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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Ohio Wrestling's Peyten Kellar wrote himself into the history books tonight (Mar. 22) at the 2024 NCAA Championships, becoming Ohio's first All-American since Cody Walters in 2016 with a pin over North Carolina State's No. 4 Ed Scott. The seven-seeded Kellar joined the list of Bobcat All-Americans and is the first 157-pounder to become one since four-time All-American Jake Percival (2002-05).
Not only did Kellar earn All-American honors, but he advanced to the third-place semifinals with a win over Nebraska's No. 8 Peyton Robb. Kellar will face off against Stanford's No. 6 Daniel Cardenas for a spot in the third-place match tomorrow morning. The session is set to start at 11:00 a.m. ET.
Kellar won his blood round match in fashion, recording a take down early and pinning Scott in just 1:03. The redshirt sophomore from Cutler, Ohio leaped into the arms of his coaches before having his hand raised by the referee. Another hug with Greenlee and company was a quick stop before jumping into the stands to embrace his mom.
It was not an easy road for Kellar. He won his opening match over Central Michigan's Johnny Lovett but fell to Iowa's Jared Frankel in the following round. The loss meant Kellar would need to take the road less traveled, needing three consecutive wins on Friday to secure his All-American status.
The Ohio-native opened the day with Northwestern's No. 25 Trevor Chumbley, who he defeated with a 9-1 major decision. Kellar would move on to face South Dakota State's No. 15 Cael Swensen. It was an extremely tight match, with Kellar picking up a point by escape in the second period. The 1-0 lead was enough, as Kellar masterfully defended Swensen's take down attempts. With the win, Kellar moved onto the blood round for the first time in his career.
There he met with Scott, who he had faced earlier this season at the Cliff Keen Invitational. During the match in December, Kellar and Scott went to overtime with Kellar winning with a 8-5 sudden victory. This time was far different, only 63 seconds were required.
Kellar would advance to take on No. 8 Peyton Robb of Nebraska for a chance to continue on the quest for third place. Last year at the NCAA Championships, Robb recorded a tech fall against Kellar. This year, it was different.
Ohio's 157-pounder jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead with an early take down of Robb. The Nebraska wrestler bounced back, finding a way to escape before picking up a near fall on Kellar. Robb found his way to a 8-5 advantage, but a reversal shrunk the lead to one before a four-point near fall gave Kellar an 11-8 lead.
It was a tense final moment for Kellar and Robb. A reversal from Robb put Kellar's lead as just one, but another quick escape from the All-American helped Kellar earn a two-point lead. Robb went on the attack, but Kellar stood strong, winning the match 12-10. The win helped Kellar to advance to a third-place semifinal match, meaning the Cutler, Ohio native will finish at least sixth in the country at 157-pounds.
Also competing on the day was fellow redshirt sophomore Garrett Thompson (Murrysville, Pa.). The No. 12 seed at 165-pounds would fight hard in his match against Navy's No. 11 Andrew Cerniglia. The pair went back and forth, but ultimately Thompson was unable to get ahead of Cerniglia and fell by way of a 7-3 decision.
Thompson had an outstanding season in his first year as a full-time starter, earning second place at the MAC Championships, his first bid to the NCAA Championships, two MAC Wrestler of the Week awards, Southeast Open Championship, and a stellar 27-8 record.
Tomorrow's opening session will begin at 11:00 a.m. ET, including the seventh place match, third place semifinals, fifth place match, and third place match. The second session will start at 7:00 p.m. ET and will include the All-American parade and the national finals matches. For more up to date information, follow Ohio Wrestling's Twitter here.
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