ANN ARBOR, Mich. – No. 22 Rutgers wrestling closed out Session I of the 2023 Big Ten Wrestling Championships on Saturday in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Nine Scarlet Knights are still alive on the backside of the bracket with opportunities to secure top-eight finishes and automatic bids to the 2023 NCAA Championships from March 16-18 In Tulsa, Oklahoma.
 
No. 6 seed Boone McDermott (HWT), No. 7 seed Joe Heilmann (133) and No. 8 seed Brian Soldano (184) won their opening-round matchups on Saturday morning to advance on the championship side of the bracket. The trio needs one more victory in wrestlebacks to earn podium spots and a trip to nationals. No. 11 seed Billy Janzer (197) and No. 13 seed Andrew Clark (157) added wins in their first consolation bouts to close the session.
 
No. 7 seed Joseph Olivieri (141), No. 8 seed Dean Peterson (125), No. 10 seed Tony White (149) and No. 10 seed Jackson Turley (174) are also alive for podium finishes with three sessions left at the Crisler Center.
 
Session I                        
Heilmann faced No. 10 seed Taylor LaMont (Wisconsin) in the opening round, riding out the Badger in the second period after a scoreless first. LaMont would land a takedown early in the final period, but Heilmann finished strong with a takedown of his own with 30 seconds to go, advancing to the quarterfinals by 5-2 decision.
 
In his opening-round matchup with No. 9 seed Dylan Connell (Illinois), Soldano worked an escape in the final period to force sudden victory with a 2-2 tie. Wrestling from his back in overtime, Soldano flipped Connell and landed the takedown for the 4-2 win to advance on the championship side of the bracket.
 
McDermott closed the opening round with No. 11 seed Garrett Joles (Minnesota), landing a takedown in the first period before he finished a scramble for two in period three for a 6-3 decision. McDermott's win secured three quarterfinalists for the Scarlet Knights to open the tournament.
 
Heilmann, McDermott and Soldano all lost their quarterfinal bouts to higher seeds to drop to the backside of the bracket. All three can secure top-eight finishes and an automatic bid to nationals with a win to open the second session.
 
125: (8) Dean Peterson (0-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(9) Jack Medley (Michigan)	L-MD, 9-0
Conso Rd. 1	Bye
Conso Rd. 2	(7) Braxton Brown (Maryland)

 
133: (7) Joe Heilmann (1-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(10) Taylor LaMont (Wisconsin)	W-D, 5-2
Quarterfinals	(2) Jesse Mendez (Ohio State)	L-D, 4-0
Conso Rd. 2	(9) RayVon Foley (Michigan State)

 
141: (7) Joseph Olivieri (0-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(10) Cole Mattin (Michigan)	L-D, 5-3
Conso Rd. 1	Bye
Conso Rd. 2	(8) Parker Filius (Purdue)

 
149: (10) Tony White (0-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(7) Graham Rooks (Indiana)	L-D, 4-1
Conso Rd. 1	Bye
Conso Rd. 2	(9) Chance Lamer (Michigan)

 
157: (13) Andrew Clark (1-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(4) Chase Saldate (Michigan State)	L-D, 5-2
Conso Rd. 1	(12) Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State)	W-D, 4-1
Conso Rd. 2	(6) Will Lewan (Michigan)

 
165: (12) Robert Kanniard (0-2)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(5) Carson Kharchla (Ohio State)	L-TF, 20-5 (6:14)
Conso Rd. 1	(13) Stoney Buell (Purdue)	L-D, 8-5

 
174: (10) Jackson Turley (0-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(7) Nelson Brands (Iowa)	L-D, 1-0
Conso Rd. 1	Bye
Conso Rd. 2	(8) Troy Fisher (Northwestern)

 
184: (8) Brian Soldano (1-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(9) Dylan Connell (Illinois)	W-SV1, 4-2
Quarterfinals	(1) Aaron Brooks (Penn State)	L-TF, 18-2 (6:57)
Conso Rd. 2	(10) Tyler Dow (Wisconsin)

 
197: (11) Billy Janzer (1-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(6) Jaxon Smith (Maryland)	L-D, 8-3
Conso Rd. 1	(14) Hayden Filipovich (Purdue)	W-D, 8-2
Conso Rd. 2	(4) Cameron Caffey (Michigan State)

 
HWT: (6) Boone McDermott (1-1)

Round	Opponent	Result
Round 1	(11) Garrett Joles (Minnesota)	W-D, 6-3
Quarterfinals	(3) Tony Cassioppi (Iowa)	L-Fall (2:54)
Conso Rd 2	(12) Ryan Vasbinder (Michigan State)