Wisconsin's Isaac Jordan is currently ranked No. 3 at 165 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Purdue hosts Wisconsin tonight at Holloway Gymnasium in West Lafayette, Indiana. The dual meet is set for 6 p.m. ET and will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network. The Boilermakers enter the dual meet with a record of 8-6, while the Badgers are 3-5.
Wisconsin leads the all-time series 42-15-5. The last meeting between these programs took place on Jan. 11, 2015, with the Badgers winning 22-13 in Madison.
Below are five matchups to watch in the dual meet.
125: Ben Thornton (Purdue) vs. Johnny Jimenez (Wisconsin)
These two wrestlers met early last season at the Michigan State Open, with Jimenez getting the narrow 4-3 victory. Both have come a long way since that match. Jimenez, a returning NCAA qualifier, made his season debut at the Midlands Championships where he had a strong showing, going 5-2 and placing fourth. In his first Big Ten dual after the Midlands he hammered nationally ranked Jose Rodriguez of Ohio State 14-2. He has been up-and-down since, and comes into the match with a record of 11-7. Thornton, who leads the Purdue wrestling team in wins with 23, started his season by winning eight of his first nine matches. He finished third at both the Eastern Michigan Open and the Roadrunner Open, and seventh at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Thornton, a Wisconsin native, notched a victory over returning NCAA qualifier Freddie Rodriguez of SIU Edwardsville on Dec. 19. However, he had a disappointing Midlands where he went 1-2 as the No. 4 seed. He has gone 4-3 since the Midlands, and is coming off a 4-0 victory over Travis Piotrowski of Illinois.
133: Luke Welch (Purdue) vs. Eli Stickley (Wisconsin)
This will mark the second meeting this season between these two wrestlers. Stickley defeated Welch 7-1 at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in early December. He wound up placing eighth in Las Vegas, and also had an eighth-place finish at the Midlands. Stickley has victories over a couple ranked wrestlers, Northern Iowa's Josh Alber and Buffalo's Brian Lantry. He has been struggling of late, though, losing five of his last six matches. Stickley is coming off a 6-2 loss to Iowa's Phillip Laux. Welch started his season 10-2 before hitting a stretch in late November and early December in which he lost three of four. He recently blanked Minnesota's Mitchell McKee, who is currently ranked No. 17.
141: Kyle Ayersman (Purdue) vs. Cole Martin (Wisconsin)
Martin had a strong start to his redshirt freshman season, winning 15 of his first 19 matches. He placed third at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, with his lone loss coming to All-American Joey McKenna of Stanford. After losing to McKenna, he reeled off nine consecutive victories. He had a disappointing Midlands, going 1-2, and has not won a match since, losing seven straight. However, his last five losses have come against ranked wrestlers. He will look to get back on track against Ayersman, who is also going through a tough stretch having lost his last four matches. Earlier this season he placed seventh at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, and currently has a season record of 14-11. Ayersman will wrestle in his 100th collegiate wrestling match tonight.
165: Dylan Lydy (Purdue) vs. No. 3 Isaac Jordan (Wisconsin)
Jordan, a returning NCAA runner-up, has compiled a season record of 18-1, with his lone loss coming to Michigan's Logan Massa in the finals of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. The Badger three-time All-American has been pushed to overtime in each of his last two matches, but came out on top both times. Jordan picked up the 100th win of his career on Jan. 6 against Ohio State, where his cousins Bo and Micah wrestle. Lydy, a redshirt freshman from Indianapolis, has been competitive in his first season in the Boilermaker lineup. He placed fifth at the Eastern Michigan Open and fourth at the Roadrunner Open. He has won three of his last five matches and comes into tonight's match with a winning record of 16-15.
174: Jacob Morrissey (Purdue) vs. Ryan Christensen (Wisconsin)
Morrissey, a junior from Wisconsin, started the new year with a bang, winning his first six Big Ten matches. However, in his last outing he was dominated by No. 12 Zac Brunson of Illinois. Morrissey comes into tonight's match with a season record of 13-7, and has nine bonus point victories. Christensen, a returning NCAA qualifier, started the season by winning nine of his first 10 matches. He failed to place at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, but came back to finish sixth at the Midlands. He has been struggling mightily of late, having lost his last seven matches.
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