Wrestling Heads to Michigan State

2/20/2004 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling

Bloomington, Ind. - In its final conference match before the Big Ten Championship, the Indiana wrestling team heads to East Lansing, Mich., for a battle against the Michigan State Spartans on Sunday at 1 p.m.

The Hoosiers enter the weekend with a 17-8 overall record and a 1-5 Big Ten mark, while MSU heads into the match at 1-12 overall and 0-7 in the conference.

HOOSIER REPORT
Last weekend, the Hoosiers dropped a pair of conference matches, falling to then-No. 3 Michigan, 22-12 on Friday before losing a hard-fought 21-17 battle against then-No. 15 Purdue on Sunday.

Against the Wolverines, senior Coyte Cooper, junior Andy Rios and sophomores Brady Richardson and Joe Dubuque scored victories for Indiana. Cooper, wrestling in his final match at University Gym, defeated No. 20 Clark Forward, 6-5 in sudden death at 141. Dubuque garnered his biggest win of the season, upsetting third-ranked Mark Moos, 5-2 at 125.

Richardson and Rios added victories at 174 and 184, respectively, but it was not enough as the Hoosiers came up short against the Big Ten's first-place squad.

On Sunday, Dubuque corralled his second win of the weekend over Sean Schmaltz. Dubuque is now 26-4 on the year and 4-2 in league action. Cooper completed a 2-0 weekend with a 17-1 technical fall victory over Doug Withstandley to move to 34-1 overall and a perfect 6-0 in conference action.

Additionally, true freshman Mike Sabatello (165) earned his first career Big Ten win, downing John DeCeault, 6-5 in sudden death. Redshirt freshman Josh Buuck (HWT) upset his second top 10 opponent of the season, pounding sixth-ranked Israel Blevins, 11-6 for IU's final victory of the match. Buuck enters Sunday's match 16-6 on the season, 13-2 at heavyweight and 4-2 in the Big Ten.

Currently, five Hoosiers are ranked nationally, led by Cooper. Cooper is sixth in the nation at 141 pounds. In addition, Dubuque (No. 8 at 125) along with junior Pat DeGain (No. 9 at 197), Buuck (No. 12 at HWT) and Richardson (No. 13 at 174) are in the national rankings.

Last season, Indiana fell to the Spartans, 21-16 in Bloomington on Feb. 3. The last time the two teams met in East Lansing was on Feb. 16, 2001 with Michigan State netting a 20-12 victory.

HOOSIER OPPONENT
Michigan State: After being ranked at the start of the season, MSU enters this weekend's match with a 1-12 overall mark and a 0-7 Big Ten record. The Spartans have dropped 10 consecutive matches after a 22-15 dual victory at Kent State on Jan. 6.

Michigan State lost a pair of conference matches last weekend, falling at then-No. 9 Penn State on Friday and at then-No. 23 Ohio State on Sunday. PSU handled the Spartans, 29-6. MSU won two individual bouts, including senior Anton Hall's first Big Ten victory of the season at 174 pounds. Sophomore Andy Simmons also earned a win at 141.

Against the Buckeyes, Michigan State picked up two victories once again, but fell to OSU, 30-8. Simmons won his fourth-straight conference match, while junior Matt McCarty nailed down his first Big Ten victory at 157 and second Big Ten win this season.

On the season, Simmons is the only ranked Spartan grappler. Simmons is ranked ninth in the nation and sits at 23-7 overall and 6-1 in the Big Ten.

Hoosiers In The Rankings
Senior Coyte Cooper is ranked sixth in the national rankings, making him the highest ranked Hoosier. Joining Cooper in the rankings are junior Pat DeGain (ninth) as well as sophomores Joe Dubuque (eighth) and Brady Richardson (13h at 174). Redshirt freshman Josh Buuck is ranked 12th in the heavyweight division, his highest ranking of the season.

In addition, Dubuque's seven pins are tops in the nation at 125 pounds, and his 26 victories are good for seventh, while Cooper is second at 141 with 34 wins and third with 12 pins. Junior Andy Rios is 10th with 24 victories at 184.

Hanging With The Big Boys
No. 10 Joe Dubuque (125) and No. 15 Josh Buuck (HWT) both upset top 10 opponents last weekend. Dubuque downed No. 3 Mark Moos of Michigan on Friday, 5-2, while Buuck handled No. 6 Israel Blevins of Purdue, 11-6. Both Hoosier grapplers have won two matches against top 10 opponents this season with Dubuque beating then-No. 10 John Velez of Northwestern, 8-2 on Jan. 24, and Buuck pinning then-No. 9 Mike Behnke of Illinois on Jan. 31.

