By Gary Abbott
USA Wrestling
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Led by four returning national champions who repeated with titles again this year, Penn State won its third NCAA team title in a row with an impressive finals session at the Quicken Loans Arena on Saturday night.

The Nittany Lions finished with 141.5 points, seven points ahead of Ohio State, which had 134.5 points. The Buckeyes came in with a six point lead in the team race after Saturday morning, but the Lions had five finalists to Ohio State’s two

2017 NCAA champions who won NCAA titles again this year for Penn State were Zain Retherford, who was the national winner of the Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award in 2013, at 149 pounds, Jason Nolf at 157 pounds, Vincenzo Joseph at 165 pounds and Bo Nickal, who as the Texas and Central Region winner of the DSHSEA in 2014, at 184 pounds. Retherford won his third career NCAA crown.

Nickal clinched the team victory with a stunning first period pin over long-time rival Myles Martin of Ohio State, who was the Maryland winner of the DSHSEA in 2015, at 184 pounds in the only match-up between the teams.

Martin struck first by finishing off a leg attack, but Nickal rolled through from the bottom and reversed Martin straight to his back, locking up his head and pressing for the fall at 2:30 to the roar of the crowd. Nickal celebrated on the mat for the Penn State fans. He was later named Outstanding Wrestler of the NCAA Championships.

“I think that just goes to making the most of every second that I have. I'm going to wrestle through every position. I'm going to keep going, keep looking to score points, keep looking to put people on their backs no matter what the situation, whether I'm up one or down by one, whatever the score is. I just try to wrestle my best through the whole match and every match that I have,” said Nickal.

Nickal is a three-time NCAA finalist with one more year to go. Martin won the NCAAs as a freshman in 2016 and is a three-time All-American. They met in the 2017 NCAA finals. Nickal holds a 7-2 edge in their career meetings, with three wins this year

It was Penn State’s seventh NCAA title in the last eight years under Head Coach Cael Sanderson, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member in 2011. Ohio State, which won the 2015 NCAA title, is the team that broke up the Penn State streak. Overall, the Nittany Lions now have eight NCAA team titles. Sanderson was named NCAA Div. I Coach of the Year.

“Well, I'm obviously very proud of these guys. I think they put forth a tremendous effort throughout the whole year. And a great day today, great day yesterday. And just proud of them and happy for them, more than anything. , I think they remained calm and focused on their goals and that's important. I mean, you want to win. When there's a team race, you know, that obviously adds just additional pressure to individuals. But I thought they did a great job staying focused,” said Sanderson.

No. 1 seed Retherford, a senior leader in the program, scored two first-period takedowns and emerged with a 6-2 win over No. 15 Ronnie Perry of Lock Haven. It was Retherford’s 94th straight victory to end his career. Retherford received the NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler Award for his performance all year.

The first period ended 4-2, after two Retherford takedowns, with a Perry escape in the middle. In the second period, Retherford took bottom and got an escape to lead 5-2. Perry almost scored a takedown as time ran out in the second period. Retherford rode Perry to clinch riding time in the third, then Perry got an escape and could not score again.

“This year, the only difference was I knew that was the last time I was going to wear the singlet. I said it before, but just kind of making the most of this opportunity. Just as nervous as I was the first time doing this. That doesn't go away. I think it was definitely fun and it's kind of sad this is the last time I'm wearing this,” said Retherford.

Retherford, a 2017 U.S. Senior World Team member who was a Cadet World freestyle champion in high school, was the 2017 Hodge Trophy winner as the nation’s best college wrestler. Perry is the first No. 15 seed to reach the NCAA finals. Both are Pennsylvania natives.

Nolf, who entered as the No. 3 seed, scored a pair of first period takedowns and controlled the rest of the way to defeat No. 1 seeded freshman Hayden Hidlay of North Carolina State, 6-2. Nolf seemed to have little effect from his leg injury at the end of the season, moving well throughout the bout. Nolf led 4-1 after getting two takedowns in the opening frame. Nolf got a second period escape, and secured riding time in the third, before Hidlay got a final escape.

