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NCAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPMarch 17, 2017Vincenzo JosephIsaiah MartinezSt. Louis, Missouri VINCENZO JOSEPH: You know, I feel pretty good right now. I feel like I wrestled tough so far. Another big match tomorrow night, but looking forward to it, and the way our team has been wrestling, I think we have a good shot of holding onto the first place lead. Q. Have you ever been a part of something like this, kind of this crazy run you guys have been on, just any team even when you were five, six years old? VINCENZO JOSEPH: Have I ever been on a team like this? Absolutely not, no. My team in high school, we'd be lucky to qualify two guys to the state tournament. This is a completely different atmosphere for me, and I love it. Q. Against Louis and then again in this match, you seemed to go to that inside trip for your takedowns. What do you have to feel to hit that? VINCENZO JOSEPH: You know, sometimes I just go for it, really. You know, if I feel like I need to score quick or if I see something creeping up there, I just -- it's just all in the feel. If I feel it's fair, then I go for it. Q. Two weeks ago you guys did not win the Big Ten. What's happened between then and now? Why are you guys doing this? VINCENZO JOSEPH: You know, Big Ten is a very tough tournament. It's hard to win without your full lineup there, especially missing a guy like Nick, who I believe he would have been a national champ this year. There's no doubt in my mind he would have won. Here, though, the competition is a little more spread out. You know, we have better opportunities to pick up bonus points. Other guys from Big Ten teams lose that had a good tournament a few weeks ago, maybe not so much today. Our team has really come together since the last Big Ten. Q. Last year weren't Nolf, you and Hall all in the same weight class at the freestyle event, and was there any idea that you might all end up at the NCAA finals in different weight classes a year later? That's just crazy to me. Am I correct with my remembering of that? VINCENZO JOSEPH: You know, we all knew Hall was a super special guy coming in. He was the kind of guy that would come in and beat guys that were starting right away, and he's actually -- since coming to Penn State, he's gotten way better, believe it or not. As good as he was before, he's gotten even better. We had a pretty good idea that Hall would be our guy at 74, but really didn't expect it this year too much. Q. In that third period in that 50/50 position, what was going through your mind after you get hit with the stall and you guys are hanging out there for it seems like an eternity. What's going through your mind? VINCENZO JOSEPH: Well, first thing is I was pretty surprised that he was stalling. Maybe I was backing up a little bit or something, I don't know. But it doesn't happen to me too much, so I had to pick it up and start wrestling hard, and ended up getting a winning takedown. ISAIAH MARTINEZ: Kind of feels like I've been here a few times, huh? See some familiar faces in this room. The match, Jordan is no secret. Very solid defensive wrestler, good position wrestler. I was hoping that I could open it up, but you know, I'm learning that when you're the top guy, everyone has got a plan for you, and it's hard for guys just to go out there and wrestle you. I wish it was that way again, but I'm going to do what I have to do. So it was a good match. Q. A year ago it was an absolute shootout in the semifinals. This year it's a dogfight. Is there a sense of pressure as you look at now three years in a row in the semifinals, or is it just every match it's the semifinals, it's just another match? ISAIAH MARTINEZ: No, it's definitely not another match, and I don't believe athletes that say this tournament is just another tournament. I really don't believe it. I think they do that to give themselves false security. This is the big time. This is the big show. There's obviously a little bit of pressure, but when you're a good athlete, you know how to combat that anxiety and get your body ready to perform. Q. Isaiah, you said everyone has a plan for you. What do you think Vincenzo`s plan is for you tomorrow night, and talk about how close to making history. ISAIAH MARTINEZ: You know, the great thing about Vincenzo is he goes out there and he shoots and he wrestles a lot. So he's really the only wrestler -- him and Massa go out there and try to wrestle me, so they`re always good matches. I had a feeling Vincenzo was going to beat him. He`s been looking good recently. His tendencies are to keep shooting until the other guy can't defend himself anymore, but that works right into my plan. I have great reshots, and I don't wear out like those other guys, so I'm excited, another Penn State guy in the finals, and it should be a brawl. Q. Any idea about getting closer to history, though? Talk about that. ISAIAH MARTINEZ: The idea of getting closer to history? I try not to let my ego get in the way of my competing, but it's not a secret, I want to be one of the greatest of all time, and to be recognized as one of the greatest of all time, and I think about that a lot. You know, I'm very close to being considered one of the greatest of all time in college wrestling. Obviously there's freestyle, but to me, being the greatest is not just about a record. Cael Sanderson, obviously he's the guy at 159-0. Maybe I will never be able to match his record, but the way I speak, the way I talk to people, the way people can relate to me, the way I compete, the way I give people exciting matches, to me that's greatness in its own right. Being great is not just about a record, but about how you are and how you present yourself to the people, to the fans. Q. Isaiah, talk about the weight class changes for you, and if there was anything different for you in this group of athletes or dealing with getting yourself a little bit bigger. ISAIAH MARTINEZ: These guys are taller. It's kind of -- I was even a little short for 157, but you know, that's one of the biggest struggles as a power wrestler is dealing with guys who have leverage and position. That's how you counteract strength. But again, it's an adjustment. There was an adjustment period. I got myself adjusted to get through the legs, and now it's all the same. Q. Last year you had the Nolf loss as an incentive for lack of a better word. For this year, was it not making the world team? ISAIAH MARTINEZ: You know, that was -- it's hard. It's hard making the transition to freestyle. I'm not quite there yet, and that's not to give myself an excuse. I believe I will be there as the best -- as one of the best in the world on a consistent basis for our country in the future. It's just the same with anything else. It takes time to adjust. Folkstyle is an entirely different beast than freestyle, and everyone is really, really good in freestyle. I don't know, as I get older, I'm going to adjust better to freestyle because I'm going to focus completely on freestyle. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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