Indiana University Athletics
Indiana University
Illinois
Indiana Topped by No. 16 Illinois, 22-9
1/21/2007 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Jan. 21, 2007
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The 14th-ranked Indiana wrestling team suffered its first dual-meet defeat of the 2006-07 season, falling on the road to Big Ten foe Illinois, 22-9. Illinois moves to 6-0 (2-0 Big Ten), while the Hoosiers fall to 10-1 (1-1 Big Ten).
The Hoosiers held an early 6-3 lead on victories by No. 12 Marc Bennett and Josh Buuck, but Illinois rebounded by winning four of five matches that featured ranked wrestlers from both teams to earn its second Big Ten bout. The Fighting Illini topped No. 8 Northwestern, 21-13, on Friday night, while the Hoosiers topped Purdue 25-12.
The meet opened at 184, where Bennett faced No. 15 John Dergo in IU's lone victory over a ranked opponent in the matchup. The Martinsville, Ind., native picked up four points in the first period on a takedown and a two-point near fall, and a second-period reversal in the final seconds sealed the victory for Bennett.
The Fighting Illini struck back with a 6-1 victory at 197, as redshirt freshman Patrick Bond topped true freshman Nathan Everhart with takedowns in the first and second periods. Indiana rebounded with a victory at heavyweight, as Buuck recovered from a 3-2 deficit after the first period. The senior started down in the second and escaped just five seconds in, then registered a takedown with 1:36 to go in the period and held on for a 7-4 victory.
At 125, No. 9 Angel Escobedo squared off with No. 10 Gabe Flores, and the undefeated Flores (15-0) took a crucial 4-2 decision, helped by a first-period takedown. Escobedo tallied a late takedown in the third to make the score 3-2, but could not score another point and suffered his first loss since Dec. 2 by a score of 4-2. Escobedo is 24-3 on the year, with all of his three losses coming to wrestlers ranked 11th or higher.
In the 133-pound battle, Andrae Hernandez suffered a heartbreaking defeat to No. 9 Jimmy Kennedy, 5-4. Hernandez recorded a third-period reversal to go ahead 4-2, and held Kennedy until the final 10 seconds, but Kennedy escaped and then recorded a takedown with eight seconds left to earn three points. No. 12 Cassio Pero followed with a 12-3 major decision over Nick Walpole at 141, making the score 13-6 in favor of the home squad.
At 149, Matt Coughlin suffered his second straight one-point defeat to a ranked opponent, falling 4-3 to No. 12 Troy Tirapelle. Tirapelle entered the third with a 1-0 lead, but Coughlin scored a takedown 20 seconds into the period to gain a 2-1 advantage. Tirapelle then escaped and scored a takedown with 37 seconds remaining, and scored the 4-3 victory, putting Illinois up by 10 with three bouts remaining.
The 157-pound battle featured two-time All-American Brandon Becker, ranked seventh, against top-ranked and undefeated Mike Poeta. In the second, Becker started down, and Poeta registered a three-point near fall at the 1:20 mark. Becker rebounded with a reversal, but Poeta picked up four points in the third on a take down and a near fall to earn a 9-4 victory and clinch the meet victory.
No. 14 Roger Smith-Bergsrud scored a takedown of No. 11 Max Dean in the final minute of the match at 165 to take a 3-2 decision. Trevor Perry earned points for the Hoosiers in the final matchup of the day with a 6-5, tiebreak victory over Matt Winterhalter at 174.
Indiana is back in action on Sunday, Jan. 28, when it heads to Columbus, Ohio, for a conference battle with Ohio State at 2 p.m. EST.
NO. 16 ILLINOIS 22, NO. 14 INDIANA 9
184 - No. 12 Marc Bennett (IU) dec. No. 15 John Dergo (ILL), 8-6
197 - Patrick Bond (ILL) dec. Nathan Everhart (IU), 6-1
285 - Josh Buuck (IU) dec. John Wise (ILL), 7-4
125 - No. 10 Gabe Flores (ILL) dec. No. 9 Angel Escobedo (IU), 4-2
133 - No. 9 Jimmy Kennedy dec. Andrae Hernandez (IU), 5-4
141 - No. 12 Cassio Pero (ILL) maj. dec. Nick Walpole (IU), 12-3
149 - No. 12 Troy Tirapelle (ILL) dec. No. 7 Matt Coughlin (IU), 4-3
157 - No. 1 Mike Poeta (ILL) dec. No. 7 Brandon Becker (IU), 9-4
165 - No. 14 Roger Smith-Bergsrud (ILL) dec. No. 11 Max Dean (IU), 3-2
174 - Trevor Perry (IU) dec Matt Winterhalter (ILL), 6-5 TB1
Players Mentioned
