March 17, 2007

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Auburn Hills, Mich. - The Tiger wrestling team opened session five of the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships with two wrestlers at a chance for third place in their respective weight classes. Senior Matt Pell (Luxemburg, Wis.) won his two matches to place in third, while Tyler McCormick placed sixth. With Pell and McCormick placing, the Tigers picked up big points to help stand seven points ahead of Oklahoma State in third place with 76 points.

Senior Matt Pell (Luxemburg, Wis.) continued his win streak in the consolation brackets. Since Pell lost to Oklahoma State's Johny Hendricks in the quarterfinals, he registered two straight pins in the consolation bracket to gain All-America honors before today's match with sixth-seeded Mike Patrovich of Hofstra. Pell jumped out to an early lead in the match with a takedown at :37 in the first. Pell extended the lead with a pair of escapes in the second, and scored an escape with 19 seconds left in the match to break the 4-4 tie and win the decision 5-4.

Advancing to the third place match, Pell faced off against third-seeded Eric Tannenbaum of Michigan. With the hometown crowd behind the 27-2 Tannenbaum, Matt Pell wrestled his best match of the tournament. The two grapplers started neutral to begin the second period. Pell used the same move which he used to pin three other opponents this tournament, and threw Tannebaum to the mat at 1:09 for his fourth pin of the championships. Pell went on a tear for the Tigers, scoring bonus points in all but one of his wins. Pell registered four pins and a major decision. No other wrestler in the tournament has scored as many pins as Pell. Missouri senior Ben Askren (Hartland, Wis.) could tie that mark later tonight in the championship match at 174-pounds.

Now at two-time All-American, McCormick faced top-seeded Nick Simmons of Michigan State. McCormick won three matches yesterday to battle his way back to All-American, but McCormick met his match in Simmons as he blanked McCormick 9-0 in a major decision, sending him to the fifth place match to face sixth-seeded Darrell Vasquez of Cal Poly. McCormick would lose the match in a 7-3 decision, but still earns his highest placement ever, with sixth in the nation.

The Championships Round will begin tonight at 8 p.m. (EST) with Ben Askren being the only Tiger in a championship match. Askren will square off against Pittsburgh's Keith Gavin, who he has pinned twice already this season. Askren is looking to be the Tigers only back-to-back National Champion. The match will be aired on ESPN starting a 7 p.m. (CT) and stay tuned to www.mutigers.com for official results.

Complete Team Standings

1- Minnesota- 92 (1)

2- Iowa State- 84.5 (3)

3- Missouri- 76 (1)

4- Oklahoma State- 69 (2)

5- Northwestern- 67.5 (5)

6- Michigan- 62 (1)

7- Hofstra- 60.5 (0)

8- Ohio State- 54.5 (0)

9- Penn State- 54 (1)

10- Iowa- 53 (1)