Purdue scored first in five of the nine contested matches and had 11 takedowns to Northwestern's 7, four of which were registered by the nation's fourth-ranked 285-pounder, Mike McMullan. The Old Gold & Black snapped the Wildcats' three dual win streak in the series and defeated them for the first time in Holloway since 2002. The win also improved the Boilermakers' home record to 4-0.
"The guys have been working hard and trust what we are doing," head wrestling coach Tony Ersland said. "I think that this just helps them further believe that what we are working on is right and they are seeing results. The Big Ten season does not get any easier for us. For them to see results and know that we are working on the right things, they know we are on the right path."
Wrestling in front of a home crowd for the first time in his career, Luke Welch (9-9) got the Boilermakers on the board with a 4-3 decision over Garrison White at 125 pounds. Sabatello avenged a 9-7 sudden victory loss to Dominick Malone at Midlands with a 10-2 major decision over the 19th-ranked 133-pounder. The redshirt junior (19-4) took Malone down four times and added 2:52 of riding time for his fourth major of the season.
"I think that Danny's energy was much better than what it was at Midlands and even the last couple of matches," Ersland said. "He knows he cannot stand with guys, he cannot wrestle a slower paced match, he has to keep firing and keep the tempo high. I thought he did a great job setting the tempo and dictating what was going to happen in the match instead of just sitting back. Motivation is a lot in sports and he was motivated tonight. He understands what he has to do to compete at a high level."
Northwestern tied the dual at 7-7 with a major decision from Jameson Oster at 141 and a decision from defending national champion and top-ranked Jason Tsirtsis at 149.
Doug Welch extended his dual win streak to seven with a 6-3 decision over Ben Sullivan. The 20th-ranked 157-pounder scored takedowns in the first and second periods, added an escape in the second and rode Sullivan for 2:43 to push his season mark to 21-6. His decision gave Purdue a 10-7 lead going into the break.
Seventh-ranked Pierce Harger gave the lead back to the Wildcats at 13-10 after a fall at 165, but it didn't last for long asChad Welch received the forfeit at 174. It was the 10th time this season that Northwestern has forfeited at least one weight class in a dual and in doing so, gave the Boilermakers a 16-13 advantage. The forfeit for C. Welch marked the third dual that the Welch trio has been victorious for Purdue in a dual.
Making his 40th career dual start, 184-pounder Patrick Kissel decisioned Mitch Sliga, 8-1. The redshirt senior from Sheboygan, Wis., pushed his season record to 14-7 while giving the Old Gold & Black a six-point lead, 19-13, with two weights to go.
In the second battle of the night between nationally ranked grapplers, it was 15th-ranked Braden Atwood that prevailed with the dual-clinching 5-3 upset of No. 10 Alex Polizzi. Atwood (10-4) asserted himself in the second period with a rideout after a scoring a takedown in the opening period. He took a 4-0 lead with a reversal to start the third. Polizzi switched position to make it 4-2 and was awarded a penalty point after Atwood was called a second time for stalling. The rideout proved to be crucial, as the 1:44 earned him an additional point. It was the sixth meeting between the two 197-pounders and the fifth time Atwood has finished with his arm raised.
The B1G schedule continues on Sunday with the Boilermakers traveling east to face fifth-ranked Penn State in Rec Hall Sunday at 1 p.m. The Nittany Lions (7-1, 3-1 B1G) defeated Rutgers, 28-6, in Piscataway, N.J., Friday night. For information how to watch and follow the dual Sunday, click here.
Results:
125 // Luke Welch (Purdue) dec. Garrison White (Northwestern), 4-3
133 // No. 20 Danny Sabatello (Purdue) maj. dec. No. 19 Dominick Malone (Northwestern), 10-2
141 // Jameson Oster (Northwestern) maj. dec. Nick Lawrence (Purdue), 8-0
149 // No. 1 Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern) dec. Brandon Nelsen (Purdue), 4-1
157 // No. 20 Doug Welch (Purdue) dec. Ben Sullivan (Northwestern), 6-3
165 // No. 7 Pierce Harger (Northwestern) pinned Pat Robinson (Purdue), 0:54
174 // Chad Welch (Purdue) won by forfeit
184 // Patrick Kissel (Purdue) dec. Mitch Sliga (Northwestern), 8-1
197 // No. 15 Braden Atwood (Purdue) dec. No. 10 Alex Polizzi (Northwestern), 5-2
285 // No. 4 Mike McMullan (Northwestern) maj. dec. Tyler Kral (Purdue), 17-5
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