PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Sebastian Rivera (141) majored in his highly anticipated RAC debut while John Poznanski (184) and Billy Janzer (197) picked up decisions as Rutgers Wrestling (0-1) dropped a 26-10 dual to No. 3 Michigan (1-0) on Friday night in Piscataway. The dual marked the beginning of a 10-week sprint to the NCAA Championships this March, as the Scarlet Knights are slated to wrestle in eight more Big Ten Conference duals leading into the Big Ten Championships from March 6-7 in State College, Pennsylvania.
 
"We're grateful to be back," said head coach Scott Goodale. "We're grateful to our doctors and administration for putting us in a great position to compete and compete safely. It was just awesome to wrestle again. Competition is good for everyone. Tonight's outcome was not what I wanted, but I was grateful our guys had an opportunity to compete."
 
What to Know
• After Rutgers lost back-to-back matches – including an upset from Dylan Ragusin over 2020 NCAA qualifier Nicolas Aguilar (125) by fall – Rivera took the mat and made his Rutgers' debut. The three-time All-American and two-time Big Ten Champion picked up a near-fall in the second period en route to an 8-0 major decision over Drew Mattin, who entered Friday's match ranked No. 20 by The Open Mat.
• Michael VanBrill (149) followed with a tough matchup against No. 6 Kanen Storr and took his highly ranked opponent to overtime before he lost by decision, 4-2, in the second tiebreaker period. A loss from Robert Kanniard (157) in his varsity debut followed, as the Wolverines entered intermission with a 15-4 lead.
• Michigan put the dual out of reach with back-to-back wins at 165 and 174 pounds before Poznanski took the mat for the first time in his collegiate career. The reigning NJSIAA state champion jumped out to a 2-0 lead against Joseph Walker in the first period and added another take down in the third en route to a 7-1 decision.
• Janzer also secured a win to begin the 2021 campaign, as he used a rideout in the second period and a takedown in the third for a 4-1 decision over Andrew Davison.
 
Additional Tidbits
• Extra Matches: This season, the Big Ten permitted extra matches to be held after conference duals. Rutgers and Michigan wrestled eight additional bouts, with results counting towards each individual's varsity record to help wrestlers secure enough matches to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Gerard Angelo (149) and Alex Esposito (HWT) both picked up wins during the extra bouts.
• Varsity Dual Debuts (3): Devon Britton (133), Robert Kanniard (157), John Poznanski (184)
• Varsity Debuts (7): Devon Britton (133), Andrew Gapas (149), Cody Harrison (157), Robert Kanniard (157), Connor O'Neill (165), John Poznanski (184), Kyle Epperly (197)
• True Freshmen Debuts (3): Connor O'Neill (165), John Poznanski (184), Kyle Epperly (197)
 
No. 3 Michigan (1-0) 26, No. 15 Rutgers (0-1) 10
Match Start: 125 Pounds
 
125: Dylan Ragusin (UM) over 20/19/15 Nicolas Aguilar (RU) by fall (1:01); Michigan leads, 6-0
133: No. 13/14/12 Jack Medley (UM) over Devon Britton (RU) by decision, 10-5; Michigan leads, 9-0
141: 4/1/3 Sebastian Rivera (RU) over NR/NR/20 Drew Mattin (UM) by major decision, 8-0; Michigan leads, 9-4
149: No. 6/8/6 Kanen Storr (UM) over Michael VanBrill (RU) by decision (TB2), 4-2; Michigan leads, 12-4
157: No. 9/11/10 Will Lewan (UM) over NR/NR/24 Robert Kanniard (RU) by decision, 11-5; Michigan leads, 15-4
165: No. 17/16/16 Cameron Amine (UM) over Brett Donner (RU) by decision, 10-4; Michigan leads, 18-4
174: No. 2/2/3 Logan Massa (UM) over 19/22/13 Joseph Grello by major decision, 13-5; Michigan leads, 22-4
184: John Poznanski (RU) over Joseph Walker (UM) by decision, 7-1; Michigan leads, 22-7
197: NR/14/20 Billy Janzer over Andrew Davison (UM) by decision, 4-1; Michigan leads 22-10
285: No. 2/2/2 Mason Parris (UM) over Christian Colucci (RU) by major decision, 11-3; Michigan wins, 26-10
 
Rutgers vs. Michigan Extra Matches
141: Patrick Nolan (UM) over Zach Firestone (RU) by decision, 3-1
149: Nick Lombard (UM) over Andrew Gapas (RU) by major decision, 14-1
149: Gerard Angelo (RU) over Cole Mattin (UM) by decision, 9-6
157: Fidel Mayora (UM) over Cody Harrison (RU) by decision, 8-2
165: Layne Van Anrooy (UM) over Connor O'Neill (RU) by decision, 5-3
174: Max Maylor (UM) over Jackson Turley (RU) by decision, 7-5
197: JT Correll (UM) over Kyle Epperly (RU) by major decision, 15-2
HWT: Alex Esposito (RU) over Luke Ready (UM) by decision, 4-3
 
Rankings: Intermat/FloWrestling/TheOpenMat
 
Up Next
Rutgers hosts No. 2 Penn State on Saturday, Jan. 16 at the RAC. The time of the dual will be released at a later date.
 
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