Dudziak Advances To NCAA Quarterfinals

Thursday, March 19

St. Louis, Mo.

11 a.m.

Duke University

NCAA Tournament First Round

Dudziak Advances To NCAA Quarterfinals

3/19/2009 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling

By: Duke Sports Information

ST. LOUIS?Duke University junior Konrad Dudziak won twice in the opening day of the NCAA Wrestling Championships to move into the quarterfinal round tomorrow at the Scottrade Center. Dudziak, John Barone, and Dan Tulley all competed in the first day of the championship.

Dudziak captured a win at heavyweight in the first session, while Barone and Tulley both suffered setbacks at 184 and 197 pounds, respectively. The trio came back in the evening looking for more competition. Dudziak registered his second win of the day, while Barone and Tulley both fell in their consolation matches.

Fifth-seeded Dudziak moved onto the second round with a 4-1 decision over Josh Wine of VMI in his opening round match. After a scoreless first session, Dudziak registered an escape 21 seconds into the second period and held Wine off the scoreboard to go into the final two minutes with a 1-0 lead.

Wine came back with an escape of his own to make it a 1-1 match, but it was Dudziak responding with a two-point takedown for the 3-1 edge. The Bayonne, N.J. native tacked on an extra point with riding time for the 4-1 victory.

Coming back in the evening for the second session, Dudziak picked up right where he left off with a 3-1 decision over Jarod Trice of Central Michigan. After another scoreless opening three minutes, Trice took a 1-0 lead early in the second with an escape. Still looking for his first points of the match late in the second stanza, Dudziak scored a two-point takedown to go in front 2-1 with 39 seconds left.

Sporting a 2-1 advantage in the final two minutes, Duke's heavyweight registered an extra point with an escape just seven seconds into the period. He nearly added two more points with a takedown as he moved into the quarterfinal round with the 3-1 decision.

Barone was up first for Duke at 184 pounds. Going up against top-seeded and unbeaten Jake Herbert of Northwestern, Barone got on his heels early in the opening period. Herbert wasted little time as he pinned Barone in 54 seconds. The win was Herbert's 30th of the season.

Looking to stay alive in the tournament, Barone went up against Indiana's Eric Cameron in the consolation round. Cameron scored two points on an early takedown and needed just 50 seconds overall to pin Barone. The Shirley, N.Y. native closes out the season with a 36-8 record. His 36 wins is a single season record for the Blue Devils, surpassing his total from a year ago.

Tulley opened the day against Logan Brown of Purdue. Brown used an early advantage to score the 5-2 decision. The Boilermaker scored a pair of takedowns in the first period, while Tulley earned a point with an escape. Trailing 4-1 going into the second session, the St. Louis native made it a 4-2 match with another escape. Brown tacked on a riding time point in the third frame for the 5-2 victory.

In the first round of the consolation bracket, Tulley met up with Charles Silber of American University. Silber jumped out to a 2-1 lead after the first three minutes. In the second period, Tulley garnered a point with an escape to tie the match with two minutes remaining in regulation. The Eagles' Silber added an escape of his own for the narrow 3-2 lead and picked up a point for riding time to earn the 4-2 decision. Tulley closed out the season with a 17-12 record and 40-45 mark for his career.

Dudziak will compete in the quarterfinal round tomorrow morning, March 20, at 10 a.m. Live statistics are available on www.GoDuke.com.

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