PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 15 Rutgers wrestling (13-5, 2-4) dropped a tight 19-14 dual with No. 6 Ohio State (7-3, 3-3) on Sunday afternoon in front of 4,115 fans at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Scarlet Knights won four of their first six bouts – including bonus-point victories from No. 3
Sebastian Rivera (141) and No. 18
Joseph Olivieri (133) – but were unable to hold off the Buckeyes in Piscataway.
- "We didn't get it done, so it's back to the drawing board. There's a lot of wrestling left until the Big Ten Championships. We have to keep getting better and figure out how to win these close ones." Head coach Scott Goodale.
- After a hard-fought 5-3 loss to No. 10 Malik Heinselman from No. 29 Dylan Shawver (125), Olivieri faced Brady Koontz. Up 7-2 late in the third period and riding time secured, Olivieri dumped his opponent for a two-point takedown to secure the 10-2 major. The bonus point gave RU its first lead of the day at 4-3.
- Rivera rattled off three takedowns in the first period against No. 20 Dylan D'Emilio for an early 6-2 lead and never looked back. Up 8-3 after two, Rivera scored 12 points en route to a 20-6 major. The graduate student moved to 20-0 on the season, with 19 of those victories coming by bonus.
- Michael VanBrill (149) wrestled hard against No. 2 Sammy Sasso, as he landed the first takedown for a 2-0 lead in the first period. VanBrill and Sasso were tied after two, but Sasso was able to leave with a win with a takedown in the third period for the 6-3 final.
- Robert Kanniard (157) delivered an important decision over Isaac Wilcox prior to the break. Up 4-3 midway through the third period, Wilcox nearly landed a go-ahead takedown at the edge of the circle before Kanniard scrambled around for the takedown and a 6-3 lead. Kanniard's win made it 11-6 Rutgers at intermission.
- Andrew Clark (165) also wrestled hard against Kevon Freeman out of halftime. With the score tied 2-2 in the third period, Clark escaped, landed a takedown, and added the riding-time point for the 6-3 final, putting Rutgers ahead 14-6 on the team scoreboard.
- Ohio State used wins in its final four bouts to secure the come-from-behind dual win. No. 7 John Poznanski (184) lost by decision to two-time national qualifier Rocky Jordan, while No. 6 Greg Bulsak (197) suffered a tough 4-2 loss in sudden victory to No. 21 Gavin Hoffman. Hoffman's overtime win made it 16-14 Buckeyes.
- With the result of the dual resting on heavyweight, Boone McDermott wrestled hard but was unable to fend off No. 13 Tate Orndorff in a 6-1 loss.
- Rutgers host Maryland on Saturday, Feb. 12 at Jersey Mike's Arena. The dual is slated for a 2 p.m. ET start with a national broadcast on Big Ten Network.
No. 6 Ohio State 19, No. 15 Rutgers 14
125: 10/11/10 Malik Heinselman (OSU) dec. Dylan Shawyer (RU), 5-3; OSU leads, 3-0
133: 18/21/20
Joseph Olivieri (RU) MD Brady Koontz (OSU), 10-2; RU leads, 4-3
141: 3/3/3
Sebastian Rivera (RU) MD 20/24/19 Dylan D'Emilio (OSU), 20-6; RU leads, 8-3
149: 2/2/2 Sammy Sasso (OSU) dec. 16/14/16
Michael VanBrill (RU), 6-3; RU leads, 8-6
157: Robert Kanniard (RU) dec. Isaac Wilcox (OSU), 6-4; RU leads, 11-6
165: Andrew Clark (RU) dec. Kevon Freeman (OSU), 6-3; RU leads, 14-6
174: 7/7/7 Ethan Smith (OSU) MD
Connor O'Neill (RU), 19-8; RU leads, 14-10
184: Rocky Jordan (OSU) dec. 7/6/8
John Poznanski (RU), 4-3; RU leads, 14-13
197: 21/20/20 Gavin Hoffman (OSU) SV1 6/13/7
Greg Bulsak (RU), 4-2; OSU leads 16-14
HWT: 13/13/13 Tate Orndorff (OSU) dec.
Boone McDermott (RU), 6-1; OSU wins
Extra Match
133: Dylan Koontz (OSU) dec.
David Campbell (RU), 6-4
