Indiana University Athletics
Big Ten Championships Preview
3/4/2016 6:41:00 PM | Wrestling
Ten Hoosier grapplers take the mat for conference supremacy this weekend
IOWA CITY, Iowa – The 140 grapplers set to compete in tomorrow's Big Ten Wrestling Championships await their time in the shadows of Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The dust has settled on the arduous bracket setting and seeding selection process. And after a final change to starting lineups, the conference's NCAA qualifier allocation numbers have hit come to a rest at 70.
There's only one thing left to do: take the mat and wrestle.
"Everybody's starting to feel good, feel healthy, and I think we have guys with the capability to sneak into the NCAA Championships," said Indiana head coach Duane Goldman. "Iowa City brings a great venue and an incredible crowd, and it's always fun to wrestle here. Hopefully they feed off of that and do well."
2016 Big Ten Wrestling Championships
Carver-Hawkeye Arena • Iowa City, Iowa
Saturday, March 5
Session I (Opening Round, Quarterfinals) • 11:00 a.m. ET
Watch on BTN Plus: Mat 1 | Mat 2 | Mat 3 | Mat 4
Session II (Semifinals and Wrestle-Backs) • 7:00 p.m. ET
Watch on BTN Plus: Mat 1 | Mat 2 | Mat 3 | Mat 4
Sunday, March 6
Session III (Consolation Semifinals, Seventh-Place Matches) • 1:00 p.m. ET
Watch on BTN Plus: Mat 1 | Mat 2 | Mat 3
Session IV (First-, Third-, Fifth-place Matches) • 4:00 p.m. ET
Watch on BTN Plus and the Big Ten Network: 1st-Place | 3rd-Place | 5th-Place
Live Stats (All Sessions): TrackWrestling
First Round Matchups:
125: (5) Elijah Oliver (IU) vs. Steven Polakowski (Minnesota)
133: (13) Alonzo Shepherd (IU) vs. (4) Geoff Alexander (Maryland)
141: Tommy Cash (IU) vs. (5) Javier Gasca (Michigan State)
149: Luke Blanton (IU) vs. (6) Alex Griffin (Purdue)
157: Jake Danishek (IU) vs. (6) Brian Murphy (Michigan)
165: Bryce Martin (IU) vs. (8) Patrick Rhoads (Iowa)
174: (5) Nate Jackson (IU) vs. Josh Snook (Maryland)
184: Matt Irick (IU) vs. (3) Sammy Brooks (Iowa)
197: Jake Masengale (IU) vs. (1) Morgan McIntosh (Penn State)
HWT: Garret Goldman (IU) vs. (1) Adam Coon (Michigan)
Hoosier Notes:
Weekend Snapshot
The Hoosier grapplers will have their final chance to make their case for NCAA qualification as they battle for Big Ten supremacy in Iowa City. The Hoosiers drew tantalizing first-round matchups, and fifth-seeds Nate Jackson and Elijah Oliver aim for a deep run this weekend.
Four Hoosiers will open their tournament runs with bouts against top-four seeds, while six Hoosiers face rematches from earlier this season.
Last Time: IU Drops NWCA Dual
Indiana took part in their last dual of the season against SoCon dual champions Appalachian State, as part of the NWCA Duals Championship Series. Indiana took four-of-10 bouts in a 21-13
Nate Jackson (174) added another bonus point win to his record with a major decision over No. 18 Nick Kee. Another ranked Hoosier, Elijah Oliver (125), battled back in the third period for a 10-9 major decision, including a winning takedown with three seconds remaining. Bryce Martin (165) and Matt Irick (184) got back in the win column with favorable decisions as well.
Top of the Class
Indiana redshirt junior Nate Jackson maintained his No. 11 national ranking (InterMat) in the 174 lbs weight class after his major decision against Nick Kee (Appalachian State). Jackson, now 27-5, earned the fifth seed on his way to a first-round matchup against Maryland's Josh Snook. Jackson won by tech fall over Snook in their last meeting
True freshman Elijah Oliver sits at No. 19 in the 125 lbs. class after his comeback decision against Appalachian State. He'll open the first round against Minnesota freshman Steven Polakowski.
