No. 21 Wrestling Muscles 24-12 victory over No. 18 Wisconsin

Friday, February 16

Madison, WI

8 p.m.

Rutgers University

Wisconsin

Photo by: (Ben Solomon/Rutgers Athletics)

No. 21 Wrestling Muscles 24-12 victory over No. 18 Wisconsin

Feb 16 | Wrestling

Three Scarlet Knights pick up wins over ranked foes for first dual victory over Badgers in program history

VICTORY! No. 7 Richie Lewis, No. 12 Nick Gravina and John Van Brill all pick up ranked victories, while Shane Metzler works a pin as No. 21 Rutgers wins, 24-12, over No. 18 Wisconsin!#RUWR | #RelentlessPursuit pic.twitter.com/X4ioIlratD
— Rutgers Wrestling (@RUWrestling) February 17, 2018

MADISON, Wis. – Wins from No. 11 Richie Lewis (165) No. 12 Nicholas Gravina (184) and John Van Brill (157), along with a pin from rookie Shane Metzler (125) propelled No. 21 Rutgers wrestling (7-7, 3-6) to a 24-12 win over No. 18 Wisconsin (7-4, 4-4) Friday night in Madison.

The Scarlet Knights won seven of 10 bouts against the Badgers, as No. 20 Scott DelVecchio (133), No. 11 Eleazar DeLuca (149) and Razohnn Gross (HWT) all contributed to the final score. It marked the first win over Wisconsin in program history.

"I'm super proud of these guys," said head coach Scott Goodale. "We have been battling hard all year competing against some great programs and facing some adversity. We had huge wins from John Van Brill, Nick Gravina, Richie Lewis and Shane Metzler. I feel good for our entire team staying the course, but we need to finish Sunday at Princeton."

Metzler made a statement in his varsity debut for RU. Leading off the match against Johnny Jimenez and in an early 2-0 hole, Metzler landed a reversal with 2:20 remaining in the match. Metzler then got Jimenez on his back for the pin, giving Rutgers a 6-0 lead.

What a debut for Metzler!#RUWR | #RelentlessPursuit pic.twitter.com/dX6pSg20s8
— Rutgers Wrestling (@RUWrestling) February 17, 2018

Decisions from DelVecchio and DeLuca followed, as the Scarlet Knights sprung to a quick 12-3 lead after four bouts. DelVecchio produced two takedowns in his match with Jens Lantz for a 6-1 decision, while DeLuca worked a 6-2 result over former NCAA qualifier Cole Martin.

With the commanding team lead, Van Brill contributed one of his best performances this season against No. 14 Andrew Crone. Crone landed a reversal in the closing seconds of period two to make it a 2-2 score, but Van Brill spun him around for the reversal of his own. Van Brill would tack on an escape and the riding time point for the 6-2 decision over Krone, giving Rutgers a 15-3 lead at intermission.

Here's John Van Brill's reversal that sealed his ranked win over No. 14 Andrew Krone! #RUWR | #RelentlessPursuit pic.twitter.com/k7s5JYatLy
— Rutgers Wrestling (@RUWrestling) February 17, 2018

Lewis continued the momentum for the Scarlet Knights with his bout against No. 11 Evan Wick. With just a 1-0 lead after two periods, Lewis erased Wick's riding time and road out Wick to put the point in his favor. The senior let Wick out in the closing seconds, but held on for the 2-1 decision.

Lewis has now captured wins in eight of his last nine outings dating back to Midlands, which includes victories over five ranked foes. During that span, Lewis has outscored his opponents, 80-29, with three majors and a tech fall.

After a tight 2-1 loss from Joseph Grello (174) to two-time NCAA qualifier Ryan Christensen, Gravina faced three-time NCAA qualifier and consensus No. 9 Ricky Robertson. With no scoring for the majority of the opening period, Gravina worked a takedown to make it a 2-1 score after one. After Robertson landed a reversal, Gravina was able to swing him around for a 4-3 lead. An escape from Gravina at the 1:10 mark in period three secured a 5-3 decision, his second win over a top-10 opponent in 2017-18.

