In the best performance for a Harvard wrestler in half a century, sophomore Jesse Jantzen placed third in the 149-lb. class at the NCAA Tournament in Albany, N.Y., held March 18-20. Jantzen’s triumph was the most notable for the Crimson since John Lee also placed third at the national tournament in 1953.

Heavyweight captain Dawid Rechul joined Jantzen as an All-American, ending his Harvard career by battling back for a seventh-place finish. Junior Pat O’Donnell, the only other Harvard wrestler at the national tournament, had a disappointing tournament, bowing out after three matches in the 165-lb. division.

Jantzen won his first two matches, narrowly defeating Scott Frohardt of Air Force, 9-8, and then blanking Illinois’ Ryan Berger, 4-0. The victories earned him a spot in the quarterfinals.

However, the dream was not be. Jantzen was taken down early and never recovered, losing 7-2 to Oklahoma’s Jared Frayer, who would finish second overall.

Jantzen defeated Jarrod Sanders of Oklahoma State and then bested top-ranked Mike Zadick of Iowa, 5-4, in double overtime. Jantzen also downed third-seeded Jamaar Billman of Lock Haven, 5-4, to earn a spot in the third-place match. Jantzen pinned Ohio State’s Jake Percival to capture third. Jantzen closed out his sophomore season with a 38-3 record.

“He works too hard to give up when things get tough,” O’Donnell said. “That’s the kind of work ethic that I and the other guys on the team are trying to learn.”

Rechul’s route to seventh place was even more circuitous. The 225-lb senior lost his opening match to Purdue’s Jake Vericelli, 3-1, in overtime.

“In the last 10 seconds of the match, I lost my focus and let up a bit,” Rechul said.

With the loss, Rechul knew he would have to win at least three matches in a row to gain All-American distinction.

Undaunted, Rechul set about this task, defeating Penn State’s Pat Cummins, 4-1, Ryan Kehler of West Virginia, 6-1 and Kellan Fluckiger of Arizona State, 6-2. Both Kehler and Fluckiger had beaten Rechul in the past.

“I lost to a guy from Penn State as a sophomore in the NCAAs,” Rechul said. “So even in that first match [against Cummins] I got a little vengeance.”

After earning his place as an All-American, Rechul fell to Illinois’ John Lockhart, the defending champion, 6-3.

“It was my fourth match of the day and only his second,” Rechul said. “I was physically tired, and especially mentally tired after winning my all-American match [over Fluckiger].”

A true champion, Rechul came back to win his final match the tournament, 6-5, over Kevin Hoy of Air Force. Hoy had defeated Rechul earlier this season, yet Rechul came out on top in the final match of his Harvard career.

“I had mixed feelings,” Rechul said. “I set my goals really high and I came to win the tournament. It’s easy to say ‘I got All-American,’ but I could have done more.”