Big Ten Championships Overview
The 2016 Big Ten Wrestling Championships will be the premier wrestling tournament this weekend, as 140 grapplers will compete for 70 NCAA Championships allocation spots in the next two days.
The opening round will commence at 11:00 a.m. ET on Saturday, March 5, followed by the second session (semifinals and wrestle-backs) at 7:00 p.m. ET. The Big Ten finals will begin Sunday, March 6 at 4:00 p.m. ET and will air on the Big Ten Network.
Familiar Faces
One of the greatest aspects of the Big Ten Championships is the high volume of rematches the tournament creates. Six Hoosiers will face familiar foes in the first round alone:
Alonzo Shepherd vs. Geoffrey Alexander (Maryland)
Last: Alexander, 9-0 MD
Luke Blanton vs. Alex Griffin (Purdue)
Last: Griffin, 8-4 D
Bryce Martin vs. Patrick Rhoads (Iowa)
Last: Rhoads, 4-2 D
Nate Jackson vs. Josh Snook (Maryland)
Last: Jackson, 23-8 TF
Matt Irick vs. Sammy Brooks (Iowa)
Last: Brooks, 23-8 TF
Jake Masengale vs. Morgan McIntosh (Penn State)
Last: McIntosh, Fall 2:50
Hoosiers in Coaches' Panel
The season's third coaches' panel rankings were released. The rankings are a poll that goes a long way in determining the 33 grapplers in each weight class who will make the trip to Madison Square Garden for the 2016 NCAA Championships. Three Hoosiers received recognition in the third of four panel rankings. Nate Jackson (174) topped the list at #12, followed by Elijah Oliver (125) at #19 and Luke Blanton (149) at #25.
BTN Plus
The first three sessions of the Big Ten Championships will air live on BTN Plus (formerly Big Ten Digital Network). The final session, the first-, third-, and fifth-place matches, will air live on the Big Ten Network.
You can subscribe for a school pass for $9.95/month ($79.95/year) or for all of BTN Plus content for $14.95/month ($119.95/year) (Note: All options automatically renew).
There's only one thing left to do: take the mat and wrestle.
"Everybody's starting to feel good, feel healthy, and I think we have guys with the capability to sneak into the NCAA Championships," said Indiana head coach Duane Goldman. "Iowa City brings a great venue and an incredible crowd, and it's always fun to wrestle here. Hopefully they feed off of that and do well."
2016 Big Ten Wrestling Championships
Carver-Hawkeye Arena • Iowa City, Iowa
Saturday, March 5
Session I (Opening Round, Quarterfinals) • 11:00 a.m. ET
Watch on BTN Plus: Mat 1 | Mat 2 | Mat 3 | Mat 4
Session II (Semifinals and Wrestle-Backs) • 7:00 p.m. ET
Watch on BTN Plus: Mat 1 | Mat 2 | Mat 3 | Mat 4
Sunday, March 6
Session III (Consolation Semifinals, Seventh-Place Matches) • 1:00 p.m. ET
Watch on BTN Plus: Mat 1 | Mat 2 | Mat 3
Session IV (First-, Third-, Fifth-place Matches) • 4:00 p.m. ET
Watch on BTN Plus and the Big Ten Network: 1st-Place | 3rd-Place | 5th-Place
Live Stats (All Sessions): TrackWrestling
First Round Matchups:
125: (5) Elijah Oliver (IU) vs. Steven Polakowski (Minnesota)
133: (13) Alonzo Shepherd (IU) vs. (4) Geoff Alexander (Maryland)
141: Tommy Cash (IU) vs. (5) Javier Gasca (Michigan State)
149: Luke Blanton (IU) vs. (6) Alex Griffin (Purdue)
157: Jake Danishek (IU) vs. (6) Brian Murphy (Michigan)
165: Bryce Martin (IU) vs. (8) Patrick Rhoads (Iowa)
174: (5) Nate Jackson (IU) vs. Josh Snook (Maryland)
184: Matt Irick (IU) vs. (3) Sammy Brooks (Iowa)
197: Jake Masengale (IU) vs. (1) Morgan McIntosh (Penn State)
HWT: Garret Goldman (IU) vs. (1) Adam Coon (Michigan)
Hoosier Notes:
Weekend Snapshot
The Hoosier grapplers will have their final chance to make their case for NCAA qualification as they battle for Big Ten supremacy in Iowa City. The Hoosiers drew tantalizing first-round matchups, and fifth-seeds Nate Jackson and Elijah Oliver aim for a deep run this weekend.
