Pitt wrestling team finishes disappointing 39th at NCAA Championships

Pitt's wrestling team was in the Top 25 for most of this season, but the Panthers had a disappointing 39th place finish at this weekend's NCAA Wrestling Championships.

Unsurprisingly, leading the way was sophomore Dom Forys, who had a great year. Forys was the highest-seeded Panther in the group and by far, had the best weekend. After going 1-1 on his first day, he won two more matches in the consolation rounds to set up a chance to gain All-American status. Forys lost on Friday night to No. 8 Earl Hall, 13-7, however, and finished just short of the top eight in his weight class.

Pitt's other wrestlers had disappointing showings. The Panthers' other five wrestlers participating (L.J. Bentley, Cody Wiercioch, TeShan Campbell, Nick Bonaccorsi, and Ryan Solomon) lost their first-round matches to go into the consolation rounds. Only Bentley (125 pounds) was able to win a match in the consolation rounds and the remaining four guys went home winless.

Of note was Campbell's performance in the consolation rounds. He led 6-4 late in the third period before giving up a takedown and near fall points to his opponent at 174 pounds. If you saw the match, it looked to be a complete lapse in his attention span and he went from what looked like a clear win to a loss in a matter of seconds.

Overall, just a disappointing tournament. Losing the early matches wasn't a huge surprise but it would have been nice to see them a little more competitive in the consolation rounds to pick up some points for the team score.

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