University of Minnesota Athletics
JARED LAWRENCE WINS 149-POUND TITLE AT MIDLANDS WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
12/30/2000 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
The Golden Gophers took the team title with 144 points with Iowa State in second with 133 points. The Maroon and Gold cruised to the team championship as four Minnesota grapplers advanced to their respective title matches. At 125 pounds, junior Leroy Vega went 4-1, losing to 2000 Big Ten Champion Jody Strittmatter of Iowa 12-4 in the title match. No. 5 seed Brett Lawrence defeated top-seeded Teague Moore 2-1 en route to the 133-pound championship match, where he fell to Cody Sanderson 2- 1. At 165 pounds, third-seeded Brad Pike lost to top-seed Joe Heskett of Iowa State 4-0 in the title match. Pike, ranked third in the nation, went 5-1 in the tournament with a major decision and pin.
The Golden Gophers also were helped to the team title as Luke Becker, Matt Kraft and Damion Hahn placed in the top eight. Becker, seeded fourth at 157 pounds, took third place, defeating Cole Sanderson of Iowa State 9-4 in the third-place match. With the win, Becker avenged a 6-5 loss to Sanderson in the quarterfinals. At 174 pounds, Kraft captured fifth place, going 4-2 with a pin at 1:56 of Princeton's Greg Parker in the fifth-place match. Hahn, seeded third, took third place at 184 pounds, going 5-1 for the event. Hahn defeated Victor Sveda of Indiana in a 5-3 sudden victory decision in the third-place match.
Former Golden Gopher Tim Hartung, a two-time NCAA champion, captured second place at 197 pounds, forfeiting to Lee Fullhart in the title match.
The top-ranked Minnesota wrestling team, 5-0 on the season, takes on No. 2 Oklahoma State Sunday, Jan. 7 at 3:00 p.m. at Williams Arena. Tickets are available by calling 612-624-8080 or 1-800-UGOPHER or online at www.gophersports .com.
