University of Illinois
NCAA Championships
Ott Takes Second in NCAA Championships
March 19, 2005 | Wrestling
March 19, 2005
For the ninth time in 13 seasons under head coach Mark Johnson, the University of Illinois has recorded a Top-10 finish at the NCAA Championships with its sixth-place finish, Saturday evening in St. Louis, Mo. Junior third-seed Kyle Ott made the NCAA Finals for the second straight year, but dropped a 2-0 decision to Big Ten foe and fifth-seeded Joe Dubuque to finish second at 125 pounds.
Ott (Jr., Huber Heights, Ohio) began the match with a strong shot too close to the edge of the mat and couldn't finish in bounds. After no scoring in the first period, Dubuque chose the bottom position and escaped in the first four seconds. The period finished without any additional scoring by either wrestler. With a 0-1 deficit, Ott chose to take bottom in the third, which Dubuque took advantage of by riding him the entire two-minute period. Ott was able to make some strong attempts to reverse Dubuque in the final 24 second, but was unable to convert. Ott finishes his junior season with a 21-4 record as a two-time All-American.
"I was really proud of the guys who placed," Johnson said. "We had five All-Americans, that ties a school record, and they did a great job. Not having Alex Tirapelle place, who is such a great kid and leader of this team, really hurt our team standing. We did some great things this year - win the Big Ten - and I think we can look back and be proud of what we accomplished."
NOTES: Ott was Johnson's 15th NCAA Finalist during his 13 years at Illinois ... Illinois' five All-Americans tied for the second-most by a University this year (Oklahoma State had seven, Michigan had five) ... Illinois has also has placed 38 All-Americans in the last 13 seasons.
ILLINI SENIORS: Wrestling in their final matches in Illinois uniforms today were seniors Mark Jayne (133) and Brian Glynn (184). Glynn placed third earlier in the day, while Jayne took seventh. Both wrestlers are two-time All-Americans and reached the 100-win mark during their senior seasons.
Team Standings (197) 1. Oklahoma State - 149.0 2. Michigan - 83.0 3. Oklahoma - 77.5 4. Cornell - 76.5 5. Minnesota - 72.5 6. Illinois - 70.5 7. Iowa - 66.0 8. Lehigh - 60.0 9. Indiana - 58.5 10. Iowa State - 57.0125-Pound NCAA Finals: #5 Joe Dubuque (IND) dec. #3 Kyle Ott (ILL), 2-0 1st Period: no score 2nd Period: Dubuque chooses bottom, 1:54 Dubuque escape (0-1) 3rd Period: Ott chooses bottom, Dubuque riding time, 2:00 (0-2)
Illinois All-Americans 2nd: Kyle Ott (125) 3rd: Brian Glynn (184) 4th: Pete Friedl (174) 7th: Mark Jayne (133), Cassio Pero (141)
125: #3 Kyle Ott (Jr., Huber Heights, Ohio) 21-4 1st Round: Major dec. Chris Helgeson (UNI), 14-5 2nd Round: Dec. Drew Forshey (UNC), 8-5 Quarterfinals: Dec. #6 Efren Ceballos (CS-Bakersfield), 8-7 Semifinals: Dec. #2 Nick Simmons (MSU), 3-1 ot Finals: Lost to #5 Joe Dubuque (Indiana), 2-0