No. 12 Nick Gravina's reversal to seal his match tonight over No. 9 Ricky Robertson.#RUWR | #RelentlessPursuit pic.twitter.com/BVavEE2tyD
— Rutgers Wrestling (@RUWrestling) February 17, 2018

Gross closed out the match with a strong 5-3 decision over Ben Stone. After an early escape gave Gross a 3-2 lead at the start of the final period, Stone worked a shot on Gross at the 48-second mark in the period. Gross quickly fought Stone off, flipping around for two points and sending RU back to New Jersey with a 24-12 team win over Wisconsin.

Rutgers closes out its dual season on Sunday with its match at Princeton at 1 p.m.

Knight Notes
• The win was the first over Wisconsin in program history. Rutgers is now 1-3 all-time against the Badgers.
• The win also marked the 160^th of Goodale's career at Rutgers. He now needs just seven more to surpass John Sacchi for the most in program history.
• Gravina's 5-3 decision over No. 9 Ricky Robertson was his second top-10 victory over the season. Gravina also defeated then-No. 7 Tyler Venz of Nebraska by decision, 9-3, on Jan. 21 in Lincoln.
• Lewis has now captured wins over five ranked foes since moving to 165 pounds. Lewis owns wins over No. 11 Evan Wick (Wisconsin), No. 8 Nick Wanzek (Minnesota), No. 11 Isaiah White (Nebraska), No. 11 Te'Shan Campbell (Ohio State) and No. 13 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State).
• DelVecchio picked up his 80^th-career varsity win, which makes him tied for 32^nd in program history.
• Van Brill now owns wins over four ranked foes this season, which includes victories over No. 14 Andrew Krone (Wisconsin), No. 11 Luke Zilverberg (South Dakota State) and No. 19 Larry Early (Old Dominion). Van Brill also has a medical forfeit over No. 1 Jason Nolf of Penn State, which counts as a win towards his overall record.

No. 21 Rutgers (7-7, 3-7) 24, No. 18 Wisconsin (7-4, 4-4) 12
Dual started at 125 pounds
Location: UW Field House, Madison, Wis.

125: Shane Metzler (RU) fall (0:59) Johnny Jimenez (UW) | RU 6, WISC 0
133: No. 20/16/17 Scott DelVecchio (RU) decision Jens Lantz (UW), 6-1 | RU 9, WISC 0
141: Eli Stickley (UW) decision Michael Van Brill (RU), 3-2 | RU 9, WISC 3
149: No. 11/11/9 Eleazar DeLuca (RU) decision Cole Martin (UW), 6-2 | RU 12, WISC 3
157: John Van Brill (RU) decision No. 14/15/8 Andrew Crone (UW), 6-2 | RU 15, WISC 3
165: No. 7/5/8 Richie Lewis (RU) decision No. 11/7/10 Evan Wick (UW), 2-1 | RU 18, WISC 3
174: Joe Grello (RU) decision Ryan Christensen (UW), 2-1 | RU 18, WISC 6
184:No. 12/13/12 Nicholas Gravina (RU) decision No. 9/9/9 Ricky Robertson (UW), 5-3 | RU 21, WISC 6
197: Hunter Ritter NR/NR/18 (UW) fall (2:53) Anthony Messner (RU)| RU 21, WISC 12
HWT: Razohnn Gross (RU) decision Ben Stone (UW), 5-3 | RU 24, WISC 12

Rankings (-/-/-): InterMat / FloWrestling/The Open Mat
NR denotes not ranked

Follow Rutgers Athletics on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersAthletics) and Twitter (@RUAthletics) for all of the latest news and updates. For specific updates regarding Rutgers wrestling, follow the program on Twitter (@RUWrestling) and Instagram (@RUWrestling). Fans can receive timely information, including special offers and giveaways throughout the year on our social media outlets along with www.ScarletKnights.com.