March 15, 2012
The Old Gold and Black lost four straight to open the session, knocking all six of the Purdue qualifiers into the wrestlebacks. Sophomore Camden Eppert was hanging tough against fourth-seeded Jesse Delgado of Illinois, heading to the third period trailing 4-2. However, Eppert was called for a defensive pin at the 5:11-mark and was sent to the consolation bracket by the Illini freshman.
Ninth-seeded Purdue sophomore Cashé Quiroga fell at 133 pounds as well, dropping a 14-9 decision to eighth-seeded Zac Stevens of Michigan. Stevens capitalized on five nearfall points in the second period and held off a furious rally by Quiroga in the third to hang on for the win. Quiroga tallied nine takedowns in two matches on Thursday, moving his season total to 92 and his career total to 216. He's just four takedowns shy of another spot on the single-season record list, while he climbed to a tie for 17th on the career takedown list with former teammate Nick Corpe.
Tommy Churchard closed the gap on Northwestern's third-seeded Jason Welch at 157 pounds, but the Boilermaker junior still suffered his first loss of the tournament, 10-4. Churchard's third-period reversal was his 15th of the season, moving into a tie for 14th on the single-season record list at Purdue.
Senior A.J. Kissel gave third-seeded Matt Wilps of Pittsburgh all he could handle, but fell on a late score, 11-6. Wilps took an early lead, but Kissel quickly tied the score at 2-2 as he slipped a head-and-arm turn attempt from Wilps for his 35th career reversal (now tied for ninth all-time with head coach Scott Hinkel). Escapes from Wilps in the first and second made the score 4-2 heading to the third period, where Kissel escaped to cut the lead to one. Wilps scored another takedown, but Kissel quickly countered with an escape and takedown to make it 6-6 in the waning seconds. However, Wilps reversed Kissel to his back for a five-point move as time expired, ending the Boilermakers' championship bracket competition.
The Boilermakers bad luck continued in the wrestlebacks as junior Ivan Lopouchanski was ousted from the championships with a 5-3 loss to Eric Terrazas of Illinois. It was a nailbiter through the first two periods as Terrazas had a 1-0 lead on a pair of stalling warnings, but Lopouchanski piled up two minutes of riding time. Terrazas did all his damage in the third, scoring a pair of takedowns en route to the win.
The lone bright spot of the session was an injury default victory for 184-pound Purdue freshman Braden Atwood as Brad Dieckhaus of Northern Illinois was hurt in his first match and was unable to continue competition. Atwood picked up a point for advancing and two bonus points as he moved on to tomorrow's round.
Eppert will face Michael Martinez of Wyoming in tomorrow morning's consolation second round, while Quiroga has Brian Owen of Boise State and Churchard will have a Midlands Championship rematch with Aaron Sulzer of Eastern Michigan. Atwood will meet 10th-seeded Jacob Swartz of Boise State and Kissel meets up with Daniel Mitchell of Harvard.
Tomorrow's action resumes at 10 a.m. (CT), and you can continue to follow coverage via ESPN, TrackWrestling.com and the official @PurdueWrestling Twitter Page.
PURDUE BOUT-BY-BOUT RESULTS
125 - Camden Eppert
1st Round - def. Joe Roth (Central Michigan), D 5-3
2nd Round - lost to #4 Jesse Delgado (Illinois), Fall 5:11
Conso. 2nd Round - Michael Martinez (Wyoming)
133 - #9 Cashé Quiroga
1st Round - def. Shane McGough (Arizona State), MD 19-6
2nd Round - lost to #8 Zac Stevens (Michigan), D 9-14
Conso. 2nd Round - Brian Owen (Boise State)
149 - #12 Ivan Lopouchanski
1st Round - lost to Justin Accordino (Hofstra), D 4-8
Conso. 1st Round - lost to Eric Terrazas (Illinois), D 3-5
157 - Tommy Churchard
1st Round - def. Colton Palmer (North Carolina State), MD 11-1
2nd Round - lost to #3 Jason Welch (Northwestern), D 4-10
Conso. 2nd Round - Aaron Sulzer (Eastern Michigan)
184 - Braden Atwood
1st Round - #4 Steve Bosak (Cornell), D 0-5
Conso. 1st Round - def. Brad Dieckhaus (Northern Illinois), Inj. Default
Conso. 2nd Round - #10 Jacob Swartz (Boise State)
197 - A.J. Kissel
1st Round - def. John Weakley (Campbell), MD 12-2
2nd Round - lost to #3 Matt Wilps (Pittsburgh), D 6-11
Conso. 2nd Round - Daniel Mitchell (American)