CLEVELAND — For the first time since 2013, San Francisco State wrestling has made a Top 20 finish at the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships with a 17th place finish at the 2019 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships.
Jason Gurrola (133 lb.) finished in fourth place, also the highest finish by a Gators since 2013, while teammate
Justin Pichedwatana (184 lb.) finished in seventh, with both earning All-American status. SF State last made a Top 20 finish in 2013 when the Golden Gators finished 10th placed, led by national champion Naveed Bacheri at 133 pounds.
After going 3-1 on day one, Gurrola advanced to the third-place match with two more wins over ranked opponents. Gurrola bested No. 6 Justin Folley of Upper Iowa with a 9-4 decision. Gurrola jumped out to a 4-3 lead in the first period with a takedown and a reversal. He grew the lead to 6-3 with a nearfall in the second period and put things out of reach with riding time and a reversal with 1:04 to go in period three. Against fifth-ranked Tate Barnhardt of UMary, Gurrola jumped out to another early lead with a takedown and a two-point nearfall in the first period. Barnhardt scored on a penalty but Gurrola built up his riding time to 2:29 by the end of the second period. He scored again in the third with a reversal. Gurrola dropped his third-place bout in a close 5-3 decision to Notre Dame Ohio's Hunter Bray. Bray scored a takedown but Gurrola evened it 2-2 with a reversal. Bray got another takedown in the second period and built his riding time to 2:26. Gurrola got an escape to begin the third but trailed by two. He took a stalling call to reset but Bray also took a stalling with 11 seconds remaining to hold on.
Pichedwatana fell behind 4-3 in in his first bout versus UPJ's Brock Biddle. He went ahead 5-4 with a reversal in period two but Biddle scored a reversal to retake the lead 6-5. Biddle pushed the lead to 8-5 with a reversal and built riding time over two minutes. Pichedwatana scored a reversal with eight seconds remaining but ran out of time. In the seventh-place bout, versus Limestone's Anthony Collins, Pichedwatana scored a takedown with 1:10 to go in the first period and picked up a couple of points on penalties. He scored a late takedown in the second period, then worked a scoreless third period to secure seventh place.
St. Cloud State entered as the top-ranked team in the country and defended its national championship. The Huskies have now won four of the past five national championships.
Jordan Gurrola, 133
Prelim - Won by tech fall over Alan Diltz (Seton Hill) 12-10, TF-1.5 6:45 (19-2)
Champ. Round 1 - #1 Tyler Warner (#2 Wheeling Jesuit) 27-1 won in tie breaker - 2, 4-3
Cons. Round 1 - Won by fall (1:09) over Ana Abduljelil (#T13 UIndy) 17-11
Cons. Round 2 - Won by decision over #2 D'andre Brumfield (#8 CSU Pueblo), 7-6
Cons. Round 3 - Won by decision over #6 Justin Folley (Upper Iowa) 31-9, 9-4
Cons. Semi - Won by decision over #5 Tate Barnhardt (UMary) 25-7, 7-1
3rd Place Match - Hunter Bray (Notre Dame Ohio) 29-5 won by decision, 5-3
Justin Pichedwatana, 184
Prelim - Won by decision over Aidan Pasiuk (#2 Wheeling Jesuit) 28-5, 3-2
Champ. Round 1 - #3 Michael Pixley (#4 McKendree) 16-2 won by fall (4:19)
Cons. Round 1 - Won by decision over ZeBrandon Gant (#T23 Newberry) 22-10, 8-5
Cons. Round 2 - Won by decision over #4 Chance Helmick (#1 St. Cloud State) 16-2, 3-2
Cons. Round 3 - Brock Biddle (UPJ) 27-4 won by decision, 9-7
7th Place Match - Won by decision over Anthony Collins (Limestone) 10-7, 6-1
Head Coach Jason Welch: "It's an amazing feeling for our coaching staff to have our two first All-Americans. We surpassed our goals for the year, which is always the real underlying goal. Pichedwatana will return but Gurrola is a senior. It's so great to see him achieve his goal to be an All-American in his final season before he graduates. I couldn't be happier for these two young men."