Sabatello Surging Ahead
True Freshman Mike Sabatello earned his first career Big Ten victory, defeating John DeCeault of Purdue, 6-5 in sudden death on Sunday. The Arlington Heights, Ill, native narrowly missed his first conference victory on Friday, losing a 9-6 struggle against No. 4 Pat Owen of Michigan. Sabatello is 4-4 on the season and 1-2 in Big Ten action at 165.

Streaking Hoosiers
After scoring a pair of victories last weekend at 141, Coyte Cooper (34-1), extended his winning streak to 11 matches. Following his first and only defeat of the season to Jermaine Thompson of Eastern Michigan on Jan. 17, Cooper has reeled off 11 consecutive victories, including a 6-0 Big Ten mark.

At 125, Joe Dubuque has captured victories in 25 of his last 27 matches since opening the season 1-2. The sophomore dispatched of both his opponents last weekend, improving to 26-4 overall and 4-2 in the league.

Josh Buuck split a pair of matches against ranked opponents, downing No. 6 Israel Blevins of Purdue, 11-6 after falling to No. 5 Greg Wagner, 9-5. He is now 13-2 as a heavyweight and 16-6 overall.

All-American Candidate
Coyte Cooper has put together an impressive resume worthy of All-America consideration. The sixth-ranked wrestler in the nation at 141 pounds has a 34-1 record, winning individual championships at the season-opening Missouri Open on Nov. 23 and the Northern Iowa Open on Dec. 5. Cooper has 12 pins and nine major decisions in his 34 victories.

Buuck Provides A Boost
Josh Buuck pulled off his second upset of a top 10 opponent this season on Sunday, knocking off sixth-ranked Israel Blevins of Purdue, 11-6. On Jan. 31, Buuck pinned ninth-ranked Mike Behnke of Illinois.

The redshirt freshman reeled off 12 straight victories in his first 12 matches as a heavyweight before losing a heartbreaking match to then-No. 6 Cole Konrad of Minnesota on Feb. 7. Buuck split his matches last weekend and is 16-6 overall this season, 13-2 as a heavyweight and 4-2 in the Big Ten.

Moving Up The Charts
Coyte Cooper and Pat DeGain are climbing up the Indiana career wins and pins lists. With 34 victories this season, Cooper now has 120 in his career, moving into fourth place on IU's all-time career wins list. The senior's 12 pins have moved him into third place on the school's career pins list. Cooper now has 38 in his career, two pins behind former Hoosier standout Roger Chandler.

In addition to compiling a 22-5 record, DeGain netted his 24th career pin against Brady Reinke of Wisconsin on Jan. 23. The junior now sits in a tie for eighth place on the career list with Pat Cassidy, one pin behind Kevin Stanley's total of 24.

Conference Openers
The Hoosiers opened their conference season on the road against the Wisconsin Badgers on Jan. 23. U-W downed IU, 26-12 with Coyte Cooper, Pat DeGain and Josh Buuck picking up the only victories for the team.

The next day, Indiana bounced back with its first conference win, 19-12 over Northwestern. IU won their first four matches and six Hoosier grapplers earned victories as Indiana evened its conference record at 1-1.

Record-Setting Victory
With their 43-6 victory over Missouri Baptist on Jan. 24, the Hoosiers improved to 17-4 on the season, setting a new school record for victories. The team broke the previous mark of 16 wins, set by the 1995-96 squad and matched by last year's team.

Goldman Sets Wins Record
Hoosier head coach Duane Goldman became the program's all-time winningest coach as the Hoosiers swept three opponents at the Indianapolis Duals on Jan. 18. Goldman, in his 12th season, picked up his 146th career victory (148-84-4 overall), surpassing Charlie McDaniel's total of 145 wins (145-139-11).

In his career, he has compiled 10 winning seasons and reached the double-digit win plateau 10 times.

Additionally, 43 wrestlers have qualified for the NCAA Championships and 28 grapplers earned Academic All-Big Ten honors under Goldman's direction.

Rolling Through Indy
Indiana reeled off six straight victories on Jan. 17-18. Head coach Duane Goldman became the program's all-time winningest coach as the Hoosiers swept three opponents at the Indianapolis Duals on Jan. 18. IU defeated Carson-Newman, 47-0, Cumberland, 40-3 and Indianapolis, 46-6.

The previous afternoon, the Hoosiers disposed of Duke, 31-8, Eastern Michigan, 20-17 and Truman State, 35-8.

Overall, six Hoosier wrestlers posted undefeated records over the weekend. Josh Buuck (HWT) and sophomore Nick Spatola (133) finished with 5-0 marks. Pat DeGain (197) ended competition with a 4-0 record with Joe Dubuque and true freshman Pat Barth adding 3-0 marks at 125.

Cooper's Streak Stopped
No. 6 Coyte Cooper lost his first match of the season to Jermaine Thompson of Eastern Michigan (7-6) on Jan. 17. The loss snapped the senior's winning streak at 23 matches.

