2008 NCAA Div. I Championships
Session II Outlook

BY MATT PFIFFNER

125
Eric Hoffman (North Dakota State - Davenport North) vs. No. 1 Angel Escobedo (Indiana) - These two have not met this season, but Escobedo is heavily favored as the top seed. But the Hoosier struggled in his first bout, while Hoffman looked very good. Hoffman is strong in scramble situations, so he may be able to frustrate Escobedo.

No. 5 Charlie Falck (Iowa) vs. Mark McKnight (Penn State) - McKnight knocked off No. 12 Tyler Shinn of Oklahoma State in the first round and looks to avenge a 2-0 loss to Falck in the dual meet. Falck needs to wrestle the way he did the first two periods in the first round.

No. 10 James Nicholson (Old Dominion - Des Moines Roosevelt) vs. No. 7 Michael Sees (Bloomsburg) - Nicholson looked very strong in his first match, while Sees put 21 points up on the board in the opening round. Should be a very good bout that either wrestler could win.

133
No. 8 Mack Reiter (Minnesota - Don Bosco) vs. Conor Beebe (Central Michigan) - Beebe upset No. 9 Zch Tanelli of Wisconsin in the first round, 7-6, and looks to knock off another seeded Big 10 wrestler in Reiter. The Gopher senior scored a first-period fall in the morning and looks as good as he has all season.

No. 5 Nick Fanthorpe (Iowa State) vs. Cory Fish (Boise State) - Fish scored a mild 4-3 upset win over Andrae Hernandez of Indiana in the first round and now takes on the fifth-seeded Cyclone. The two wrestlers have not met this season.

No. 4 Joey Slaton (Iowa) vs. Kenny Jordan (Nebraska) - Slaton won 11-4 when these two met in the National Dual finals in January. The Hawkeye was aggressive the entire match in the first round and if he keeps that up, he should move on to the quarterfinals.

141
No. 9 Nick Gallick (Iowa State) vs. Zach Bailey (Oklahoma) - Bailey goes after his second in-state wrestler of the tournament. After defeating No. 8 Dan LeClere of Iowa in the first round, Bailey has his sights set on Gallick, who won 10-3 over Bailey in the dual.

149
No. 1 Brent Metcalf (Iowa) vs. Kurt Kinser (Indiana) - Metcalf was business as usual in the first round with a quick pin. Kinser won a pigtail and then pinned returning All-American Don Fisch of Rider in the first round. Metcalf defeated the Hoosier 19-6 in the dual meet.

Mitch Mueller (Iowa State) vs. No. 2 Dustin Schlatter (Minnesota) - These two met in early December, with Schlatter coasting to an 8-1 victory. Mueller looked very good in his first two bouts Thursday morning, while Schlatter edged Adam Hall of Boise State, 5-3. A Mueller win is not out of the question, but he will have to wrestle very well to defeat the two-time All-American.

157
No. 7 Cyler Sanderson (Iowa State) vs. No. 10 Michael Chandler (Missouri) - These two have met twice this season in Big 12 action. Chandler won 11-5 in the dual, but Sanderson got his revenge in the Big 12 Tournament, 6-5. A big match for the Cyclone sophomore.

165
No. 8 Moza Fay (Northern Iowa) vs. No. 9 Trevor Stewart (Central Michigan) - These two will be meeting for the first time this season. Stewart struggled to get past his first-round foe, while Fay was the lone Panther to win Thursday morning, with an impressive 9-0 major decision.

No. 6 Jon Reader (Iowa State) vs. No. 11 Kurt Gross (Kent State) - Reader didn't appear to have any nerves in his first NCAA Tournament match and takes on the senior Gross for the first time this season.

No. 2 Mark Perry (Iowa) vs. Stephen Crozier (Air Force - MFL MarMac) - Perry started off the tournament with a two-minute pin, while Crozier had Byron Sigmon of UNC Greensboro on his back several times in a 12-7 win. Perry should not be tested by the former MFL MarMac standout here, but you never know.

174
No. 9 Brandon Mason (Oklahoma State - CB Lewis Central) vs. Nathan Lee (Boise State) - Many people probably expected a big Oklahoma State vs. Minnesota bout here, but Lee ended that talk when he upset No. 8 Gabe Dretsch of Minnesota in the first round. Now he looks to take out the returning All-American Cowboy.

No. 4 Jay Borschel (Iowa) vs. John Dergo (Illinois) - Borschel defeated Dergo 10-2 in the dual meet at the end of the season and again in the Big 10 Tournament. Anything less than a win here for the Hawkeye would be a major disappointment.

Aron Scott (Iowa State) vs. No. 3 Brandon Browne (Nebraska) - Scott may be looked at as a major underdog here, but in their only bout this season, Browne had to scrap for a 7-3 win. An upset may be unlikely, but definitely not impossible.

184
No. 1 Jake Varner (Iowa State) vs. Zack Giesen (Stanford) - Varner took care of business in the first round with a solid 6-0 win. Giesen would have the shocker of the tournament if he were to give the Cyclone his first loss of the season.

No. 7 Philip Keddy (Iowa) vs. No. 10 Kirk Smith (Boise State) - These two have met twice before, with Keddy winning tight decisions both times. Both recorded major decisions in the first round and appear ready to battle for a third time.

197
David Bertolino (Iowa State) vs. No. 3 Mike Tamillow (Northwestern) - Tamillow defeated the Cyclone 10-4 in the National Duals. Bertolino is capable of giving the best wrestlers in the weight class fits, but will he be able to pull the upset here?

285
No. 4 Matt Fields (Iowa) vs. Nathan Everhart (Indiana) - Fields seems to have turned up the offense a notch or two in the past couple of weeks and should be able to reach the quarterfinals. The Hawkeye defeated Everhart 7-3 in the dual in mid-February.

No. 7 David Zabriskie (Iowa State) vs. No. 10 Zach Sheaffer (Pittsburgh) - The Cyclone big man came on strong in the second half of his first-round bout and will look to carry that momentum into his match tonight against the Panther. Zabriskie won a 3-2 decision over Sheaffer at the Midlands.