Meyer Shapiro, Round 1 at NCAA D1 Championships 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio

Cornell Advances Three to Quarterfinals, Keeps Five Alive After Day 1

3/19/2026 11:10:00 PM | By: Emmie Agee, Assistant Director of Editorial Content

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Under the bright lights of Rocket Arena with over 16,000 fans filling the seats, the opening day of the 2026 NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championships delivered exactly what March wrestling promises — a relentless grind of momentum swings, statement wins and hard lessons learned.

For Cornell, Thursday was a study in both dominance and resilience.

The Big Red opened Session I with a clean sweep, sending all five wrestlers into the evening round and positioning themselves firmly in the team race. By night's end, four remained in contention for the podium.

Tyler Ferrara set the tone at 133 pounds, grinding out a 6-2 decision over NC State's Zach Redding in a measured, tactical bout. Scoreless after one period, Ferrara stayed composed through a mid-match scramble and surged late with a decisive takedown to secure the win in their first career meeting.

At 141, Vince Cornella looked every bit the contender. The sophomore controlled Virginia's Gable Porter from the opening whistle, piling up riding time and dictating pace en route to an 8-0 major decision.

Jaxon Joy followed with one of the most explosive performances of the session. The No. 2 seed at 149 overwhelmed Edinboro's Ryan Michaels, racing out to a 14-1 lead after one period before finishing with a 16-1 technical fall.

Meyer Shapiro kept the momentum rolling at 157, building steadily toward a 14-0 major decision over North Carolina's Laird Root with more than three minutes of riding time.

Simon Ruiz capped the afternoon surge at 174 with a dominant showing, turning a regular-season nail-biter into a decisive 17-2 technical fall over Arizona State's Cael Valencia.

Five wrestlers up, five wrestlers through.

At the conclusion of Session I, Cornell sat in fifth place with 10 team points, firmly in the early mix.

Session II, however, brought the tournament's inevitable resistance.

Ferrara ran into Iowa's Drake Ayala and fell by technical fall, 19-4, dropping into the consolation bracket.

Cornella continued his steady march, defeating Penn's CJ Composto for the fourth time this season with a 12-2 major decision to advance to the quarterfinals.

Joy added a controlled 10-3 decision over Iowa's Ryder Block, while Shapiro ground out a 4-1 win against Virginia Tech's Ethen Miller behind early offense and riding time.

In a tighter, more tactical bout against Virginia Tech's Ethen Miller, Meyer Shapiro relied on early offense and riding time to grind out a 4-1 decision — a different kind of victory that underscored his versatility.

Ruiz closed the night with a 9-5 loss to Navy's Danny Wask, his first loss of the season. But if we've learned anything about Ruiz in the past two years, he's not done yet. He'll be fighting hard tomorrow to work his way back to the top.

By the end of Day 1, Cornell is positioned for more All-American and podium runs and sits in 9th place with 14 team points.

A look at tomorrow:

Friday, March 20

12:00 p.m. ET: Session III (Quarterfinals, Consolation Matches) - ESPNU

8:00 p.m. ET: Session IV (Semifinals, Consolation Matches) - ESPN2

In the quarterfinals:
141: Vince Cornella vs Hardy, Neb
149: Jaxon Joy vs Valencia, Stanford
157: Meyer Shapiro vs Watters, WV

In the wrestlebacks:
133: Tyler Ferrara vs Grice, ISU
174: Simon Ruiz vs Simma, UNI