Polkinghorn is making his second trip to the NCAA Championships, following a fourth-place finish at the conference meet. He opened the first round with a convincing 10-1 win over CS Fullerton's Zenen Pena, but lost to his nemesis, Mat Orndorff of Oregon State, 6-1 in the semifinals. He bounced back with a 3-1 decision over Cal Poly's Gan McGee, before dropping a 4-3 loss to Boise State's Jeremy Clayton in the third-place final. One of just two Ducks who lost California as his home state, Rich is also the only active heavyweight on the Oregon roster and his ten wins in dual meets this year is third on the team. Rich lists a fourth-place showing at the Southern Oregon Open as a highlight, as well as finishing sixth at the Oregon Classic and garnering a seventh-place ribbon from the Mat Town Invitational. Rich was an two-time all-league offensive lineman in high school and league champion for wrestling in 1993. |