By John Napolitano -- STAFF WRITER Hofstra heavyweight Michael Hughes was eliminated from the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships after advancing to session three at Madison Square Garden on Friday.
The Smithtown, New York, native finished with a 1-1 record on Thursday, which was good enough to push him through to day two of the tournament.
His first matchup was a rematch from the EIWA Championship against Max Wessell. Hughes got a chance at redemption after he fell to Wessell 7-3, approximately two weeks ago.
The unseeded Hughes lost his opening contest to Lehigh’s eighth-seed Wessell, 6-3, in the 285-pound NCAA Championships bracket.
Hughes was sent to the wrestle-backs consolation bracket and rebounded in his next matchup on Thursday night.
He trounced Mauro Correnti of Rider University with a 7-2 decision-win, earning him a ticket to compete in day two at the Garden.
Hughes kept himself in contention on Friday morning after he outmatched Nebraska’s Collin Jensen, 8-2, to advanced further in third round of the wrestle-backs bracket.
But the end of Hughes’ run came at the hands of 15-seed Tanner Harms in the third round of wrestle-backs. Harms, who hails from Wyoming, shot a reversal on the Hofstra junior and scored a pin fall at the 2:00 mark of the first period.
The Pride overall finished in 57th place as a team with 2.5 points, tying with Army and Boise State in the standings.
Hughes closed the 2015-16 campaign with a career-best 41-10 record. He ties James Strouse and Chris Skretkowicz for the third most wins in a single season for the Pride.