The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1000643
28 ■ THE WOLFPACKER TRACKING THE PACK NC State wrestling had a banner year this winter, tying for fourth at the NCAA Champion- ships in March to match the ACC's best-ever finish at the event. After starting as a true freshman in 2016-17, though, Nick Reenan spent the season in the shadows, redshirting while fifth-year senior Pete Renda won an ACC title at 184 pounds. This spring, Reenan put everybody in the country on notice for when he returns for his redshirt sophomore campaign. He entered the U.S. Open — an event where most competitors are college graduates — in April "at the last minute," according to head coach Pat Popolizio. In his second-ever senior- level tournament, Reenan lost his first match but then rattled off six straight wins to place third. Two victories came over former NCAA All-Americans, both of which he defeated so dominantly that the bouts ended in the first period. That performance earned him a bid to the World Team Trials Challenge Tournament. He opened with two wins by a combined score of 21-0 to make the best-of-three finals, where he would face veteran international competitor Richard Perry, who had handed Reenan his lone loss at the U.S. Open. The precocious grappler got revenge with 4-0 and 6-3 decisions to punch his ticket to Final X, where he would take part in another best-of-three series for the right to represent the U.S. at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, in October. Although Reenan lost to four-time NCAA finalist and two-time champion David Taylor, he was one of just four (out of 20) with college eligibility remaining to make Final X, and by far the most surprising. He also became the first active NC State wrestler to make a world team — something two-time NCAA heavyweight champion and reigning world bronze medalist Nick Gwiazdowski didn't do until after college (Gwiazdowski also competed in Final X and won the starting spot with a pair of 6-1 victories). Reenan is now officially America's No. 2 freestyle grappler at 86 kilograms, which means he'll go to training camp with the national team and eventually compete in some international matches for the U.S., just not at the world championships. However, given his age, he has plenty of time to do that and more. "I don't think he knew exactly where he was at, now he understands it and how close he is to being a guy that can win a world championship," Popolizio said. "He's at that level, he's just got to continue to get better, and day to day he is." — Ryan Tice/Photo Courtesy NC State Media Relations wolfpacker spotlight NICK REENAN Rising Redshirt Sophomore • Wrestling