 |
|||||||
|
Nick Simmons
garners EVANSTON, Ill.- Sophomore Nick Simmons swept through the 55-kg weight class April 15-16 at Welsh-Ryan Arena, pinning four of his five opponents and earning the outstanding wrestler award for the 2005 Freestyle University National Championships. Competing for the Michigan Wrestling Club, Simmons gave up just one point the entire tournament. His four falls in 5:10 also earned him an award for the most falls in the least amount of time. Simmons is coming off a 32-4 season and a fourth-place finish at the 2005 NCAA Championships, his second-straight All-America performance. The University National Championships qualify wrestlers for the University World Team Trials, to be held in Colorado Springs, Colo., May 22-29. Champions from this tournament will receive an automatic bid into a best-of-three championship series to determine this year’s University World Team representative at the World University Games in Izmir, Turkey, August 1-7. Other Spartans competing this weekend include Jeff Wimberley (60 kg), Ryan Froese (66 kg), Tony Greathouse (74 kg), Abe Cross (84 kg), Jeremy Bloom (84 kg), Jeff Clemens (96 kg) and Max Lossen (120 kg).
Nick and Andy
Simmons claim ST. LOUIS, Mo.- Nick Simmons claimed his second All-America finish, and Andy Simmons his first, taking fourth and sixth, respectively, at the 2005 NCAA Wrestling Championships, Saturday morning, March 19. The sophomore brothers are the first Michigan State wrestlers to claim two top-six finishes in the same NCAA tournament since David Morgan and Pat McNamara did it in 1998. “It is quite an accomplishment for Nick and Andy. There is no question they are among the best in college wrestling,” said head coach Tom Minkel. “For Nick to already be a two-time All-American and Andy to claim his first All-American finish is very significant. These guys still have half their careers left so we have a lot to build on.” Nick Simmons advanced to the consolation finals with his team-leading 11th shutout of the season, 8-0, over No. 4 Vic Moreno of Cal Poly. Simmons notched a takedown in each period, and added an escape and 3:34 of riding time for his fourth victory of the tournament. Simmons then fell to No. 1 Sam Hazewinkel of Oklahoma, 6-3, in the consolation finals, taking fourth in the nation at 125 pounds. Trailing 6-1 heading into the final period, Simmons selected the top position, but could only turn Hazewinkel once, for two near-fall points. Nick Simmons finishes the season 32-4, with a team-high five technical falls and 10 major decisions. He is the first Michigan State wrestler to claim fourth place since Nick Muzashvili in 2000 and 23rd Spartan all-time. Due to a severe knee sprain, Andy Simmons was forced to injury default his consolation semifinal match to Oklahoma State’s Daniel Frishkorn. Midway through the first period, Frishkorn went right after Simmons’ knee causing him to scream out in pain, unable to continue. Simmons also injury defaulted the fifth-place match to Chattanooga’s Michael Keefe. Simmons finishes the 2004-05 season with a team-high 11 falls, and an overall record of 32-6. Andy Simmons is the 13th Spartan to take sixth all-time, and the first since Pat McNamara in 2001. The team will hold its annual banquet on April 17, at the Kellogg Center, to reflect on the 2004-05 season, and honor its accomplishments. Session IV (Consolation
Semifinals and Medal Rounds)
Nick And Andy
Simmons Earn All-American ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Nick and Andy Simmons earned All-American honors, and will wrestle for third place in the nation on Saturday morning, March 19, at the 2005 NCAA Wrestling Championships at the Savvis Center. “Nick and Andy both wrestled very well, but they had two very difficult matches,” said head coach Tom Minkel. “Both of there matches were very chaotic and similar. But, the both have to come back tomorrow and try to get third place.” No. 2 Nick Simmons overwhelmed No. 7 Andrew Hochstrasser of Boise State in the quarterfinals, defeating him by technical fall, 15-0, just 4:56 into the match. Simmons took a 7-0 lead into the second period, where he chose the top position. He then rolled off eight near-fall points to record his second technical-fall victory of the tournament. In a rematch of the Big Ten 125-pound final, Nick Simmons dropped a tough match, by sudden victory, to Illinois’ Kyle Ott in the semifinals, 3-1. A controversial call occurred in the closing seconds of the second period, as the official initially awarded Simmons with a takedown and two near-fall points. After a meeting, they determined time had expired before any points were scored, and the match remained scoreless after two periods. “I thought the officiating got a little out of hand in Nick’s match,” said Minkel. “Calling off those points changed the total complexion of the match.” In the third period, Simmons earned an escape point, but was later called for a technical violation, tying the match. In yet another scramble in overtime, Ott took Simmons down to earn the spot in the national finals. Nick Simmons will next face Cal Poly’s Vic Moreno in the consolation semifinals. A win would give him a chance to wrestle for third place on Saturday afternoon. No. 5 Andy Simmons pulled off a huge victory as well to advance to the semifinals, pinning No. 4 Cory Cooperman of Lehigh at 6:18 of their quarterfinal match-up. Simmons was up 2-1 in the third when he reversed Cooperman and put him to his back. The fall was the first by a Spartan in the tournament, and Simmons’ team-leading 11th of the season. Andy Simmons also dropped to the consolation semifinals on Friday night, falling in his semifinal match-up with unbeaten No. 1 Nate Gallick of Iowa State. Just like his brother’s match, Simmons and Gallick were scoreless at the end of two periods. Midway through the third, Simmons was called for his second stalling call, giving Gallick the 1-0 lead. Simmons then let Gallick escape, but couldn’t score a takedown in the final 51 seconds. Andy Simmons will clash with Daniel Frishkorn of Oklahoma State on Saturday morning, with a spot in the consolation finals at stake. When Simmons and Frishkorn clashed earlier this season, Simmons claimed the decision, 5-2. Junior Darren McKnight was eliminated from competition in the morning session, falling to Lock Haven’s Josh Medina, 7-6, in the second round of consolation matches. The match was tied 6-6 at the end of regulation, but Medina had accumulated 1:12 of riding time to gain the match-clinching point. McKnight set a career high in wins during the 2004-05 campaign, notching an overall record of 31-12. He also set a new high in falls with four and improved on each of his tournament finishes from a year ago. Wrestling will continue at noon tomorrow, March 19, with the medal rounds, and will conclude at 4 p.m. with the national finals, which will be aired on ESPN. Session III
(Quarterfinals, Consolation Second Round) Session IV
(Semifinals) Session V (Consolation
Semifinals)
