For the second straight year, Ohio State finished the NCAA Wrestling Championships with a pair of individual champions as Myles Martin and Kyle Snyder each claimed the title in their respective weight classes on Saturday night. Ohio State was unable to repeat as tournament champions, but the Buckeyes finished in third place with 86 points. Penn State ran away with the team title, scoring 123 points in the process. Oklahoma State finished second with 97.5 points.
Martin nabbed Ohio State a championship at 174 pounds and Kyle Snyder did the same in the heavyweight division, and they were joined on the All-American podium by Nathan Tomasello and Bo Jordan, who each scored third-place finishes at 125 and 165, respectively.
Martin, seeded at No. 11 at 174 after a third-place finish at the Big Ten Tournament, wrestled better than his seed and then some, winning his first NCAA title as a true freshman. Myles advanced to the championship bout with a major decision in the opening round, followed by three decisions to punch his ticket for Saturday night. On the biggest stage in college wrestling, Martin made the most of the opportunity and upset No. 1 seeded Bo Nickal of Penn State, 11-9.
Ohio State didn't repeat, but the Buckeyes earned a podium finish with two individual titles and four All-Americans.
Nickal is the wrestling equivalent of a baseball player that is always looking to hit a home run, as the Texan is capable of scoring highlight-reel moves at any time in a match. Nickal defeated Martin three times during the season, most recently with a pin at the Big Ten tournament. In the two previous matches, Martin lost close decisions, so he came into the match with a degree of confidence, despite Nickal’s record only having a single loss to that point.
Martin struck first, countering a Nickal throw attempt in the opening seconds and nearly catching the Nittany Lion on his back. Martin stayed active on the feet and remained aware of Nickal’s explosive throws, catching Nickal on his back in the second period and scoring six big points in the process. Nickal was able to score some points of his own, but Martin’s second period gave him the necessary points to earn his first NCAA title.
Martin began the season wrestling unattached with the plan to redshirt as a true freshman. Martin, along with input from the coaching staff, decided to waive his redshirt season in the beginning of January of 2016 and help the Buckeyes chase a repeat NCAA title. Though the team fell short of a repeat, Martin has to feel confident that they made the correct decision after his national championship. Myles finished his freshman season with a 33-6 record to go along with an NCAA title.
Joining Martin in the NCAA finals was Kyle Snyder, who opted to end his Olympic redshirt season at the same time as Martin ended his redshirt season. Snyder cruised through the heavyweight bracket from the No. 2 seed and squared off against Nick Gwiazdowski of North Carolina State in the championship match. Gwiz came into the match with an 88-match winning streak, but Snyder had a World Championship of his own, so he was unfazed.
Snyder fought back in the third period after giving up a pair of takedowns to Gwiz earlier in the match and fended off a cradle attempt by Gwiazdowski to keep the match close. Snyder scored a late takedown in the third period and neutralized the riding time to head to sudden victory. Snyder scored a takedown in the sudden victory and gave the Buckeyes their second individual champion, snapping Gwiazdowski’s unbeaten streak and his bid for a third consecutive NCAA title.
Tomasello, Bo Jordan, Martin, and Snyder all earned All-America honors by finishing in the top eight in their respective weight classes, and each will return next season for the Buckeyes. Ohio State will only graduate three seniors from the starting lineup, so 2016-17 may see another run for the top of the podium at the NCAA tournament.
The full results of the NCAA Wrestling Championship Finals are as follows:
| 125 | Nico Megauldis (Penn State) decision over Thomas Gilman (Iowa), 6-3 |
| 133 | Nashon Garret (Cornell) decision over Cory Clark (Iowa), 9-4 |
| 141 | Dean Heil (Oklahoma State) decision over Bryce Meredith (Wyoming), 3-2 |
| 149 | Zain Retherford (Penn State) major decision over Brandon Sorensen (Iowa), 10-1 |
| 157 | Isaiah Martinez (Illinois) decision over Jason Nolf (Penn State), 6-5 |
| 165 | Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) decision over Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin) 6-2 |
| 174 | Myles Martin (Ohio State) decision over Bo Nickal (Penn State), 11-9 |
| 184 | Gabe Dean (Cornell) decision over TJ Dudley (Nebraska), 5-3 |
| 197 | J'Den Cox (Missouri) decision over Morgan McIntosh (Penn State), 4-2 |
| HWT | Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) decision over Nick Gwiazdowski (NC State), 7-5 SV |
Thanks for keeping up with the 2015-16 Buckeye wrestling team throughout the season. Be sure to check back with Eleven Warriors throughout the off-season for more on recruiting and the pursuit of the Olympic team for the Buckeye wrestlers.
