanders. Precin handled Sanders 5-1, 7-0, and then came up against Logan Stieber, a four-time state champion in Ohio and one of the top recruits in the 2010 freshman class who is headed to Ohio State in the fall. Precin again wrestled strong to get by Stieber 4-1, 6-0, and advance to the consolation final.
That matchup pitted Precin against a familiar opponent in former Edinboro national champ Paul Donahoe. Despite having wrestled both of his two previous matches less than two hours earlier, Precin had enough left in the tank to wrestle a championship-caliber match and defeat Donahoe in three rounds, 5-0, 0-3, 4-2, to claim third place at the U.S. Senior World Team Trials.
"This was an outstanding day for Northwestern wrestling," said NU head coach Drew Pariano. "Jake continues to prove himself as the top American at his weight class and he has the experience now to go along with his skill level at the World Championships. We also could not be more proud of Brandon. He has worked tirelessly to improve not only during the season but all spring. That hard work showed in an incredible three-match stretch today."