Huskers Collect 19th Top-10 NCAA Finish in Program History

Three Huskers earned All-America honors and three additional wrestlers made it to the Round of 12 to lead Nebraska to a ninth-place finish at the 2015 NCAA Championships in St. Louis, Mo. The result at the national tournament marked the 19th top-10 NCAA finish in program history and the first since 2009.

Kokesh, Green Close Careers as All-Time Husker Greats
Seniors Robert Kokesh (174) and James Green (157) completed two of the most decorated careers in Nebraska wrestling history by each finishing third at the NCAA Championships. For Kokesh, it marked his third top-four finish at the national tournament. For Green, he became the second four-time All-American in school history as he joined Bryan Snyder, who wrestled for the Huskers from 1999 to 2002.

The pair also used their final season to climb up Nebraska’s all-time wins list and each hold a spot in the top five. Kokesh is second in school history with 144 wins, while Green is fifth with 129 victories.

Kokesh went 39-1 as a senior with 22 bonus-point wins and held the No. 1 ranking for the most of the season after his win at the Cliff Keen Invitational on Dec. 6. He captured his second consecutive Big Ten title and added a Southern Scuffle crown and Cowboy Open title during the 2014-15 campaign.

Green collected his second straight third-place finish at the NCAA Championships after taking seventh in each of his first two seasons. He compiled a 35-5 mark, which included 23 bonus-point victories, and individual crowns at the Southern Scuffle and Cowboy Open.

Dudley Steps Up at NCAAs, Shows Bright Future for Huskers
In addition to Kokesh and Green, sophomore TJ Dudley captured All-America honors with his eighth-place finish at 184 pounds. Dudley completed his second season in the NU lineup with a 31-11 record, which included 14 bonus-point wins. Each of his losses at the national tournament came by one point.

Junior Anthony Abidin (141) and sophomores Eric Montoya (133) and Aaron Studebaker (197) each racked up crucial points for the Big Red in St. Louis and made it to the Round of 12 before being eliminated.

Abidin finished the season with a 33-6 record, and compiled a perfect 15-0 mark in dual competition. He led all starters in major decisions with 13 and opened the tournament with a pair of wins before suffering back-to-back losses.

Montoya, who was Nebraska Redshirt of the Year in 2013-14, took advantage of his first year in Nebraska’s lineup by topping a pair of top-five opponents in the consolation bracket. He finished the year with a 21-15 record.

Studebaker went 32-12, with a 10-3 dual record, and managed two pins at the NCAA Championships, which led the team.

Tim Lambert (125), Austin Wilson (165) and Collin Jensen (HWT) also wrestled for the Huskers at the national tournament. Wilson’s tournament was highlighted by a first-round upset win over No. 2 seed Michael Moreno of Iowa State.

Seven Huskers Place at Big Ten Championships
Kokesh repeated as Big Ten champion to lead six other Huskers who earned podium spots at the conference tournament. In his quarterfinal match, Kokesh recorded the quickest pin in the 101-year history of the Big Ten Championships with his 15-second fall of Michigan’s Taylor Massa.

Additional Huskers to place included: Green (third at 157), Abidin (fourth at 141), Lambert (sixth at 125), Dudley (sixth at 184), Wilson (seventh at 165) and Montoya (eighth at 133). As a team, Nebraska finished seventh with 85.5 points.

Huskers Dominate During Dual Season
Nebraska went 14-1 during the dual season to set the school record for best winning percentage (.933). The Huskers, who finished 11th in the final USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll, managed their best Big Ten record since joining the conference in 2011 with an 8-1 mark. NU tied for second in the conference standings with Ohio State behind dual meet champion Iowa, who went 9-0.

NU posted a 5-0 record against ranked opponents with wins over No. 25 Wyoming, No. 12 Illinois, No. 21 Rutgers, No. 24 Northwestern and No. 16 Michigan. The Huskers were dominant after the start of the New Year, winning all 10 duals by an average margin of 22.4 points. During this stretch, NU won 79 individual matches, while dropping only 21.

On Feb. 21, Head Coach Mark Manning became the winningest coach in school history when he earned his 200th and 201st dual wins at Nebraska. He passed Tim Neumann, who went 199-77-6 while coaching the Huskers from 1985 to 2000.