Takedown Report

Austin O’Connor expects ‘target on back’ after All-American season for North Carolina

With the opportunity to win a national title no longer a reality, Austin O’Connor could have allowed the disappointment of defeat to dictate his remarkable season. That’s not what champions do. They don’t sulk or wallow in self-pity. They persevere and regain their focus. And that’s precisely what O’Connor did on March 25 at the NCAA Tournament for wrestling in Pittsburgh.

A 2017 St. Rita graduate and redshirt freshman for North Carolina, O’Connor regrouped from his loss in the semifinals to Ohio State’s Micah Jordan by winning his next two matches at 149 pounds and earning a third-place finish. O’Connor (34-6) also made a statement, becoming just the seventh freshman All-American for North Carolina and the highest freshman finisher in program history. “There’s a sense of celebration,” O’Connor said. “Shrugging off that (semifinals) loss and being able to beat a kid (Duke’s Mitch Finesilver) twice who I was 1-3 going into the tourney against was huge.” After losing to Jordan, O’Connor then beat Missouri’s Brock Mauller to set up the third-place match against Finesilver. It was the sixth time the two competed against each other this season. Rest of the story and details at https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/daily-southtown/sports/ct-sta-spt-pat-disabato-column-st-0331-story.html?mc_cid=9fa730503d&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

April 4, 2019 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized