NEW YORK – Joe Ariola and Colt Cotten each dropped their first matches on day two of the NCAA Championships in front of nearly 18,000 at Madison Square Garden. Both wrestlers were competing in the consolation bracket and have been eliminated from the NCAA Championships.
Ariola, who upset third-ranked Victor Avery of Edinboro, in what many were calling the upset of the tournament in day one, went up against Jeff Koepke of Illinois on Friday. The match was very close throughout, but a stall call on Ariola, late in the third period, was the difference as Koepke escaped with a 2-1 decision.