All-American Moisey to Wrestle in NCAA Semis
March 20, 2015 04:10 PM | General
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| Michael Morales concluded an impressive Mountaineer career with his name in the WVU record books. |
| Photo courtesy of Larry Slater |
ST. LOUIS – True freshman Zeke Moisey defeated No. 7 seed Eddie Klimara of Oklahoma State in the quarterfinals to earn All-America honors and a spot in the semifinals at the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis on Friday morning.
With a 5-2 decision win over Big 12 foe Klimara, Moisey became the program’s first All-American since Brandon Rader in 2007. He is set to face No. 6 seed Thomas Gilman of Iowa in tonight’s semifinals, which will start at 7 p.m. ET and will be broadcast live on ESPN.
No. 16 seed Michael Morales concluded his WVU career, dropping a 6-4 decision in sudden victory to Geo Martinez of Boise State. He had previously pinned Northwestern’s Jameston Oster in 20 seconds in the first round of consolations.
Jake A. Smith was also eliminated from competition after suffering a 3-1 loss to Canaan Bethea of Penn in sudden victory. He had taken an 8-3 win over Jeffrey Koepke of Illinois earlier in the day.
“It was a rollercoaster of a session with some hard-fought battles,” said WVU coach Sammie Henson, who has now produced an All-American in every season of his coaching career. “I’m proud of the way our Mountaineers gave it everything they had. It was a tough loss for Mike – I really thought he had the match won, as did Jake. Both dominated their bouts in all areas but unfortunately ended with the loss.”
With Klimara leading the all-time series between the two at 2-0, Moisey entered the quarterfinals looking for revenge. Neither wrestler scored in the first period, although Moisey was awarded a takedown that was waived off as time had expired. Starting the second period in the defensive position, Moisey escaped 25 seconds into the period for a 1-0 lead. He padded his advantage with a takedown midway through the half, leading 3-0 entering the final period. Klimara started on bottom and escaped five seconds in to get on the board down 3-1. Moisey took him down again with 20 seconds remaining, though Klimara escaped with four ticks to go. However, Moisey had sealed the deal and took the 5-2 decision to advance.
“Zeke needs to continue with the system and stay in the moment,” said Henson. “Everything else will work out.”
Moisey’s win avenged a 5-3 loss to Klimara in the Big 12 finals on March 7. He had also previously dropped a 10-2 major decision when West Virginia faced Oklahoma State in dual match action on January 16 in Stillwater.
Morales made quick work of Oster, scoring the takedown just 13 seconds into the bout. He soon turned Oster, picking up his fifth pin of the season in just 20 seconds to advance in the consolation bracket.
He then took on Martinez of Boise State, who knocked him out of Cliff Keen in December with an 8-4 decision. Martinez scored a takedown in the first minute of action, but Morales escaped soon after to make it 2-1 to close the first. He started on bottom in the second, escaping ten seconds in to tie the score 2-2 before Martinez took a 4-2 lead on his second takedown of the bout. Morales escaped seconds later, but couldn’t score and trailed 4-3 entering the third. With Martinez on bottom, Morales attempted to turn him but couldn’t pick up nearfall points. However, he rode Martinez for the period, tying the match 4-4 on riding time at the end of regulation. Martinez go the takedown midway through the sudden victory period for the 6-4 win, eliminating Morales.
Smith took an 8-3 decision from Koepke of Illinois to pick up his 27th win of the season. Smith registered a takedown on Koepke in the first minute of action before putting his shoulders to the mat for a pair of back points and a 4-0 lead. Koepke escaped with 30 seconds to go, but not before Smith had put more than a minute of riding time on the board. Koepke won choice and chose to start the second in the defensive position, with Smith riding him for the majority of the period. Koepke escaped with 30 seconds to go, trailing Smith 4-2. Smith chose bottom to start the third, but escaped five seconds in to stretch his lead to 5-1. He added a takedown to make it 7-2, but cut Koepke with 30 to go.
Moving on in the bracket, Smith faced Bethea to close out the day for the Mountaineers. The two battled to a scoreless first period before Bethea won choice and started on bottom in the second, looking to score. He successfully escaped, taking a 1-0 lead though neither scored again in the second. Smith started in the defensive position at the beginning of the third, escaping 26 seconds in to tie the match 1-1. The tie sent the match in sudden victory, where Bethea earned the takedown with 12 remaining to take the 3-1 decision.
125 pounds
Zeke Moisey (WVU) dec. No. 7 Eddie Klimara (OSU), 5-2
141 pounds
No. 16 Michael Morales (WVU) pinned Jameston Oster (Northwestern), :20
Geo Martinez (BSU) dec. Michael Morales (WVU), 6-4 SV-1
197 pounds
Jake A. Smith (WVU) dec. Jeffrey Koepke (Illinois), 8-3
Canaan Bethea (Penn) dec. Jake A. Smith (WVU), 3-1 SV-1
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