Session III: Kokesh Advances to Semifinals

Des Moines, Iowa – Sophomore Robert Kokesh (174) clinched All-American honors by advancing to the semifinals of the NCAA Championships at Wells Fargo Arena on Friday.

The Huskers are tied for eighth with 27 points after the third session. Penn State leads the team competition with 77.5 points, which is 12 clear of second-place Oklahoma State.

No. 4-seed Kokesh controlled throughout his quarterfinal match against No. 5-seed Josh Asper of Maryland, winning by an 11-3 margin. Kokesh, a sophomore, picked up his 36th win of the season following Thursday’s victories over Penn’s Ian Korb and Ohio’s Cody Walters. He will face No. 1-seed Chris Perry of Oklahoma State in the semifinals on Friday night.

Quarterfinalist Jake Sueflohn (149) fell in his match to undefeated No. 1-seed Jordan Oliver of Oklahoma State by an 11-3 major decision. Sueflohn, the No. 9-seed, will wrestle No. 6-seed Dylan Ness of Minnesota on Friday night to become an All-American.

Senior Josh Ihnen became the 21st wrestler in Husker history to pick up his 100th victory. The 184-pounder won a 7-5 decision over Virginia’s Stephen Doty in the wrestleback second round for his 99th win. In the wrestleback third round, Ihnen defeated Illinois’ Tony Dallago by a 9-6 decision. Ihnen, a Sheldon, Iowa native, will face No. 6-seed Ryan Loder of Northern Iowa to earn back-to-back All-American accolades.

James Green, the No. 4 seed at 157 pounds, also went 2-0 in the consolation bracket on Friday and will look to earn All-American honors for the second consecutive year. The sophomore opened with a 19-8 major decision over Indiana’s Taylor Walsh before picking up his first pin of the season. Green earned a fall over Purdue’s Tommy Churchard at 3:31 to advance for a matchup against No. 8-seed Dylan Alton of Penn State.

First-time NCAA qualifiers Austin Wilson (165) and Caleb Kolb (197) were eliminated in Session III on Friday. In Wilson’s first match, he picked up a three-point nearfall in the final 15 seconds to defeat UT-Chattanooga’s Josh Condon, 10-7. Wilson lost a major decision in his next match and finished his first NCAA Championships with a 3-2 mark. Kolb fell to Bloomsburg’s Richard Perry, 7-3, to finish with a 1-2 record in the tournament.

Session IV starts at 6 p.m., and will be aired on ESPNU. It will consist of the championship bracket semifinals as well as the consolation bracket fourth round and quarterfinals.

NCAA Championships
March 21-23, 2013
Wells Fargo Arena
Des Moines, Iowa

Results
First Round
141: #10 Charles Cobb (PENN) by dec. over Ridge Kiley (NEB), 2-0
149: #9 Jake Sueflohn (NEB) by major dec. over Ronnie Garbinsky (PITT), 16-3
157: Kyle Bradley (MIZZ) by tiebreaker-2 over #4 James Green (NEB), 6-5
165: Zach Toal (MIZZ) by dec. over Austin Wilson (NEB), 6-2
174: #4 Robert Kokesh (NEB) by pin over Ian Korb (PENN), 4:08
184: #8 Josh Ihnen (NEB) by dec. over MacKain Stoll (NDSU), 6-0
197: #4 Alfonso Hernandez (WYO) by major dec. over Caleb Kolb (NEB), 15-5

Consolation Bracket Pigtail Round
165: Austin Wilson (NEB) by dec. over Mike Ottinger (CMU), 6-2

Championship Bracket Second Round
149: #9 Jake Sueflohn (NEB) by dec. over #8 Nick Brascetta (VT), 4-2
174: #4 Robert Kokesh (NEB) by dec. over Cody Walters (OHIO), 8-3
184: Max Thomusseit (PITT) by dec. over #8 Josh Ihnen (NEB), 3-1

Consolation Bracket First Round
141: Daniel Neff (LOCK) by dec. over Ridge Kiley (NEB), 8-5
157: #4 James Green (NEB) by tech. fall over Bobby Barnhisel (NAVY), 21-6
165: Austin Wilson (NEB) by pin over Mark Lewandowski (BUFF), 2:01
197: Caleb Kolb (NEB) by sudden victory over Alex Polizzi (NW), 3-1

Consolation Bracket Second Round
157: #4 James Green (NEB) by major dec. over Taylor Walsh (IND), 19-8
165: Austin Wilson (NEB) by dec. over Josh Condon (CHATT), 10-7
184: #8 Josh Ihnen (NEB) by dec. over Stephen Doty (Virginia), 7-5
197: Richard Perry (BLOOM) by dec. over Caleb Kolb (NEB), 7-3

Championship Bracket Quarterfinals
149: #1 Jordan Oliver (OKST) by major dec. over #9 Jake Sueflohn (NEB), 11-3
174: #4 Robert Kokesh (NEB) by major dec. over #5 Josh Asper (MD), 11-3

Consolation Bracket Third Round
157: #4 James Green (NEB) by pin over Tommy Churchard (PUR), 3:31
165: #5 Steven Monk (NDSU) by major dec. over Austin Wilson (NEB), 9-1
184: #8 Josh Ihnen (NEB) by dec. over Tony Dallago (ILL), 9-6