Rev Audio: Barry Davis (Wisconsin)
Rev Audio: Zach Tanelli (Wisconsin)
Rev Audio: Kyle Ruschell (Wisconsin)
Rev Audio: J Robinson (Minnesota)
Rev Audio: Jayson Ness (Minnesota)
Another chapter of the Minnesota-Wisconsin "Border Battle" is in the books, and the defending national champion Golden Gopher wrestling team came out on the short end Sunday afternoon at Williams Arena, losing 20-17. The Gophers won five of 10 matches on the afternoon, but a pin by Wisconsin's Dallas Herbst at 197 pounds proved to be the difference as Minnesota (13-7, 4-3) lost its second dual meet of the weekend.
The Gophers got wins from Jayson Ness, Dustin Schlatter, Tyler Safratowich, Gabe Dretsch and Roger Kish, but Badger wins at 133, 141, 157, 197 and Heavyweight were too much to overcome. Upsets of seniors Mack Reiter and Manuel Rivera put the Gophers in an early hole, and the continued absence of 157-pound All-American C.P. Schlatter at 157 pounds gave Minnesota an even smaller margin for error.
Minnesota's three Big Ten dual meet losses is their highest total since 2004-05. The Gophers have lost three or more conference duals three times in the last 12 years.
The Gophers are now 0-4 this season in Williams Arena following their two weekend losses (Illinois won 19-17 Friday night in Minneapolis. The win for the Badgers (13-4-1, 4-3 Big Ten) was their second upset of the weekend. They also beat No. 10 Michigan 20-18 Friday night in Madison.
Top-ranked sophomore Ness continued his undefeated season (32-0) at 125 pounds, winning an 8-0 major decision over No. 19 Collin Cudd. Ness, who has a Division I-leading 18 pins on the season (still just two shy of the Gophers' single-season mark) has picked up bonus points in a whopping 26 matches already this year. Sunday, the Bloomington, Minn. native gave Cudd little opportunity to score, spending the vast majority of the match (4:09) on top and scoring three takedowns.
Ness has won 33 matches dating back to last season, the second-longest streak in the nation.
Seniors Mack Reiter and Manny Rivera rounded out a disappointing weekend for Minnesota with losses at 133 and 141 pounds. Reiter, who entered the meet ranked fifth nationally, lost a tough 5-1 to No. 11 Zach Tanelli at 133. Down 2-0 after the first three minutes, Reiter was nearly turned on his back partway through the second but rebounded, only to suffer another takedown at the end of the period. The loss drops his record to 18-6, including 3-4 in the Big Ten.
Rivera had his hands full with No. 6 Kyle Ruschel at 141. The third-ranked Gopher senior and Ruschel wrestled through a scoreless first, only to find himself down 3-0 after a big takedown in the waning seconds of the second period. Ruschel ended the match with a nearfall to win 6-1 (including the riding time point).
At 149, Dustin Schlatter flashed the aggressive form that made him an NCAA champion as a freshman in 2006. He went to work early and often on unranked Kendall Vogel, rarely surrendering his position on top and winning handily with a 13-3 decision. Schlatter is now 15-1 on the year and 2-0 on the weekend after not wrestling since Dec. 30 due to a hamstring injury.
Freshman Luke Mellmer filled in for sixth-ranked C.P. Schlatter at 157 pounds, this time drawing another tough opponent in No. 5 Craig Henning. Mellmer, who was pinned by No. 3 Mike Poeta of Illinois on Friday night, fared a little better Sunday, losing a 15-0 technical fall. The Gophers still entered the locker room at intermission down 11-8.
No. 20 Tyler Safratowich got Minnesota back onto the winning side of things at 165 pounds, picking up a 5-3 decision over Jake Donar. Safratowich jumped in front 4-2 in the second frame, but Donar cut his lead in half with a reversal halfway through the period. Safratowich started the third on top and kept his position nearly the entire way, winning 5-3. The junior won both his matches on the weekend (improving to 24-7) and appears poised to jump up in the national rankings.
With the team score now tied at 11, Minnesota turned to another senior, 11th-ranked Gabe Dretsch at 174 pounds. With multiple busloads of his friends and family watching from the stands (it was "Gabe Dretsch/Frazee Community Day" at Williams Arena), Dretsch sent his fans home happy with an impressive 12-6 win. Dretsch led 6-0 early, although Clum climbed back to within four (10-6) before Dretsch put the match with a late reversal.
Up by three, Minnesota needed a big performance from senior Roger Kish at 184 pounds as they sought to avoid their second weekend loss. The two-time defending All-American and 10th-ranked senior took on No. 17 Trevor Brandvold, winning a big 4-3 decision. After a scoreless first, Kish jumped on the board in the second period with a reversal. Two escapes later, Brandvold tied the score at two apiece. It was a battle for positioning in the third period, with Kish winning the scrum on the mat and taking down Brandvold with 40 seconds left. Brandvold tried to score a takedown in the final 15 seconds, but Kish held on for the win.
Sunday was the first action on the mat for Brandvold since Feb. 1, as he had been out with a knee injury. It was the first match of the week for Kish (11-6), who was held out of Friday night's dual with Illinois.
But Kish and Dretsch's big wins were nullified in quick fashion by Wisconsin's Herbst, the Badgers' leading pinner. The Winneconne, Wis. native needed just 1:03 to pin Yura Malamura and tie the team score at 17.
