FARGO, N.D. – North Dakota State wrestling’s Gaven Sax heads to Kansas City, Missouri this week for the NCAA Championships, March 21-23, at the T-Mobile Center. Sax is the No. 14 seed in the 174-pound bracket.
Sax (17-5), who is making his first appearance at the NCAA Championships, enters the championship fresh off of a Big 12 Championship runner-up performance, going 3-1 in Tulsa, Oklahoma with a tech fall and a pair of ranked wins to reach the final.
Entering the NCAA Championships, the junior has a career record of 6-7 against potential opposition in the 174-pound bracket. However, Sax holds a 6-3 record this season.
Sax opens up the NCAA Championships against No. 19 seed Alex Cramer of Central Michigan on Thursday morning.
Weekend Schedule
Thursday, March 21
Session 1 – Pigtails and First-Round – 11 a.m. (ESPNU/ESPN+)
Session 2 – Second Round, Wrestle-Back Prelims, Wrestle-Back First Round – 6 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN+)
Friday, March 22
Session 3 – Quarterfinals, Wrestle-Back Second and Third Rounds – 11 a.m. (ESPNU/ESPN+)
Session 4 – Semifinals, Blood Round, Consolation Fourth Round – 7 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN+)
Saturday, March 23
Session 5 – Medal Rounds – 10 a.m. (ESPNU/ESPN+)
Session 6 – Championships – 6 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN+)
TV Coverage and Live Statistics
All matches will be available on the ESPN family of networks. The day sessions will all be televised live on ESPNU, with evening sessions televised on ESPN. ESPN+ will have individual mat feeds throughout the entire tournament. Statistics of all matches will be available through TrackWrestling. Links to watch and view statistics can be found on the wrestling schedule page at gobison.com.
Scuffle Wrap Up
Sax picked up a placing finish at the Southern Scuffle. Sax finished 6-1 to take third overall and also claimed the Gorrarian Award. Sax had a pin and three tech falls, with his pin over Oklahoma’s Tate Picklo avenging his only loss in the event.
Sax Climbing NDSU Charts
Sax has been on a steady climb up the career rankings in NDSU’s Division I era (Since 2004-05). The junior is currently 14th in ranked wins (9) and eighth in tech fall victories (9). Sax is also 23rd on NDSU’s list in career bonus point victories (21). He currently ranks 10th in NDSU’s single season history for bonus point win percentage over the course of a season (.500), matching a similar pace of former NDSU All-Americans Steven Monk, Hayden Zillmer and Cam Sykora. He enters the NCAA Championships with 11 bonus-point decisions in 17 wins and 22 overall matches.
NCAA D1 Qualifiers
The Bison have had 64 NCAA Div. I qualifiers in 15 years of postseason eligibility, including 21 over the last four seasons. Rich in wrestling history, the Bison sent 26 to NCAA Div. I Championships from 1971 to 1991, bringing the total to 90. The Bison have 12 All-Americans at the Div. I Championships, including a best finish of 3rd by Steven Monk at 165 in 2014. In 2015, Kurtis Julson and Hayden Zillmer both placed in the top 8, while Jared Franek and Michael Caliendo earned All-American honors last season.