The No. 10 Gopher wrestling team (6-2) won eight of 10 matches in a 27-7 win at No. 20 Wisconsin on Friday morning. Minnesota has won four duals in a row, while extending its win streak over the Badgers to nine.
Top-ranked heavyweight Gable Steveson continued his run through the regular season with his eighth straight win with bonus points. He pinned the Badgers’ Pete Christensen in 3:20 to improve to 8-0 and 58-2 in his career. His 25-match win streak ranks 20th in program history and is five shy of his own career best.
Wisconsin took an early lead with an upset at 125 pounds, but the Gophers responded with five straight decisions. Boo Dryden defeated Kyle Burwick, 5-2, at 133 pounds, while Marcos Polanco downed Dominic Demento, 4-0 at 141 pounds. Michael Blockhus broke a 6-6 tie with a reversal to begin the third period at 149 pounds en route to a 13-8 decision against Drew Scharenbrock.
In the middle of the Gopher lineup, sophomore Brayton Lee and true freshman Andrew Sparks improved to a combined 14-2 on the year with wins. Lee defeated Garrett Model, 11-7, at 157 pounds, while Sparks topped Josh Otto, 7-5, at 165 pounds.
After the Badgers cut Minnesota’s lead to 15-7 with a decision at 174, the Gophers closed out the dual with three straight victories. After upsetting three straight ranked opponents and climbing to No. 11 nationally at 184 pounds, Owen Webster defeated Tyler Dow, 5-1. Garrett Joles followed with a 9-4 decision against Andrew Salemme at 197 pounds before Steveson finished the day with his third fall of the year.
The Golden Gophers will close out the regular season at Maturi Pavilion at Noon on Sunday, Feb. 21, when they host No. 12 Northwestern.
#10 Minnesota 27, #20 Wisconsin 7
125: #20 Eric Barnett (UW) maj. dec. #6 Patrick McKee (UM), 17-4 (UW 4, UM 0)
133: Boo Dryden (UM) dec. Kyle Burwick (UW), 5-2 (UW 4, UM 3)
141: Marcos Polanco (UM) dec. Dominic Demento (UW), 4-0 (UM 6, UW 4)
149: Michael Blockhus (UM) dec. Drew Scharenbrock (UW), 13-8 (UM 9, UW 4)
157: #6 Brayton Lee (UM) dec. Garrett Model (UW), 11-7 (UM 12, UW 4)
165: #16 Andrew Sparks (UM) dec. Josh Otto (UW), 7-5 (UM 15, UW 4)
174: #19 Jared Krattiger (UW) dec. #15 Jake Allar (UM), 5-3 (UM 15, UW 7)
184: #11 Owen Webster (UM) dec, Tyler Dow (UW), 5-1 (UM 18, UW 7)
197: Garrett Joles (UM) dec. Andrew Salemme (UW), 9-4 (UM 21, UW 7)
HWT: #1 Gable Steveson (UM) pinned Pete Christensen (UW), 3:20 (UM 27, UW 7)
Extra Matches
149: Jake Bergeland (UM) dec. Dan Stilling (UW), 11-6
174: Bailee O’Reilly (UM) maj. dec. Seth Vosters (UW), 16-6
HWT: Keaton Kluever (UM) pinned Pete Christensen (UW), 0:58
*Extra Matches: Due to only wrestling within the conference, the Big Ten will permit schools to hold extra matches on competition dates. Though they will not count towards dual scoring, they will count towards an individual’s varsity record for purposes of seeding for the conference and national tournament.
(info courtesy of Gopher Sports)