Gomez heads into NCAA Quarterfinals with triple-overtime win

In a marathon match that lasted three overtimes, sophomore wrestler Franklin Gomez overcame a tough unseeded opponent and a hurt ankle to advance to today’s quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships.

Following a scoreless first period, the No. 1 seeded Gomez led Ohio State’s Reece Humphrey 3-0 after the second period. Gomez came up limping in second after spraining his ankle, and Humphrey capitalized by getting a two-point takedown and a two-point near-fall to put Gomez on his back with 28 seconds remaining.

With eight seconds left, the whistle was blown for a new start and Gomez escaped with a granby roll with two seconds remaining on the clock to earn a one-point escape and force the match into overtime.

“You know what I said, every time I fell to the mat I said, ‘I know I’m going to be victorious, I know I’m going to be victorious, I know I’m going to be victorious,’” Gomez said of what was going through his head lying on the mat near the end of regulation. “That’s pretty much what I said to myself — ‘I’m going to become victorious.’”

Gomez did become victorious when he escaped in the beginning of the third tie-breaker round and held Humphrey down to gain a four-second edge in riding time and the win.

With the win, Gomez now advances to today’s quarterfinals to face Minnesota’s Mack Reiter, who he defeated by a 7-4 decision Jan. 25 at Jenison Field House.

“He’s the real deal,” MSU head coach Tom Minkel said.

“Franklin controlled Reiter, beat him pretty solidly, but that was in the dual — this is a different level.”

Gomez said his ankle would “definitely not” impact his wrestling today, and he tweaked a previous injury he suffered at the Big Ten Championships.

“It’s all right now,” Gomez said after the match. “I twisted it a bit in the wrong direction, but it’s fine.”

Gomez got to the second round by beating Josh Baldridge (8-6) of Northern Iowa via a 12-4 major decision earlier in the day.

Gomez took control of the match right from the beginning, getting a two-point takedown 20 seconds into the first period en route to a 7-1 first-period advantage. After starting the second period in the down position, Gomez picked up a two-point reversal 35 seconds into the second and stayed on top of Baldridge throughout the rest of the period.

Session three of the NCAA Championships begins today at 11 a.m. at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. Minkel said he expects Gomez’s match to begin around 1:30 p.m.

Published on Thursday, March 20, 2008