This is only the second time in school history Northwestern has produced multiple Midlands champions -- the Wildcats also had two in 1964.
Lang, who cruised through the first day of competition, faced off against Harvard's fifth-seeded Max Meltzer in the semifinals. Lang dominated his opponent to the tune of a 16-6 major decision and moved on to the final match against Iowa's Tsirtsis. The top-ranked junior fell behind the second-seeded Hawkeye, but a pair of thunderous takedowns propelled Lang into the lead. He held on for the 8-5 decision to capture his first career Midlands title.
Tamillow notched two major decisions on day one en route to his semifinal showdown against Central Michigan's Wynn Michalak. Tamillow defeated the familiar foe at last week's Reno Tournament of Champions. Tamillow, seeded second at 197, handled the third-seeded Michalak to record the 7-3 decision. He faced Iowa State's fifth-seeded Kurt Backes in Saturday night's final match. The junior trailed 1-0 early, but a late takedown enabled Tamillow to secure victory with a 3-1 decision. The win gave Tamillow his first career Midlands title.
Third-ranked and top-seeded Dustin Fox (Galion, Ohio/Galion) took to the mat next at heavyweight against Nebraska-Kearney's Tervel Diagnev. Fox fell behind early and could not regain control of the match. He lost the 10-4 decision and settled for second place in the heavyweight bracket.
Unseeded sophomore Eric Metzler (Luxemburg, Wis./Luxemburg-Casco), who defeated Iowa's third-seeded Mario Galanakis in the quarterfinals, wrestled Saturday night for fifth place. He took on Indiana's Andrae Hernandez at 133 lbs. Metzler fought hard, but fell 3-0 to the fourth-seeded Hoosier to capture sixth place.
Freshman Brandon Precin took eighth in the 125-pound division. He fell in the quarterfinals and took one match in the wrestleback bracket Saturday afternoon to ensure a top-eight finish.
Iowa State took the team title with 154.5 points, its first since 1981. Coach Cael Sanderson, a legend in the wrestling world, become only the second rookie head coach to win a Midlands title. Another legend, Dan Gable, was the first to accomplish the feat with his 1976 Iowa squad.
Northwestern finished third with 102 points, behind only the Cyclones and the Iowa Hawkeyes. The 'Cats improved on their 10th place finish in 2005. Jake Herbert (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny), a two-time Midlands champion, did not wrestle for the Wildcats in this year's event.
The Wildcats return to action January 14 at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals hosted by the University of Northern Iowa.
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