Nick and Andy Simmons ST. LOUIS, Mo.- Nick and Andy Simmons both advanced to the national semifinals for the first time in their careers, winning in convincing fashion in session three of the 2005 NCAA Wrestling Championships, Friday morning, March 18. No. 2 Nick Simmons overwhelmed No. 7 Andrew Hochstrasser of Boise State in the quarterfinals, defeating him by technical fall, 15-0, just 4:56 into the match. Simmons took a 7-0 lead into the second period, where he chose the top position. He then rolled off eight near-fall points to record his second technical-fall victory of the tournament. In a rematch of the 2005 Big Ten finals, Simmons will face No. 3 Kyle Ott of Illinois in the national semifinals at 125 pounds. Ott defeated No. 6 Efren Ceballos of Cal St. Bakersfield to advance. Simmons won that match, 4-2. No. 5 Andy Simmons pulled off a huge victory as well to advance to the semifinals, pinning No. 4 Cory Cooperman of Lehigh at 6:18 of their quarterfinal match-up. Simmons was up 2-1 in the third when he reversed Cooperman and put him to his back. The fall was the first by a Spartan in the tournament, and Simmons’ team-leading 11th of the season. Andy Simmons will face No. 1 Nate Gallick of Iowa State with a spot in the national finals at stake. When the two wrestlers clashed in the finals of the 2004 Midlands Championships, Gallick defeated Simmons, 4-2, by sudden victory. Gallick beat Clarion’s Frank Edgar, 10-5, to advance. Junior Darren McKnight was eliminated from competition in the morning session, falling to Lock Haven’s Josh Medina, 7-6, in the second round of consolation matches. The match was tied 6-6 at the end of regulation, but Medina had accumulated 1:12 of riding time to gain the match-clinching point. McKnight set a career high in wins during the 2004-05 campaign, notching an overall record of 31-12. He also set a new high in falls with four and improved on each of his tournament finishes from a year ago. Wrestling continues with session four at 6 p.m., and will once again be shown on ESPNU. Session III
(Quarterfinals, Consolation Second Round) Session IV
Simmons Brothers Advance To Quarterfinals ST. LOUIS, Mo.- Sophomore brothers Nick and Andy Simmons won both of their matches, Thursday, March 17, 2005, at the 2005 NCAA Wrestling Championships to advance to the tournament’s quarterfinals, Friday morning. Junior Darren McKnight is still alive as well in the consolation bracket, going 1-1 on the first day of competition. “All four of guys are wrestling incredibly hard and well, but the competition is very tough,” said head coach Tom Minkel. “Nick and Andy wrestled very solid matches, and Darren and R.J. just ran into some tough opponents.” No. 2 Nick Simmons dominated his second round match, defeating Hofstra’s Dave Tomasette by technical fall, 17-2. After getting off to a slow start, Simmons started rolling in the second period, holding Tomasette down for the entire period, and accumulating six near-fall points in the process. Simmons tacked on a takedown and seven more near-fall points in the third for his team-leading fourth technical fall of the season. Nick Simmons advanced to the second round after shutting out Mark McKnight of Buffalo, 3-0, in session one. Simmons scored the lone takedown of the match midway through the first period, and totaled 3:21 of riding time. The shut out was Simmons’ team-leading 10th of the season. The two victories improve
Simmons’ season record to 30-2. No. 5 Andy Simmons took care of business as well on Thursday night, topping Doug McGraw of Pennsylvania, 6-1. After a scoreless first period, Simmons scored an escape and a takedown in the second period. He added another takedown and a riding-time point in the final period to advance to the quarterfinals. Andy Simmons had no problem with his first round opponent, Myron Drayton of Delaware State. He scored a takedown in each period, as well as four near-fall points and two escapes to claim a major decision, 11-2. Andy Simmons’ 30th and 31st victories of the season Thursday put him in a tie with McKnight for the lead in that category. He will now take on No. 4 Cory Cooperman from Cornell in session three, Friday morning. Cooperman beat two unranked wrestlers on Thursday to advance. No. 12 McKnight persevered, and defeated Ron Doppelheuer of Edinboro in sudden victory, 10-8, in his first match of the tournament. McKnight controlled the match for the majority of the first seven minutes, but got caught in a cradle as time expired in regulation to lock the match at 8-8. 33 seconds into the overtime period, McKnight scored his fourth takedown of the bout to claim the first-round victory. McKnight dropped his third decision of the season to No. 5 Eric Tannenbaum of Michigan by major decision, 8-0, in his second round match. He will face Josh Medina of Lock Haven in the second round of the consolation bracket on Friday morning. R.J. Boudro dropped a
tough, 4-3, decision to No. 6 Mitch Hancock of Central Michigan in his
opening match, in the first round of tiebreakers. Boudro was down with
less than 15 seconds remaining in regulation when he received a point for
Hancock stalling. After a minute of scoreless overtime, Boudro selected
the down position and failed to escape. Hancock gained his match-clinching
point in the second tiebreaker. Boudro was eliminated from the tournament by Hofstra’s Paul Siemon, 5-1, in the consolation first round. He finishes his season with a 19-8 record in his first season wrestling for the Spartans. Wrestling continues tomorrow morning, March 18, at 10 a.m. CST with the quarterfinals and two rounds of consolation matches. The quarterfinals will be aired on ESPNU. Session I (All First
Round Matches) Session II (Second
Round, Consolation Pigtails and Consolation First Round) Session III - Friday,
10:00 a.m. CST
Three Of Four Spartans Advance ST. LOUIS, Mo.- Three of the four Spartan wrestlers competing in the 2005 NCAA Championships advanced to the second round of the tournament, Thursday morning, March 17, at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, Mo. No. 2 Nick Simmons advanced to the second round after shutting out Mark McKnight of Buffalo, 3-0, in session one. Simmons scored the lone takedown of the match midway through the first period, and accumulated 3:21 of riding time. The shut out was Simmons’ team-leading 10th of the season. He will clash next with Hofstra’s Dave Tomasette, who defeated Jonathon Bittinger of Duquesne, 12-0. No. 5 Andy Simmons had no problem with his first round opponent, Myron Drayton of Delaware State. Simmons scored a takedown in each period, as well as four near-fall points and two escapes to claim a major decision, 11-2. The victory was Simmons’ 30th of the season. His second round match will be against Pennsylvania’s Doug McGraw, who upset No. 12 Cassio Pero of Illinois, 2-0. No. 12 Darren McKnight persevered, and defeated Ron Doppelheuer of Edinboro in sudden victory, 10-8, in his first match of the tournament. McKnight controlled the match for the majority of the first seven minutes, but got caught in a cradle as time expired in regulation to tie the match, 8-8. 33 seconds into the overtime period, McKnight scored his fourth takedown of the bout to claim the first-round victory. McKnight will face No. 5 Eric Tannenbaum of Michigan in the second round. McKnight has dropped two close decisions to the 149-pound Big Ten champion this season, the last being a 2-1 match in the semifinals of the 2005 Big Ten tournament. R.J. Boudro dropped a tough, 4-3, decision to No. 6 Mitch Hancock in the first round of tiebreakers. Boudro was down with less than 15 seconds remaining in regulation when he received a point for Hancock stalling. After a minute of scoreless overtime, Boudro selected the down position and failed to escape. Hancock gained his match-clinching point in the second tiebreaker. Boudro will face Eric Ring of Edinboro in the first round of the wrestlebacks. Session I (All First Round Matches) 125 lbs.- Nick Simmons (MSU) def. Mark McKnight (Buffalo), 3-0 141 lbs.- Andy Simmons (MSU) def. Myron Drayton (Delaware State), MD, 11-2 149 lbs.- Darren McKnight (MSU) def. Ron Doppelheuer (Edinboro), SV, 10-8 174 lbs.- Mitch Hancock (Central Michigan) def. R.J. Boudro (MSU), SV, 4-3
Nick Simmons crowned
