Just focusing on these four bouts for this post. Plenty of other exciting action throughout the tourney for the Penn State guys, but want a post, and discussion, for those four bouts. Sorry so long, there's a lot of info here.
133: It was hard to think about this bout before it happened, and figure how it would go. Such a contrast in styles. Fix is a strong wrestler, never out of position. Normally he's the better hand-fighter, with great defense. RBY, on the other hand is all about quickness, but it's controlled and not careless. A few thoughts;
-- A tied first period was no surprise. Respect, a bit of a feeling out period, and solid defense kept either from scoring.
-- No one I talked with expected expected RBY to ride out the second. That may be the first time that's ever happened to Fix. To me, it's the single most significant improvement to RBY's game, but again no one expected it.
-- The stall calls are being discussed in another thread. The point I'd like to make here is that RBY blocked it out completely. That's hard to do, and if it would have occupied any part of his mind, the focus to finish may not have been there. An analogy would be the kicker in football, gotta have a short memory and let it go. Something many adults could learn.
-- The overtime takedown was a thing of beauty. Fitness was a factor, hats off to a wrestler that can do that after 7+ minutes on the mat.
141: The Lee v Eierman match was a rematch of the Big Ten finals, so there was an ounce of familiarity. Both surely tweaked their gameplan a bit. I picked Nick to win, but called it a toss-up. Some thoughts;
-- Once again, a scoreless first. This surprised me more so than the scoreless first of the RBY bout. Solid defense from both guys, with Lee pushing the action much more than Eierman. Unlike their first bout at B1G's, Eierman did shoot in this bout.
-- Some of the same in the second, with the only score an Eierman takedown.
-- A key to Nick's win happened in the third. Instead of taking bottom, Lee took neutral. It turned out to be a terrific decision, as Lee earned a takedown. An Eierman escape tied it 2-2, and that's how regulation time ended. One of Eierman's strengths is his counter wrestling. We knew Nick would have to commit and go hard at any takedown attempts, and he did just that. Could it be that Eierman was tiring? Maybe, but Nick had a terrific gameplan. Yes, there were scrambles, and yes, Eierman had opportunities, but I felt that Nick was in control. The "tiring" factor was more a factor in SV.
-- I asked the tiring question, as I believe it played a huge part in this bout. The body language at the start of SV, when Lee was center, and Eierman was still getting off the mat was very telling. We know what happened after that, a fresher Lee with a winning takedown.
174: I believed, of the four bouts, Starocci was the more significant underdog. He had recently lost to Kemerer 7-2, in a bout that was controlled by the Hawkeye. Note;
-- Another scoreless first. This was key. Starocci may have played defense more than attempt an offense, but I didn't see either wrestler take a lot of shots.
-- The second and third periods were similar. Both of these guys are hard to score on, though Kemerer has the better reputation of finishing shots at a high percentage. The percentage of finished shots for both wrestlers in regulation was 0%, which speaks more to their defensive skills.
-- I believe the SV period, as at 133 and 141, came down to fitness. Starocci had more gas in the tank.
184: Aaron was our only favorite, by seed. Still, T. Hidlay was a very worthy opponent, a physically strong wrestler that could equal Brooks' gas tank. Comments;
-- The fourth of our bouts with a 0-0 score after one.
-- Brooks was the aggressor throughout all three periods, I thought. Hidlay was not being pushed around, nor was he resisting tie-ups, but he was going backwards more than forwards in this bout. I believe this was the difference in the bout.
-- Hidlay had the best opportunity to score a takedown, and Brooks had Hidlay on his back after a reversal, but neither were scored on the mat or upon review. It was that close of a match.
133: It was hard to think about this bout before it happened, and figure how it would go. Such a contrast in styles. Fix is a strong wrestler, never out of position. Normally he's the better hand-fighter, with great defense. RBY, on the other hand is all about quickness, but it's controlled and not careless. A few thoughts;
-- A tied first period was no surprise. Respect, a bit of a feeling out period, and solid defense kept either from scoring.
-- No one I talked with expected expected RBY to ride out the second. That may be the first time that's ever happened to Fix. To me, it's the single most significant improvement to RBY's game, but again no one expected it.
-- The stall calls are being discussed in another thread. The point I'd like to make here is that RBY blocked it out completely. That's hard to do, and if it would have occupied any part of his mind, the focus to finish may not have been there. An analogy would be the kicker in football, gotta have a short memory and let it go. Something many adults could learn.
-- The overtime takedown was a thing of beauty. Fitness was a factor, hats off to a wrestler that can do that after 7+ minutes on the mat.
141: The Lee v Eierman match was a rematch of the Big Ten finals, so there was an ounce of familiarity. Both surely tweaked their gameplan a bit. I picked Nick to win, but called it a toss-up. Some thoughts;
-- Once again, a scoreless first. This surprised me more so than the scoreless first of the RBY bout. Solid defense from both guys, with Lee pushing the action much more than Eierman. Unlike their first bout at B1G's, Eierman did shoot in this bout.
-- Some of the same in the second, with the only score an Eierman takedown.
-- A key to Nick's win happened in the third. Instead of taking bottom, Lee took neutral. It turned out to be a terrific decision, as Lee earned a takedown. An Eierman escape tied it 2-2, and that's how regulation time ended. One of Eierman's strengths is his counter wrestling. We knew Nick would have to commit and go hard at any takedown attempts, and he did just that. Could it be that Eierman was tiring? Maybe, but Nick had a terrific gameplan. Yes, there were scrambles, and yes, Eierman had opportunities, but I felt that Nick was in control. The "tiring" factor was more a factor in SV.
-- I asked the tiring question, as I believe it played a huge part in this bout. The body language at the start of SV, when Lee was center, and Eierman was still getting off the mat was very telling. We know what happened after that, a fresher Lee with a winning takedown.
174: I believed, of the four bouts, Starocci was the more significant underdog. He had recently lost to Kemerer 7-2, in a bout that was controlled by the Hawkeye. Note;
-- Another scoreless first. This was key. Starocci may have played defense more than attempt an offense, but I didn't see either wrestler take a lot of shots.
-- The second and third periods were similar. Both of these guys are hard to score on, though Kemerer has the better reputation of finishing shots at a high percentage. The percentage of finished shots for both wrestlers in regulation was 0%, which speaks more to their defensive skills.
-- I believe the SV period, as at 133 and 141, came down to fitness. Starocci had more gas in the tank.
184: Aaron was our only favorite, by seed. Still, T. Hidlay was a very worthy opponent, a physically strong wrestler that could equal Brooks' gas tank. Comments;
-- The fourth of our bouts with a 0-0 score after one.
-- Brooks was the aggressor throughout all three periods, I thought. Hidlay was not being pushed around, nor was he resisting tie-ups, but he was going backwards more than forwards in this bout. I believe this was the difference in the bout.
-- Hidlay had the best opportunity to score a takedown, and Brooks had Hidlay on his back after a reversal, but neither were scored on the mat or upon review. It was that close of a match.
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