Nolf showed some uncharacteristic emotion after the victory.

“Yeah, I didn't really mean to get that excited over it. But it happened. But, yeah, definitely there's adversity with everything. So I got through it. And I ended up on top,” said Nolf.

Nolf is now a three-time NCAA finalist after placing second as a freshman. Hidlay entered the match as an undefeated freshman. They did not meet earlier this year. Penn State took the lead in the team race over Ohio State by two points after Nolf’s victory.

For the second straight year, Joseph defeated two-time NCAA champion Isaiah Martinez of Illinois, who was the DSHSEA winner for California in 2013, in the finals, this time by a 6-1 score. For the second straight year, Joseph hit Martinez with a double overhook inside trip. Last year, it led to a pin, and this year it gave him the opening takedown for a 2-0 lead. Joseph added a two-point tilt to take a 4-0 lead after one period. Martinez escaped in the second to make it 4-1, but Joseph got a point for an unnecessary roughness penalty against Martinez for a head butt for a 5-1 lead. Martinez cut Joseph to start the third period, and there was no more scoring.

Joseph was asked to compare the two NCAA finals matches against Martinez.

“I think they were both kind of similar. We both came out aggressive, trying to score. He got on my legs a few times. I was kind of swatting his a little bit. So it's a good clash. And pretty much the same as last year, just two guys wrestling hard. I was able to get two quick back points today, which really helped out,” said Joseph.

Martinez competed in his fourth straight NCAA finals, ending his career as a two-time champion and two-time runner-up, the most storied wrestler in Illinois history. Martinez beat Joseph in their match earlier in the year, 4-1.

Penn State lost one finals match, as No. 1 seed Zahid Valencia of Arizona State, who was the national winner of the DSHSEA in 2015, defeated returning national champion and No. 2 seed Mark Hall of Penn State, who was the DSHSEA in 2016, in the finals at 174 pounds by an 8-2 margin.

Valencia opened the scoring in the first period with a takedown, and a Hall escape made it 2-1 at the end of the first. In the second, Hall escaped to tie it at 2-2, but Valencia answered with another takedown and ran up a bunch of riding time. A Valencia escape in the third made it 5-2, and as Hall made a late leg attack, Valencia added another counter takedown. Riding time gave Valencia the 8-2 win.

“For me I've been blessed with great parents, a great family, great teammates, coaches, everything. Also, God blessed me with a lot. I think I have everything in my life. And growing up this was a goal -- me and my brother and my dad and my whole family. So I started when I was 2 and now it's a dream come true. It's just been amazing. It's been a roller coaster of a journey and I'm glad to be on top now. I'm glad my dad was able to watch me do that,” said Valencia.

Valencia, a 2017 Junior World silver medalist, beat Hall in an unofficial match at the NWCA All-Star Classic in November. Hall is a two-time Junior World champion and a Cadet World champion in freestyle for Team USA.

Iowa, which had one individual champion, finished third with 97 points. Michigan and North Carolina State were tied in fourth place with 80 points. NC State won an individual title, while Michigan was beaten in their two finals matches, leading to the tie in the standings.

The final match of the evening featured the heavyweights, as Ohio State’s two-time NCAA champion Kyle Snyder faced Michigan big man Adam Coon, who was the DSHSEA winner for Michigan in 2013, for the third time this year. Snyder, considered the greatest freestyle wrestler in the world after an Olympic and two World titles, lost his first match to Coon in the dual meet, but beat him in the Big Ten finals.

There was no takedown in the first. Both athletes scored escapes from the bottom to make it 1-1 going late into the third period. With less than 20 seconds in the bout, Coon attempted a double leg, Snyder threw him by and earned the takedown for a 3-1 lead. A Coon escape made it 3-2, but he could not score again.

“I mean Coon is real big, real strong. He's a very good wrestler. He's had a great career. And he's a really good guy. I mean the match, it was a lot of me holding him off, trying to kind of pick and choose my shots and time them strategically throughout the match. And I was surprised that he shot at that point. I wasn't expecting that. I was expecting me to go underneath of him, and I was about to try to set a couple of things up because I knew there was only 30 seconds left. But he took the shot when I had my underhook, and kind of extended himself. So I was able to throw him by and there wasn't much time after that,” said Snyder.

