Rohlfing, Nickell Bow Out of NCAA Tournament

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Redshirt junior wrestler Russell Rohlfing pinned his first opponent on Friday, but was unable to escape Session III with a second victory. Sean Nickell was knocked out of the 2019 NCAA Wrestling Championships in his only bout of the day as the season came to a close for the Roadrunners.

Nickell shot early and connected for a takedown just seven seconds into the match against Purude's Ben Thornton. He gained 2:18 of riding time before Thornton escaped. Nickell chose to be down to start the second period, but Thorton earned a four-point near fall and an extra point for stalling to take a 6-2 lead into the final period. Thorton picked up an early takedown in the last frame and finished with another four-point near fall to earn a 13-2 major decision over Nickell.

The redshirt senior finished the season with a 25-10 record after going 1-2 at the NCAA Championships. For his career, the Bakersfield native racked up 85 victories to tie Mike Bull for 29^th on the all-time list. Nickell won two Pac-12 Championships and qualified for NCAAs in three consecutive seasons.

In Rohlfing's first match of the morning against Virginia Tech's Ryan Blees, he took a 2-0 lead just over two minutes into the match, but the Hokie answered back with a takedown of his own early in the second period. A quick escape followed by an even quicker shot, put Rohlfing back in control with another takedown. Blees was unable to escape as
Rohlfing overpowered his opponent and stuck him for a pin at 4:16. It was just the second pin of the season for the La Habra Heights native.

Northern Iowa's Max Thomsen ended Rohlfing's season later in the morning session with a 13-2 major decision. Thomsen took a 10-0 lead in the first period by way of a takedown and two four-point near falls. Rohlfing's two points didn't come until the third when he drew a second stall on the Panther and escaped.

Yesterday, Rohlfing picked up his first-ever victory at the NCAA Championships in his third consecutive appearance. He has already totaled 73 victories in his career and will look to become just the sixth wrestler in school history to qualify in all four seasons of eligibility next season.

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Players Mentioned

Sean Nickell: 133; 5' 7"; Redshirt Senior

Russell Rohlfing: 141; 5' 10"; Redshirt Junior

Players Mentioned

Sean Nickell
: 5' 7"; Redshirt Senior
: 133

Russell Rohlfing
: 5' 10"; Redshirt Junior
: 141