Five All-Americans Lead Buckeyes to Best NCAA Finish – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/26/2004 12:00:00 AM | General, Wrestling
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The Ohio State wrestling program reached new heights at the 2004 NCAA championships March 18-20 at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, Mo. The Buckeyes traveled five qualifiers to the national meet and 18th-year head coach Russ Hellickson mentored each to All-American status as the Buckeyes posted their best national finish in program history, scoring a tie for third-place with 77.5 team points.
Leading the All-American charge was Tommy Rowlands , who became the most decorated wrestler in OSU history with his second national title and fourth All-American award at HWT.
Also pacing the Buckeye tournament run was freshman J.D. Bergman, who dropped his opening round match, but reeled off six straight wins to place third at 197 pounds in his initial appearance at the NCAA meet.
Seniors John Clark and Blake Kaplan each took fifth at 165 and 184-pound classes, respectively. The award qualified Clark as the ninth Buckeye to earn multiple All-American honors as he joined his brother and current assistant coach, Mitch Clark (1995-1998) in the distinction.
In addition, fellow senior Jeff Ratliff took eighth at 149 pounds to round out the All-American class. THIRD-PLACE FINISH HIGHEST IN BUCKEYE HISTORY
The tie with Lehigh for third place at the NCAA’s served as Ohio State’s best in its history, topping the fourth-place standing in 1991.
The third-place finish is the fourth Top 5 standing for Ohio State in the Russ Hellickson era and the 18th-year head coaches’ sixth finish among the Top 6 teams in the country.
The 77.5 team points accumulated ranks as the most by Ohio State at a national meet, topping the 64.5 team points amassed in 1992 when the Buckeyes placed fifth.
FIVE ALL-AMERICANS A BUCKEYE FIRST
The five Buckeyes who wrestled their way into the Parade of All-Americans at the NCAA championships marked the most All-America honors won by an Ohio State team at any national meet.
Ohio State previously scored four All-Americans at the national meet in 1991, 1992 and 1993. The Buckeyes had placed three individuals in the parade each of the last two seasons.
ROWLANDS CAPS RECORD-SETTING SEASON AND CAREER AT NCAA’S
Not only did Tommy Rowlands’ national crown at the HWT class tout him as the only four-time All-American in program history and just the second Buckeye to win two NCAA titles, but the Hilliard, Ohio native also set two OSU season records en route to the title. With a an 18-6 major decision in his opening round match, Rowlands moved into the top position in season team points in OSU history. Two matches later, Rowlands advanced to the semifinals with an 8-6 decision. In that match, Rowlands netted three takedowns to push him above the previous record for season takedowns of 207 by former Buckeye Adam DiSabato (1989-1993).
The HWT completed the season with 228 takedowns and 203.5 total team points, becoming the first Buckeye to eclipse 200 team points and 200 takedowns in one season.
CLARK JOINS BROTHER MITCH AND TEAMMATE ROWLANDS IN ELITE CLASS
Ohio State senior John Clark placed fifth at 165 pounds in the 2004 NCAA championships, earning him his second-straight All-American honor after a sixth-place score last season.
With the award, Clark became the ninth Buckeye to record multiple national titles, joining his brother – Mitch Clark (1994-98) – and teammate Tommy Rowlands in that distinction.
HELLICKSON MENTORS 40 TO ALL-AMERICA HONORS AT OHIO STATE
With the record number of five All-America honorees at the 2004 NCAA championships, Ohio State head coach Russ Hellickson scored his 36th, 37th, 38th, 39th and 40th All-Americans in his 18 years at the OSU wrestling helm.
Since 1990, Hellickson has helped direct 36 to All-American status, which ranks among the Top 10 in the county in that span.
ROWLANDS NOW No. 1 ALL-TIME IN CAREER WINS, TAKEDOWNS AND TEAM POINTS
Ohio State senior HWT Tommy Rowlands, a four-time All-American and two-time NCAA champion, climbed to the top of the Ohio State record charts in career team points, takedowns and wins in 2004.
Rowlands used a single season record-setting 228 takedowns in 2004 to reach 705 for his career and the top spot in that category by nearly 60 takedowns.
The Hilliard, Ohio product landed his 152nd career victory, surpassing Ed Potokar (1980-83) for No. 1 on the OSU wins list with a technical fall over No. 9-ranked Mike Benhke at Illinois Feb. 13.
Rowlands surpassed the team-point mark early in the season at the Oklahoma Gold Classic Nov. 15. He finished his career with 702.0 team points.
400 IS THEIR NUMBER: CLARK, ROWLANDS TOP THE RECORDS BOOK
Seniors Tommy Rowlands and John Clark are two of only three Buckeyes in OSU wrestling history to reach the 400 mark in both career takedowns and team points. Rowlands, who has accumulated 684 takedowns in his career, replaced former Buckeye Adam DiSabato (1989-93) for the No. 1 position. DiSabato’s 646 takedowns move him to No. 2, while Clark takes third in the category with 481.