The two big men have tremendous international achievements. Snyder, a 2016 Olympic champion and two-time World champion, also won a Junior World gold and bronze in freestyle for Team USA. Coon was a Junior World bronze medalist in both freestyle and Greco-Roman for Team USA, and also won a Cadet World gold medal in freestyle.

Ohio State head coach Tom Ryan, who lost his voice during the final day of wrestling, had nothing but praise for his Buckeye team, which was in the hunt the entire tournament until Martin lost to Nickal.

“Our team wrestled incredibly well, I’m so proud of them. We wanted to be in a position to win. Valencia that incredible match against Hall, put us in a position for an epic ending, an epic ending. Myles Martin came in ready to wrestle, we’re so proud of the way he went out there to score points. He took a double leg picks up two and two, we go from this emotion of this is going down, he’s going to win this match, it’s going to come down to heavyweight. Myles Martin is going to win his second national championship. You go from the sense of complete fulfillment to some degree of a heartbreak. It’s heartbreak for Myles, but I’m so proud of this team and glad to be associated with the staff, this institution and these guys that we’re working with,” said Ryan.

There was a pair of true freshman champions this year who have won a combined five age-group World titles for the United States, three-time age-group World champion Spencer Lee of Iowa, who was the DSHSEA winner for Pennsylvania and the Northeast Region in 2017, at 125 pounds and two-time age-group World champion Yianni Diakomihalis of Cornell, who was the DSHSEA winner for New York in 2017, at 141 pounds. It is the first time since 1947 that there has been multiple true freshmen winners.

Lee, the No. 3 seed, got the first takedown and controlled the action for a 5-1 win over sophomore No. 4 seed Nick Suriano of Rutgers, who was the New Jersey and Northeast Region winner of the DSHSEA in 2016, at 125.

Lee finished a single leg attack with just three seconds left to lead 2-0 after one period. Lee opened the second period with an escape to lead 3-0 which was the score at the end of the period. Suriano picked neutral in the third period, Lee scored a takedown with a minute left to lead 5-0. A Suriano escape in the final seconds ended it at 5-1.

“You know my motto: You get punched in the face; you get up and you hit them back again. After losing, the plan was get my knee healthy, and then got my redshirt pulled and went for the NCAA title. And coaches believed in me and my family and friends and teammates believed in me. And that's why I'm here,” said Lee.

Lee, who boasts one Junior World gold medal and two Cadet World gold medals in freestyle for Team USA, came out of redshirt at midseason. Suriano, a transfer from Penn State, became Rutgers’ first NCAA finalist and was unbeaten coming into the finals. They did not meet earlier this season.

Trailing in the third period by two points, Diakomihalis locked up a cradle for a takedown and backpoints to defeat No. 1 seed Bryce Meredith of Wyoming, who was the Wyoming winner of the DSHSEA in 2014, 7-4.

There was no first period takedown, athough there was one funky scramble which showed off uncommon flexibility. For the second period, Diakomihalis chose neutral, and quickly scored a takedown to lead 2-0, which was followed by a Meredith escape to make it 2-1. In the third period, a Meredith escape was followed by a counter ankle pick which led to a Meredith takedown and a 4-2 lead. After Diakomihalis escaped, his cradle led to four points and the 7-4 victory.

“It's all about belief, in my opinion. I know my coaches have infinite confidence in me. And I know every time I step out there, I have a lot of scoring potential, a lot of ways I can score. So it's all just coming from that confidence that no matter what situation you're in, you can go get one. You can keep them off you. So you should never have fear if you believe in yourself,” said Diakomihalis.

Diakomihalis won two Cadet World titles in freestyle for Team USA. Meredith, now a two-time NCAA runner-up, started his career at NC State and returned to his home state of Wyoming. Earlier this year, Diakomihalis beat Meredith, 4-2.

