Wrestling: Frey falls in NCAA tourney

While last week was a break for most students, freshman wrestler Garrett Frey spent it extending his magical first collegiate season for as long as he possibly could. It finally came to a close on Friday with his loss in the third round of the NCAA wrestling tournament’s back draw.

His defeat marked the end of what has been one of the most successful seasons for the entire program in recent memory. Frey led the team to its first Ivy League winning record since the 1986-87 season with his 27-8 personal record, and he became the first Princeton wrestler to reach the NCAA tournament in half a decade.

Frey entered the NCAA tournament with momentum, coming off a successful Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association tournament that he came within one match of winning. With his successes earlier in the year, the Princeton wrestling community had hope for a deep run into the tournament.

Unfortunately for Frey, he was unlucky enough to draw the No. 1 seed in the nation, Angel Escobedo of Indiana, in the first round. The moment Frey saw the bracket, “I just started to laugh,” he told GoPrincetonTigers.com, the official website for Princeton athletics.

A former national champion, Escobedo dominated the match, conceding nothing more than a couple escapes in his 14-3 major decision over Frey on Thursday. Escobedo went on to lose in the semifinal round.

Frey’s first opponent in the consolation round was West Virginia’s Shane Young. This match went down to the wire with both wrestlers struggling for every precious second of riding time. Frey scored on an early takedown in the first period and made the score 3-0 in the second, but Young managed a takedown to get back within one.

Frey’s escape at the end of the second period gave him a 4-2 lead going into the third, but Young tied it up with another takedown. With the score tied at 4-4, riding time was key, and Frey managed to hold off Young’s attempts to catch up, finishing up with a 5-4 victory.

Frey returned on Friday for his third-round matchup against Wyoming’s Michael Martinez, the No. 11 seed. Frey’s first-period takedown gave him the early lead, but his opponent came back to even the score, and the pair went into the third period tied 3-3.

Despite Frey’s best effort, Martinez dominated the third period with an escape and a takedown, and his riding time advantage gave him the 7-3 decision to end Frey’s run at the championships.

Frey’s success this time is just a stepping stone for the future, his coach said.

“I think Garrett should have won his final match, but I think he will learn from it,” head coach Chris Ayres explained. “Out of the 330 wrestlers, maybe only a dozen or so are true freshmen. It was a valuable experience and an important step to becoming an All-American or national champ.”