Big Ten Champion IOWA CITY, Iowa- Sophomore Nick Simmons claimed his first career Big Ten title as four Michigan State wrestlers placed in the top four in their respective weight classes at the 2005 Big Ten Championships, Sunday, March 6. Nick Simmons is the first Michigan State wrestler to capture a Big Ten championship since Nick Muzashvili in 2000, as Simmons defeated Kyle Ott of Illinois, 4-2, in the finals. “It was a very tough tournament, but I thought we wrestled hard in every weight class,” said head coach Tom Minkel. “The 125-pound weight class was one of the hardest in the Big Ten, with five guys ranked in the top 10 all season. For Nick to win this tournament is terrific.” The Spartans finished ninth in the tournament, but realistically had little chance of a top-five finish without Joe Williams at 184 pounds. The Spartans voided the weight class, and only competed with nine wrestlers. Despite giving up an early takedown and trailing to Ott 2-1 after the first period, Nick Simmons continued his relentless attack and took the lead with a takedown midway through the second period. Simmons chose the bottom position and easily escaped in the third. He was then able to weather several shots by the Illinois All-American late in the match to claim the two-point decision. Nick Simmons will head to the NCAA Championships with a 28-2 record, and will most likely be no lower than a No. 2 seed as he vies for his second All-American finish. Andy Simmons dropped a tough, 2-0 decision to Michigan’s Josh Churella in the 141-pound championship match. Churella scored the lone points of the match late in the first period, and held off Simmons for two minutes after he selected neutral for the third period. Andy Simmons improves from last year’s seventh-place performance at the 2004 Big Ten Championships, to second place in 2005. He enters his second NCAA tournament with a 29-4 record and leads the team in falls with 10. In 2004, Simmons was just one match away from claiming All-American honors. Junior Darren McKnight reached the consolation finals with a convincing, 13-5 major-decision victory over Indiana’s Isaac Knuble. McKnight rolled off six takedowns and tacked on a riding time point for his 30th victory of the season and seventh major decision of the 2004-05 campaign. McKnight dropped his final match of the tournament, 3-1, to Ty Eustice of Iowa. Eustice took McKnight down as time expired in the first period, which proved to be the different in the match. Both wrestlers selected the bottom position and escaped, but neither could score another takedown. McKnight heads to his second straight NCAA Championships, improving his finish at the Big Ten Championships from fifth a year ago, to fourth in 2005. He currently has a record of 30-11. After a mouth injury and being knocked unconscious in the first period, Boudro persevered to beat his former teammate, Michigan’s Nick Roy in triple overtime to reach the consolation finals. Boudro managed to hold Roy down in the second overtime session, then escaped in the sixth period of the match to capture the 3-2 sudden-victory decision. “In his match with Nick Roy, R.J. suffered a concussion, had some teeth knocked in and sustained a cut in his mouth that required stitches,” Minkel said. “For him to come back and win that match showed a lot of courage, and kind of characterized what this team is all about. Boudro injury defaulted the consolation finals to Brady Richardson of Indiana due to the mouth injury. Heading into his first career NCAA tournament, Boudro is 18-6. He has set career highs this season in wins, technical falls, major decisions and falls. Ryan Froese and Bryan Harney dropped decisions in their respective weight classes, eliminating them from competition. The four qualifiers will travel to St. Louis, Mo., for the 2005 NCAA Championships March 17-19. The top eight wrestlers in each weight class earn All America honors. 125 lbs.- Finals- Nick
Simmons (MSU) def. Kyle Ott (Ill.), 4-2 Final Team Standings
Simmons brothers
advance to finals IOWA CITY, Iowa - Brothers Nick and Andy Simmons both advanced to their first career Big Ten Championships finals as the Michigan State wrestling team earned four individual NCAA Championships berths Saturday, March 5 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Two other Spartan grapplers, Ryan Froese and Bryan Harney, will have the opportunity to advance as well on Sunday. "I thought we wrestled very well as a team today," said head coach Tom Minkel. "Even in the matches that we lost, our guys hung tough. It's also really good to see Nick and Andy continue their exceptional seasons by earning spots in the finals." Nick Simmons advanced to his first career Big Ten Championships final by avenging one of his two regular-season losses to No. 3 seed Joe Dubuque. A takedown in the second period and escape early in the third was all Simmons needed to defeat Indiana's wrestler. Dubuque, who claimed a 6-4 decision over Simmons on Feb. 18, maintained a relentless attack during the third period, but could not finish a takedown to extend the match. Simmons reached the semifinals after two dominating victories in the opening rounds Saturday morning. In the pigtail round, he wasted no time with Wisconsin's Collin Cudd, pinning him just 1:21 into the match. Simmons then recorded his third technical fall of the season, defeating Purdue's Brandon Tucker, 18-1, at 3:29 of his quarterfinal match. Simmons is now 27-2 on the season with eight falls and three technical falls. He will wrestle No. 1 seed Kyle Ott of Illinois for the 125-pound Big Ten championship tomorrow. "Joe Dubuque is a very talented wrestler, and we have known that all along," said Minkel. "But Nick wrestled a very smart, patient match to pick up the victory." Andy Simmons also will make his first-ever appearance in the finals after a 2-0 performance on Saturday. Simmons defeated Penn State's DeWitt Driscoll, 6-1, for the second time this season in the quarterfinals, then scored an impressive major-decision victory over Northwestern's Ryan Lang, 15-6, to advance to the finals. In his semifinal match, Andy Simmons notched four takedowns, a reversal and two near-fall points en route to the nine-point victory. Simmons improves to 29-3 on the season, and will go for the 141-pound Big Ten title against Michigan's Josh Churella. "Lang is a very dangerous wrestler," Minkel said. "Andy kept his intensity up for the whole match, which is one of the reasons he won the match tonight." Darren McKnight at 149 lbs., and R.J. Boudro at 174 lbs. also earned NCAA Tournament berths on Saturday by reaching the final four of the championship bracket. McKnight defeated Minnesota's Quincy Osborn in the quarterfinals, 5-3, before dropping a tough match to Michigan's Eric Tannenbaum in the semifinals, 4-2. McKnight will look to reach the consolation finals when he takes on Purdue's Doug Withstandley in the consolation semifinals on Sunday. McKnight fell to Withstandley in overtime earlier this season, 6-4. Boudro earned a decisive 16-6 victory over Wisconsin's Kelly Flaherty in the quarterfinals to earn his first trip to the NCAA Championships. Boudro scored five takedowns to win his first career Big Ten Championships match, but lost his semifinal match to No. 2 seeded Jake Herbert of Northwestern, 8-5. He will wrestle his former teammate, Michigan's Nick Roy, in the consolation semifinals tomorrow. Froese at 133 lbs., and Harney at 165 lbs. will have a chance to qualify for the NCAA Championships by advancing to the eighth-place matches on Sunday. Froese claimed a sudden-victory decision over Purdue's Sean Schmaltz in a grueling, four-overtime match, while Harney defeated Penn State's Jarrad Turner, 6-2, to stay alive. Wrestling continues Sunday, March 6, at noon, with the eighth-place matches, then concludes at 2 p.m. with the medal rounds. 125 lbs.
