Wrestling finishes eighth at NWCAs

Penn 8th at the NWCAs

Old adage indicates that as time progresses the best things last, and those that are not fade away.

When the Penn wrestling team arrived at Ohio State last weekend for the Cliff Keen/NWCA Championships, history under head coach Roger Reina indicated that the Red and Blue would be a formidable opponent for the fifteen nationally ranked teams visiting the Buckeye State for the weekend.

And in fact, the Quakers were.

Following the completion of five matches, the Quakers left Ohio with and eighth place finish -- the best performance in team history.

"I'm very, very proud of our team, and of our staff," Coach Reina said. "As a team we showed a lot of heart, and performed consistently against No. 1 [Minnesota], 2 [Oklahoma State], 5 [Iowa], 16 [Michigan State], and 24 [Fresno State] in the nation, in accomplishing what no Penn team had done before."

The No. 8 ranked Quakers kicked off the Championships with a big first-round victory over the No. 24 Bulldogs, 22-15. No. 2 ranked Yoshi Nakamura and No.3 Rick Springman each notched wins for Penn, while No. 12 Josh Henson recorded a major fall.

The Red and Blue then advanced to the quarterfinals where they fell to the No.1 nationally ranked Minnesota.

The Golden Gophers soundly clinched victory by a 35-6 score. Henson and Nakamura -- who captured a big win defeating No. 3 ranked Luke Becker -- accounted for the sole Penn victories.

The Quakers then avenged their previous loss by knocking off No. 16 ranked Michigan State in the consolation round, 25-9.

Senior Joe Henson, recognizing the significance of the matchup, pulled out a 5-4 victory at 149 pounds. Henson's win at the time tied the match at six.

"It was important for the team because it meant we would place in the national duels if we won the match," he said. "And it was important for me because I beat a nationally ranked opponent."

In their fourth match of the weekend, the Penn wrestlers battled Iowa, a team who defeated the Quakers earlier in the season.

Penn walked away with a loss, but it was incurred by only two points -- a margin which Coach Reina took consolation in.

"A very significant fact is that we clearly showed greater improvement against Iowa, since our dual meet on Nov. 30 in the Palestra," Reina said. "To improve at a more rapid rate is our goal, and that goal was realized even in this very close loss."

On an individual level, Nakamura logged his 99th career collegiate wrestling victory. Additionally, Mason Lenhard won a decision over Luke Eustice at 125 pounds -- the win was especially sweet for Lenhard, as he avenged two losses to the No.10 ranked Eustice.

"I lost to him twice earlier in the year, so it was a good win," Lenhard said.

In the fifth and final match of the weekend, the Quakers were dropped by the No. 2 Cowboys, 23-15, giving Penn eighth place in the competition.

Although Penn couldn't pull off any stirring upsets, the Quakers were still satisfied with their respectable finish.

"We made progress for where we want to be at the end of the season," Joe Henson said.

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