CLEVELAND, Ohio — For the second straight season Purdue junior Joey Blaze earned a win in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Wrestling Championships, advancing to the national semifinals at 165 pounds and earning All-America status. Blaze secured a 4-3 decision over 10th-seeded Will Denny of North Carolina State, improving to 3-0 in the tournament and 25-1 on the season.
Blaze took his time feeling out Denny, taking a few attacks in the first, but heading to the second tied 0-0. Blaze escaped quickly in the second period, taking a 1-0 lead, and then added to it as he pressured his way to a leg on the edge of the mat and worked his way up to the hips for the takedown. He rode Denny out in the second to take a 4-0 advantage to the third and final period. Blaze played defense in the third, taking a couple stall warnings, but putting himself in no real danger as time expired.
Junior Brody Baumann saw his season come to an end in the second consolation round, falling to Oklahoma’s Carter Schubert in sudden victory, 12-9. Baumann came out firing, scoring a pair of takedowns to build a 6-2 lead in the second period. However Schubert responded in the third, scoring two takedowns to force overtime, and after a series of leg attacks from Baumann, scoring the final takedown with eight seconds left in the extra period.
UP NEXT
Blaze will face third-seeded Mikey Caliendo of Iowa in the semifinals tonight, seeking his second straight trip to the national finals. Blaze earned a 7-4 decision over Caliendo in the Big Ten dual meeting. The session begins at 8 p.m. (ET) and will air live on ESPN.
RESULTS
133 | #24 Blake Boarman (R-Sr.)
Round 1: #9 Dominick Serrano (Northern Colorado) – L, D 16-14
Conso. Round 1: #25 Will Betancourt (Rider) – L, SV 4-1
165 | #2 Joey Blaze (Jr.)
Round 1: #31 Jared Kesler (Pittsburgh) – W, D 5-0
Round 2: #15 Connor Euton (Iowa State) – W, MD 10-1
Quarterfinals: #10 Will Denny (North Carolina State) – W, D 4-3
Semifinals: #3 Michael Caliendo (Iowa)
174 | #22 Brody Baumann (R-Jr.)
Round 1: #11 M.J. Gaitan (Iowa State) – L, Fall 2:41
Conso. Round 1: #27 Collin Carrigan (North Carolina) – W, D 15-8
Conso. Round 2: #12 Carter Schubert (Oklahoma) – L, SV 12-9
197 | #26 Ben Vanadia (R-Sr.)
Round 1: #7 Cody Merrill (Oklahoma State) – L, TF 18-3 (6:01)
Conso. Round 1: #23 Mikey Squires (Binghamton) – L, MD 11-2