Wrestling Drops Its
Final Dual Meet EAST LANSING, Mich. – No. 12 R.J. Boudro scored his sixth victory in seven matches by major decision as the No. 20/17 Michigan State wrestling team (7-6-1 overall, 4-3-1 Big Ten) closed out its regular season with a 31-10 loss Friday, Feb. 25 at Jenison Field House. The most highly anticipated match-up of the dual meet was the first match of the night as No. 1 Sam Hazewinkel and No. 3 Nick Simmons clashed at 125 lbs. Neither wrestler recorded a takedown in the first period, and Hazewinkel took the bottom position to start the second. He escaped 55 seconds into the period, and despite a stalling call in the third period, held Simmons down for the final two minutes of the match to claim the decision, 2-0. Hazewinkel remains undefeated at 33-0, while Simmons finishes the regular season with a 24-2 record. The Sooners took a 6-0 lead in the dual meet following the 133-pound bout, as red-shirt freshman Ryan Froese lost to OU’s Joe Comparin, 10-5. Froese outscored Comparin in the second period, but could not overcome a 6-1 first-period deficit. The other match of the dual meet that the wrestling world was watching closely saw No. 2 Teyon Ware and No. 6 Andy Simmons face off at 141 lbs. Simmons was down 4-2 in the third period, when his previously injured knee was tweaked the wrong way, causing him to default the match. “One of the reasons we wrestle elite teams like Oklahoma is so guys like Nick and Andy Simmons can go up against the best,” head coach Tom Minkel said. “We have a pretty good team, but they are very strong, and that is the type of program you have to compete against if you want to be a national champion.” MSU got six points right back as Darren McKnight took a forfeit at 149 lbs., narrowing the OU advantage to 15-6. In his final home match as a Spartan, senior Matt McCarty dropped the decision at 157 lbs. to Charles Jones, 7-2. McCarty heads to his final Big Ten Championships with 40 career victories. The Clarksville, Tenn., native set career highs in falls and technical falls for the 2004-05 season. Oklahoma extended its lead back to 12 following the 165-pound match as senior Randy Sulaver defeated red-shirt freshman Bryan Harney, 4-2. Harney trailed by just one point for the majority of the third period, but could not take Sulaver down to win the match. Boudro got Michigan State back on the winning track, defeating Brad Martens by major decision, 18-5. Boudro was leading 2-0 going into the third period, when he went on a tear, recording six takedowns and three near-fall points. The 18-point performance is the most points by Boudro since he scored 24 in a technical fall over Eastern Michigan’s Ben Best on Nov. 30. Boudro finishes the regular season 16-5, going 7-2 in dual meets and pacing the team with three technical falls. Once again wrestling up two weight classes for the injured Joe Williams, MSU’s Greg Goidosik lost the 184-pound match by fall to No. 16 Justin Dyer at the 4:54 mark. At 197 lbs., No. 17 Joel Flaggert proved to be too much for MSU junior Jeff Clemens, winning by major decision, 10-2. The final match of the night proved to be one of the most entertaining as Max Lossen hung with No. 14 Jake Hager at 285 lbs., but lost, 3-1. The match was tied at one for the majority of the third period, but Hager scored a takedown with less than 30 seconds remaining in the match to claim the victory. The Spartan grapplers return to action next weekend, March 5-6 at the 2005 Big Ten Championships in Iowa City, Iowa. The top six wrestlers in each weight class will then advance to the NCAA Championships March 17-19 in St. Louis, Mo. 125 lbs.- Sam Hazewinkel
(OU) def. Nick Simmons, 2-0
No. 5 Michigan Tops No.
16/19 Spartan Wrestling, 34-8 EAST LANSING, Mich. - Wrestling against his former team, junior R.J. Boudro picked up an electrifying, overtime victory at 174 pounds as the No. 16/19 Michigan State wrestling team (7-5-1 overall, 4-3-1 Big Ten) wrapped up its conference dual meet season with a loss to No. 5 Michigan, 34-8, Friday night, Feb. 18 at Jenison Field House. "Michigan is a very strong team that's currently challenging for the Big Ten title," said head coach Tom Minkel. "Not that we are looking for excuses, but this team has been plagued the past couple of weeks by the flu bug. Additionally, two of our top wrestlers, Andy Simmons and Joe Williams, are out with injuries. Right now, we are just looking to get healthy for the Big Ten Championships in two weeks." No. 4 Nick Simmons got back to his winning ways in the opening match of the night at 125 lbs., defeating Jim Shutich by technical fall, 15-0, at the 4:19 mark of the match. Simmons scored a takedown early in match, and then rolled off 13 near-fall points to give MSU a 5-0 lead. The victory was Simmons' 24th of the season, and second technical fall win of the year. He improves to 10-1 in dual meets, and finishes the Big Ten season with a 6-1 record. Simmons outscored his conference opponents, 60-4, in 2005. At 133 lbs., Michigan answered with a huge win of its own, as No. 18 Mark Moos defeated red-shirt freshman Ryan Froese by major decision, 15-1. No. 3 Josh Churella picked up another major decision for U-M at 141 lbs., defeating sophomore Tony Greathouse, 15-6. Greathouse was filling in for the injured Andy Simmons. The Wolverines went up 11-5 after four matches, as No. 7 Eric Tannenbaum defeated No. 14 Darren McKnight at 149 lbs., 8-4. 2003 NCAA Champion Ryan Bertin recorded the fall at 1:19 of the first period in the 157-pound bout, topping senior Matt McCarty. 2004 All-American Josh Churella won the fifth-straight match of the meet for U-M, as he notched a technical fall, 15-0, over Bryan Harney at 165 lbs. In a thrilling match at 174 lbs., No 14 Boudro defeated his former teammate, No. 12 Nick Roy, in sudden victory, 3-1. Boudro trailed 1-0 going into the final period of the match, but got the escape to tie the match at the end of regulation. Forty seconds into the overtime period, Boudro scored the match-winning takedown to claim his 15th win of the season. Boudro finishes the conference season 5-1, and has lost only once since Jan. 15. Bumping up two weight classes and wrestling for the injured Joe Williams, red-shirt freshman Greg Goidosik dropped the decision at 184 lbs., 6-0. In another match that came down to the final seconds, No. 17 Willie Breyer claimed the decision over Spartan junior Jeff Clemens at 197 lbs., 7-6. Late in the third period, it appeared that Clemens scored a reversal to claim the one-point victory, but time expired before the two points were awarded, and the Wolverines took a 28-8 lead in the meet. The final match of the night came at heavyweight, where junior Max Lossen hung with No. 3 Greg Wagner for the majority of the match, but was eventually pinned by the Wolverine All-American at 6:19 of the match. The Spartans will wrap-up their regular season next Friday, Feb. 25 when the No. 7 Oklahoma Sooners come to town. Start time is scheduled for 7 p.m. 125 lbs.- Nick Simmons (MSU)
def. Jim Shutich TF, 15-0, 4:19 MSU, 5-0 Attendance: 3,349
No. 19 Indiana Defeats
