TEXAS-SIZED
WINS
M ichigan fif th-year se -
nior Logan Massa, who is
taking an Olympic redshirt
and will return to the Wol-
verines' wrestling lineup
next season, entered 2019
Senior Nationals — the larg-
est qualifier for the 2020
U.S. Olympic Team Trials
— as the No. 4 seed at 74
kilograms (163.1 pounds)
Dec. 22 in Fort Worth, Texas.
He began the tour na-
ment with a bang and three
straight victories by tech-
nical superiority (going up
by 10 or more points), and
then knocked off the top
two seeds via a 15-6 victory
in the semifinals and a 6-4
triumph in the finals over
2019 NCAA champion Me-
khi Lewis. Lewis had beaten
Massa 7-1 a month earlier.
Massa also outplaced for-
mer U-M teammate and
three -time All-Amer ican
Alec Pantaleo (eighth) in
the same weight class at the
event.
The performance not only
earned Massa a gold medal
(and cowboy hat), it guaran-
teed him a spot in the 2020
trials for the U.S. Olympic
Team, which will be held in
April at State College, Pa.
After earning a third-place
finish at the 2017 NCAA
Championships for his lone
All-America honor so far,
Massa started the last two
years and qualified for na-
tionals but has not been
able to match his redshirt
freshman year success. This
p e r fo r m a n c e s h o w s h e
could be on track for a big
sixth year — and maybe
more.
PHOTO BY TONY ROTUNDO
THE BIG PICTURE
