CLEVELAND, Ohio – With a 9-6 overtime victory over Oklahoma's Brian Soldano in the blood round of day two of the NCAA Championships,
Caleb Campos became American University wrestling's 12th All-American and first since 2016. The redshirt junior marched through the consolation bracket, going 4-0 on the day and earning a spot in the consolation semifinal at 184 pounds on Saturday.
American's 133-pound graduate senior
Maximilian Leete's run at the tournament ended in the blood round, as he fell to Iowa's Drake Ayala 8-3. Leete went 3-2 on the weekend and his decorated career ends with 76 wins to his name, 21st in program history.
Session Three
- Maximilian Leete got the day started with an overtime win over Northern Colorado's #9 seed Dominick Serrano in the consolation round of 16 #2.
- Tied 1-1 after three periods, Leete executed an upper body takedown at the 1:13 mark to get the 4-1 win. He got his arms around Serrano and drove him to the mat with his shoulders squared on top of him for the three-point score, advancing to the consolation round of eight.
- Leete scored in nearly the same way in his second match against Gardner Webb's #17 seed T.K. Davis.
- He wrapped up Gardner Webb's T.K. Davis in the first period, then got his leg behind him to get him down to the mat. Holding him there for nearly 10 seconds, he was given a takedown and four nearfall points. With an early 7-0 lead, he cruised to the 8-1 win.
- Campos faced off with George Mason's #25 seed Malachi DuVall in the consolation round of 16 #2, breaking a 1-1 tie open with a takedown in the third period. He swung DuVall to the edge of the mat and took him down while keeping him in bounds, adding nearfall points and riding him for nearly a minute.
- In his next match, Campos' biggest score came late in the second period when he fended off a shot and turned it into points. Ohio's #15 seed Sal Perrine got in on Campos' right leg, leaving him in a split position to avoid a takedown. In an incredible display of flexibility, Campos reached for Perrine's right leg and pulled it out from under him, taking him down and earning three nearfall points.
- He added another takedown in the third period, comfortably winning 9-2.
- Both Leete and Campos advanced to the blood round in session four.
Session Four
- Leete feel to Iowa's #6 seed Ayala, 8-3. The Hawkeye wrestler scored two takedowns in the second period to get out in front of Leete, and he controlled the match from there.
- Campos dug deep to defeat Oklahoma's 20th seed Soldano. He gave up the bout's first takedown and an escape in the second period, but responded with a three-point score of his own at the start of the third.
- Soldano scored another escape to bring his lead to 5-3. With just 38 seconds left, Campos took a perfect shot right to Soldano's midsection for a takedown that gave him a 6-5 lead.
- Right off the next whistle, Campos jumped on Soldano and scored what would have been another takedown and nearfall points. However, Oklahoma challenged that Campos illegally false started before the whistle blew. They won the challenge, taking five points off the board and leaving the score tied 6-6.
- 1:36 into the overtime period, Campos squared a perfect shot from his knees right into Soldano's chest. He drove him down to the mat and fought to keep his shoulders down, gaining control and earning the match-winning takedown.
- Campos' night wasn't finished there, as he took care of business in the consolation quarterfinals against Oklahoma State's #22 seed Zack Ryder. A takedown in the first period got him in the lead, and he converted another in the third period. He allowed just three escapes from Ryder, winning the match 7-3.
Up Next
- Campos will have a rematch with Iowa's Angelo Ferrari tomorrow morning in the consolation semifinals. He lost to the #7 seed Ferrari on day one in the round of 16 11-5.
- Campos will stand on the podium no matter what tomorrow, but he can reach as high as third place if he goes 2-0.
Day Two Results
133
184
- Cons Round of 16 #2 - Caleb Campos (AU) dec. Malachi DuVall (GMU), 9-2
- Cons Round of 8 - Caleb Campos (AU) dec. Sal Perrine (Ohio), 9-2
- Blood Round - Caleb Campos (AU) dec. Brian Soldano (Oklahoma), 9-6 SV
- Cons Quarterfinals - Caleb Campos (AU) dec. Zack Ryder (OSU), 7-3
