Lee claims NCAA Wrestling Championship Finals bid
Spencer Lee will aim for the top of the podium on Saturday night.
Iowa’s 125-pound Spencer Lee defeats Oklahoma State’s Nicholas Piccininni during the fourth session of the 2019 NCAA D1 Wrestling Championships at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA on Friday, March 22, 2019. Lee won by decision, 11-4, and earned a spot in the finals of his weight class.
March 22, 2019
Spencer Lee dominated, 11-4, against his No. 2-seed opponent, Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State), for a bid to the NCAA Championship Finals.
Lee started out the match on top, 2-0, with a takedown. Piccininni held it close through the first and second periods, scoring an escape and a reversal to match Lee’s continuous scoring (an escape and a takedown) and cut the lead 5-3. Lee ended the second period with an escape, giving him a comfortable lead going into the third.
His lead was cut to two when Piccininni began the third period scoring with an escape, but Lee kept piling on the points. A takedown and a two-point near fall lengthened his lead with little to go in the match.
Lee received the extra point for riding time, but it didn’t matter. His complete control of the match ensured a bid to the NCAA finals.
On the other side of the bracket, Virginia’s Jack Mueller beat Northwestern’s Sebastian Rivera by an 8-2 decision for a chance to face Lee in the finals Saturday night. Mueller is the No. 5-seed and is undefeated on the season.