Indiana University Athletics
#20 Indiana Set for Matches Against #9 Illinois and #16 Northwestern
2/11/2009 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Feb. 11, 2009
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The #20 Indiana University wrestling team (14-4-1, 1-2-1 Big Ten) takes on the a pair of schools from the state of Illinois this weekend. First up is a road trip to face the #8 Fighting Illini of Illinois (10-1, 3-1) Friday night at 8 p.m. EST before coming back to Bloomington for a Sunday afternoon match against #16 Northwestern (9-5-1, 2-2-1) inside University Gym, scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.
Click here for live scoring of the Illinois match.
Click here for live scoring of the Northwestern match.
With a win Indiana can even the all-time series with the Fighting Illini at 38-38-1. The Hoosiers have not defeated Illinois since 1996. Meanwhile, IU has topped Northwestern in nine of the last 10 meetings and holds a 43-27-4 advantage in the all-time series with the Wildcats.
PROBABLE MATCH-UPS at ILLINOIS
125 lbs.- #5 Angel Escobedo (16-2, 3-1) vs. B.J. Futrell (21-7, 2-2)
133 lbs.- Matt Ortega (20-8, 1-3) vs. #3 Jimmy Kennedy (21-2, 3-1)
141 lbs.- Andrae Hernandez (13-8, 1-1) or Scott Kelly (14-15, 0-2) vs. Ryan Prater (9-10, 1-3)
149 lbs.- Nick Walpole (22-15, 1-3) vs. Eric Terrazas (12-13, 0-4)
157 lbs.- #13 Kurt Kinser (15-3, 3-1) vs. #2 Mike Poeta (6-0, 4-0)
165 lbs.- Paul Young (24-9, 2-2) vs. #15 R. Smith-Bergsrud (15-5, 2-2)
174 lbs.- #15 Trevor Perry (23-10, 2-2) vs. John Dergo (10-4, 3-1)
184 lbs.- Eric Cameron (19-12, 0-2) or Seth Parker (6-4, 0-1) vs. #12 Jordan Blanton (22-6, 3-1)
197 lbs.- Matt Powless (17-9, 3-1) vs. Partick Bond (10-11, 0-2)
285 lbs.- Nathan Everhart (21-11, 4-0) vs. #9 John Wise (13-6, 2-2)
PROBABLE MATCH-UPS vs. NORTHWESTERN
125 lbs.- #5 Angel Escobedo (16-2, 3-1) vs. #3 Brandon Precin (23-1, 5-0)
133 lbs.- Matt Ortega (20-8, 1-3) vs. Eric Metlzer (4-3, 2-3) or Bobby Joyce (4-10, 0-0)
141 lbs.- Andrae Hernandez (13-8, 1-1) or Scott Kelly (14-15, 0-2) vs. #16 Keith Sulzer (15-7, 2-3)
149 lbs.- Nick Walpole (22-15, 1-3) vs. Andre Nadhir (10-8, 4-1)
157 lbs.- #13 Kurt Kinser (15-3, 3-1) vs. #14 Jason Welch (19-6, 4-1)
165 lbs.- Paul Young (24-9, 2-2) vs. Dominic Marella (5-11, 0-2) or Kyle Bertin (5-8, 0-2)
174 lbs.- #15 Trevor Perry (23-10, 2-2) vs. Robert Kellogg (12-9, 2-3)
184 lbs.- Eric Cameron (19-12, 0-2) or Seth Parker (6-4, 0-1) vs. #1 Jake Herbert (23-0, 5-0)
197 lbs.- Matt Powless (17-9, 3-1) vs. John Schoen (5-15, 1-4)
285 lbs.- Nathan Everhart (21-11, 4-0) vs. Paul Rands (5-7, 0-2)
BOILER DOWN
Indiana defeated the archrival Boilermakers of Purdue 21-12 on Feb. 6. It marked IU's fourth win in the last five years against Purdue and increased the Hoosier lead to 52-31-3 in the all-time series. Redshirt freshman Matt Powless erupted the large crowd assembled at University Gym when his takedown with just four seconds left gave him a 3-1 decision over #13 Logan Brown and virtually sealed the team victory.
EVERHART LOOKS GOOD EARLY
Junior Nate Everhart remains perfect in Big Ten action this season, winning his first four conference matches. IU's heavyweight has notched four straight decisions to start the Big Ten slate, including a 4-3 victory over #17 Corey Morrison of Ohio State.
ORTEGA IS OUTSTANDING
Redshirt freshman Matt Ortega has gotten off to quite a start to his career, winning 15 of his first 19 bouts in the dual match lineup. Not only has the Ortega had his hand raised, but he has also racked up tons of bonus points. His +66 dual match point differential is second on the team, coming via 10 pins and two major decisions.
HEY DJ, S(PIN) THAT RECORD
By season's end, upto four current Hoosiers have a good chance of all being in the all-time top-10 for career pins in IU history. Angel Escobedo and his 30 career falls are already there, slotted seventh al-time. Kurt Kinser, Trevor Perry and Nick Walpole are each just one pin away from also cracking the top-10 with 23 career falls apiece. If either of them were to reach 24 pins, they would pull even with Pat Cassidy (1997-2000) for 10th place all-time.
Thirteen of Walpole's 23 pins have come this season, giving him sole possession of 10th place on the single-season falls list with five Big Ten matches and postseason action still coming. The all-time record is 19, set by Rod Chamberlin in 1981.
THE BIG TEN GAUNTLET
The Big Ten Conference is as good as it gets when it comes to collegiate wrestling, bar none. Ten of the league's 11 teams rank in the national top-25. In addition, seven of the 10 individual national champions in 2008 represented Big Ten institutions, including Indiana's Angel Escobedo as the 125-pound national champion.
ONE BOUT AWAY
The Hoosiers are just six points away from a 4-0 start in the Big Ten and a likely top-10 national ranking. Indiana's tie with Penn State combined with a pair of two-point losses to Ohio State and Michigan has put IU at 1-2-1, but just one bout or a few bonus points away from that 4-0 record.
