Wrestling's Preston, Ogunwole Shine at NCAAs

The Harvard wrestling team’s coach, Jay Weiss, knew that life after Jesse Jantzen ’04 would be difficult. Lucky for him, Robbie Preston and Bode Ogunwole keep on providing glimpses into a future that is looking bright.

A year after Jantzen (149 lbs.) was named national champion and the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the NCAA tournament, the Crimson’s precocious pair of sophomores did their best to take up the mantle in St. Louis, Mo. this past weekend.

After dropping their opening matches, Preston (125 lbs.) and Ogunwole (285 lbs.) each battled back before falling just short of achieving coveted All-America status.

“I was very pleased with them,” Weiss said. “We knew this year was going to be difficult, but we also knew that it was going to pay off if we did things the right way.”

Drawing the tournament’s fourth seed in Cal Poly’s Vic Moreno, Preston (23-5)—the EIWA Champion—took the senior to the limit before eventually falling in overtime.

He fared better in the consolation bracket, winning three matches in a row against Central Michigan’s Luke Smith, Nebraska’s Matt Keller, and Arizona State’s Jeremy Mendoza.

Oklahoma State’s Coleman Scott finally knocked Preston out of contention in the high-pressure “Round of 12,” in which each victor guarantees himself definite All-American status. Preston lost 5-4, the extra and deciding point breaking a 4-4 stalemate on the basis of riding time.

“It’s such a big round, and it’s so high pressure,” Weiss said. “He wrestled [Scott], and in fact he out-wrestled him. If a couple of calls had gone our way, he would’ve kept going. He definitely proved that he can not only place at the Tournament, but the way he wrestled and kept himself focused...he’s got a shot at winning the entire thing.”

Ogunwole (25-7), who reached the quarterfinals as a freshman in last year’s tournament, entered as the 11th seed but suffered due to a bit of rust early on.

He was upset by Oklahoma State’s Jake Hager in the opening round, quickly falling behind 3-0 as a comeback bid failed, relegating him to the consolation rounds. There, he suffered a fate similar to that of his roommate, Preston, winning three straight but falling right before the Round of 12.

Ogunwole disposed of Fresno State’s Clint Walback, Edinboro’s Joe Hennis, and Eastern Illinois’ Peter Ziminksi before dropping 4-3 to Payam Zarrinpour of Sacred Heart, whom teammate Jonas Corl had defeated 2-1 in overtime in Harvard’s dual meet earlier this year.

Like Preston, Ogunwole ended his final match of the year in a tie, 3-3, before losing on riding time. Ogunwole had taken Zarrinpour to double overtime.

“Bode started wrestling a lot better as the tournament went on,” Weiss said. “He’s been battling sickness the past two weeks, but as it went on, he started winning matches. Bode’s in a position where it’s the second time he’s lost before placing. With two years left, he knows what he needs to do.”

In the end, although the year did not end with the same pomp and circumstance as 2004, there is much to take away from 2005.

“They showed they’re right up there with those guys,” Weiss said. “We’re not going to change anything. We start right after spring break to the national tournament and placing them. What we need to do is change the attitude. They can compete at that level.”

—Staff writer Pablo S. Torre can be reached at torre@fas.harvard.edu.