ST. LOUIS - Joey McKenna and Paul Fox have advanced to the Round of 12, Friday, at the 2017 NCAA Wrestling Championships at the Scottrade Center.
Fox, a redshirt sophomore, fell 6-2 in his quarterfinals match against third-seeded Joey Lavallee of Missouri. Fox, who is 27-14 overall, will drop down to the consolation bracket where he will wrestle in the Round of 12 for the chance to become an All-American. He will face 15th-seeded Archie Colgan of Wyoming Friday night.
McKenna opened Friday with a commanding 9-0 major decision over Maryland's Ryan Diehl at 141 pounds. Leading 2-0 after the first, McKenna picked up four near fall points and locked up riding time in the second. He added another takedown late in the third and finished with more than three minutes of riding time. He then held off All-American Randy Cruz of Lehigh, 4--3, to move on to the Round of 12. McKenna tied the match up in the second, 2-2. Cruz chose to go on top to start the third, but McKenna scored a reversal for the win. He will wrestle eighth-seeded Jaydin Eierman of Missouri Friday night.
True freshman Gabriel Townsell had his season come to a close, dropping a 10-7 decision to 16th-seeded Nathan Kraisser of Campbell. Down 9-1 late in the third, Townsell put Kraisser on his back, picking up the near fall points but he wasn't able to get the fall before time expired. He finishes his rookie season with an 18-11 overall record.
Redshirt junior Connor Schram also fell in his opening match Friday, suffering a 2-0 decision to 14th-seeded Mitch McKee of Minnesota. McKee won with an escape in the third and the riding time point. Schram ends his season 15-6 overall.
Fifth-year senior Josh Marchok had his career come to a close Friday as he fell 6-2 to Iowa's Cash Wilcke in the consolation bracket. Marchok, who spent his first four years at Stanford as a heavyweight, ends his career with a 60-29 overall record.
Redshirt junior Nathan Butler also came up short in his first match on Friday, dropping a 6-0 decision to Oregon State's Cody Crawford. Second on the team with 79 career wins, Butler ends the season at 24-11 overall.
Friday's second session will begin at 5 p.m. PT on ESPN. Stanford set a program record with nine NCAA qualifiers in 2017.
Gabriel Townsell, 125 pounds | 2-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Barlow McGhee (Missouri) | 3-1 (SV) |
| lost to (2) Joey Dance (Virginia Tech) | 17-2 (4:20) |
| dec. Conor Youtsey (Michigan) | 9-4 |
| lost to (16) Nathan Kraisser (Campbell) | 10-7 |
Connor Schram, 133 pounds | 1-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to (4) Cory Clark (Iowa) | 4-0 |
| dec. (13) Earl Hall (Iowa State) | 6-5 |
| lost to (14) Mitch McKee (Minnesota) | 2-0 |
(3) Joey McKenna, 141 pounds | 3-1
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Dylan Caruana (Binghamton) | 6-0 |
| lost to (14) Thomas Thorn (Minnesota) | F7:57 |
| maj. dec. Ryan Diehl (Maryland) | 9-0 |
| dec. (11) Randy Cruz (Lehigh) | 4-3 |
Paul Fox, 157 pounds | 2-1
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. (6) Clayton Ream (North Dakota State) | 8-4 |
| dec. (11) Russell Parsons (Army) | 7-5 |
| lost to (3) Joey Lavallee (Missouri) | 6-2 |
Keaton Subjeck, 165 pounds | 0-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to (3) Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State) | 5-1 |
| lost to Brian Hamann (NC State) | 5-3 TB2 |
Peter Galli, 174 pounds | 0-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to (14) Lelund Weatherspoon (Iowa State) | 3-1 |
| lost to Josef Johnson (Harvard) | 6-3 |
Zach Nevills, 184 pounds | 0-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to (14) Dakota Geer (Edinboro) | 17-0 (5:52) |
| lost to Nicholas Gravina (Rutgers) | 5-0 |
Josh Marchok, 197 pounds | 1-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to (14) Corey Griego (Oregon State) | 10-7 |
| fall Malik McDonald (NC State) | F0:50 |
| lost to Cash Wilcke (Iowa) | 6-2 |
(10) Nathan Butler, 285 pounds | 1-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Joseph Goodhart (Drexel) | 3-3 TB2 RT:04 |
| lost to (7) Tanner Hall (Arizona State) | F7:37 |
| lost to Cody Crawford (Oregon State) | 6-0 |