Three Terriers Set for NCAA Wrestling Championships
March 20, 2013 | Men's Wrestling
March 20, 2013
Watch (ESPN3) | Live Results | NCAA Brackets
NCAA Wrestling Profiles: D. Harlowe | K. Innis | N. Taffur
BOSTON - Looking to carry the momentum from their successful performance at the conference tournament, junior Kevin Innis, junior Nestor Taffur and freshman Dane Harlowe will face the nation's best at the NCAA Championships beginning on Thursday (March 21) at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa. The first round will start at 12 p.m. ET.
Fans unable to attend will be able to follow all of the action online, as ESPN3.com will provide four-screen, four-mat viewing throughout the tournament. On Friday, two of the four quarterfinals, as well as the semifinals, will be televised on ESPNU in a revised side-by-side format, allowing viewers to catch the action in two matches at the same time. ESPNU will also televise Saturday's Session V medal round, while the championship finals can be seen on ESPN.
Due to Harlowe, Innis and Tarfur all earning automatic bids back on March 9 at the CAA Championships, BU was able to send three men to the NCAAs for the second time in three years. In 2011, Fred Santaite, Hunter Meys and John Hall combined for five wins to give BU its best showing in 14 years.
A two-time CAA Rookie of the Week, Harlowe earned his spot in the 133-pound bracket by finishing third at the CAA Championships. Unseeded, he lost his first match but rebounded by earning a thrilling 7-6 decision over Rider's No. 2-seed Jimmy Morris and pinning Old Dominion's top-seeded Scott Festejo.
With a 9-5 record, Harlowe has tied two other men, NC State's Joe DeAngelo (125) and Campbell's James Cook (184), for the fewest matches wrestled this season by an NCAA qualifier. He will face a difficult task in his first appearance, opening against Virginia's No. 11-seed and reigning ACC champion George DiCamillo (30-3).
After missing out on most of last season due to injury, Taffur has had a standout year at 157, posting a record of 34-7 with 17 wins coming in the last 18 matches. A two-time CAA Wrestler of the Week, he claimed his first-career CAA title and NCAA bid by defeating fellow NCAA participant Zac Cibula (Rider) for the fourth time this season. During the season, he has recorded eight pins, three tech falls and eight major decisions.
Taffur will open his first career NCAA appearance against Northwestern's top-seeded and reigning Big 10 champion Jason Welch. The two men met back in the fall with Welch rallying from behind for the 8-6 decision.
Innis is the lone Terrier with previous NCAA experience. Last year, he opened with a 5-3 victory over Pittsburgh's P.J. Tasser in the heavyweight division before falling to the Pac-12 champion and runner-up in back-to-back matches to finish the season at 22-7.
Though he has a similar record this year at 21-6, Innis will enter the national championships with a lot more confidence after capturing his first career CAA title. Innis will put his 14-match win streak on the line Thursday against Oregon State's No. 4 seed and reigning Pac-12 champion Chad Hanke (32-3).
2013 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships
| Date | Time (ET) | Championship Round | Network |
| Thu., March 21 |
Noon | First Round (Session I) | ESPN3 |
| 7:30 p.m. | Second Round (Session II) | ESPN3 | |
| Fri., March 22 |
11 a.m. | Quarterfinals (Session III) | ESPNU/ESPN3 |
| 7 p.m. | Semifinals (Session IV) | ESPNU/ESPN3 | |
| Sat., March 23 |
11 a.m. | Medal Round (Session V) | ESPNU/ESPN3 |
| 8 p.m. | Final (Session VI) | ESPN/ESPN3 |
