J.P. O'Connor of Harvard University has earned the top seed in the 157-pound bracket at the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, to be held March 18-20 at Qwest Center in Omaha.
O'Connor has a perfect 30-0 record this season, winning the 2010 EIWA (Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association) title at 157. He's one of three EIWA wrestlers to be seeded at this weight for the NCAAs; no other conference has this many wrestlers at this weight.
The Crimson senior has another distinction as one of only three wrestlers to have won four titles in high school at the New York State championships.
2009 NCAA champ at 157, Jordan Burroughs of Nebraska, was injured in a December match with Central Michigan's Steve Brown, had season-ending knee surgery, and will be unable to defend his title.
Here are the 12 wrestlers who have been seeded in the 157-pound bracket for the 2010 NCAAs, in order of seeding:
1. J.P. O'Connor, Harvard, a senior with a 30-0 record, and 2010 EIWA title
2. Adam Hall, Boise State, a redshirt junior with a 28-2 won-loss record. Won the 2010 Pac-10 championship.
3. Jesse Dong, Virginia Tech, a sophomore with a 34-3 record, and the ACC (Atlantic Coast Conference) crown.
4. Cyler Sanderson, Penn State, a redshirt senior who's 28-4. Last weekend the younger brother of Nittany Lions' head coach Cael Sanderson won the Big Ten title by upsetting Purdue's Colton Salazar in the finals. Last year, Cyler Sanderson wrestled for Iowa State, but did not place at the NCAAs.
5. Steve Fittery, American University, a redshirt junior with a 29-2 record, placed third at the EIWA championships.
6. Dustin Schlatter, Minnesota, a redshirt senior with an injury-shortened 14-2 record. Injury defaulted out of the 2010 Big Ten championships, yet, because of his high ranking through most of the season, was seeded.
7. Chase Pami, Cal Poly. This redshirt senior has a 25-6 record. He won his third Pac-10 championship two weeks ago, the first Mustang matman to do so.
8. Bryce Saddoris, Navy, a junior with 31 wins, 10 losses this season. Was runner-up at the EIWAs.
9. Matt Moley, Bloomsburg, a senior who can claim a 25-3 won-loss record, and the 2010 EWL (Eastern Wrestling League) title.
10. Shane Vernon, University of Oklahoma, a redshirt senior who brings a 20-5 season -- and the Big 12 championship -- to the NCAAs.
11. Neil Erisman, Oklahoma State, a redshirt senior with a 27-8 record. Lost to Vernon by one point in the 157 lb finals at the Big 12s.
12. Steve Brown, Central Michigan. The Mid-American Conference (MAC) champ has a 13-3 record this year as a redshirt senior.
Here are the first-round matches for the top four seeds in the 157-pound weight class at the 2010 NCAAs:
No. 1 seed J.P. O'Connor, Harvard vs. Vincent Salminen, North Dakota State, a redshirt junior with a 22-7 record.
No. 2 seed Adam Hall, Boise State vs. Jonny Bonilla-Brown, Hofstra, a redshirt senior with 19 wins, 5 losses this season.
No. 3 seed Jesse Dong, Virginia Tech vs. Joseph Booth, Drexel, a redshirt freshman with a 21-7 record.
No. 4 seed Cyler Sanderson, Penn State vs. Bryan Deutsch, Northern Illinois University, a redshirt junior with a 20-6 won-loss record.
NOTE: College Wrestling Examiner's "Mat Bracketology" feature is a series of articles that provides a quick preview of the seeded wrestlers in each weight class, along with opening matches for the top four seeds.
Resources
2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships: Official website... List of seeds/qualifiers by weight... Brackets
TheMat.com: College postseason tournament schedule and scores
College Wrestling 101: Links to articles answering basic questions about wrestling, including rules, scoring, uniforms, more
Follow College Wrestling Examiner Mark Palmer on Twitter
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