Becoming the first NCAA Div. I champion in school history, No. 1 seed Seth Gross of South Dakota State scored first, had a big four-point tilt in the first period and went on to beat No. 2 seed Stevan Micic of Michigan, who was the Indiana winner of the DSHSEA in 2014, 13-8 at 133 pounds.

After the opening takedown, Gross added a bar arm tilt for four points, to lead 6-0 at end of the first period. Micic took neurtral and scored a takedown to close it to 6-2, and a Gross escape made it 7-2. In the third, Gross got a takedown. After an injury break, Micic gave up an intentional release to make it 9-2. Micic scored two third period takedowns, but Gross traded escapes with him, and after getting riding time, Gross had his arm raised.

“It feels amazing. Best feeling ever right here. And something I've been working for my whole life. Again getting it done finally after getting second last year, there's a chip on my shoulder this year, need to get it done,” said Gross.

He credited his transfer to South Dakota State in Brookings, S.D. to compete for coach Chris Bono as making all the difference in his career.

“Brookings changed my life and for the better. And just been good things ever since I've been here. And to be able to bring this national title back home to Brookings is huge. For the team, for the program, for the school, for everything, I'm just happy to do that. Give the glory to God. And, like I said, Brookings changed my life and got me to where I am,” he said.

Gross was in the NCAA finals for the second straight year. Micic was a Junior World bronze medalist for Team USA in freestyle. Both are transfers as Micic started his career at Northwestern and Gross at Iowa. They did not meet in the season but in the unofficial match at the All-Star Classic, Gross was the victor.

In the first all-ACC final in NCAA history, No. 4 Michael Macchiavello of NC State avenged two previous losses this season to No. 3 Jared Haught of Virginia Tech, 3-1. With the match tied 1-1, after both wrestlers scored escapes, Macchiavello nailed a takedown with 11 seconds left in regulation to win the bout.

“I don't have any words. It's a great feeling. I think I was thinking about if Haught wouldn't have made it to the finals, you could have potentially made the argument, oh, if I had won, which I did, thankfully, if I had won, oh, he won because the way the bracket played out, you know what I'm saying? Because he's the only guy who beat me twice in the year,” said Macchiavello.

There were two NCAA records set in Cleveland this weekend, the total attendance of 113,743, with a single session record tonight of 19,776 fans. Next year, the NCAA Championships are in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Clay Ream of North Dakota State, a 3.779 in Molecular Biology, won the Elite 90 award for the third straight year.

NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships
Cleveland, Ohio

Championship Matches
125 pounds - No. 3 Spencer Lee (Iowa) dec. No. 4 Nick Suriano (Rutgers), 5-1
133 pounds - No. 1 Seth Gross (South Dakota State) dec. No. 2 Stevan Micic (Michigan), 13-8
141 pounds - No. 3 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) dec. No. 1 Bryce Meredith (Wyoming), 7-4
149 pounds - No. 1 Zain Retherford (Penn State) dec. No. 15 Ronnie Perry (Lock Haven), 6-2
157 pounds - No. 1 Hayden Hidlay (NC State) dec. No. 3 Jason Nolf (Penn State), 6-2
165 pounds - No. 3 Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State) dec. No. 1 Isaiah Martinez (Illinois), 6-1
174 pounds - No. 1 Zahid Valencia (Arizona State) dec. No. 2 Mark Hall (Penn State), 8-2
184 pounds - No. 1 Bo Nickal (Penn State) pin No. 2 Myles Martin (Ohio State), 2:30
197 pounds - No. 4 Michael Macchiavello (NC State) dec. No. 3 Jared Haught (Virginia Tech), 3-1
285 pounds - No. 1 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) dec. No. 2 Adam Coon (Michigan), 3-2

Team Standings (Top 20)
1 Penn State 141.5
2 Ohio State 134.5
3 Iowa 97.0
4 Michigan 80.0
4 NC State 80.0
6 Missouri 61.5
7 Cornell 48.0
8 Virginia Tech 47.5
9 Nebraska 47.0
10 Arizona State 43.0
11 Rutgers 42.5
12 South Dakota State 42.0
13 Illinois 37.5
13 Oklahoma State 37.5
15 Lehigh 36.5
16 Lock Haven 35.0
17 Minnesota 27.5
17 Wisconsin 27.5
17 Wyoming 27.5
20 North Carolina 27.0