An Injured, BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - No. 15 Darren McKnight claimed his 28th victory of the season, and seventh win in eight matches as an injured Michigan State wrestling team (7-4-1 overall, 4-2-1 Big Ten), marred by the flu, fell to No. 19 Indiana, 33-4, at University Gymnasium on Saturday, Feb. 12. The meet kicked off at 125 lbs., with the featured match of the afternoon between No. 3 Nick Simmons and No. 5 Joe Dubuque. Simmons dropped his first match of the season, 6-4, as IU took the early lead. The Spartans dropped another close decision in the 133-pound bout. Ryan Froese trailed IU's Brian Dyer by one point for most of the third period, but could not capture the match-winning takedown. The Hoosiers took a 10-0 lead after No. 12 Mike Simpson defeated Tony Greathouse at 141 lbs. The match was Greathouse's second dual appearance of the season. McKnight got the Green and White its lone victory, defeating Cameron Sakon by major decision, 17-9. McKnight was up 5-4 heading into the third period, when he rolled off five takedowns and an escape to claim the eight-point victory. The win was McKnight's 28th of the season, putting him back in first place on the team in that category. He also improved to 6-1 in the Big Ten and picked up his ninth dual-meet win of the season. MSU again trailed by 10 points following the 157-pound bout, when No. 16 Brandon Becker claimed a major decision over freshman Justin Mora, 13-4. Attempting to comeback from three points down in the third period, Bryan Harney gave up a late takedown and dropped the decision to Max Dean at 165 lbs., 10-7. Filling in for a sick No. 15 R.J. Boudro, Greg Goidosik lost to No. 16 Brady Richardson at 174 lbs., by major decision, 18-7. Battling a nagging injury, No. 18 Joe Williams defaulted early in his match against No. 19 Andy Rios, giving Indiana a 27-4 lead going into the final two matches In an exciting match at 197 lbs., junior Jeff Clemens narrowly dropped the decision to Josh Buuck, 11-10. Clemens was leading with 10 seconds remaining in the period, but gave up an escape to tie the match at the end of regulation. Buuck won by the point he received for accumulating two minutes of riding time throughout the match. In the final match of the afternoon, junior Max Lossen fell to IU's Dave Herman at 285 lbs., 4-2. Lossen sustained an attack throughout the third period, but couldn't quite finish several takedown opportunities that would have tied the match. Valuable Pontiac Challenge Cup points will be on the line when Michigan State returns to action Feb. 18 at Jenison Field House against intra-state rival Michigan at 7 p.m. EST. 125 - Joe Dubuque (IU)
def. Nick Simmons,6-4
Wrestling team falls at
Purdue, 20-13 WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Despite a tremendous win by red-shirt freshman Ryan Froese at 133 pounds, the No. 11 Michigan State wrestling team (7-3-1 overall, 4-0-1 Big Ten) fell to Purdue, 20-13, Friday night (Feb. 11) at Mackey Arena. The match got started at 157 lbs., where freshman Justin Mora made his dual meet debut for the Spartans. Mora lost the match by technical fall to Colton Salazar, 23-7. MSU fell behind 8-0 after the 165-pound match. Despite being tied at the end of regulation, Bryan Harney dropped the decision to John DeCeault, 5-4. The difference proved to be the point DeCeault received for over two minutes of riding time. No. 15 R.J. Boudro got the Michigan State its first victory of the evening at 174 lbs., defeating Dan Bedoy, 4-1. Boudro outscored Bedoy in each of the final two periods to improve his record to 14-5 on the season. Battling a knee injury, No. 18 Joe Williams dropped the decision to No. 15 Ben Wissel at 197 lbs., 9-5. In a hard-fought match at 197 lbs., Jeff Clemens narrowly fell to No. 16 Nathan Moore, 2-0, putting the Boilermakers up 14-3 at the intermission. Spartan junior Max Lossen fell to Jake O'Brien, 7-6, in the 285-pound bout, to give PU a 14-point lead. No. 3 Nick Simmons put the Spartans back on the board at 125 lbs., defeating Brandon Tucker by major decision, 10-0. Simmons remained undefeated at 23-0, including a team-best nine major decisions. He has not given up a point in five-straight matches, and has shutout each of his five Big Ten opponents this year. In the 16 matches that Simmons has not recorded a fall over his opponent, he has defeated them by a combined score of 129-11. The most exciting match of the night came at 133 lbs., where Ryan Froese knocked off Purdue's Sean Schmaltz by sudden victory, 4-2. With the match tied in the final seconds, it appeared that Schmaltz had taken Froese down, but the referee waved off his initial signal, and the match went to overtime. In overtime, Froese continued his attack throughout, and scored the match-winning takedown in the closing moments. Froese improved to 11-10, and 3-3 in the Big Ten. The sudden victory was his second of the season, the first coming at the North Carolina Open against Curry Pickard of UNC-Pembroke. No. 4 Andy Simmons narrowed the PU lead to 17-13 heading into the final match with a victory over Ben Sprunger at 141 lbs., 6-4. Simmons tallied two takedowns in the first period and one in the second to claim his 27th victory of the season. Simmons improved to 8-1 in dual meets this season, and 4-1 in the Big Ten. No. 15 Darren McKnight lost the final match of the meet by sudden victory to No. 9 Doug Withstandley, 6-4. The Spartans return to action Saturday, Feb. 12 when they clash with No. 19 Indiana in Bloomington, Ind. Match time is scheduled for 2 p.m. EST. 157- Colton Salazar (PU)
def. Justin Mora TF, 23-7 PU, 5-0
No. 14 Wrestling Edges No. 16 Northwestern, 20-15
Senior Matt McCarty wins the meet-clinching EAST LANSING, Mich. - Senior Matt McCarty held on for the victory at 157 pounds as the No. 14 Michigan State wrestling team (7-2-1 overall, 4-0-1 Big Ten) extended its unbeaten streak to six matches Sunday, Feb. 6 at Jenison Field House. Sophomore Tony Greathouse also came up with a huge victory for the Spartans at 141 lbs. in his dual meet season debut. “This team just continues to find a way to get it done,” said head coach Tom Minkel. “We have had at least one person come up huge every match, and today was no exception.” For the first time since Jan. 15 against Penn State, an MSU match started with someone other than Nick Simmons at 125 lbs. Kicking off the dual for the Spartans was Bryan Harney at 165 lbs. With the match tied at 1-1 in the third period, Harney gave up a late takedown to senior Mike Kimberlin, who held on for the victory, 3-2. Northwestern went up 6-0, when No. 3 Jake Herbert defeated No. 17 R.J. Boudro, 6-2, in the 174-pound bout, to remain undefeated on the season. Despite a late charge, redshirt freshman No. 18 Joe Williams could not overcome an early deficit and lost to No. 16 Mike Tamillow, 10-5, at 184 lbs. Similar to the 165-pound match, No. 18 Matt Delguyd scored a late takedown on MSU’s Jeff Clemens at 197 lbs. and claimed the decision, 6-5. Going into the intermission, the Spartans trailed 15-0, as Max Lossen dropped the 285-pound match to No. 16 Dustin Fox, 6-3. Michigan State got on the board at 125 lbs., as No. 3 Nick Simmons took a forfeit, narrowing the NU lead to 15-6. Simmons remains undefeated on the season at 22-0. Ryan Froese picked up a huge win for the Spartans at 133 lbs., as he notched a major decision, 13-5, over Jordan Brown. Froese totaled five takedowns, and a reversal as time expired to get four points for the Green and White. Froese improves to 10-10 on the season and now has four dual meet victories. The Spartans continued their charge as Greathouse defeated Daniel Quintela, 5-2, in a thrilling match at 141 lbs. Despite numerous scrambles throughout the first two periods, the match was still scoreless with 30 seconds remaining in the third. Greathouse reversed Quintela, and put him to his back to score three near-fall points late in the period. The victory further narrowed the Wildcat lead to 15-13 with two matches remaining. For Greathouse, Sunday was his first dual meet of the season. He is now 9-6, wrestling at both 133 lbs. and 141 lbs. No. 15 Darren McKnight gave MSU its first lead of the dual, as he scored the major decision over Jimmy Kim, 16-5. McKnight tallied four takedowns in the first period, one in the second and two in the third as he improved to 5-0 in the Big Ten. He is now unbeaten in his past six outings. McKnight’s 27 wins now puts him in sole possession of first place on the team in that category. For the second-straight time, the dual meet was not decided until the final match. This time, the hero proved to be the senior McCarty. Going into the final period, McCarty trailed to Greg Hagel, 1-0, but held him down for the entire two minutes of the second to acquire riding time. McCarty scored an escape in the third, and with the riding time, won the match 2-1. The victory gave the Spartans the dual meet win, 20-15. McCarty improved to 13-12 on the season with the victory. Michigan State returns to action next Friday, Feb. 11, when they travel to West Lafayette, Ind., to clash with Purdue. Match time is 7 p.m. EST.
