Spencer Lee, one of the greatest college wrestlers who ever lived, will end his college career with a loss.
Iowa announced Saturday morning that Lee would not wrestle for third place and has decided to medically forfeit.
STATEMENT FROM UNIVERSITY OF IOWA WRESTLING
“It has been a long road of a recovery for Spencer Lee. He will medically forfeit out of the 2023 NCAA Wrestling Championships today in Tulsa.”#Hawkeyes
— Iowa Hawkeye Wrestling (@Hawks_Wrestling) March 18, 2023
Lee has battled injuries throughout his college career. In 2021, he famously won his third national title on two torn ACLs.
Over the next two years, Lee kept winning, entering Friday night with a 97-5 career record.
But after a monumental upset ended his bid to become the fifth four-time national champion in NCAA history, Lee decided to medically forfeit out of the championships.
”It’s been a long road of recovery for Spencer Lee,” Iowa wrestling’s statement read. “He will medically forfeit out the 2023 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Tulsa.”
Lee, who won three national championships at 125 pounds and looked to be a lock for a fourth, fell to Purdue’s Matt Ramos (seeded fourth) in the semifinal match Friday night in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Had Lee lost in any fashion, it would have been a shock.
The fact that he got pinned makes it even more stunning.
🚨 UPSET ALERT 🚨
(4) Matt Ramos pins (1) Spencer Lee! @Matt_Ramos2 is headed to the finals!
📺 ESPN#NCAAWrestling x @PurdueWrestling pic.twitter.com/Jalh7tD9Il
— NCAA Wrestling (@NCAAWrestling) March 18, 2023
Lee led Ramos 7-5 with less than a minute left in the third period before Ramos tied the match with a takedown.
After the takedown, Ramos kept Lee on his back and got the pin with one second left in the third period to win.
Since Lee wrestles for Penn State’s biggest rival, Nittany Nation didn’t shed many tears.
Hahaha Spencer Lee
— Hardcore Penn State Football (@HardcorePSUFB) March 18, 2023
I bet Spencer Lee’s mom and this guy are best friends. Dramatic af. pic.twitter.com/4BexFEXpxW
— mackenzie (@mactorchia) March 18, 2023
Holy shit, cherry on top for Iowa misery😂😂 https://t.co/FQCuz7TgcJ
— Ghost of Tim Riggins (@Linebacker_U) March 18, 2023
Penn State was already on its way to a team national title— which it will almost certainly lock up today— so Lee winning his fourth national championship wouldn’t have affected much in the standings. On the individual side, Penn State’s Roman Bravo-Young (133) now has the nation’s longest active winning streak at 58.
No. 1 RBY will look for 59– and, more importantly, a third straight national title— Saturday night when he takes on Cornell’s Vito Arujau, who is the No. 3 seed.
