Two Spartans reach Round of 12, including record-setting Caleb Fish run

Michigan State saw a pair of wrestlers reach the Round of 12 in their respective weight classes, but the Spartans ultimately concluded their 2022-23 season on Friday evening at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships inside the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Thursday's opening day of competition saw junior 165-pounder Caleb Fish scored the largest first round upset since 2021 and ultimately became the lowest seed to reach the quarterfinals of the 2023 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. Three of MSU's four national qualifiers remained in contention after Thursday's matches, with junior 157-pounder Chase Saldate and redshirt senior 184-pounder Layne Malczewski continuing action in the consolation rounds.

In his opening round match against fourth-seeded Cornell grappler Julian Ramirez, 29th-seeded Fish dominated for an 8-4 decision, securing the largest first round upset at the NCAA Championships in two years. At the 2021 Championships in St. Louis, No. 31 Owen Pentz of North Dakota State pinned second-seeded Eric Schultz in 4:51 of elapsed match time, marking the largest individual opening-round upset in recent memory. After advancing to the quarterfinals with a 7-2 decision over Pittsburgh's Holden Heller, Fish became the lowest-seeded wrestler to reach the National Quarterfinals since the NCAA began seeding all 33 individuals at each weight class in 2019. Prior to Fish, the next-lowest seed to advance to the quarterfinals was 28th-seeded Sam Stoll of Iowa in the 2019 tournament.

One of the most thrilling stories at the 2023 Championships began on mat eight, with Fish squaring off against Ramirez. Things held true to form through the first three minutes, with the higher-seeded Cornell star scoring a takedown with 1:41 remaining in the first period to take a 2-0 lead and 1:19 of riding time into the second stanza. Ramirez won the toss and chose bottom to open the middle frame, a decision he would come to regret 34 seconds later after Fish managed to turn him for four swipes on the left side of the mat. Ramirez escaped to cut into Fish's newfound lead, but the Spartan remained ahead by a 4-3 score after two. Fish elected to start the third in neutral and booked his first takedown of the match with 1:17 remaining. Despite a Ramirez escape with 33 seconds to go, Fish took him down once more five seconds later to finalize the stunning 8-4 decision.

Fish's second round match against Heller featured further dominance from the Eaton Rapids, Michigan, native Spartan. The 165-pounder's second match of the day mirrored the first after Heller scored an early first-period takedown with 1:27 to go. Unfazed, Fish escaped five seconds later to make it 2-1 through the first three minutes. Heller chose bottom after Fish won the toss and deferred, and yet again, Fish dominated the top position in the second period. A merciless two-minute ride from the Spartan starter included a pair of near fall points, ultimately resulting in a 3-2 MSU lead with a decisive 1:55 advantage in riding time heading into the finale. Fish chose bottom to start the third, escaped 15 seconds later, added another takedown and the riding time point for good measure en route to a 7-2 decision and quarterfinal bid.

At 157 pounds, 11th-seeded junior Chase Saldate opened the day against 22nd-seeded Derek Holschlag of Northern Iowa, and despite a late push deep in the third period, Saldate dropped his opening match by 4-3 decision. Searching for his first career NCAA Tournament win in his third appearance, Saldate returned to the mat in Thursday night's opening session with a dominant mindset against Columbia's No. 27 Cesar Alvan. After notching a takedown with just 26 seconds remaining in the first period, Saldate managed to turn Alvan to his back and stick his shoulder blades to the mat before the conclusion of the first period, scoring a win by fall at the 3:00 mark. Saldate matched his career high for wins in a single season, improving to 26-7 overall in 2022-23 following his first NCAA victory.

Redshirt senior 184-pounder Layne Malczewski opened his NCAA Tournament run against No. 18 Brian Soldano of Rutgers. Although Malczewski got out to a solid start, the 15th-seeded Spartan got reversed and pinned moments later, dropping his opening bout by fall at the 1:40 mark. Seeking his first career win at the NCAA Championships, Malczewski returned to the mat in the second session determined to extend his stay in the Sooner state.

In the first round of consolation action against No. 31 Zayne Lehman of Ohio, Malczewski looked to get in on a couple of shots early in the first, but neither grappler was able to score through the first three minutes. The Macomb, Michigan, native Spartan chose bottom to start the second and booked a reversal a mere 18 seconds into the frame, riding Lehman out for the rest of the period. Lehman started on bottom in the third and never mustered an escape, finalizing Malczewski's 3-0 decision after factoring in over three minutes of riding time for the MSU starter. Malczewski improves to 24-5 after the first day of the NCAA Championships and garnered his first career win at the national tournament.

At 197 pounds, graduate Cameron Caffey took the mat for his final NCAA Championships as the No. 19 seed at his weight class. The Spartan captain opened the tournament against a Big Ten-rival and familiar foe in Iowa's No. 14 Jacob Warner. The opening bout went Iowa's way in a 5-1 decision, with Warner advancing to the second round of the tournament. In his ensuing matchup in the consolation first round, Caffey fought valiantly but was unable to overcome an early first period takedown from Northwestern's Andrew Davision, ultimately ending the Spartan graduate's run in Tulsa with a 3-2 decision.

