Kansas City, Mo. – Husker sophomore Brock Hardy (141) led the Huskers with a third-place finish at the 2024 NCAA Championships, and the Nebraska wrestling team scored 60.5 points to claim ninth overall.
Five Huskers competed in the NCAA medal round, highlighted by Hardy’s upset victory and Peyton Robb’s win to conclude his Husker career with his fourth all-american honor.
Nebraska’s five NCAA All-Americans marks the fifth time in seven years the program has had four or more claim the award. Since 2012, Nebraska has had at least two wrestlers receive All-American honors, and the program has earned a total of 136 combined awards from 75 wrestlers.
Third-Place Match
No. 9 Hardy lost in Friday morning’s quarterfinals but climbed the ladder in consolation, winning four-straight, to claim a third-place finish. The two-time NCAA All-American defeated No. 2 Real Woods by decision 7-6 and finished his run with a 6-1 record.
Fifth-Place Match
Top-seeded Ridge Lovett battled No. 2 Kyle Parco for the second time this season for fifth at 149. Lovett earned an escape in the second period, but Parco scored a last-second takedown to finish on top, 3-1. The Big Ten champion ends his NCAA run as three-time All-American and finishes the year with a 27-4 record.
In the 125 fifth-place match, No. 15 Caleb Smith (125) met No. 2 Luke Stanich (LEH) in a rematch of the pair’s bout in the second round. Smith battled, but Stanich was victorious with the 5-1 decision. Smith closed the weekend with his first career All-American honor and a sixth-place finish.
Seventh-Place Match
At 157, No. 8 Robb ended his Husker career surpassing 100 victories, earning his fourth all-american honor and finishing seventh. Robb used three takedowns to top No. 10 Jared Franek of Iowa and ended his career with a 102-35 mark.
No. 8 Antrell Taylor (165) met West Virginia’s No. 9 Peyton Hall for seventh. The two wrestled a tight match before Hall secured the 2-1 decision. The redshirt freshman concluded his impressive first career NCAA Championship with an eighth-place finish.
Cons. Semifinals
No. 9 Hardy (141) advanced to the third-place match after a medical forfeit from UNC’s No. 6 Lachlan McNeil.
No. 15 Smith met two-time All-American No. 12 Anthony Noto of Lock Haven at 125. The two were tied 1-1 after regulation, but Noto got the takedown in sudden victory to top Smith, 4-1. Top-seeded Lovett then wrestled No. 7 Tyler Kasak of Penn State. Kasak scored two takedowns in the opening period to go on and defeat Lovett by major decision, 10-1. Both Smith and Lovett went on to wrestle for fifth.
