TRENTON, N.J. – The Cleveland State wrestling team wrapped up action at the 2021 Mid-American Conference Championships Saturday, with Marcus Robinson (149), DeAndre Nassar (184) and Ben Smith (197) all qualifying for the NCAA Tournament.
Cleveland State finished the weekend in sixth place with 68 points, as the Vikings have now finished in the top-half of the championship standings in each of its first two years as a member of the MAC.
After picking up three wins on Friday, Robinson advanced to the championship match at 149 pounds, where he went up against top-seeded Brock Mauller of Missouri. Robinson, who entered the weekend as the No. 6 seed, came up short in the final match of the weekend, dropping a 6-0 decision against Mauller to finish as the 2021 Runner-Up.
Smith earned his appearance in Saturday's 197-pound championship match with a pair of wins on the first day of action, as he was matched up against second-seeded Rocky Elam of Missouri. Smith, who entered the weekend as one of two No. 4 seeds for the Vikings, came up short in the final match of the weekend, dropping a 10-4 decision against Elam to also finish as the 2021 Runner-Up.
After dropping his semifinal match yesterday, Nassar earned a spot in the consolation semifinal at 184 pounds, where he picked up a 3-2 decision over Edinboro's Ethan Ducca to earn a spot in the consolation final. Fourth-seeded Nassar then went the distance in his final match of the weekend, as he battled for a 5-3 sudden victory decision over Clarion's Max Wohlabaugh to earn the third and final NCAA automatic qualifying spot for the Vikings.
This was the second match between Nassar and Wohlabaugh in this year's championship, as Nassar also picked up a win in yesterday's quarterfinal matchup between the two wrestlers.
Robinson and Smith both earned an automatic berth into the NCAA Championships by virtue of their runner-up finishes, while Nassar earned his trip to the NCAA Championships after winning his third place match.
This marks the first time since 2007 that Cleveland State has had three NCAA Qualifiers.
In addition to Nassar, Riley Smucker (165) also earned a spot in the consolation finals after picking up an 8-4 decision over Rider's Jake Silverstein in the consolation semifinals. Smucker came up short in his final match of the championships though, as he fell to Alex Cramer of Central Michigan in the consolation finals.
Also picking up a consolation win for the Vikings on Saturday was Daniel Patten (157).
Robinson, Smith and Nassar, along with any additional Vikings that earn at-large berths, will now compete in the NCAA Championships which begin March 18 in St. Louis, Missouri.
CSU Results at the Mid-American Conference Championships – Day Two
149
Championship: No. 1 Brock Mauller (Missouri) over No. 6 Marcus Robinson (CSU) – 6-0 dec.
157
Consolation Quarterfinal: Daniel Patten (CSU) over No. 4 Alex Carida (Bloomsburg) – 4-1 dec.
Consolation Semifinal: Peter Pappas (Edinboro) over Patten (CSU) – 5-3, dec.
Consolation 5th Place: No. 8 Michael Petite (Buffalo) over Patten (CSU) – Fall 1:58
165
Consolation Semifinal: No. 6 Riley Smucker (CSU) over No. 4 Jake Silverstein (Rider) – 8-4, dec.
Consolation Final: No. 5 Alex Cramer (CMU) over No. 6 Smucker (CSU) – 4-3 dec.
174
Consolation Quarterfinal: John Worthing (Clarion) over No. 7 Anthony Rice (CSU) - 6-4, dec.
Consolation: Jake Lowell (CMU) over No. 7 Rice (CSU) – 15-0 TF
184
Consolation Semifinal: No. 4 DeAndre Nassar (CSU) over Ethan Ducca (Edinboro) – 3-2 dec.
Consolation Final: No. 4 Nassar (CSU) over No. 5 Max Wohlabaugh (Clarion) – 5-3 dec. SV3
197
Championship: No. 2 Rocky Elam (Missouri) over No. 4 Ben Smith (CSU) – 10-4 dec.