OMAHA, Neb. — Even without two crucial knee ligaments, Ryan Morningstar is a Division-I All-American.

The 165-pound senior proved that much Saturday afternoon inside the Qwest Center, finishing to his No. 7 seed without the use of his medial collateral and posterior cruciate ligaments in his right leg at the NCAA championships.

Yet even though he took pride in overcoming an agonizing obstacle moments after his last collegiate match, Morningstar said he still should be vying for a national championship.

The only thing that prevented him from advancing to the semifinals Friday morning was the pain shooting through his knee during his bout with Edinboro No. 2-seed Jarrod King Friday morning.

“I know if I am on, I am pretty tough to beat,” Morningstar said. “I just didn’t have any drive off it in the quarters, so I think made a difference there. It’s pretty tough to swallow — especially in the match, knowing it was because of my injury.”

Morningstar managed to overcome the discomfort later in the day in the consolation bracket. He scored a late reversal in a tie-break period against Cornell’s Justin Kerber to clinch All-American status for the second straight season before losing in the wrestleback quarterfinals.

“I don’t know how many guys could have gone out there like Morningstar did,” Iowa heavyweight Dan Erekson said. “Few guys could accomplish that.”

Iowa head coach Tom Brands labeled the endeavor as “very gutsy.” But over the past three days he had asserted that Morningstar’s mind was in the right place.

“You’re dealt those cards, and you’re in that situation, you make the best of it,” Brands said. “And he made the best of the best of it. It’s a tribute to him and his head strength and his faith.”

As of now, however, Morningstar is unsure when he will undergo surgery to repair his appendage. He said he put off scheduling an operation over the last two weeks to focus on winning a NCAA title instead.

He is also unsure of his recovery time.

In the mean time, he is just glad he managed to avoid increased injury. In the future, he hopes to continue competing internationally.

“Without two ligaments, I mean definitely if it got hit right, I could have blown everything out,” Morningstar said. “I’m grateful that it didn’t happen like that.”