Rowlands, who is the current record holder in career team points, improved his count from 498.5 to 702.0 this season. Clark is ranked third in career team points with 432.0, trailing only Rowlands and his older brother Mitch Clark, who completed his career with 454.0 career team points.
CLARK AND RATLIFF CHASE TOP SPOTS IN OSU ALL-TIME CHARTS
Seniors John Clark and Jeff Ratliff also were in pursuit of high marks in the Ohio State all-time charts throughout the season in wins, takedowns and team points. Clark entered the Top 5 mark in team points and takedowns as he seeks to improve upon his 163 takedowns in 2003-04, the fourth-highest season total in OSU history. Clark also has elevated his career totals to third behind teammate Tommy Rowlands in all-time takedowns.
Ratliff, who is in the career Top 10 in takedowns, also has a chance to join Rowlands and Clark in the Top 5 of the team point standings by the end of the 2004 season.
ROWLANDS CLAIMS SECOND BIG TEN CROWN OF CAREER
Senior heavyweight wrestler Tommy Rowlands recorded his second career conference championship with a tight 5-4 decision over Penn State’s Pat Cummins in the finals of the 2004 Big Ten Championships in St. John Arena.
Rowlands, a native of Hilliard, Ohio, wrestled Cummins through a scoreless first period. The two again tied the match at 1-1 in the second period as Rowlands was awarded a point for a Cummins stall. Rowlands then claimed the lead with a takedown with 40 seconds left in the second period for a 3-1 advantage.
In the third period, Rowlands again gained a two-point advantage after trading escapes with Cummins to set the match at 4-2. With less than a minute remaining, Cummins tied the bout with a takedown of his own before Rowlands scored a deciding escape to claim his second career Big Ten title.
With the win, Rowlands became the first two-time Big Ten champion since Mitch Clark repeated at 197 pounds in 1997 and 1998.
Rowlands advanced to the final with a 17-2 technical fall victory over Ryan Fuller of Iowa in the quarterfinals and a 10-4 decision over No. 4 seed Kole Conrad of Minnesota in the semifinals.
ROWLANDS THIRD ALL-TIME TO HIT 200 TAKEDOWNS IN A SEASON
In addition to topping the charts in career takedowns and team points, Tommy Rowlands is the third Buckeye to pocket 200 takedowns in a season, joining former Buckeyes Adam DiSabato and assistant coach Ken Ramsey as the only OSU wrestlers to reach this plateau. Rowlands set the OSU single-season record of 228 takedowns in the 2003-04 season.
No. 2 ROWLANDS AVENGES LOSS TO No. 1 CUMMINS AT ALL-STAR MEET
Three-time All-American HWT Tommy Rowlands represented Ohio State at the 2004 National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic Feb. 3 at Northern Iowa University in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Rowlands, who was invited to the event last year at the University of Delaware but was forced to withdraw because of injury, met top-ranked HWT Pat Cummins of Penn State in the final bout of the evening. Rowlands, who fell to Cummins via a 3-2 decision Jan. 25 in a dual bout between the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes, avenged the earlier loss with a last-second 3-1 decision win in overtime over Cummins.
Rowlands and Cummins met one two more occasions later in the season as the Buckeye downed the Nittany Lion in both the national finals and the Big Ten championship match.
CLARK SURPASSES CLARK
With his major decision win against Penn State Jan. 25, Ohio State senior John Clark registered his 120th career win as a Buckeye, which surpassed the 119 career wins his older brother Mitch Clark accumulated during his national championship career at Ohio State from 1994-98.
On the season, J. Clark recorded 37 wins and upped his career record to 134-39. His 134 career triumphs passed former Buckeye All-American and current assistant coach Ken Ramsey.
RATLIFF SCORES 100th CAREER WIN
Ohio State senior Jeff Ratliff, who has seen action at both 141 and 149 this season, entered the 2003-04 season with 77 career wins. The Marion, Ohio native emerged from the Buckeye Duals on Jan. 3 with a 3-0 mark, upping career record at the time to 100-56.
Ratliff is the second Buckeye this season to reach the 100-win plateau as fellow senior John Clark reached the milestone early this season at the Michigan State Open.
Ratliff and Clark are the fifth and sixth Buckeyes to win match No. 100 in the last three seasons, joining Rowlands and departed senior Keaton Anderson, who reached 100 last season and Robert Sessley and Nick Preston in 2001-02.
The Marion, Ohio native finished his career with 113 victories after a 36-14 mark his senior season.
John Clark RECORDS WIN No. 100 AT MICHIGAN STATE OPEN
Ohio State senior 165 John Clark became the fifth Buckeye wrestler to record his 100th win in the last three seasons. Clark scored a 5-2 decision third-round decision to reach 100 wins.
