2022 NCAA Division I Championships – 165 Pounds

#1 Evan Wick (Cal Poly) dec. #9 Peyton Hall (West Virginia), 6-2 – A first-period takedown and turn was all Evan Wick needed to secure a spot in tonight’s semifinal, as the Mustang held on for a 6-2 victory.

#5 Shane Griffith (Stanford) dec. #4 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin), 10-4 – The returning NCAA champion made the most of several counter attack opportunities, scoring four takedowns on his way to a decision and an all-PAC 12 semi-final against top-seeded Evan Wick (Cal Poly).

#6 Cameron Amine (Michigan) dec. #3 Alex Marinelli (Iowa), 3-1 sv — The Wolverine used a blast double with 12 seconds left in overtime to avenge his Big Ten championship loss to the Hawkeye. Marinelli appeared to have scored a takedown in the first period before a video review erased that score.

#2 Keegan O’Toole (Missouri) dec. #7 Carson Kharchla (Ohio State), 2-0 — The Tiger advanced to the semis by scoring a second-period escape and riding out the Buckeye the third period for a 1:41 riding time advantage. The Ohio State corner challenged for a third-period reversal but was not allowed.

This weight class remained pretty much “chalk” as the top seven seeds all advanced to the quarterfinals. The lone exception saw West Virginia’s #9 Peyton Hall defeated Harvard’s #8 Philip Conigliaro 7-3.

The most explosive of the matches came when Wisconsin’s #4 Dean Hamiti outlasted Cornell’s Julian Ramirez 15-11. The Big Red wrestler led 8-3 after one period after he put the Badger on his back for a four-point nearfall. Hamiti fought back to score three takedowns in the second period, then added another takedown and two-point nearfall for the victory.

Pitt’s Jake Wentzel will not qualify for a second NCAA final when the 2021 runner-up lost 7-1 to Ohio State freshman Carson Kharchla.

All Top-10 seeds won their first bouts, including No. 1 Evan Wick (Cal Poly) and defending champion and No. 5 seed Shane Griffith (Stanford), while No. 2 Keegan O’Toole (Missouri and No. 4 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) scored falls in their opening bouts.

Wick majored fellow Pac-12 wrestler Matt Olguin of Oregon State 11-3 and Griffith dominated Minnesota’s Cael Carlson, 18-2. O’Toole needed just 52 seconds to flatten Michigan State’s Caleb Fish, while the Badger pinned Chattanooga’s Andrew Nicholson in 4:19.

Pitt’s Jake Wentzel, a national runner-up in 2021, also is only seeded No. 10, but the Panther pinned Loch Haven’s Ashton Eyler in 2:56.

Two past All-Americans — Iowa’s Alex Marinelli and Arizona State’s Anthony Valencia — both scored decision. The No. 3 seeded Hawkeye beat Drexel’s Evan Barczak, 7-2 with takedowns in the first and second period. The Sun Devil, seeded No. 18, beat Northern Iowa’s No. 15 Austin Yant, 6-3, on takedowns in each period.

Another victory by a lower-seeded wrestler saw Virginia’s Justin McCoy beat Columbia’s No. 14 Josh Ogunsanya, 6-1.

Return to WIN’s 2022 Championships Central

Head-to-Head Meetings between Top-10 Ranked Wrestlers:

Session I (First Round) Notes/Quotes – March 17 (beginning 12 noon EST)

Session II (Second Round) Notes/Quotes – March 17 (beginning 7 p.m. EST)

Session III (Quarterfinal) Notes/Quotes – March 18 (beginning 11 a.m. EST)

Session IV (Semifinal) Notes/Quotes – March 18 (beginning 8 p.m. EST)

Session V (All-American Round) Notes/Quotes – March 19 (beginning 11 a.m. EST)

Session VI (Finals) Notes/Quotes – March 19 (beginning 11 a.m. EST)