Friday, February 14
Piscataway, N.J.
7 PM
Rutgers
28
vs
7
Michigan State
Photo by: Ben Solomon
No. 12 Wrestling Dominates in 28-7 Win over Michigan State
Feb 14 | Wrestling
PISCATAWAY, N.J. ā No. 12 Rutgers wrestling (13-5, 5-3) defeated Michigan State (4-8, 0-7), 28-7, on Friday night in front of 3,523 fans at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Scarlet Knights won eight out of 10 against the Spartans, including three victories from true freshmen ā No. 29 Conner Harer (157), Ayden Smith (125) and Ryan Ford (165).
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The win over MSU secured the program's first winning season in the Big Ten Conference since 2018-19 and just its fourth since joining the league in 2014-15. RU's 13 wins are the most in a dual season since 2021-22, when it produced 16.
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No. 13 Joseph Olivieri (141) muscled a tech fall, No. 10 Dylan Shawver (133) and No. 27 Jackson Turley (174) turned in major decisions, while No. 17 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184) and No. 19 Andrew Clark (149) added decisions.
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"It was good to see some freshman come out and win some bouts there for us," said head coach Scott Goodale. "We know we still have a lot to improve on but we did some really good things during the Big Ten regular season."
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Smith earned the start at 125 pounds against Caleb Weiand, forcing the Spartan into overtime tied 1-1. With 45 seconds left in sudden victory, Smith swung around on Weiand, finishing with a takedown for a 4-1 win in his Jersey Mike's Arena debut.
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Shawver was relentless in his match against Andrew Hampton, landing four takedowns in the opening period for a quick 12-3 lead. Shawver added two more takedowns down the stretch to secure an 18-7 major decision, putting Rutgers up 7-0 through the first two bouts of the night.
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Olivieri was in full control in his match against Sean Larkin, contributing six takedowns in the first three minutes of the match before leaving with a 22-5 tech fall. Clark followed against Clayton Jones and muscled back to a 14-10 decision after trail 8-3 early. The comeback decision put the Scarlet Knights up 15-0.
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Harer faced Braden Stauffenberg in the final match before intermission, forcing Stauffenberg into sudden victory after a strong rideout in the third period. Harer then used a single-leg takedown to produce his 5-2 decision to provide RU with an 18-0 lead at the midpoint.
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Ford earned his first home dual start of his collegiate career against Jay Nivison, a 2022 NCAA qualifier at Buffalo. Ford landed a takedown in the first period and dictated the pace through to produce a 4-0 decision. Turley followed against Ceasar Garza and outscored the Spartan, 14-0, for the major decision, putting the dual away in the process with a 25-0 team score with three matches to go.
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Cartagena-Walsh earned the final win of the night, securing a 6-2 decision over Marty Larkin. Loses from No. 18 John Poznanski (197) and John O'Donnell (HWT) to ranked foes made it a 28-7 final.
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Up Next
Rutgers closes the regular season with Penn on Wednesday, Feb. 19 at Jersey Mike's Arena. The dual is set for a 6 p.m. start and will stream on Big Ten Plus. The match serves as Senior Night, with the group honored prior to the dual.
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Box Score
No. 12 Rutgers 28, Michigan State 7
125: Ayden Smith (RU) over Caleb Weland (MSU) by SV1, 4-1; RU leads, 3-0
133: 10/10 Dylan Shawver (RU) over Andrew Hampton (MSU) by MD, 18-7; RU leads, 7-0
141: 13/15 Joseph Olivieri (RU) over Sean Larkin (MSU) by TF, 22-5 (3:46); RU leads, 12-0
149: 19/24 Andrew Clark (RU) over Clayton Jones (MSU) by dec., 14-10; RU leads, 15-0
157: 29/26 Conner Harer (RU) over Braden Stauffenberg by SV1, 5-2; RU leads, 18-0
165: Ryan Ford (RU) over Jay Nivison (MSU) by dec., 4-0; RU leads, 21-0
174: 27/26 Jackson Turley (RU) over Ceasar Garza (MSU) by MD, 14-0; RU leads, 25-0
184: 17/16 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (RU) over Marty Larkin (MSU) by dec., 6-2; RU leads, 28-0
197: 26/28 Remy Cotton (MSU) over 18/18 John Poznanski (RU) by MD, 11-2; RU leads, 28-4
HWT: NR/33 Max Vanadia (MSU) over John O'Donnell (RU) by dec., 1-0; RU wins, 28-7
Rankings Intermat/Flo
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The win over MSU secured the program's first winning season in the Big Ten Conference since 2018-19 and just its fourth since joining the league in 2014-15. RU's 13 wins are the most in a dual season since 2021-22, when it produced 16.