Four Hoosiers will open their tournament runs with bouts against top-four seeds, while six Hoosiers face rematches from earlier this season.
Last Time: IU Drops NWCA Dual
Indiana took part in their last dual of the season against SoCon dual champions Appalachian State, as part of the NWCA Duals Championship Series. Indiana took four-of-10 bouts in a 21-13
Nate Jackson (174) added another bonus point win to his record with a major decision over No. 18 Nick Kee. Another ranked Hoosier, Elijah Oliver (125), battled back in the third period for a 10-9 major decision, including a winning takedown with three seconds remaining. Bryce Martin (165) and Matt Irick (184) got back in the win column with favorable decisions as well.
Top of the Class
Indiana redshirt junior Nate Jackson maintained his No. 11 national ranking (InterMat) in the 174 lbs weight class after his major decision against Nick Kee (Appalachian State). Jackson, now 27-5, earned the fifth seed on his way to a first-round matchup against Maryland's Josh Snook. Jackson won by tech fall over Snook in their last meeting
True freshman Elijah Oliver sits at No. 19 in the 125 lbs. class after his comeback decision against Appalachian State. He'll open the first round against Minnesota freshman Steven Polakowski.
Big Ten Championships Overview
The 2016 Big Ten Wrestling Championships will be the premier wrestling tournament this weekend, as 140 grapplers will compete for 70 NCAA Championships allocation spots in the next two days.
The opening round will commence at 11:00 a.m. ET on Saturday, March 5, followed by the second session (semifinals and wrestle-backs) at 7:00 p.m. ET. The Big Ten finals will begin Sunday, March 6 at 4:00 p.m. ET and will air on the Big Ten Network.
Familiar Faces
One of the greatest aspects of the Big Ten Championships is the high volume of rematches the tournament creates. Six Hoosiers will face familiar foes in the first round alone:
Alonzo Shepherd vs. Geoffrey Alexander (Maryland)
Last: Alexander, 9-0 MD
Luke Blanton vs. Alex Griffin (Purdue)
Last: Griffin, 8-4 D
Bryce Martin vs. Patrick Rhoads (Iowa)
Last: Rhoads, 4-2 D
Nate Jackson vs. Josh Snook (Maryland)
Last: Jackson, 23-8 TF
Matt Irick vs. Sammy Brooks (Iowa)
Last: Brooks, 23-8 TF
Jake Masengale vs. Morgan McIntosh (Penn State)
Last: McIntosh, Fall 2:50
Hoosiers in Coaches' Panel
The season's third coaches' panel rankings were released. The rankings are a poll that goes a long way in determining the 33 grapplers in each weight class who will make the trip to Madison Square Garden for the 2016 NCAA Championships. Three Hoosiers received recognition in the third of four panel rankings. Nate Jackson (174) topped the list at #12, followed by Elijah Oliver (125) at #19 and Luke Blanton (149) at #25.
BTN Plus
The first three sessions of the Big Ten Championships will air live on BTN Plus (formerly Big Ten Digital Network). The final session, the first-, third-, and fifth-place matches, will air live on the Big Ten Network.
You can subscribe for a school pass for $9.95/month ($79.95/year) or for all of BTN Plus content for $14.95/month ($119.95/year) (Note: All options automatically renew).
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