ST. LOUIS, March 16 – Danbury’s Kevin Jack has looked sharp in his first two NCAA Division I wrestling tournament matches. The North Carolina State junior won two matches and hasn’t given up a point, outscoring his two opponents, 14-0.
Jack now advances to the quarterfinals at 141 pounds where he will meet Wyoming’s Bryce Meredith, who beat Jack a year ago, 5-4 in riding time in the quarterfinals. Meredith, ranked No. 10 in the nation, is 31-6 and is a former teammate on the Wolfpack.
Somers’ native Doug Vollaro (285) made his NCAA Tournament debut and won two of three matches Thursday. He will wrestle Friday in the consolation round.
Jack, who is ranked No. 2 at 141, rolled in a 10-0 win over Ronald Perry of Lock Haven in his opening round victory. Jack had a pair of takedowns and two escapes but Perry gave up four points for being penalized for stalling in the bout.
In his second round victory, Jack (31-1) had a takedown and escape in a 4-0 win over No. 15 Tyler Smith of Bucknell, who was also penalized a point for stalling. Jack had several good takedown opportunities but Smith was able to hold Jack at bay and create several stalemates.
“I was a little rusty after getting back out there,” Jack said. “I would have liked to score a few more points on the mat but at this point of the year, a win is a win. I need to keep pushing and keep winning.”
Now, Jack gets another opportunity to wrestle Meredith. A year ago, the loss cost him a chance at a national championship. After earning All-American honors as a freshman (fifth), Jack finished outside of the top eight a year ago.
“I think last year was an extremely valuable experience, something where hopefully now he is reevaluating and saying you can’t take things for granted because of the success you experienced the year before,” North Carolina State coach Pat Popolizio said. “He carries a chip on his shoulder now. He is in control of his destiny right now, and I think you will see the best wrestling of him coming up. He is very relaxed, very confident, and technically he is one of the best guys I have ever been around.”
Jack has won 29 straight matches, 20 by eight points or more.
Vollaro, participating in his first ever NCAA Tournament, won his preliminary round bout with a 3-1 win over Zack Parker of Ohio. Vollaro (22-9) got a takedown with 11 seconds remaining to secure the win.
In the first round, No. 5 Nick Nevills of Penn State got a takedown with 38 seconds left to beat Vollaro, 4-2. But Vollaro rebounded with a 3-1 win over Cory Gilliard-Daniel of North Carolina thanks to a takedown with nine seconds remaining.
The quarterfinals are Friday morning and are available on ESPN3. The semifinals are Friday night and will be on EPSN3 and on ESPN.
2017 NCAA Division I national championships
At St. Louis
Full brackets
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