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No. 13 Joseph Olivieri (141) muscled a tech fall, No. 10 Dylan Shawver (133) and No. 27 Jackson Turley (174) turned in major decisions, while No. 17 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184) and No. 19 Andrew Clark (149) added decisions.
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"It was good to see some freshman come out and win some bouts there for us," said head coach Scott Goodale. "We know we still have a lot to improve on but we did some really good things during the Big Ten regular season."
Ā
Smith earned the start at 125 pounds against Caleb Weiand, forcing the Spartan into overtime tied 1-1. With 45 seconds left in sudden victory, Smith swung around on Weiand, finishing with a takedown for a 4-1 win in his Jersey Mike's Arena debut.
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Shawver was relentless in his match against Andrew Hampton, landing four takedowns in the opening period for a quick 12-3 lead. Shawver added two more takedowns down the stretch to secure an 18-7 major decision, putting Rutgers up 7-0 through the first two bouts of the night.
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Olivieri was in full control in his match against Sean Larkin, contributing six takedowns in the first three minutes of the match before leaving with a 22-5 tech fall. Clark followed against Clayton Jones and muscled back to a 14-10 decision after trail 8-3 early. The comeback decision put the Scarlet Knights up 15-0.
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Harer faced Braden Stauffenberg in the final match before intermission, forcing Stauffenberg into sudden victory after a strong rideout in the third period. Harer then used a single-leg takedown to produce his 5-2 decision to provide RU with an 18-0 lead at the midpoint.
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Ford earned his first home dual start of his collegiate career against Jay Nivison, a 2022 NCAA qualifier at Buffalo. Ford landed a takedown in the first period and dictated the pace through to produce a 4-0 decision. Turley followed against Ceasar Garza and outscored the Spartan, 14-0, for the major decision, putting the dual away in the process with a 25-0 team score with three matches to go.
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Cartagena-Walsh earned the final win of the night, securing a 6-2 decision over Marty Larkin. Loses from No. 18 John Poznanski (197) and John O'Donnell (HWT) to ranked foes made it a 28-7 final.
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Up Next
Rutgers closes the regular season with Penn on Wednesday, Feb. 19 at Jersey Mike's Arena. The dual is set for a 6 p.m. start and will stream on Big Ten Plus. The match serves as Senior Night, with the group honored prior to the dual.
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Box Score
No. 12 Rutgers 28, Michigan State 7
125: Ayden Smith (RU) over Caleb Weland (MSU) by SV1, 4-1; RU leads, 3-0
133: 10/10 Dylan Shawver (RU) over Andrew Hampton (MSU) by MD, 18-7; RU leads, 7-0
141: 13/15 Joseph Olivieri (RU) over Sean Larkin (MSU) by TF, 22-5 (3:46); RU leads, 12-0
149: 19/24 Andrew Clark (RU) over Clayton Jones (MSU) by dec., 14-10; RU leads, 15-0
157: 29/26 Conner Harer (RU) over Braden Stauffenberg by SV1, 5-2; RU leads, 18-0
165: Ryan Ford (RU) over Jay Nivison (MSU) by dec., 4-0; RU leads, 21-0
174: 27/26 Jackson Turley (RU) over Ceasar Garza (MSU) by MD, 14-0; RU leads, 25-0
184: 17/16 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (RU) over Marty Larkin (MSU) by dec., 6-2; RU leads, 28-0
197: 26/28 Remy Cotton (MSU) over 18/18 John Poznanski (RU) by MD, 11-2; RU leads, 28-4
HWT: NR/33 Max Vanadia (MSU) over John O'Donnell (RU) by dec., 1-0; RU wins, 28-7
Rankings Intermat/Flo
Players Mentioned
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