March 19, 2009
NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships Bracket in PDF Format 
ST. LOUIS - Sophomore Cayle Byers advanced to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships with two wins on the first day of action at the Scottrade Center on Thursday. Byers, the ninth-ranked wrestler in the tournament at 197 pounds, is scheduled to take on the top seed in the weight class, junior Craig Brester of Nebraska, on Friday for the right to advance to the semifinal round.
Byers opened the tournament with an 11-3 major decision victory over Eastern Michigan's John McClure. In the second round, Byers took on a tough opponent in eighth-ranked Clayton Foster of Oklahoma State. The two gladiators went toe-to-toe for a full seven minutes with both sides coming away with two points at the end of regulation. After Byers earned a two-point takedown in the third period, Foster came back with an escape to tie the match and send it into overtime. The match went into three overtime periods before Byers was awarded the victory due to an advantage in riding time.
Freshman Mendbagana Tovuujav also wrestled for Mason at the national tournament. Tovuujav took a pair of close losses at 174 pounds and was eliminated from the competition. In his first match, Tovuujav took on seventh-ranked Mike Miller of Central Michigan, falling by a final score of 7-5. After dropping down to the consolation bracket, Tovuujav was defeated 3-2 by 10th-ranked Kurt Brenner of West Virginia.
ESPNU, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN360.com will combine for expanded live coverage on Friday, March 20, and Saturday, March 21. For the first time, all 11 hours of coverage on ESPNU, ESPN and ESPN2 will be presented in high definition.
Also for the first time, ESPN2 will telecast the semifinals along with ESPNU. The quarterfinals will air Friday, March 20, at 11 a.m. ET on ESPNU and ESPN360.com, and the semifinals at 7 p.m. on ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN360.com. For the third consecutive year, the semifinals will be telecast in a side-by-side format, allowing viewers to see both semifinal matches in each weight class at the same time, both on ESPNU and ESPN2.
ESPNU will telecast the Championship Medal Round on Saturday, March 21, at 10:30 a.m. ET, and the hunt for the Division I title culminates with the Finals at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. During the Finals, two referees per match each will wear a microphone, providing fans with even more access to and understanding of the action.
