By Harrison LaLone, Sports Information student assistant
Cleveland, Ohio - Sophomore Brendan Ladd (Ortonville, Mich./Brandon) of the Alma College wrestling team went undefeated on day one (Friday, March 9) of the NCAA Division III National Championships and advanced to the semifinals.
By making it to day two, Ladd has earned All-American status at 141 pounds.
Ladd will face Ben Brisman of Ithaca College (NY) on Saturday morning in session three of the tournament.
What Happened
- Ladd entered the day in one of two preliminary rounds of the 141-pound weight class, matched up with Tim Ambacher of Delaware Valley University. He defeated Ambacher in a 6-5 decision on a takedown with just seconds remaining in the third period.
- The winner of the preliminary round went on to face Joseph Ferinde of Johnson & Wales University (RI). Ladd defeated Ferinde by an 11-3 major decision to escape Friday's morning session undefeated.
- The evening session featured Ladd and Elmhurst College's (IL) Jimmy Mcauliffe in the quarterfinals. After going down 6-3 early on, Ladd went into attack mode and dominated the second and third periods to defeat Mcauliffe 15-8.
They Said It
"It's a better feeling than anything else. In fifteen years, it's been a goal of mine to be an All-American." - Brendan Ladd
"He stuck to the gameplan and what we talked about. Whether in good positions or bad positions, he just continued to wrestle." - Head Coach Jeremiah Tobias
Notables
- Ladd is the fifth All-American in the history of the Alma College wrestling program.
- Ladd entered the day with 33 wins, one shy of tying the program season record. After going 3-0, Ladd is the sole owner of the record at 36-5 on the season.
Up Next
Ladd will head back to the hotel for the evening and prepare for his semifinal-bout with Ithaca's Brisman. Session three competition begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday (March 10) at the Cleveland Public Auditorium.
