Senior wins national freestyle crown

Senior Michael Dixon's career as an IU wrestler ended at the Big Ten Championships March 4 in Evanston, Ill. Dixon lost his final match to Penn State's Bob Jones and finished eighth in the conference finale. \nIn that respect, Evanston wasn't kind to Dixon. But Dixon made sure the eighth-place finish wasn't his last appearance on the Northwestern campus. Instead, with his career as a Big Ten heavyweight complete, he assured himself of yet another chance to strut his skills on another level, and he's not finished yet.\nDixon secured it March 30 by winning the University National Freestyle Championship and automatically qualifying for the Pan American Championships. Dixon wrestled in the 213.75-pound division and beat two All-Americans on his path to the title. \n"I knew heading into the tournament that I could win it," Dixon said. "I hadn't wrestled freestyle in a couple years, so I just tried to stay aggressive."\nHe did just that, shutting down Ohio State's Nick Preston 2-0 in the semifinal round, then edging Michigan State's Nik Fekete 5-4 in overtime to claim the crown. \n"This does great things for my self-confidence, knowing that I can compete with the nation's top competition," Dixon said.\nHoosier wrestling coach Duane Goldman said the University Freestyle National tournament is prestigious and difficult, but said Dixon had something to prove after failing to advance to the NCAA Championships on the varsity level.\n"I am very proud of Michael," Goldman said. "He had some unfinished business, and he really showed what he can do against guys his size."\nDixon's next step is the Pan American Championships, which will take place May 17-20 in Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic.\nDixon finished his senior season with a 16-12 record and a career mark of 52-62. The Lawrence Central graduate was an NCAA qualifier in 1998 and placed fourth at the 2001 Reno Tournament of Champions.\nAfter spending his career undersized compared to his opponents, Dixon was able to show his true ability against opponents of more equal stature.\n"That's how his whole career has been," senior Jack Wade said. "He's always just kept pushing and pushing. He's never had a break. He's always given up so much size. It shows what kind of thing he has when he goes up against people his own size. He throws them around. I'm very happy for him because he's worked very hard for it."\nTwo other Hoosiers also competed at the University Nationals. Redshirt freshman Coyte Cooper battled to an 8-6 semifinal-round victory against Joe Calavitta in the 138.75-pound division. Cooper then fell to Jamill Kelly 11-1 in the championship match. Cooper finished the 2000-2001 season with a sixth-place finish at the Big Ten championships and was an NCAA qualifier.\nJunior Viktor Sveda, the final Hoosier wrestler to make the trip to Evanston, took fourth place in the 187.25-pound class.