Thursday, March 21
Pittsburgh, Pa.
7 P.M.
Pitt
vs
Session 2
Session 2 Recap: Two Pitt Freshmen Advance to NCAA Quarterfinals
3/21/2019 11:35:00 PM | Wrestling
PITTSBURGH – Pitt advanced a pair of redshirt freshmen to Friday's quarterfinals at the NCAA Wrestling Championships as Micky Phillippi (133) and Nino Bonaccorsi (184) both won their Round of 16 matchups on Thursday evening at PPG Paints Arena.
The young Panthers, both Pittsburgh area natives, each won their No. 4 vs. No. 13 contests in exciting bouts. Top-four seed Phillippi avoided an upset thanks to a narrow 1-0 decision over Austin Gomez of Iowa State, while Bonaccorsi pulled off one of the biggest shockers of Thursday's action via a 9-7 decision over No. 4 seed and returning All-American Emery Parker of Illinois.
"It was a day of ups and downs, and we're happy to have two guys in the quarterfinals," said Pitt head coach Keith Gavin. "We were obviously hoping to get three in the quarters with our heavyweight. But it's nice to see our guys out there wrestling tough. Now we have to come back tomorrow and get some wins."
Pitt's other Round of 16 participant, No. 8 heavyweight Demetrius Thomas, was defeated by Central Michigan's No. 9 seed Matt Stencel by major decision and will enter the consolation brackets.
In the first round of wrestlebacks for two Panthers, junior Taleb Rahmani stayed alive and posted bonus points, while fellow junior Kellan Stout saw his NCAA Championships come to an end.
Below is a recap of each session two bout:
133 | #4 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) dec. #13 Austin Gomez (Iowa State), 1-0
Phillippi advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals at 133 pounds with a shutout victory over No. 13 seed Austin Gomez of Iowa State. Phillippi scored the match's only point with a second period escape, but the Pitt redshirt freshman had to survive several shots by Gomez in the final minutes to move within one victory of earning All-America honors.
Next Match: #4 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) vs. #5 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State)
184 | #13 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. #4 Emery Parker (Illinois), 9-7
Bonaccorsi pulled one of the biggest upsets of the opening day at the NCAA Championships with a 9-7 victory over Illinois' No. 4 seed Emery Parker, who finished third last year at nationals. Bonaccorsi earned a takedown in the opening stages of the match but needed to come from behind in the final period, which he accomplished thanks to a late takedown against the Illini star. Pitt's redshirt freshman is now one win away from being a hometown All-American this weekend in Pittsburgh.
Next Match: #13 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) vs. #5 Max Dean (Cornell)
285 | #9 Matt Stencel (Central Michigan) major dec. #8 Demetrius Thomas (Pitt), 17-9
Thomas' run in the championship bracket ended in the Round of 16 as he fell to No. 9 seed Matt Stencel of Central Michigan. The Pitt heavyweight had an early lead but fell behind late in the second period and was unable to recover. Pitt's ACC champion will look to rebound in the consolation bracket beginning on Friday as he seeks to make a run at All-America honors.
Next Match: #8 Demetrius Thomas (Pitt) vs. #26 Ian Butterbrodt (Brown)
157 | #12 Taleb Rahmani (Pitt) major dec. #28 Hunter Willits (Oregon State), 12-3
Rahmani stayed alive at the NCAA Championships and scored bonus points for the Panthers with a 12-3 major decision in the first consolation round against Oregon State's Hunter Willits. Rahmani conceded the first takedown in the match, but rallied in a big way in the second period with nearfall points that helped him build a huge lead in the match and advance to Friday's action.
Next Match: #12 Taleb Rahmani (Pitt) vs. #11 Ke-Shawn Hayes (Ohio State)
197 | #26 Anthony McLaughlin (Air Force) dec. #23 Kellan Stout (Pitt), 4-2
Stout was defeated in his second match Thursday by a narrow decision, falling to Air Force's Anthony McLaughlin. The Pitt junior scored the first points with an escape, but gave up a third period takedown as well as a riding time point. Stout finished the 2018-19 campaign with a record of 12-8.
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The young Panthers, both Pittsburgh area natives, each won their No. 4 vs. No. 13 contests in exciting bouts. Top-four seed Phillippi avoided an upset thanks to a narrow 1-0 decision over Austin Gomez of Iowa State, while Bonaccorsi pulled off one of the biggest shockers of Thursday's action via a 9-7 decision over No. 4 seed and returning All-American Emery Parker of Illinois.
"It was a day of ups and downs, and we're happy to have two guys in the quarterfinals," said Pitt head coach Keith Gavin. "We were obviously hoping to get three in the quarters with our heavyweight. But it's nice to see our guys out there wrestling tough. Now we have to come back tomorrow and get some wins."
Pitt's other Round of 16 participant, No. 8 heavyweight Demetrius Thomas, was defeated by Central Michigan's No. 9 seed Matt Stencel by major decision and will enter the consolation brackets.
In the first round of wrestlebacks for two Panthers, junior Taleb Rahmani stayed alive and posted bonus points, while fellow junior Kellan Stout saw his NCAA Championships come to an end.
Below is a recap of each session two bout:
133 | #4 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) dec. #13 Austin Gomez (Iowa State), 1-0
Phillippi advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals at 133 pounds with a shutout victory over No. 13 seed Austin Gomez of Iowa State. Phillippi scored the match's only point with a second period escape, but the Pitt redshirt freshman had to survive several shots by Gomez in the final minutes to move within one victory of earning All-America honors.
Next Match: #4 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) vs. #5 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State)
184 | #13 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. #4 Emery Parker (Illinois), 9-7
Bonaccorsi pulled one of the biggest upsets of the opening day at the NCAA Championships with a 9-7 victory over Illinois' No. 4 seed Emery Parker, who finished third last year at nationals. Bonaccorsi earned a takedown in the opening stages of the match but needed to come from behind in the final period, which he accomplished thanks to a late takedown against the Illini star. Pitt's redshirt freshman is now one win away from being a hometown All-American this weekend in Pittsburgh.
Next Match: #13 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) vs. #5 Max Dean (Cornell)
285 | #9 Matt Stencel (Central Michigan) major dec. #8 Demetrius Thomas (Pitt), 17-9
Thomas' run in the championship bracket ended in the Round of 16 as he fell to No. 9 seed Matt Stencel of Central Michigan. The Pitt heavyweight had an early lead but fell behind late in the second period and was unable to recover. Pitt's ACC champion will look to rebound in the consolation bracket beginning on Friday as he seeks to make a run at All-America honors.
Next Match: #8 Demetrius Thomas (Pitt) vs. #26 Ian Butterbrodt (Brown)
157 | #12 Taleb Rahmani (Pitt) major dec. #28 Hunter Willits (Oregon State), 12-3
Rahmani stayed alive at the NCAA Championships and scored bonus points for the Panthers with a 12-3 major decision in the first consolation round against Oregon State's Hunter Willits. Rahmani conceded the first takedown in the match, but rallied in a big way in the second period with nearfall points that helped him build a huge lead in the match and advance to Friday's action.
Next Match: #12 Taleb Rahmani (Pitt) vs. #11 Ke-Shawn Hayes (Ohio State)
197 | #26 Anthony McLaughlin (Air Force) dec. #23 Kellan Stout (Pitt), 4-2
Stout was defeated in his second match Thursday by a narrow decision, falling to Air Force's Anthony McLaughlin. The Pitt junior scored the first points with an escape, but gave up a third period takedown as well as a riding time point. Stout finished the 2018-19 campaign with a record of 12-8.
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