Wrestling drops heartbreaker to No. 5 Minnesota, 18-16

Gomez, Cheza each extend win streaks

EAST LANSING, Mich., 1/22/10 - The Michigan State wrestling team went toe-to-toe with the fifth-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers on Friday (Jan. 22) night at Jenison Field House, but came up just short - falling 18-16. MSU is now 6-2-1 on the year while Minnesota improved to 6-4.

MSU led 16-12 heading into the final two matches of the night but the Gophers' sixteenth-ranked Sonny Yohn defeated Tyler Dickenson, 8-2, at 197 pounds and Ben Berhow gave Minnesota the win with a 10-3 decision over Alan O'Donnell in the heavyweight class.

"Our kids gave it everything they had tonight," said MSU head coach Tom Minkel. "We would have liked to have won that dual, and we were certainly within reach. But, there is no question every kid gave it 100% tonight."

Minnesota grabbed an early 6-0 lead when sixth-ranked Zach Sanders pinned MSU freshman Brennan Lyon in the first match of the night at 125 pounds.

No. 1 Franklin Gomez cut the Gopher lead to 6-4 when he got a 12-2 major decision over Thane Antczak. Gomez is now 13-0 this season and his winning streak improved to 27 consecutive, dating back to last season.

Spartan freshman Dan Osterman opened the 141 bout with a takedown of sixth-ranked Mike Thorn just over 15 seconds into the first period. However, Thorn recovered and scored the next eight points and got an 11-4 decision as the Gophers extended their lead to 9-4.

The Spartans then put together a three-bout winning streak that started wit David Cheza at 149 pounds. Cheza, ranked 13th in the nation, raced out to an 8-1 lead through two periods against No. 18 Mario Mason. Mason, however, came back and scored seven of the next 10 points to slice Cheza's lead to 10-8 with just 22 seconds left. Cheza was able to get a one-point escape to seal the win in the closing seconds.
With the score 9-7 Gophers, 157-pounderAnthony Jones Jr. battled Joe Grygelko in what turned out to be the match of the night. Through two periods, Grygelko scored the only point - on an escape - heading into the third period. Jones countered with his own escape point just four seconds into the third period to send the match into overtime. Just 39 seconds into OT, Jones finally solved Grygelko with a takedown to win, 3-1, and give MSU its first lead of the night, 10-9.

MSU's Kyle Bounds and the Gophers' Cody Yohn continued the action at 165 pounds with a seesaw battle that was decided in the final seconds. The two traded takedowns and escapes through the first two frames as the score was knotted at five heading into the third period. With under a minute left in the third, Bounds scored an escape to pull ahead, 9-7. Yohn then fought back with a reversal to tie it at nine, and then with just six seconds on the clock, Bounds escaped for a 10-9 win and boosted MSU's lead to 13-9.

The Gophers' No. 8 Scott Glasser ended the Spartans' run when defeated Ian Hinton, 8-2, at 174 pounds to cut the Spartan advantage to 13-12. MSU's Nick Palmieri then claimed the Spartans' final win of the night when he defeated Kaleb Young, 7-3, at 184 pounds to make the score 16-12 heading into the final two matches.

"I think it's important that we don't get down as Minnesota is one of the top-five teams in the country and were right there with them," Minkel said. "We've got to stay positive, improve on what we're doing and be ready on Sunday when Illinois rolls in."

MSU will return to action on Sunday (Jan. 24) when it hosts No. 19 Illinois at 1 p.m. at Jenison Field House.

Minnesota 18, Michigan State 16
125: No. 6 Zach Sanders pinned Brennan Lyon (3:59); Minnesota leads 6-0
133: No. 1 Franklin Gomez maj. dec. Thane Antczak, 12-2; Minnesota leads, 6-4
141: No. 6 Mike Thorn dec. Dan Osterman, 11-4; Minnesota leads, 9-4
149: No. 13 David Cheaz dec. No. 18 Mario Mason, 12-8; Minnesota leads, 9-7
157: Anthony Jones Jr. dec. Joe Grygelko, 3-1; MSU leads, 10-9
165: Kyle Bounds dec. Cody Yohn, 10-9; MSU leads, 13-9
174: No. 8 Scott Glasser dec. Ian Hinton, 8-2; MSU leads, 13-12
184: Nick Palmieri dec. Kaleb Young, 7-3; MSU leads, 16-12
197: No. 16 Sonny Yohn dec. Tyler Dickenson, 8-2; MSU leads, 16-15
HWT: Ben Berhow dec. Alan O'Donnell, 10-3; Minnesota wins, 18-16