Caffey concludes his career at Michigan State as the fourth-winningest wrestler in school history, amassing a stunning 121 victories in the Green & White since his inaugural season on the Banks of the Red Cedar in 2017-18. The Carbondale, Illinois, native concludes his career with a 121-38 overall record in East Lansing, trailing program legends Erich Harvey (147), Nick Simmons (138) and David Morgan (129) for the most wins at MSU. A mainstay in Michigan State's lineup, Caffey's contributions to Spartan wrestling helped lift the program to back-to-back 10-win dual seasons in 2021-22 and 2022-23, the first streak of that nature at Michigan State in 27 years. Caffey also became the program-record holder for NCAA Championship qualifications, selected for the tournament five times despite the 2020 Championships being canceled due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Green & White had already surpassed the team's score from a season ago through the first two sessions of action Thursday, registering 5.0 points to that point in the Championships after a 4.0 point showing in 2022. The Spartans ended Thursday in 35th place. Defending National Champion Penn State led the field with 26.0 points, followed by Iowa with 21.5 points, Missouri with 17.5 points, and Minnesota and NC State tied for fourth with a 16.5 point total after the opening day of wrestling.

Junior 157-pounder Chase Saldate led the Spartans on the second day of the tournament with a 2-1 combined record in Sessions III and IV. Saldate began his Friday outing in the Consolation Second Round with a rematch from the Big Ten Championships fifth-place bout against 12th-seeded Kendall Coleman of Purdue. For the second-straight time in their season series, Saldate came away with a thrilling 6-4 decision to extend his stay in Tulsa, bolstered by a third-period takedown in addition to the riding time point.

In his ensuing match against Northwestern's 13th-seeded Trevor Chumbley, Saldate utilized a 3-1 takedown advantage to notch an impressive 8-5 decision in his second match of the day. In the Round of 12 against seventh-seeded Bryce Andonian of Virginia Tech, Saldate battled but ultimately surrendered a pin at the 6:22 mark to close the book on his junior campaign.

With his showing at the tournament this season, Saldate became the first individual from MSU to book a trio of wins at the NCAA Championships since graduate Rayvon Foley cemented his place as an All-American at 125 pounds in 2019. Saldate wraps up his season with a single-season career-high 28 wins in 2022-23, surpassing his previous career best of 26 wins set last season. The Gilroy, California, native became the second consecutive Spartan to go 8-0 in the Big Ten dual campaign, joining teammate Cameron Caffey's unbeaten run from a year ago.

After a triumphant opening day of the NCAA Tournament, junior 165-pounder Caleb Fish returned to action seeking further success on the mat in the Sooner State. In the National Quarterfinals against fifth-seeded Quincy Monday of Princeton, Fish suffered a pair of takedowns in the first period and never recovered, as the Tiger grappler published a 10-4 decision to advance to the National Semifinals at 165. In Fish's Round of 12 match on Friday evening, the Spartan faced North Dakota State's seventh-seeded Michael Caliendo III, with the Bison wrestler running up an 8-1 lead in the first period that Fish was ultimately unable to overcome, culminating in a 12-6 decision for NDSU.

The Eaton Rapids, Michigan, native Fish concluded his best season all-time in 2022-23, compiling a 28-11 overall record this year, locking him in a tie with Saldate for the most wins by a Spartan this season. His previous career high for wins in a single season came last year, as the MSU junior logged a 22-14 record in 2021-22. Fish made history at the 2023 Championships, entering the tournament as the No. 29 seed and becoming the lowest seed to win a first-round match in two years as well as the lowest to reach the National Quarterfinals since the NCAA began seeding all 33 individuals at each weight in 2019.

Redshirt senior 184-pounder Layne Malczewski began Session III in the Consolation First Round against 17th-seeded Tate Samuelson of Lehigh, with the Mountain Hawk grappler coming away with a 5-1 decision over Michigan State's starter. Samuelson and Malczewski battled for the majority of the first period without incident, but Lehigh's star was able to secure a takedown with 29 seconds left in the frame. Malczewski chose bottom to start the second period and escaped 27 seconds into the period to cut the lead to 2-1. Samuelson started the final two minutes on bottom and notched an escape with 1:38 remaining in the bout, adding a takedown near the end of the match to secure the 5-1 result.

Malczewski, a native of Macomb, Michigan, completed his redshirt senior season in the Green & White with a striking 24-6 overall record, cementing the best win percentage on the MSU roster in 2022-23. The Spartan captain also led Michigan State with a whopping 11 pins this year, surpassing the next-closest teammate in Fish by a trio of falls. Malczewski earned his first career victory at the NCAA Championships this season, breaking a five-match losing skid in the consolation first round against Zayne Lehman of Ohio on Thursday evening.

As a team, Michigan State completed the 2023 NCAA Championships with 6.0 team points scored, placing them in a tie for 40th nationally alongside Oklahoma and Utah Valley. The defending National Champion Penn State Nittany Lions maintain a dominant lead over the competition, boasting 116.5 team points through the first four sessions of the tournament. Iowa holds second place with 77.0 points, followed by Cornell at 64.0 and Ohio State rounding out the top four with 62.0 team points.

This recap is courtesy of Michigan State Athletics.

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