By Tim Robertson
Three Pride wrestlers earned All-American status Saturday at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City and helped led the Pride to an 11thplace finish, just one point shy of a three-way tie for ninth.
The Pride posted 47 points, the most in team history, at the event with 47, topping last season’s total of 36.5. After the 11th place finish, tying the 1969 squad for the best result, coach Tom Ryan fulfilled his goal of placing in the top 15 of the tournament, a testament to the strength and progress of the program.
Individually for the Pride, Mike Patrovich, Jon Masa and Chris Weidman finished fourth, fifth and sixth respectively in the 2006 NCAA Championships. The Pride had never placed three wrestlers in the top-eight in the history of the program. The Pride’s Cinderella story of the tournament occured when junior Chris Weidman defeated top-seeded and favorite Wynn Michelak of Central Michigan and eighth-seeded Ryan Bader fromArizona State in the quarterfinal round. Weidman lost his semi-final match to Jake Rosholt for the second time this season. Rosholt went on to win the 197-pound title.
“He certainly had some tournament, but I’m not surprised. He was always capable,” Pride head coach Tom Ryan said.
Weidman would have finished better, but a hip injury in the consolation semi-finals caused a medical default and prevented him from coming out for the fifth place match.
Senior co-captain Mike Patrovich earned his first All-American honor and capped off a dominating season. Patrovich ended his 2005-06 campaign with a 34-5 record. During the season he carried the team through rough patches and fired up his squad when needed most.
Patrovich advanced to the championship semifinals against the eventual national champion, Ben Askren of Missouri, but lost to Askren for the second time this season. Patrovich posted a win over Pennsylvania’s Matt Herrington.
“He is always ready for the competition,” Ryan said. “Whether it is the best guy in the country or a regular collegiate wrestler. He lost a heartbreaker last year, so this year was a long time coming.”
For Masa the 2006 All-American award will stand tall next to his 2003 and 2005 awards. Masa, with his third, became the Pride’s first three-time All-American, setting him apart from the few who have earned two.
“It is a great accomplishment for him and for the program as a whole,” Ryan said.
Masa earned the award in the consolation round after defeating Michigan’s Eric Tannenbaum, 9-0, in the fifth-place match. Masa dropped his quarterfinal match to Zach Esposito of Oklahoma State, making him 0-4 against the Cowboy dating, back to last season.
Junior Chris Vondruska picked up a dramatic pin in a close match against Minnesota’s Matt Nagel. The pin in the consolation secondround earned Vondruska a nod in the quarterfinals and sent him on the road to All-American honors. His bid was stopped short by Michael Poeta of Illinois.
Wrestlers take home All-American honors at the NCAAs.