PITTSBURGH, Pa. (March 21, 2019) – Following day one at the NCAA Wrestling Championships at PPG Paints Arena, all seven Wyoming qualifiers are still in contention for All-America honors heading into Friday's third session. With 8.5 points, Wyoming is in 20th overall as a team.
 
"It was a pretty good day," head coach Mark Branch said. "When you come here with seven wrestling on Friday, that's good. The upsets (in the first session were) great, but you're going to hit the hammers and we didn't pull any upsets in that next championship round, but our consolation guys came through. It's good to have all of your guys wrestling. We're still operating as a team and fighting together."
 
The Cowboys advanced four into the round of 16, with Montorie Bridges, Sam Turner, Branson Ashworth and Brian Andrews taking wins in their first matches of the tournament; however, each were knocked off in their following bouts by higher-seeded opponents. Wyoming finished the day strong, though, going 3-0 in wrestlebacks during the second session to finish the day with all seven Cowboy wrestlers still alive.
 
"There are a few things I was disappointed in, but again, walking into tomorrow and having all seven guys coming out to compete is what you want every day," Branch said. "That will be the goal tomorrow. We have to scrap because it's a dog fight—every single match. We're going to be underdogs in a lot of matches, so if you want to start making a name for yourself it can happen. These guys have got to believe, and we saw some good things. Those last two matches gave us a lot of momentum.
 
"Bonus points are huge for the team, but we really saw aggressiveness pay off. That's the message. You go out and take the fight to them, that's going to pay off. The matches that we struggled in, we stood around too much and didn't take the fight to them."
 
Bridges opened his tournament with a first-round victory over No. 21 seed Cam Sykora of North Dakota State. Bridges, who defeated Sykora, 6-5, earlier in the season, dropped Sykora, 3-2, in their second meeting of the year on Thursday afternoon. In his next match, Bridges ran into fifth-seeded All-American Luke Pletcher of Ohio State, who was able to hold off Bridges in a 5-3 decision. Bridges will take on No. 22 Noah Gonser of Campbell on Friday.
 
Sam Turner recorded his second top-10 win of the season on Thursday, upsetting No. 10 Nicholas Gil of Navy in the round of 32. Tied at two heading into the final frame, Turner was able to ride out Gil for the entirety of the third period—and get Gil called for his second stall warning—en route to a 4-2 victory. In the second match of the day, Turner couldn't tally a second upset over No. 7 Mitch McKee of Minnesota, who edged Turner, 7-4. Turner will face Virginia Tech's No. 24 Mitch Moore on Friday morning.
 
At 165 pounds, Branson Ashworth took care of business with a 9-1 major decision over No. 23 seed Zach Finesilver. In his next bout of the night against No. 7 Isaiah White of Nebraska, Ashworth's comeback bid fell short after falling down, 5-1, in the second, and the Cowboy senior dropped a tough, 5-4, match.
 
Heavyweight sophomore Brian Andrews recorded the Pokes' second upset of the day towards the end of the first session. Andrews used an eight-point third period, which included a four-point nearfall and a pair of takedowns, to lock up an impressive, 9-2 win over No. 14 seed and Big 12 finalist AJ Nevills of Fresno State. In the round of 16, the Cowboy ran into third-seeded Gable Steveson of Minnesota and gave up a major decision.
 
At 125 pounds, Cole Verner bounced back from a tough first-round loss on Thursday to stay alive and advance through consolations into Friday's third session. Matched up with No. 11 Travis Piotrowski of Illinois in the first round, Verner led throughout the match; however a last-second takedown by Piotrowski on the edge of the mat would shut down Verner's upset bid and send the Cowboy junior to the wrestlebacks. Verner responded nicely in his next match, defeating Missouri's Dack Punke, 4-2, in the first round of consolations.
 
Following a tough loss to No. 8 seed Taylor Lujan in his first career NCAA bout, redshirt freshman Hayden Hastings bounced back nicely by handling No. 24 Lorenzo De La Riva of North Dakota State in a 13-4 major decision to remain alive. The Sheridan, Wyo., native had matched up with De La Riva two other times this season, with the two grapplers narrowly splitting those matches—Hastings won the first meeting in December, 5-4, and De La Riva took the last meeting, 4-3, at the Big 12 Championships. Hastings will take on another familiar foe in his next match: No. 7 Jacobe Smith of Oklahoma State, who he will look to knock off for the first time.
 
Following a tough first-round loss to No. 15 Chip Ness of North Carolina, freshman Tate Samuelson ended the day for the Cowboys with a bang, majoring No. 31 Kevin Parker of Princeton, 14-2, in the last bout of the night. The win was Samuelson's first at the NCAA Championships. He will take on No. 16 Cory Hazel of Lock Haven in the next round of consolations on Friday morning.
 
The Cowboys will continue action on Friday morning at 9 a.m. MT with Session III on ESPNU. Session IV is set for 6 p.m. MT Friday night on ESPN.
 
2019 NCAA Wrestling Championships – Results Through Session I
March 21, 2019  |  PPG Paints Arena  |  Pittsburgh, Pa.
 
Cole Verner – 125 pounds
Round of 32: No. 11 Travis Piotrowski (ILL) dec. No. 22 Cole Verner (WYO) 4-3
Conso. First Round: No. 22 Cole Verner (WYO) dec. No. 27 Dack Punke (MIZZ) 4-2
 
Montorie Bridges – 133 pounds
Round of 32: No. 12 Montorie Bridges (WYO) dec. No. 21 Cam Sykora (NDSU) 3-2
Round of 16: No. 5 Luke Pletcher (OHST) dec. No. 12 Montorie Bridges (WYO) 5-3
 
Sam Turner – 141 pounds
Round of 32: No. 23 Sam Turner (WYO) dec. No. 10 Nicholas Gil (NAVY) 4-2
Round of 16: No. 7 Mitch McKee (MINN) dec. No. 23 Sam Turner (WYO) 7-4
 
Branson Ashworth – 165 pounds
Round of 32: No. 10 Branson Ashworth (WYO) MD No. 23 Zach Finesilver (DUKE) 9-1
Round of 16: No. 7 Isaiah White (NEB) dec. No. 10 Branson Ashworth (WYO) 5-4
 
Hayden Hastings – 174 pounds
Round of 32: No. 8 Taylor Lujan (UNI) MD No. 25 Hayden Hastings (WYO) 15-7
Conso. First Round: No. 25 Hayden Hastings (WYO) MD No. 24 Lorenzo De La Riva (NDSU) 13-4
 
Tate Samuelson – 184 pounds
Round of 32: No. 15 Chip Ness (UNC) dec. No. 18 Tate Samuelson (WYO) 8-2
Conso. First Round: No. 18 Tate Samuelson (WYO) MD No. 31 Kevin Parker (PRIN) 14-2
 
Brian Andrews - Heavyweight
Round of 32: No. 19 Brian Andrews (WYO) dec. No. 14 AJ Nevills (FS) 9-2
Round of 16: No. 3 Gable Steveson (MINN) MD No. 19 Brian Andrews (WYO) 21-8