Virginia senior Nick Sulzer ended his illustrious career with an exclamation point at the NCAA wrestling championships in St. Louis, Missouri.
Sulzer became just the second three-time All-American in program history with his fifth-place finish at 165 pounds. Chris Henrich, who wrestled for the Cavaliers from 2008-11, was the only other grappler to accomplish such a feat.
The Cleveland, Ohio native clinched All-America honors on Friday night when Northwestern senior Pierce Harger took a medical forfeit. He then bested Wisconsin redshirt sophomore Isaac Jordan — the reigning Big 10 champion — 11-6 to reach the consolation semifinals.
Although Ohio State redshirt freshman Bo Jordan got the better of Sulzer in the consolation semifinals, Sulzer rebounded by rolling past North Carolina freshman Ethan Ramos 12-4 in the fifth-place match.
Sulzer’s victory over Ramos ended his career in the Virginia singlet, but his legacy will remain in the program’s annals for years to come. Sulzer’s 122 victories are the second-most behind Henrich’s 136 and he holds the record for most NCAA tournament victories with 15.
Two other Cavaliers came within one bout of claiming All-American honors. Both sophomore George DiCamillo and junior Blaise Butler were eliminated in the round of 12.
As a team, Virginia finished the tournament in 19th place with 26.5 points. Led by senior Logan Stieber — the fourth ever to win four national titles — the Ohio State Buckeyes, and their 102 points, ran away with the team title. Runner-up Iowa tallied 84.
--compiled by Matthew Wurzburger