"We wrestled a terrific dual as a team tonight, which is what we have been looking for all season," head coach Tom Minkel said. "Everyone wrestled hard, and we had some guys step up big at a few weight classes. Darren's match was really the marquee one of the dual. It was as good of a college match as I have seen in a while."
The Spartans stole the early momentum, with junior Tony Greathouse taking the 157-pound match to start the dual. Greathouse gave up an early takedown, but took Jake Murphy down in the closing seconds of the first period, in addition to holding him down the entire third period, to claim a 4-2 decision. Greathouse now stands at 13-9 on the season and evens his dual-meet record to 4-4.
One of the top bouts of the night came at 165 pounds where MSU's Greg Goidosik won a thrilling match, 5-3, in the second sudden-victory period against Dan Bedoy. Tied at two after seven minutes, neither wrestler scored in the first overtime session and they exchanged escapes in the round of tiebreakers, which puts both wrestler in the down position. Goidosik countered a Bedoy shot in the closing seconds of the second overtime to pick up his 11th victory of the season.
R.J. Boudro picked up his 20th victory of the season at 174 pounds, defeating Purdue's Barry Jackson by major decision, 13-4. Boudro took a 6-1 lead into the third period, where he tallied three takedowns and a riding-time point to extend Michigan State's lead to 10-0. The win surpassed the Richmond, Mich., native's total from last season, setting a new career high in victories.
Purdue's Ben Wissel showed why he is ranked third in the nation at 184 pounds, defeating MSU red-shirt freshman John Murphy by major decision, 15-5. Wissel tallied six takedowns and a reverse in the victory.
The second overtime match of the night went Purdue's way, as No. 20 Nathan Moore claimed the sudden-victory decision against senior Jeff Clemens, 3-1. Clemens took his chances on a quick ankle pick to start overtime, but was countered, leading to a Moore takedown.
Senior Max Lossen put the Spartans back on the board at 285 pounds, scoring his 11th victory of the season, 5-3, against Aaron Keough. A stalling point was awarded to Keough late in the third to tie the match at three, but Lossen scored the match-clinching takedown in the closing seconds to even his dual-meet record to 4-4.
Junior All-American Nick Simmons remained undefeated on the season for the Green and White, as he defeated Brandon Tucker, 8-4, for his 23rd win of the season at 125 pounds. Simmons fell behind 2-0 on a high-risk move early, but scored the next five points and added a reversal late in the second for the win.
No. 6 Chris Fleeger put Purdue back on the board, defeating MSU's Jeff Wimberley by major decision, 16-3, at 133 pounds. The two-time All-American outscored Wimberley, 10-1, in the opening period and held on to narrow the Michigan State lead to five at 16-11.
No. 5 Andy Simmons secured the Spartans their first Big Ten win of the season, defeating Jake Patacsil at 141 pounds, 4-2. Simmons scored takedowns in the first and third periods to claim his team-leading 24th win of the season. The Williamston, Mich., native is now 7-1 in dual meets.
Withstandley and McKnight, ranked 15th, rounded out the evening in the most highly anticipated match of dual, with the MSU 149-pounder coming out on top, 13-6. McKnight came out firing on all cylinders, taking the Purdue senior down three times in the opening period, and sealing the deal with a takedown and two near-fall points in the closing minute. The win broke a four-match losing streak against ranked wrestlers for McKnight, and improved his record to 18-9 on the 2005-06 campaign.
The Spartans return to action Sunday, Feb. 5 when they take on the seventh-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes at Jenison Field House. The last time the two teams got together in East Lansing, MSU won a wild, 19-19, dual on criteria in 2003. Wrestling starts at 1 p.m.
157- Tony Greathouse dec. Jake Murphy 4-2 MSU, 3-0
165- Greg Goidosik dec. Dan Bedoy 5-3, SV MSU, 6-0
174- R.J. Boudro maj. dec. Barry Jackson MD, 13-4 MSU, 10-0
184- Ben Wissel maj. dec. John Murphy MD, 15-5 MSU, 10-4
197- Nathan Moore dec. Jeff Clemens 3-1, SV MSU, 10-7
285- Max Lossen dec. Aaron Keough 5-3 MSU, 13-7
125- Nick Simmons dec. Brandon Tucker 8-4 MSU, 16-7
133- Chris Fleeger maj. dec. Jeff Wimberley MD, 16-3 MSU, 16-11
141- Andy Simmons dec. Jake Patacsil 4-2 MSU, 19-11
149- Darren McKnight dec. Doug Withstandley 13-6 MSU, 22-11
Attendance: 714
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