Coolidge, Wartburg prove to be good as gold (with video)

CEDAR RAPIDS – Alex Coolidge added to Cornell's rich wrestling history, while Wartburg continued to make history of its own.

Both achieved something that will never be erased.

The Rams' 197-pound senior captured the school's first individual national title in 24 years and the Knights continued its winning ways with a division record fourth straight national team title last night at the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships at the U.S. Cellular Center. Wartburg crowned three champions, tallying 103 ½ points, 36 ½ more than runner-up Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Top-ranked Coolidge provided the host crowd plenty to cheer about with a 6-5 victory over Wisconsin-Whitewater's Shane Siefert. He experienced the thrill that eluded him with a runner-up finish a year ago.

“Right now, the high is phenomenal,” said Coolidge, who became Cornell's first champion since Shawn Voigt in 1990 and first two-time NCAA finalist since Walter Romanowski in 1950-51. “It's an unbelievable feeling. Every second of hard work is well worth it.”

A second straight silver medal and a sour taste seemed inevitable. He trailed 5-3 after Siefert's third-period reversal. Coolidge escaped with 44 seconds left and scored the winning takedown with 25 ticks remaining. He knew he had one last chance.

“I got the shot and came up in that scramble,” Coolidge said. “I've been over it a thousand times in practice. It worked out for me.”

Cornell Coach Mike Duroe knew exactly how many seconds were left when Coolidge began his comeback. He said Coolidge's instincts took over when he got away and initiated offense immediately.

“He executed it when he had to do it,” Duroe said. “I couldn't have been more proud of him.”

Coolidge soaked in the cheers from the Cornell crowd in the balcony and then ran into the arms of Cornell assistant Chad Beatty and the rest of his team. He praised them for their support and said he was happy to etch his name in Cornell's tradition as one of its nine national champions.

“I'm glad I could build on it,” Coolidge said. “I'm very fortunate for this opportunity and I'm glad I could take advantage of it.”

Wartburg dominated the team race, posting a 4-1 mark in the semifinals and going 3-1 in the finals. The Knights started the ball rolling with Kenny Anderson at 133.

Anderson exchanged reversals with Ithaca's third-seeded Alex Gomez in the third period and then scored a takedown halfway through the one-minute sudden victory overtime for a 4-2 win. He became the 14th D-III wrestler to finish his career with three titles.

“It's weird to think about,” Anderson said. “I looked up to those guys like they were super heroes.

“When I was young I used to throw a blanket down on our wooden floor and me and my brother would wrestle, pretending we were in the NCAAs and I'm doing the same thing they are doing.”

Anderson was out of school and out of wrestling before he transfer to Wartburg. Now, he is walking away as one of the Knights' top competitors.

“I was just dreaming basically, and these guys gave me a shot,” Anderson said. “I'm really lucky.”

Wartburg's Cole Welter used a flurry of points in the final period to claim the 165-pound title with a 5-3 win over Washington and Jefferson's Nicholas Carr. It was his first individual title, finishing as a two-time All-American.

“It's huge,” Welter said. “This is a dream come true.”

Welter said he had a change of heart from early in his Wartburg career and his efforts were well worth it.

“I committed myself,” Welter said. “To cap it off with an individual title is huge for me. All the hard work paid off.”

The Knights' Landon Williams won his second NCAA crown, pinning Waynesburg's Anthony Bonaventura in 2:46 for the 174-pound title. Wartburg heavyweight Ryan Fank finished second, dropping a decision to Loras' James Buss in the finals. The Knights had six All-Americans.

The current Knights have handled the stress of sending Hall of Fame Coach Jim Miller into retirement with a title last year, and the pressure of continuing the tradition under Coach Eric Keller, who had been Miller's co-head coach in recent years.

“There was a certain amount of pressure,” Keller said. “I think it says a lot about this group that they didn't let it bother them. They rose to the occasion every time.”

Coe's Dimitri Boyer made sure the Kohawks were represented in the finals for the fifth straight year and six of the last seven. Boyer, a two-time national qualifier, earned his first All-American finish.

He had visions of a national title, but had to settle for second. Boyer fell in the finals to Wisconsin-Oshkosh's Nazar Kulchytskyy for the 157-pound title. Kulchytskyy built a 7-1 lead, cinching up a cradle in the second period and getting the fall in 4:21 for his third NCAA title.

“It was my goal (to win a title), but not a lot of people can do this or experience it,” Boyer said. “I guess I can say I'm one of the best in the nation. That has been what I've always wanted to do since I was little.”

Boyer was a two-time state champion for Eddyville-Blakesburg. He heard the naysayers and ignored those who didn't believe in a small-town kid.

“I came here to prove no matter where you're from as long as you put in the hard work good things will come,” Boyer said. “All the support from my family, coaches and everybody, I was able to get this done. Second-place isn't what I wanted but it's better than most people.”

Boyer capped a career that includes the seventh-most career wins in Coe history and a spot in the top five in all-time wins. The finals loss does not overshadow a strong career.

“I told him how much he has to be proud of and how he represented Coe College wrestling,” Oostendorp said. “He came here and helped lead our team to the top five.”

The Kohawks finished fourth with four All-Americans. Coe's Ethan Ball was third at 174, Ryan Sheldon was sixth at 184 and 197-pounder Donnie Horner was fifth. It was the sixth top-five team finish in the last seven years.

“Our guys battled hard,” Oostendorp said. “I'm extremely proud of all six qualifiers.”