NEW YORK CITY - True freshman Joey McKenna took third, while redshirt sophomore Connor Schram placed eighth at the 2016 NCAA Championships, Saturday, in Madison Square Garden.
As a team, Stanford finished 19th with 24.0 team points. It marks the sixth top-20 team finish in program history. Penn State won the team title with 123.0 points. It is the Nittany Lions' fifth championship in the past six years.
Great job by @CardWrestling's @Joey_McKenna finishing strong in 3rd place @ncaawrestling. W/ AA @C_Schram also back next yr, bright future!
— Tanner Gardner (@tannerdgardner) March 19, 2016
McKenna knocked-off the No. 4 seed Anthony Ashnault of Rutgers, 7-6, in the third-place match. Leading 2-1 after the first, McKenna notched a reversal to start the second before Ashnault could escape. Ashnault briefly tied the match at 4-4 with a takedown, but McKenna was able to escape for the 5-4 advantage heading inot the final period.
In the third, Ashnault again tied the score (5-5) with an escape. McKenna secured the go-ahead takedown and was able to hold off Ashnault for the win. He finishes his freshman campaign with a 27-3 record, putting him seventh on the school's freshman wins list.
McKenna is the first freshman in program history to earn All-America honors and he is the first Cardinal wrestler to finish third in the national tournament.
With the 3rd place win, Joey McKenna becomes @CardWrestling's 1st freshman All-American in history! #WrestleNYC pic.twitter.com/TRHcygWaax
— NCAA Wrestling (@ncaawrestling) March 19, 2016
In the consolation semifinals, McKenna posted a 3-1 decision over 12th-seeded Chris Mecate of Old Dominion. He was awarded a point in the first period for an illegal move by Mecate. McKenna then recorded a takedown to take a 3-0 advantage. There was no score in the second period, in which McKenna chose to start in the neutral position. Mecate chose top to begin the third and rode out McKenna for his one point.
At 125 pounds, Schram, the No. 10 seed, was edged 1-0 by fifth-seeded Ryan Millhof of Oklahoma in the seventh-place match. Schram finishes his sophomore season with a 23-8 overall record and just the ninth Cardinal underclassman to earn All-America honors.
Stanford has produced two All-Americans in the same season for the first time since 2012, when Nick Amuchastegui (174 pounds) finished second and Ryan Mango (125 pounds) took fifth. Fifteen of the program's 26 All-America finishes have come since 2004.
Stanford's Tournament Results
| 125 pounds • (10) Connor Schram (3-3; 8th) |
| Dec. Lorenzo Bentley (Pittsburgh), 5-2 Dec. (7) Darian Cruz (Lehigh), 3-1 Lost to (15) David Terao (American), F5:40 Dec. (11) Ronnie Bresser (Oregon State), 3-1 Lost to Conor Youtsey (Michigan), 3-3 TB-2 (RT) Lost to (5) Ryan Millhof (Oklahoma), 1-0 |
| 141 pounds • (2) Joey McKenna (5-1; 3rd) |
| Dec. Zach Horan (Central Michigan), 2-1 (OT) Dec. (15) Brock Zacherl (Clarion), 4-2 Dec. (7) Solomon Chishko (Virginia Tech), 6-1 Lost to (14) Bryce Meredith (Wyoming), 5-3 Dec. (12) Chris Mecate (Old Dominion), 3-1 Dec. (4) Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers), 7-6 |
| 165 pounds • (13) Jim Wilson (3-2) |
| Dec.Patrick Rhoads (Iowa), 12-7 Lost to (4) Daniel Lewis (Missouri), 5-1 Dec. Tyler Buckwalter (Kent St.), 6-5 Dec. (11) John Staudenmayer (North Carolina), 3-2 Lost to (10) Austin Wilson (Nebraska), 4-1 |
| 174 pounds • Keaton Subjeck (1-2) |
| Dec. Richard Robertson (Wisconsin), 9-4 Lost to (5) Zach Brunson (Illinois), 3-1 Lost to Michael Pavasko (Clarion), 7-4 |
| 184 pounds • Garet Krohn (1-2) |
| Lost to (7) Timothy Dudley (Nebraska), 10-2 Dec. Ryan Christensen (Wisconsin), 7-5 Lost to (9) Matthew Miller (Navy), 11-4 |
| 285 pounds • (16) Nathan Butler (2-2) |
| Dec. Ray O'Donnell (Princeton), 7-0 Lost to (1) Nick Gwiazdowski (NCST), 16-4 Dec. Garrett Ryan (Columbia), 1-0 Lost to (9) Michael Kroells (Minnesota), 5-1 |