165- Mike Kimberlin (NU) def. Bryan
Harney 3-2 NU, 3-0
Spartans tie No. 12 Wisconsin, 16-16
Juniors Jeff Clemens and Max Lossen come up big MADISON, Wisc.- No. 18 Michigan State wrestling (6-2-1 overall, 3-0-1 Big Ten) received two huge victories from juniors Jeff Clemens and Max Lossen down the stretch to come from six points behind in the final two matches to tie No. 14 Wisconsin, 16-16. Darren McKnight also picked up another big victory for MSU, beating his second top 15 opponent of the weekend. “This was one heck of a dual meet,” said head coach Tom Minkel. “Wisconsin has a tough team and their arena is a very hostile place to wrestle. There were some upsets, so some of our guys had to step up big. But that is the nature of this team. They work as a team, not a bunch of individuals.” MSU is now unbeaten in its last five meets (4-0-1), dating back to Jan. 15 against Penn State. For the fourth-straight meet, sophomore No. 3 Nick Simmons got the Spartans out to an early lead at 125 pounds. Simmons has not given up a point in four matches, as he rolled to a 12-0 victory over Collin Cudd. Simmons scored two takedowns and five near-fall points en route to his 22nd victory of the season. In the 14 of his 22 matches that have gone the entire seven minutes this season, Simmons has outscored his opponents 120-11. Wisconsin scored the next seven points of the meet, as defending Big Ten champion No. 6 Tom Clum, defeated Ryan Froese by major decision, 19-9, at 133 pounds, and No. 12 Tyler Laudon handed No. 3 Andy Simmons his second loss of the season, a 5-4 sudden victory decision, in the 141-pound match. No. 19 McKnight picked up yet another huge victory for MSU as he defeated No. 14 Craig Henning at 149 pounds, 8-7. With the match tied at 6-6, McKnight scored a takedown with just over a minute left in regulation to secure his team leading 26th victory of the season. McKnight improves to 4-0 in the Big Ten after his two victories over wrestlers ranked ahead of him this weekend. On Friday, McKnight defeated No. 11 C.J. Schlatter of Minnesota, 10-9. The Badgers took a 13-7 lead, winning the 157- and 165-pound bouts. No. 12 Tyler Turner downed senior Matt McCarty, 9-3, at 157 pounds, and Jake Donar notched the 8-2 decision over Bryan Harney at 165 pounds. No. 19 R.J. Boudro narrowed the UW lead to three, as he scored the decision over No. 16 Kelly Flaherty, 11-4, at 174 pounds. Boudro scored seven unanswered points to start the match, and cruised to his 13th victory of the season. No. 9 Brad Reinke for Wisconsin remained undefeated on the season, defeating No. 17 Joe Williams, 10-7, at 184 pounds. Clemens scored the upset victory at 197 pounds over No. 14 Ryan Flaherty, 14-8, to keep the Green and White alive in the meet. Clemens scored six takedowns, three of them in the second period, and scored his highest total points since Nov. 30 at Eastern Michigan. Clemens’ two victories on the weekend improve his record to 13-11 overall and 2-2 in the conference. State received a clutch performance from Lossen at 285 lbs., to tie the match at 16-16. Lossen scored four takedowns, his highest total since the MSU Open, Nov. 21, to defeat Lee Kraemer, 10-6. Lossen now has 14 wins on the season, and is 2-2 in the Big Ten. The Spartans wrestle again Feb. 6, at Jenison Field House, when they take on Northwestern at 1 p.m. EST. 125
lbs.- Nick Simmons (MSU) def. Collin Cudd, MD 12-0, MSU 4-0
MSU wrestling team
drills No. 4 Minnesota, 28-14 MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - Led by No. 19 Darren McKnight’s upset of No. 11 C.P. Schlatter at 149 pounds, the No. 18 Michigan State wrestling team (6-2 overall, 3-0 Big Ten) defeated No. 7 Minnesota at the UM Sports Pavilion on Jan. 28. MSU won four of the first five matches, and seven out of 10 matches overall to remain undefeated in the Big Ten. The victory gives the Spartans a 3-0 record in the conference, their best start to the Big Ten season since the 1984-85 campaign. “This was yet another tremendous victory for our team as a whole,” said head coach Tom Minkel. “Nick (Simmons) got the ball rolling for us with his big victory, and Darren (McKnight) gave us a boost with his upset victory at 149 pounds. We are going to enjoy this victory tonight, then get back to work tomorrow.” The meet started with the highly anticipated match-up between No. 3 Nick Simmons and No. 5 Bobbe Lowe at 125 lbs. Simmons easily took the match, 9-0, to give State a 4-0 lead in the meet, and improve his record on the season to a perfect 21-0. The shutout was Simmons’ eighth of the season, and seventh major decision of the 2004-05 campaign. The Golden Gophers tied the score at 4-4 at 133 lbs., as No. 3 Mack Reiter notched a major decision over redshirt freshman Ryan Froese, 12-1. No. 3 Andy Simmons got MSU back on the winning track, taking out Quincy Osborn in shutout fashion, 4-0, at 141 lbs. Simmons is now 26-1 on the season and 7-0 in dual meet competition. Like his brother Nick, Andy Simmons has eight shutout wins after Friday night’s victory. The only other time this season that both Simmons brothers notched shutout victories in the same dual meet was against Penn State on Jan. 15. MSU received a huge spark from their junior captain McKnight with his upset victory, 10-9, giving the Green and White a 10-4 dual meet lead through four matches. McKnight took Schlatter down with less than 10 second remaining for the decision. With the win, McKnight kept pace with Andy Simmons for the team lead in victories as he notched his 25th win of the season. With the win, McKnight remained undefeated in Big Ten dual meets, improving to 3-0. Matt McCarty gave State their third-straight win, as the senior captured a 6-0 decision over Nik Lentz at 157 lbs. McCarty moved over .500 with the win, improving his record to 12-11. His sixth shutout of the season also proved to be his first Big Ten victory of the year. UM got back on the board at 165 lbs., as No. 10 Matt Nagel pinned Bryan Harney at the 1:31 mark of the first period, narrowing the MSU lead to 13-10. But, No. 19 R.J. Boudro got six points right back for the Spartans, as he notched the fall over Jeremy Larson at 3:56 of the match. The pin was Boudro’s second of the season, as he improved his record to 12-4. No. 17 Joe Williams made it two-straight pins, as he notched the fall at 4:28, beating Jason Waidzulis in the 184-pound bout. Williams, who is 22-4 on the season and 6-1 in dual meets, tallied his fifth pin of the season. Jeff Clemens picked up his first Big Ten victory of the season as well, as he defeated Jon Duncombe, 11-7, at 197 lbs. Clemens moves to 12-11 overall and 4-4 in dual meets. UM’s No. 2 Cole Konrad ended the meet with a major decision over Max Lossen, 14-2. The Spartans return to action Sunday, Jan. 30, as they take on No. 14 Wisconsin, in Madison, at 2 p.m.
