Wrestling: Huskers Finish 3rd at Big Tens
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Jon Johnston / Corn Nation
After a
strong Session I and Session II on Saturday, the No. 8 Nebraska wrestling team had a rather disappointing Day 2 at the 2021 Big Ten Championships.
With three wrestlers into the finals in 7-seed Ridge Lovett (149 pounds), 6-seed Taylor Venz (184) and 1-seed Eric Schultz (197), the Huskers started off strong in the consolation bracket with multiple wins putting them in position for another run at second place.
But it was to no avail as the Huskers lost all three of their matchups in the finals. Two matches were against No. 1 seeds, while the other against No. 2. In fact, nine No. 1 seeds won their weight class on Sunday with Schultz being the lone top seed to lose in the finals.
Wrestling: ‘Cats struggle against top-10 Minnesota
Tight matches and upsets help Gophers take down NU.
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Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images
Northwestern traveled to Minneapolis last Sunday in what may have been its last regular-season dual of the year. Coming off of a solid ranked win against Wisconsin a week prior, the ‘Cats looked to carry that momentum into a tough match against the Golden Gophers but managed to pick up only two wins in a 29-10 loss.
With its February 19 dual against top-ranked Iowa having been postponed due to a positive COVID-19 test, NU was given an extra few days of rest before taking on the red hot Gophers at The Barn. Minnesota entered the afternoon winners of four straight after handing Wisconsin a 27-7 loss just two days before.
Iowa City Press-Citizen-USA TODAY NETWORK
3/2: The Big Ten official pre-seeds were released after this article was published. For this weight, in order, they are: Eierman (IA), Lee (PSU), Rivera (RU), Red (NE), Duncan (ILL), Polanco (MN), D’Emilio (OSU), Mattin (MI), Filius (PU), Rooks (IU), Bertoni (MD), Santos (MSU), Valdiviez (NW), Dentino (UW)
The Big Ten will send its champion along with the next seven wrestlers at 141 pounds into the NCAAs, and others will have a shot at one of six remaining at-large bids. The Big Ten is incredibly strong at this weight, with three of the top five in the Intermat poll, and four of the top five in the National Wrestling Coaches Association coaches ranking. It includes three unbeaten wrestlers in #1 Jaydin Eierman, #2 Nick Lee, and #4 Sebastian Rivera. They are listed in what I expect to be their seeding order.
Photo by G Fiume/Maryland Terrapins/Getty Images
Atinat: Well, the Big Ten wrestling regular season is officially over. Unfortunately, covid cancellations were the story of this week, and of the season. We finish with a 5-0 Iowa and a 6-0 Penn State who did not get to wrestle because of the coronavirus, and we had three duals cancelled this week, including both of the scheduled duals for the Hawkeyes. But, at this point, we should be glad at the wrestling we did get, and look forward to healthy Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.
Atinat: Jack Medley got his second consecutive start at 125, perhaps signaling that he will get the go for Michigan at Big Tens there, while freshman Dylan Ragusin went at 133 pounds. Rayvon Foley got the start for the Michigan State Spartans, controlling Medley 7-2 and giving MSU their only lead of the day. Ragusin then defeated Jordan Hamdam via a pin, hipping over a whizzer for his second takedown and taking the Spartan straight to his back in the process. Dr
Wrestling It had been awhile since Ryan Deakin last wrestled on a collegiate mat. 343 days to be exact, since the senior took home first place at the 2020 Big Ten Championships, capping off a perfect regular season that earned him the number one ranking in the country. Life is different now than it was.