Blue White Illustrated

points mean more action and more in- terest. And while Wood won over White by two (3-1 in overtime) and Cassar beat Steveson by one (4-3), those bouts were enough to keep fans in their seats that night and to ensure that they were in their seats early the next night. ESPN's decision to hold the 197- pound >nal between Penn State's Bo Nickal and Ohio State's Kollin Moore until the last of the 10 meant that Cassar and White would go at it right from the start. Which former 197- pounder would win? About 4 minutes into the match, Cassar had the answer on a low single-leg takedown that he kept driv- ing into in order to plant White on his hips and quickly push him to his back for a six-point move that led to a 10-1 major decision and his first NCAA title. The lightest heavyweight had won the big-boy division. "These are some big boys," Cassar said. "And I don't want to get caught under them. I learned that from my shoulder injury that I have to be smart with my >n- ishes and my attacks. And that's kind of carried over to my style. "And so if I go, I'm going hard. And nine times out of 10, I'm going to get that attack. I'm a little patient, but if I go, you're going down." Although he has applied for a medical redshirt to be granted additional eligi- bility, Cassar has yet to proclaim a cer- tain return to the Penn State lineup; he said he would discuss the situation with family and coaches. He simply wanted to bask in that well-earned glory. "I guess I perform very well under pressure," he said. "And I have a goal. And if I don't achieve that goal – like, if I didn't achieve this goal tonight – the past >ve years would be a failure in my mind, which may not be the right thing, but that's just how I see it. When all the chips are out, I'm going to perform, be- cause it's do or die for me." ■ PULLING HIS WEIGHT Cassar avenged his only loss of the sea- son with a major de- cision over Oklahoma State's White in the 285-pound final. Photo by Mark Selders/Penn State Athletics

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