Despite a pair of losses in the opening four matches, Michigan set the early tone in the dual to reclaim the lead for good at the halftime intermission. Senior Michael Watts (Riverton, Utah/Riverton HS) and junior/sophomore Aaron Hynes (Mt. Morris, Mich./Flint Kearsley HS) rallied from deficits to capture pivotal decisions at 125 and 157 pounds, respectively, and put the Wolverines in control of the contest. Watts gave up the first takedown against the Spartans' Eric Olanowski in the opening bout but reeled off seven consecutive points to claim the 7-2 decision. The Wolverine senior, ranked 17th in the latest NWCA/InterMat poll, evened the score with a quick escape in the second and immediately squared up and shot in deep on a single leg for his first and final lead. Watts used a three-point turn midway through the third to blow open the match and, fighting off a late scramble, held on to ride out the frame.
Hynes had a similar deficit to make up late in the 157-pound contest, trailing by two after MSU's Anthony Jones controlled the opening two frames with three low single legs. The Wolverine wrestler immediately cut Jones loose to extend the gap and quickly shot in on a single leg. Jones spun around and nearly scored, but Hynes rolled to catch him, putting to the Spartan wrestler back for three points and his first lead of the match. Jones came to his feet in the waning seconds, but Hynes used a hard return to put an exclamation point on a 9-7 decision.
Sophomore Kellen Russell (High Bridge, N.J./Blair Academy), ranked fifth nationally at 141 pounds, picked up Michigan's other win in the first half of the dual, controlling from start to finish en route to a 5-2 decision against Collin Dozier. The Spartan wrestler initiated the first attack, shooting in on a single leg, but Russell scrambled to the top position to gain the advantage. He added a reversal off of a standing switch early in the second and rode out the entirety of the third, using a series of hard returns to maintain control and accumulate 2:49 in time advantage. The win was Russell's 14th in a row.
Michigan carried the momentum out of the break and was the dominant team for the remainder of the dual. Sophomore/freshman Justin Zeerip (Fremont, Mich./Hesperia HS) earned his fifth dual win of the season with a 3-0 shutout against Rex Kendle at 165 pounds. The Wolverine wrestler controlled the pace through a scoreless first period and took the only lead he needed on a reversal midway through the second. Zeerip rode out the entirety of the final period, accumulating 2:10 in time advantage to avenge his loss to Kendle in the last meeting between the pair -- at last season's EMU Open.
Fifth-year senior captain Steve Luke (Massillon, Ohio/Perry HS), the nation's top-ranked 174-pounder, converted on six takedowns -- four in the first period -- against Ian Hinton en route to a 15-4 major decision. All of Luke's takedowns were single legs and all came on the edge of the mat, where Hinton took up residence for much of the match, inducing three stalling calls. The Wolverine captain rode out the third period, building 4:05 in time advantage, to improve to 20-0 on the season.
Junior/sophomore Anthony Biondo (Clinton Twp., Mich./Chippewa Valley HS) also spent much of his match in the top position, earning 3:18 in riding-time advantage to cap a 10-5 decision against Nick Palmieri. Biondo, ranked 13th nationally, struck with a quick first-period takedown and, despite giving up a late reversal, held onto a two-point edge after an escape and two MSU stalling calls. The Spartan wrestler scored out of a flurry midway through the second period to even the score, but Biondo controlled the remainder of the match with a reversal and third-period takedown. Palmieri spoiled Biondo's attempt at the major with a pair of late shots and subsequent stalemates as the Wolverine settled for the decision and his third straight win in Big Ten action.
Fifth-year senior captain Tyrel Todd (Bozeman, Mont./Bozeman HS) made little work of the Spartans' Tyler Dickinson in the 197-pound match, using a nearwrist-head scoop combination to secure the fall at the 1:41 mark. Todd struck immediately on a single-leg takedown before going to work on top, eventually threading the needle to earn his sixth pin -- and 10th bonus win -- in 15 matches this season.
Junior/sophomore Eddie Phillips (Woodland, Mich./Lakewood HS) knocked off a familiar foe in the final bout at heavyweight, defeating high school teammate Alan O'Donnell, 3-1, midway through the sudden-victory overtime. After the two wrestlers traded escapes and little else through regulation, O'Donnell secured the first scoring opportunity of the overtime frame, shooting deep on a single leg. He lifted the leg high and drove it to the edge of the mat in an attempt to finish but ran out of room as the wrestlers moved off the mat. Just seconds later Phillips converted on the same move, using double underhooks to set up a single leg and, this time, finishing it on the edge of the mat.
Today's dual meet will be aired via same-day tape-delay at 9 p.m. on the Big Ten Network. The dual will re-air on Tuesday (Feb. 10) at 1 p.m.
The Wolverines will return home next weekend to host a pair of Big Ten Conference meetings against rival Ohio State and Penn State. U-M will face the Buckeyes at 7 p.m. on Friday (Feb. 13), before squaring off against the Nittany Lions at 7 p.m. on Saturday (Feb. 14). Both matches will be held at Cliff Keen Arena.
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