The Illinois wrestling team advanced two athletes, Lucas Byrd and Kannon Webster, to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Championships on March 19. The event took place at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, where both wrestlers reached the quarterfinals for the second consecutive season.
This achievement highlights the continued strength of Illinois’ wrestling program as it competes against top teams from across the country. Byrd, who is the reigning national champion at 133 pounds and seeded seventh this year, began his tournament with an 11-7 win over Rutgers’ Dylan Shawver before defeating Maryland’s Braxton Brown by a 5-1 decision. Byrd will next face Ohio State’s Ben Davino, the Big Ten Champion and No. 2 seed, in a highly anticipated matchup.
Webster also secured a spot in the quarterfinals as the No. 7 seed at 157 pounds after competing last season at 149 pounds. He opened with a 6-2 victory over Jonathan Ley from Navy and followed up with a dominant performance against Lehigh’s Logan Rozynski, winning by major decision, 10-1. Webster is set to compete against Nebraska’s Antrell Taylor, who holds the No. 2 seed.
Other Illinois wrestlers had mixed results on day one. Spencer Moore upset Cal Poly’s Koda Holeman in sudden victory but fell to Virginia Tech’s Eddie Ventresca later in the evening; he will continue in the consolation bracket. Chris Moore won his opening match but lost to Nebraska’s Silas Allred and will also compete in consolation rounds. Michael Gioffre and Colin Kelly each stayed alive with wins in their respective consolation brackets after dropping their first matches.
Illinois finished day one tied for sixteenth place with North Carolina State at 11.5 points according to team standings released after Thursday’s sessions. Penn State led all teams with 40.5 points.
The tournament continues March 20 with session three beginning at 11 a.m., followed by session four at 7 p.m.