125 - Nick Simmons (MSU) def. Bobbe Lowe, MD 9-0
Spartans stomp Ohio State, 27-13
Ryan Froese and Bryan Harney pick up EAST LANSING, Mich. - Redshirt freshmen Bryan Harney and Ryan Froese recorded their first career Big Ten dual meet victories to help lead the No. 20 Michigan State wrestling team over Ohio State Sunday, Jan. 23, at Jenison Field House. The Green and White took six of the 10 matches, winning 27-16, and improved its Big Ten record to 2-0.. “This was another good Big Ten victory for our team,” said MSU head coach Tom Minkel. “We knew coming into the meet that there were going to be some tough matches, and we that we needed to get some falls and other big wins to beat them. Ryan Froese and Bryan Harney led the way for us in doing that.” Once again, No. 3 Nick Simmons got the Spartans off to a quick start at 125 lbs., pinning Nathan Costello at the 1:43 mark of the match. Already up 5-0, Simmons put Costello in a cradle, and to his back for his seventh fall of the season and 31st of his career. Simmons is now 20-0 on the season and 6-0 in dual meets. In an upset at 133 lbs., Froese captured his first career Big Ten victory by defeating No. 15 T.J. Enright by default. When Ohio State head coach Russ Hellickson stopped the match at 1:10 of the third period, Froese was up 5-0, scoring a pair of takedowns and an escape. The win improves Froese’s record to 9-8 on the season, and gave MSU a 12-0 lead after two matches. At 141 lbs., No. 3 Andy Simmons defeated Jason Johnstone, 6-2, for his team-leading 25th victory of the season. Simmons scored a takedown in each of the first two periods, and was less than a minute away from his eighth shutout of the season before conceding a reversal. Simmons is now a perfect 6-0 in dual meets and 2-0 in Big Ten duals this season. In a hard-fought match at 149 lbs., No. 19 Darren McKnight scored a takedown late in the third period to defeat Steve Wolery, 6-5, and give the Spartans their fourth-straight decision of the afternoon. Behind 4-3 heading into the third period, McKnight out-scored Wolery 3-1 for his 24th victory of the season. MSU’s winning streak ended at 157 lbs., where senior Matt McCarty dropped the decision to Keegan Mueller, 7-2. Harney shifted the momentum back State’s way with a fall just 1:09 into the first period against John Vogel at 165 lbs. After scoring a takedown just seconds into the match, Harney put Vogel in a cradle similar to the one Nick Simmons used at 125 lbs., to claim his 13th victory and fifth fall of the season. Stepping in for the injured R.J. Boudro at 174 lbs., redshirt freshman Greg Goidosik was pinned by Nathan Augustson at 4:55 of the match. No. 17 Joe Williams secured the dual meet victory for the Spartans with his 6-1 decision over Alex Picazo at 184 lbs. Williams scored a takedown in the first and the third period to help improve his record to 21-4 on the season. Ohio State’s No. 4 J.D. Bergman defeated junior Jeff Clemens at 197 lbs., by major decision, 10-2, to narrow the MSU advantage to 27-13. At 285 lbs., OSU’s Kirk Nail was awarded a stalling point with less than 10 seconds remaining in the match and edged junior Max Lossen, 2-1. The Spartans return to action next Friday, Jan. 28, when they take on Minnesota in Minneapolis. The match is scheduled for 7 p.m. EST, and will be aired on Fox Sports North.
125 lbs.- Nick Simmons (MSU) pinned Nathan Costello, Fall, 1:43, MSU 6-0
No. 20 Spartan wrestling team takes down Kent State, 36-7
Max Lossen picks up
his second-straight EAST LANSING, Mich.- Behind Max Lossen’s second thrilling victory in as many matches, the Michigan State wrestling team (4-2, 1-0) crushed the Kent State Golden Flashes, 36-7, on Friday night, Jan. 21, at Jenison Field House. MSU took the first five decisions, and eight out of ten matches overall to claim their fourth victory of the season. “This was another big win for the team to get heading into the dual against Ohio State on Sunday,” said head coach Tom Minkel. “Kent State has been plagued by injuries, but I still think we wrestled well tonight,” Minkel said. “It is also nice to see Max (Lossen) get another big win to boost his confidence. He beat a very good wrestler tonight.” The Spartans got out to a quick 6-0 lead when No. 3 Nick Simmons took a forfeit at 125 pounds. At 133 lbs., redshirt freshman Ryan Froese notched his second career dual meet victory defeating Mike Compton by major decision, 13-4. Froese notched a pair of takedowns in each period, and added a riding time point to improve his record to 8-8 on the season. The nine-point win was Froese’s first major decision of the season. No. 3 Andy Simmons made short work of KSU’s Mike Pierce at 141 lbs., recording his 10th fall of the season at the 2:48 mark of the match. Simmons was leading the match 4-0 before recording the fall. He improves to 24-1 on the season and a perfect 5-0 in dual meets. The Spartans continued their domination at 149 lbs., where No. 19 Darren McKnight recorded a technical fall over Andrew Delamarte early in the second period, 17-2. McKnight scored a total of 15 points in the opening period of the match, including three takedowns and nine near fall points. McKnight improves to 23-8 on the season, and 4-2 in dual meets. The technical fall is his first of the season. The Green and White claimed their fifth-straight decision when senior Matt McCarty claimed his first dual meet victory of the season, defeating Kirk Gross, 8-1, at 157 lbs. All the points of the match were accounted for in the first period, as McCarty notched a takedown and five near fall points. He added a riding time point and improves to 11-10 on the season. The Spartans’ five match winning streak ended at 165 lbs., where Bryan Harney dropped the decision to senior Nick Brenner, 7-0. In his first match in five weeks, redshirt freshman Greg Goidosik was defeated by Kent State’s Aaron Miller by major decision at 174 lbs., 10-2. MSU got back on the winning track behind No. 17 Joe Williams’ 20th victory of the season at 184 lbs. Williams recorded State’s second fall of the evening, pinning Ardian Ramadini at 2:01. The fall was Williams’ fourth of the season. He improves to 4-1 in dual meet competition. At 197 lbs., Jeff Clemens tallied his first dual meet victory since Dec. 11, beating senior Nick Hiler, 7-3. Clemens recorded a two-point move in each of the three periods, as well as a point for riding time, to improve to 11-10 on the season and 3-3 in dual meet matches. The meet’s final match of the evening proved to be the night’s most exciting, as Max Lossen picked up his second dual meet victory in as many tries with a sudden victory decision over Willie Leonard, 4-2. Down 1-0 after two periods, Lossen reversed Leonard in the third, but Leonard soon escaped to leave the match tied at 2-2 at the end of regulation. Lossen persevered in the extra session, and took down Leonard for his second overtime win of the season. Lossen improves to 13-12 on the season. The Spartans return to action Sunday, Jan. 23, when they take on the Ohio State Buckeyes at Jenison Field House. The match is scheduled for 1 p.m. EST.
125 lbs.- Nick Simmons wins by forfeit
Spartans top No. 15
Penn State, 19-12 Jan. 15, 2005 EAST LANSING, Mich. - Junior Max Lossen's first career dual meet victory at 285 pounds propelled the Michigan State wrestling team to a 19-12 victory against Penn State Saturday at Jenison Field House. The Spartans' win moves their record to 3-2 overall and 1-0 in the Big Ten season. State took the meet victory, winning six of the final eight matches of the evening. "Penn State is a good team and this win just kind of validates everything we have been doing all season," said head coach Tom Minkel. "Right now, the team believes in each other and is wrestling with confidence. This is a huge win for us to open the Big Ten season with." The meet started with a highly anticipated match-up at 184 lbs. between No. 6 Eric Bradley and No. 18 Joe Williams. The first two periods were very defense-oriented, with difference in the match being a Bradley escape in the second period after choosing the down position. In the third, Williams scored an escape point early, but was quickly taken down by Bradley and wrestled the rest of the match from behind. The defending Big Ten champion claimed a 5-2 decision, and gave the Nittany Lions an early 3-0 lead. At 197 lbs., junior Jeff Clemens was shutout by PSU's Joel Edwards, 5-0. Edwards scored a takedown in each of the first two periods, and controlled Clemens for the majority of the match. The 285 lbs. match was an exciting, physically grueling match that saw Lossen, a junior, win his first dual meet match of his career, 4-3, over C.J. Wonsettler. Trailing by two points in the final minute, Lossen scored an escape and a takedown, then held Wonsettler down for the final eight seconds of the period to claim his 12th victory of the season. The victory also put the Spartans on the board, cutting Penn State's lead in the meet, 6-3. No. 3 Nick Simmons remained undefeated on the season, defeating No. 15 Adam Smith by major decision at 125 lbs., 8-0. Simmons notched a takedown in each period, as well as and escape in the second and riding time to claim his seventh shut out victory of the season. The Spartan All-American is now 19-0 overall, and 5-0 in dual meet matches. The victory also put the Green and White in the lead, 7-6, after four matches. PSU reclaimed the lead, 9-7, after the 133-pound match. Redshirt freshman Ryan Froese dropped the decision to Bryan Heller, 9-2. No. 3 Andy Simmons added to his team-leading 23rd victory of the season by defeating No. 17 DeWitt Driscoll, 5-0. Simmons scored an early takedown in the first period, and added another in the third period en route to his fourth dual meet match win and his sixth shutout victory of the season. The win also put MSU back in front for the meet, 10-9, with four matches remaining. Michigan State extended its lead to 13-9 behind the wrestling of No. 17 Darren McKnight at 149 lbs. McKnight scored a total of six takedowns, and added a point for riding time in a 13-7 victory over Jack Decker. The win was the junior captain's 22nd of the year. At 157, senior Matt McCarty made a late run scoring three points in the final seconds, but he couldn't upset No. 9 Nathan Galloway. With the match tied at 6-6 after regulation, riding time proved to be the different as Galloway took the decision, 7-6. Redshirt freshman Bryan Harney picked up the first Big Ten dual meet victory of his career, defeating Steve Troup, 9-6. Harney notched a takedown in each of the first two periods, then two more in the third to win his 12th match of the season. The Chicago, Ill., native claimed his first dual meet victory since Nov. 30 at Eastern Michigan. The meet came down to the final match of the evening at 174 lbs., where R.J. Boudro held on to defeat James Yonushonis, 6-5. Boudro improves to 11-4 on the season.
