CLEVELAND, Ohio – Minnesota State University Moorhead freshman Blake Bosch went 1-2 and senior Conner Monk finished 0-2 at the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships Friday in Cleveland, Ohio.
Both Dragons – competing at the national D2 championships for the first time — saw their seasons end during Friday’s competition.
Competing at 125 pounds, Bosch fell to Ben Sergent of Findlay, 10-4 in the opening round. Sergent was a returning All-American.
“I thought he wrestled hard. He was in on a lot of good leg shots on the kid. He just didn’t finish,” MSUM head coach Kris Nelson said.
In the consolation bracket, Bosch prevailed by a 14-2 major decision over Brian Hauser of Notre Dame (Ohio).
“Blake looked really tough against him,” Nelson said.
His tournament was ended with a 10-5 loss to Alex Johns of Indianapolis, another returning All-American. Bosch finished the season at 22-14.
“Overall Blake had a good tournament as far as his effort went,” Nelson said. “It didn’t end up the way he wanted to end up. Both of his losses were to All-Americans. He is a true freshman so hopefully he has three years to come back to the national tournament.”
Monk had a difficult draw, opening with No. 1-ranked Joey Davis of Notre Dame (Ohio). Monk lost by fall in 1:12.
“The first kid he wrestled was the toughest kid in the tournament,” Nelson said. “That was a tough position to start out for him.”
In the consolation bracket, Monk was eliminated by Zeb Wahle of Maryville, 12-6. Monk finished the year at 14-14.
“He came on strong for us,” Nelson said. “He came in and stepped in filled the position at 174 for the whole second semester. He helped us out tremendously in duals and got us pins.”