When the sound of the final whistle blew and the referee took the hand of the winner, in this case, Darian Cruz from Lehigh, it signaled the end of the season for Shakur Laney and the rest of the Bobcats.
The three Bobcats in Laney, Noah Forrider and Zack Parker went a combined 3-6 at the annual NCAA Championships in St. Louis.
Laney (125 lbs) took his first match over CSU Bakersfield’s Sean Nickell by way of a 10-5 decision. That win gave Laney his fourth postseason victory and first in the NCAA Championships. Laney then took on Cruz, the No. 13 seed in the tournament.
A very back-and-forth match took place between the two as at the start of the third period the score was still deadlocked at 0. A lone escape point by Cruz put the match at 1-0, and unable to generate any offense, that ended as the final.
That loss put Laney in the consolation or “wrestleback” bracket where he took on Appalachian State’s Vito Pasone. Laney cruised to a 9-3 victory over the Pasone and took his second win of the tournament into the “round of 16” against Nebraska’s Tim Lambert.
Season didn't end the way I planned it to end thanks to everyone that supported me along the way and hyped me up to be great
— Rambo Pac (@Tupac_Back_96) March 17, 2017
Laney ended his season at 28-8.
Season didn't end the way I planned it to end thanks to everyone that supported me along the way and hyped me up to be great
— Rambo Pac (@Tupac_Back_96) March 17, 2017
Along with Laney, Forrider and Parker wrestled well in the tournament. While they both lost their first match, Forrider won his first match in his two NCAA Championship appearances by defeating Army’s Logan Everett 9-3.
Attempting to ride the momentum into his second match, ultimately Oregon State’s Johnathan Hathaway defeated Forrider thus ending his 2016-17 campaign. Forrider's season ended at 27-8. Parker failed to notch a win in either of his two matches, both of which were in the pigtail matches.