184- Eric Bradley (PSU) def. Joe Williams Dec., 5-2 PSU, 3-0 Attendance: 1,252
Wrestling falls at No.
1 Oklahoma State, 28-9 Jan. 13, 2005 STILLWATER, Okla. - The Michigan State wrestling team dropped a tough, 28-9 decision Thursday night, Jan. 13, falling to two-time defending national champion and No. 1 ranked Oklahoma State. The Spartans picked up victories from Nick Simmons at 125 pounds, Andy Simmons at 141 lbs. and Joe Williams at 184 lbs. "It is really valuable for our team to come down here and wrestle in the hostile environment found at Gallagher-Iba Arena," said head coach Tom Minkel. "We had a tough time getting to Stillwater, dealing with weather issues, but we recovered well, wrestled hard and represented Michigan State University well." The team was forced to travel to Detroit after their flight out of Lansing was cancelled early Wednesday due to fog conditions. The Spartans then got caught in the massive pile-up on Interstate 96 on the way to the Detroit Metro Airport. The team arrived at the Oklahoma State campus just hours before the scheduled match time Thursday. The Cowboys got off to a quick 7-0 start behind victories from No. 3 Johny Hendricks at 165 lbs. and No. 1 Chris Pendleton at 174 lbs. The Redshirt freshman Williams claimed the Spartans first victory of the night at 184 lbs., defeating Clay Kehrer, 4-2. The win was Williams' 19 of the season. A pair of No. 1 ranked wrestlers put OSU up 16-3 half way through the meet as Jake Rosholt defeated Jeff Clemens 10-3 at 197 lbs., and Steve Mocco pinned Max Lossen at 1:03 in the 285 bout. After falling behind by a 5-0 score early to Coleman Scott at 125 lbs., No. 3 Nick Simmons battled back to claim a 6-5 decision. He scored a reverse at the end of first period and an escape in the second period, putting the score at 5-3 in favor of Scott heading into the final session. In the third, Simmons was able to score two near fall points and hold Scott down for the remainder of the match, claiming the win on riding time. Simmons improves to 18-0 on the season heading into the Big Ten dual meet season. No. 3 Andy Simmons persevered after falling behind early in the match to defeat Daniel Frishkorn, 5-2. Simmons remains undefeated in dual meets this season and is now 22-1 on the year. Oklahoma State won three of the final four matches of the night, as Nathan Morgan recorded a technical fall over Ryan Froese at 133 lbs., No. 1 Zack Esposito defeated No. 19 Darren McKnight at 149 lbs. and Kevin Ward claimed the decision over Matt McCarty, 6-2. The Spartans return to action Saturday, Jan. 15, as they take on their first Big Ten opponent of the season, the Penn State Nittany Lions, at Jenison Field House. Scheduled start time it 7 p.m. EST.
No. 1 Oklahoma State 28, Michigan State 9
Nick Simmons Wins
Midlands Championships, Andy Simmons, Darren McKnight, R.J. Boudro and Joe Williams also earned medals. EVANSTON, IL - Five Michigan State wrestlers captured medals at the 42nd Midlands Championships to give the Green and White a fifth place finish at Northwestern University Thursday. The spectacular wrestling of sophomore Nick Simmons (125 pounds), who won his first Midlands title without giving up a point during the two day tournament, led the Spartan squad. Andy Simmons also had an impressive outing, taking second place in the 141-pound weight class. R.J. Boudro (174 lbs.), Darren McKnight (149 lbs.) and Joe Williams (184 lbs.) all brought home medals as well. "This is the best outing I have seen from our team in a long time," said head coach Tom Minkel. "Nick (Simmons) led the way for us with another impressive performance, winning his first Midlands title, but we also received terrific contributions from other guys who didn't place. This is definitely something good to build on heading into the dual meet season." No. 3 Nick Simmons finished a dominating championship performance, beating No. 16 Grant Nakamura of Iowa State by major decision, 10-0. Simmons reached the final, winning his semifinal match by disqualification over No. 8 Ben Hochstrasser of Boise State. Simmons' two victories Thursday capped a perfect 5-0 performance, as he gave up no points in five matches. After a pin in the first round, he won his next four matches, including two over top 10 opponents, by a combined score of 25-0. Simmons improves to 15-0 in his sophomore season. No. 4 Andy Simmons lost a heart-breaking, triple-overtime decision to No. 1 Nate Gallick of Iowa State, 4-2, in the tournament final at 141 lbs. The match was tied at two going into the third overtime, where Gallick hit a reversal on Simmons to claim the victory. Simmons reached the final with a fall over Max Meltzer, wrestling unattatched, in the semifinals. Simmons finished the tournament 4-1 and is now 20-1 on the season. Boudro captured sixth place at 174 lbs. with a 4-3 record for the tournament, wrestling the most matches of any Spartan. He lost close matches to No. 7 Mitch Hancock of Central Michigan, 2-1, and Illinois' Pete Friedl, ranked No. 5, 6-3. Because of a nagging knee injury, Boudro took a medical forfeit in his final match against Nick Passolano of Iowa State. Williams took seventh place with a 2-1 record Thursday. In a thrilling match, he defeated Christian Sinnott in overtime, 3-1. After a tough loss to No. 18 Ed Magrys of Eastern Michigan, 7-3, Williams beat Adam Picazo of Ohio State by major decision, 12-4, in the seventh-place match. He improves to 17-3 in his redshirt freshman season. McKnight finished the tournament with a 3-3 record, good for eighth at 149 lbs. He clinched a medal berth in his first match day Thursday by defeating Aaron Scott of Iowa State, 5-3. McKnight lost his final two matches, first to Jeff Harrison of Northern Iowa, 7-0, then to Jermaine Thompson of Eastern Michigan in the seventh-place match, 3-2. McKnight now leads the team in victories on the season, with a record of 21-7. The Spartan wrestling team returns to action Jan. 6, at 8 p.m., when it takes on No. 1 Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla. | ||||||
