WICHITA, Kan. -- Armon Fayyazi (SR/Irvine, CA) and Ricky Padilla (SR/Azusa, CA) were the last two Lions standing Saturday morning at the 2022 NAIA Men's Wrestling Championships. The two wrestled for the final time in their careers and both came away as NAIA All-Americans, with Padilla placing fourth and Fayyazi seventh, the second year in a row the two have been named All-Americans.
What Happened? Padilla gave a great showcase of his abilities against Grand View's Marty Margolis, but the Viking got a takedown in the first period. No one scored in the second and Padilla only picked up a point after Margolis was flagged for his second stalling infraction in the third. Unfortunately, Margolis made one last escape with 11 seconds to go and took the 3-1 victory to get to the final in the 165-pound bracket.
That put Padilla in the consolation bracket and he faced Elliot Rodgers of Marian in his next bout. Padilla got a nearfall move in the first to take a 4-0 lead into the second frame. The Lion snagged a takedown 12 seconds into the second but near the end of the frame, Rodgers got a reversal and a nearfall of his own to cut the advantage to 6-4. But Padilla would do all the scoring in the third, making an escape and nailing another takedown to advance 9-4. Having lost in the opening matchup of his tournament run, #2 seed Sid Ohl of Life (Ga.) had come all the way through the consolation rounds to earn his spot in the third-place fight against Padilla. Ohl got the first takedown 16 seconds in but Padilla then wormed his way free to earn a point. However, a few seconds later, Ohl took him to the mat for another takedown. With neither wrestler scoring in the second, Padilla trailed 4-1 entering the final frame of his VU career. Unfortunately, try as he might, Padilla could not get a takedown and did not score, as Ohl took another point based on riding time to claim third with a 5-1 victory. Padilla finishes fourth and will conclude his career as a two-time All-American, with a career record of 23-6.
Fayyazi took on #10 in the 174-pound bracket NaKoda Siegel of Montana State-Northern as each tried to reach the third-place match. Siegel made the first takedown with 16 seconds left in the first but Fayyazi then snuck out of his grasp to earn a point. The Lion then started down to start the second and tied the game as he wriggled free. Another takedown late in the period put Siegel ahead again but Fayyazi kept the score close as he collected his third escape of the bout. Trailing 4-3, Fayyazi could not keep Siegel down, as the MSUN wrestler made an escape from the down position to start the third, pushing his lead to 5-3. Yet the match was not done, as Fayyazi saw an opening and made a takedown to tie the score. But once more he could not keep Siegel on the deck, as the MSUN wrestler escaped and rode out the clock to advance with the 6-5 decision victory.
Fayyazi then had to wait for other results before he could wrestle again. As the bouts went on, he soon learned his opponent in the match for seventh would be Stephen Kelle of Southeastern (Fla.). No one scored in the first and despite Fayyazi's best effort to hold him down, Kelle escaped at the start of the second to take a 1-0 lead into the final period of Fayyazi's career. The veteran would not be denied one final win, as he made the opening escape to tie the bout and send it to sudden-victory. 22 seconds in, Fayyazi spotted his chance and threw Kelle to the mat to earn two points and the win. Armon finishes his career as a three-time All-American, with a career record of 44-14.
"Walking away with two All-Americans and finishing top-20 in the country was a great way to finish off the year," said Head Coach Caleb Flores. "Our seniors have built a strong foundation that we will continue to build off of."
