The Gopher wrestling team finished second in the NCAA Wrestling Championships Saturday night behind Penn State, which won its fourth consecutive NCAA title.
Penn State had two wins in the final round and finished with 109.5 team points. Minnesota had 104 points.
Two Gophers, Tony Nelson and Dylan Ness, made it to the final round but lost their championship matches and Minnesota couldn’t complete the upset. Ness lost a 13-4 major decision to Oklahoma State’s Alex Dieringer in the 157 final, and heavyweight Nelson lost a 4-2 decision to North Carolina State’s Nick Gwiazdowski, the Star Tribune reports.
Penn State’s Ed Ruth won his third national title, beating No. 1 seed Jimmy Sheptock of Maryland 7-2 in the 184-pound final. Sheptock, the No. 1 seed, entered with a 32-0 record, the Associated Press reports.
Penn State’s David Taylor, a four-time finalist, closed the night by defeating Oklahoma State’s Tyler Caldwell 6-0 in the 165 final to finish with his second national title and a 34-0 record, according to the AP.
Oklahoma State placed third with 96.5 points, Iowa was fourth with 78.5 and Edinboro (Pa.) fifth with 62.