Since the loss, Cooper has rebounded and continued his All-American campaign with 11
consecutive victories and sits at 34-1 on the year and 6-0 in Big Ten action.

IU Just Outside Top 25
The Hoosiers are sitting just outside the InterMat Top 25 poll. In the InterMat and NWCA polls, seven of Indiana's opponents are ranked, while one IU opponent is receiving votes. Overall, eight Big Ten teams are ranked in each poll.

Facing Ranked Opponents
Against ranked teams, the Hoosiers have compiled a 1-7 record, taking several top teams to the limit. Indiana's lone victory came against then-No. 25 Pittsburgh, 19-13 on Jan. 11. IU has lost to then-No. 8 Missouri, 29-15, then-No. 12 Ohio State, 29-17, then-No. 13 Wisconsin, 26-12, then-No. 2 Illinois, 24-13, then-No. 12 Minnesota, 32-7, then-No. 3 Michigan, 22-12 and then-No. 15 Purdue, 21-17.

Wrestling At The Wendy's Duals
IU went 2-1 at the Wendy's Duals on Jan. 11, downing VMI, 31-6 and then-No. 25 Pittsburgh, 19-13 before falling to Ohio, 25-15.

Senior Coyte Cooper (141) and sophomores Brady Richardson (174) and Joe Dubuque (125) went 3-0 on the day, while redshirt freshman Josh Buuck picked up two wins in his first action of the season in the heavyweight division.

Back At The Buckeye Duals
IU put forth a solid showing at the Buckeye Duals, going 2-1 in its three matches. The Hoosiers dropped its match against then-No. 12 Ohio State, 29-17 before rebounding with wins over Buffalo, 27-8 and Bloomsburg, 23-15. On the day, Coyte Cooper, Pat DeGain, Joe Dubuque and Brady Richardson posted undefeated 3-0 records.

Return To The Mat
Sophomores Matt Cooper and Nate McMillin returned to the mat for the first time at the Buckeye Duals since suffering injuries at the season-opening Missouri Open. Cooper went 2-1 in three matches at 157, downing Chris Tate of Bloomsburg, 7-3 and defeating Casey Burchfield of Buffalo, 15-13. McMillin participated in three matches as well and has recorded six victories at 165 since the event.

Four Finish First
IU concluded a successful weekend at the Northern Iowa Open, claiming four individual titles and placing a total of nine wrestlers in the top six in their weight classes. Coyte Cooper won his second title of the season at 141 pounds and second straight championship at the UNI Open, dropping second-seeded Jason Rhoten from Minnesota State in the title match. Joining Cooper in the winner's circle were Joe Dubuque (125), Andy Rios (184) and Pat DeGain (197).

Brady Richardson finished runner-up at 174, while redshirt freshman Matt McIntire earned a fourth-place finish at 149. Sophomore Joel Powers (HWT) and freshman Brian Dyer (133) both turned out fifth-place performances, and junior J.P. Stanley carded a sixth-place finish in the 157-pound weight class.

Dubuque Picks Up First Title
By winning the 125-pound class at the Northern Iowa Open, Joe Dubuque collected his first collegiate tournament victory to add to an already impressive career resume.

The Bloomfield, N.J., native swept five consecutive matches, defeating Chris Helegassen of Northern Iowa en route to the championship. Last season, Dubuque compiled a 23-5 record as a redshirt freshman with seven major decisions and three pins.

Brothers In Arms
Last year, the Cooper brothers reunited in Bloomington when Matt joined his older brother Coyte on the squad. Wrestling as a true freshman last season, Matt went 17-22 at 149 pounds. Meanwhile, Coyte enjoyed an incredible season, compiling a 38-5 record and qualifying for his third consecutive NCAA Championship.

In their second season together, the two enjoy pushing each other and seeing each other succeed. Coyte is 34-1 this season at 141 pounds, while Matt is 10-12 at 157 pounds.

Dominating Dual
Indiana opened its dual meet season at home on Nov. 29 with victories over Southern Illinois-Edwardsville and Manchester. The Hoosiers dominated both clubs, knocking off Manchester, 32-6 and beating SIU-Edwardsville, 36-9. Seven Hoosiers swept a pair of matches including Joe Dubuque, Coyte Cooper, J.P. Stanley, Tim Falls, Brady Richardson, Andy Rios and Joel Powers.

Opener At Mizzou
The Hoosiers opened their season on Nov. 23 with a strong showing at one of the nation's most competitive events, the Missouri Open. Coyte Cooper captured his second collegiate title after rolling off four straight victories to win the championship at 141.

Four other IU wrestlers garnered top-five finishes in their respective weight classes. Matt McIntire placed second (149), Andy Rios netted third (184), Cameron Sakon finished fourth (141), and Brady Richardson claimed fourth (174).