Seeds Announced For NCAA Wrestling Championships
3/13/2001 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
March 13, 2001
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The NCAA has announced the seedings and pairings for the 2001 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will be held March 15-17 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on the campus of the University of Iowa in Iowa City.
Two of the six Spartans who qualified for the championships are seeded in the top 10 at the championships. Senior Pat McNamara (Jordan, Minn.) is the No. 4 seed at 133 pounds. A two-time All-American (1998 and 2000), McNamara will face Harvard's Matt Picarsic in the first round. McNamara is currently tied for 14th on MSU's NCAA Tournament all-time wins list with 10.
"He had a great couple of weeks of practice," said Michigan State head coach Tom Minkel. "We expect him to be a national contender."
Junior Chris Williams (Fowlerville, Mich.), who is making his first-ever NCAA Championship appearance, earned the No. 7 seed at 125 pounds. Williams will face Kent State's Brent Thompson in the first round. Williams (28-12 overall) is third on the Spartans with 28 wins this season.
Mike Castillo (Sr., Ada, Mich.), Karl Nadolsky (So., Holland, Mich.) and Gray Maynard (So., Las Vegas, Nev.) are making their second consecutive trips to the NCAA Championships. Castillo will face Cal Poly's Andrew Gharst in the opening round. Castillo has posted a 23-12 record this season at 141 pounds. Nadolsky (26-10 overall) faces Edinboro's Ryan Shapert in the opening round at 149 pounds. Maynard (22-3 overall) returns after missing a month of action due to knee surgery. Maynard (157 pounds) faces Lock Haven's Jacon Gilligan in the opening round.
Nik Fekete (So., Canford, N.J.) is making his first-ever appearance in the NCAA Championships at 197 pounds. Fekete will wrestle No. 1 seed Mark Munoz of Oklahoma in the opening round. Fekete is tied for the team lead with 30 wins this season.
The Spartans will look to improve on last year's 14th-place finish. Iowa is the defending NCAA National Champion and has won nine of the last 10 championships.
2001 NCAA Wrestling Championships Schedule of Events
Carver-Hawkeye Arena - Iowa City, Iowa
(All times listed are CST)
Thursday, March 15
11 a.m. - First Session (eight mats) - Preliminaries
6:30 p.m. - Second Session (eight mats) - Preliminaries and Consolations
Friday, March 16
10 a.m. - Third Session (eight mats) - Quarterfinals and Consolations
5:30 p.m. - Fourth Session (six mats) - Semifinals and Consolations
Saturday, March 17
8 a.m. - Fifth Session (six mats) - Consolation, Semifinals and Finals
12:30 p.m. - Sixth Session (one mat) - Championship Finals