Medal Matches

125
3rd - Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) won in sudden victory - 1 over Ethan Lizak (Minnesota) (SV-1 8-6)
5th - Darian Cruz (Lehigh) won by decision over Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern) (Dec 7-4)
7th - Ronnie Bresser (Oregon State) won by medical forfeit over Zeke Moisey (West Virginia) (Medical Forfeit)

133
3rd - Tariq Wilson (NC State) won by major decision over Luke Pletcher (Ohio State) (MD 17-8)
5th - Kaid Brock (Oklahoma State) won by major decision over Scott Delvecchio (Rutgers) (MD 10-1)
7th - Scott Parker (Lehigh) won by decision over Montorie Bridges (Wyoming) (Dec 5-2)

141
3rd - Joey McKenna (Ohio State) won by decision over Jaydin Eierman (Missouri) (Dec 7-2)
5th - Nick Lee (Penn State) won in sudden victory - 1 over Kevin Jack (NC State) (SV-1 9-7)
7th - Chad Red (Nebraska) won by fall over Sa`Derian Perry (Eastern Michigan) (Fall 7:00)

149
3rd - Matthew Kolodzik (Princeton) 29-6 won by decision over Troy Heilmann (North Carolina) 32-6 (Dec 3-2)
5th - Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) 27-4 won by decision over Grant Leeth (Missouri) 26-5 (Dec 4-0)
7th - Jason Tsirtsis (Arizona State) 21-8 won by decision over Boo Lewallen (Oklahoma State) 29-8 (Dec 2-1)

157
3rd - Tyler Berger (Nebraska) won by injury default over Michael Kemerer (Iowa) (Inj. 1:36)
5th - Alec Pantaleo (Michigan) won by decision over Micah Jordan (Ohio State) (Dec 6-3)
7th - Joshua Shields (Arizona State) won by decision over Luke Zilverberg (South Dakota State) (Dec 11-5)

165
3rd - Evan Wick (Wisconsin) won by fall over Chance Marsteller (Lock Haven) (Fall 3:19)
5th - David McFadden (Virginia Tech) won by fall over Alex Marinelli (Iowa) (Fall 5:14)
7th - Jonathon Chavez (Cornell) won by decision over Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma State) (Dec 10-5)

174
3rd - Myles Amine (Michigan) won in sudden victory - 1 over Daniel Lewis (Missouri) (SV-1 4-2)
5th - Bo Jordan (Ohio State) won by medical forfeit over Jordan Kutler (Lehigh) (M. For.)
7th - David Kocer (South Dakota State) won by decision over Jacobe Smith (Oklahoma State) (Dec 7-2)

184
3rd - Emory Parker (Illinois) 28-4 won by decision over Taylor Venz (Nebraska) 29-9 (Dec 8-1)
5th - Domenic Abounader (Michigan) 27-7 won by decision over Zachary Zavatsky (Virginia Tech) 31-8 (Dec 8-2)
7th - Chip Ness (North Carolina) 20-12 won by decision over Maxwell Dean (Cornell) 31-6 (Dec 6-3)

197
3rd - Kyle Conel (Kent State) 30-11 won by decision over Kollin Moore (Ohio State) 27-4 (Dec 5-3)
5th - Jacob Holschlag (Northern Iowa) 23-12 won by fall over Ben Darmstadt (Cornell) 33-4 (Fall 2:37)
7th - Shakur Rasheed (Penn State) 24-5 won by major decision over Willie Miklus (Missouri) 25-6 (MD 11-3)

285
3rd - Amar Dhesi (Oregon State) 25-3 won by fall over Jacob Kasper (Duke) 39-4 (Fall 1:46)
5th - Samuel Stoll (Iowa) 25-6 won by fall over Mike Hughes (Hofstra) 39-6 (Fall 1:57)
7th - Nick Nevills (Penn State) 30-7 won by decision over Youssif Hemida (Maryland) 30-8 (Dec 7-5)