Redshirt freshman Ben Berhow put up a good fight against No. 4 Kyle Massey (a native of Champlin, Minn.) at heavyweight but lost 6-2. Berhow didn't manage a takedown for the second consecutive night, giving the Badgers their third victory over Minnesota in the last 12 meetings between the two.
The Gophers will round out the 2007-08 dual meet season Sunday when they host No. 6 Ohio State at the Sports Pavilion. That meet will get underway at 2:00 p.m.
Illinois tops Minnesota, Schlatter returns
Rev Audio: Mark Johnson (Illinois)
Rev Audio: Mike Poeta (Illinois)
Rev Audio: J Robinson (Minnesota)
Rev Audio: Dustin Schlatter (Minnesota)
Rev Audio: Manny Rivera (Minnesota)
The fourth-ranked Golden Gopher wrestling team took on No. 8 Illinois Friday night at Williams Arena, with Illinois emerging the 19-17 victor. The Gophers (13-6, 4-2 Big Ten) were without normal starters C.P. Schlatter, Roger Kish and Justin Bronson, losing five of ten matches and surrendering bonus points twice.
Minnesota held a slim 17-13 lead going into the final two matches of the night (184 and 197 pounds) but Jeremy Larson and Yura Malamura both lost close decisions to give Illinois (12-3, 3-1) the win.
The Gophers did welcome back former NCAA champion and two-time All-American Dustin Schlatter at 149 pounds, as he defeated Illinois' Grant Paswall 7-2. It was the first action for Schlatter since his Dec. 30 finals match at the Southern Scuffle. Schlatter controlled the pace of the match from the opening whistle and showed no ill signs from the hamstring injury that kept him out of action for more than six weeks.
Schlatter appears on track to defend his individual title at the Big Ten Championships, which will take place at Williams Arena March 8-9.
Unfortunately for the Gophers, the absences of No. 6 C.P. Schlatter (157 pounds) and No. 10 Kish (184) Friday night, who were held out of the competition due to nagging injuries, was too much to overcome.
The meet started at heavyweight, with redshirt freshman Ben Berhow taking on No. 15 John Wise of the Illini. Berhow held his own through two periods against the ranked wrestler (trailing 4-1 after five minutes). But Wise scored six points in the third to win a 10-2 major decision and put the Gophers in a 4-0 hole.
Top-ranked sophomore Jayson Ness helped Minnesota bounce back at 125 pounds in his match against No. 9 Gabe Flores. Ness, who pinned Flores twice last year, could not muster the fall Friday night but handily claimed a 9-0 major decision. Ness was perfect on the defensive side and scored takedowns in all three periods to even the dual meet score at four apiece. It was the 31st victory of the season for Ness and his 32nd straight dating back to last season.
Looking to keep the momentum, the Gophers sent out senior and fifth-ranked Mack Reiter at 133 pounds to take on No. 9 Jimmy Kennedy. The pair met during last season's dual meet at Champaign (a 28-12 Gopher win), with Kennedy earning the 6-3 upset win. Friday night, neither wrestler could mount much offense through two periods. Kennedy spent the entire first period on top after scoring an early takedown, and it was Reiter that held the upper position for much of the second (only a late escape gave Kennedy a 3-0 lead). In the deciding period, Kennedy successfully eluded Reiter's scoring attempts and cemented the win with a late takedown. The 6-0 loss dropped Reiter's overall record to 18-5.
Senior Manny Rivera got the Gophers back on track at 141 with his 16-5 major decision win over No. 11 Ryan Prater. Rivera controlled the first frame after taking a 2-0 lead and nearly got a back on two separate occasions in the second. The third-ranked Rivera scored a whopping 11 points in the second period to take a 13-2 lead on the strength of two reversals and three nearfalls. Rivera cruised through the third to improve his overall record to 28-4.
The night's most anticipated match was the one between Dustin Schlatter and Grant Paswall at 149 pounds. Schlatter was his lightning-quick self despite the long layoff, scoring a takedown in the first and two more in the second. Schlatter could not muster another score in the third period and walked away with the 8-2 decision. The Gophers entered the locker room at intermission leading 11-7.
The Gophers gave up big bonus points at 157 when Luke Mellmer was pinned by No. 2 Mike Poeta, but Tyler Safratowich helped Minnesota regain the lead in the dual (14-13) with a 11-4 decision over Clint Arlis. Safratowich, who made his debut in the USA Today/NWCA/InterMat rankings this week at No. 20, improved his dual meet record to 11-2 wit the win.
Minnesota needed a big win by senior Gabe Dretsch at 174 pounds and got it done. The 11th-ranked Dretsch won a close match against No. 15 John Dergo 7-2, jumping out to a 5-1 lead after two periods and hanging on for the victory. The win put Minnesota up 17-13 in the meet.
Unfortunately for Minnesota, the four-point lead was not enough to avoid the loss. Larson, a senior wrestling two weight classes higher than normal, simply could not mount any offense against the heavier Ben Friedl of Illinois (losing 4-1), and Malamura was held without a takedown in his 8-2 loss to No. 11 Patrick Bond.
The loss marks the first time since 2004-05 that the Gophers have dropped more than one Big Ten dual meet in the same season. Minnesota is now 0-3 in Williams Arena (they are 2-0 in the Sports Pavilion).
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