Tom Brands (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)"We had kind of had a let off," said Brent Metcalf, who advanced to the finals with a 16-4 victory over Wisconsin's fourth-seeded Kyle Ruschell. "It looks like it's going to end up like it was last year … and that's not progress. We need progress. It's up to me to get it going. Hopefully we can finish it the way it needs to be done for the rest of our bouts."
In addition to Metcalf, three other Hawkeyes advanced to the finals: No. 3-seeded Ryan Morningstar at 165, No. 3-seeded Phil Keddy at 184, and No. 1-seeded Daniel Erekson at heavyweight.
Morningstar scored a mild upset over second-seeded Colt Sponseller of Ohio State to advance to the finals. He'll take on No. 1-seeded Andrew Howe, a freshman at Wisconsin. Howe needed overtime to defeat fifth-seeded Luke Manuel of Purdue, 6-4.
Phil Keddy (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)"Overtime, you got to step it up," said Keddy. "You never stop wrestling until the match is over. That's why I lost to him in the quarterfinals at the NCAAs. That's been stuck in my head for a long time. Fifteen seconds left, you got to go to your go-to hold. That's what happened and it turned out in my favor."
Keddy will now face 2007 NCAA champion Jake Herbert of Northwestern, who won 6-1 over fourth-seeded Jordan Blanton of Illinois to advance to the finals. Keddy is 0-2 against Herbert this season, losing by scores of 15-1 (December 29) and 3-2 (February 22).
Erekson, seeded No. 1 at heavyweight, won 6-4 over fourth-seeded John Wise of Illinois to advance to finals.
Mike Poeta (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)"He got an early score right away," said Poeta, who was the NCAA runner-up at 157 last season. "That was the first time I was scored on this year. I was mad that he scored on me. I was offended. Screw him for even thinking he can. I just tried to put a lot of points on the board after that. But it's frustrating when a guy stays away from you for seven minutes."
Wisconsin sits in third place with 83 points, but tied Iowa for having the most finalists with four. The four Badgers who advanced to the finals were Howe, No. 1-seeded Zach Tanelli at 141, No. 1-seeded Dallas Herbst at 197, and No. 3-seeded Kyle Massey at heavyweight.
Tanelli, who moved up from 133 to 141 this season, knocked off defending NCAA champion J Jaggers of Ohio State, 3-1, in the semifinals.
"I feel good," said Tanelli, who will face Michigan's Kellen Russell in the 141-pound finals. "I've got one match left in this tournament. I want to finish out this tournament strong. You know, I'm just competing. I'm trying to compete. Let the chips fall where they may. Hopefully I come out on top. I want to win this tournament. But ultimately, I'm two weeks out from my goal. That's what I'm focused on. This is just a tune up."
Michigan is in fourth place with 77.5 points and has three finalists: Russell, No. 1-seeded Steve Luke at 174, and No. 2-seeded Tyrel Todd at 197.
Quentin Wright (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)Wright, a true freshman, pulled the biggest upset of the tournament and brought the crowd to its feet when he upset No. 2-seeded Jay Borschel of Iowa, a returning All-American, 11-10.
The long and lanky Wright converted on two early double leg takedowns on Borschel, which built his confidence and energized the crowd, which helped propel him to the victory.
"I can look up there and hear them scream," said Wright. "It's just that they believe in me that I can do it. It just gives me that extra energy, that extra shot, whenever I need to get off the bottom, to do it. I want to thank the fans for it."
Related Content:
Rev Audio: 2009 Big Ten Championships, Day 1
Updated Brackets
Pick 'Em Contest Standings
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