The Badger wrestling squad had a small break after the Midland’s Tournament held over the holiday break. Their return to competition brought them to perhaps the most stacked part of their schedule. They dove headfirst into the heart of their Big Ten dual schedule when they traveled to Minnesota to face the then No. 3 ranked Gophers.
The meet started at 174, making 184 the first ranked matchup of the night. Wisconsin’s No. 13 Johnny Sebastian lost a close 3–1 decision to Minnesota’s No. 17 Owen Webster.
No. 5 Trent Hillger faced Gopher No. 2 Gable Steveson, the current NCAA title favorite in his weight class, where Gable put on a takedown clinic. Steveson won 10-5 to the favor of five takedowns.
A new addition to the Badgers lineup was freshman Eric Barnett, whose redshirt was pulled in December. A blue chip recruit from Hortonville, Barnett had a hard introduction into Big Ten wrestling. Thirteenth ranked Patrick McKee bested Barnett with a 9-0 major decision. Barnett will look forward to avenging this loss at the Big Ten Tournament, and should be a significant point contributor to the Badger lineup moving forward.
Wrestling: Catching up with Wisconsin as they begin conference play
After five matches, the Badgers found themselves in a serious hole, as they were down 17–0. Seth Gross looked to right the ship in a return to his home state. Ranked first in the nation in his weight class, Gross managed to secure a tech-fall to get the Badgers back on track.
The 141 pound match was the marquee matchup of the evening, as Badger and No. 9 ranked Tristan Moran took on an opponent who he battled with last year, No. 2 ranked Mitch McKee.
Last year, Moran pinned McKee in overtime when the Gophers traveled to Madison. McKee got his revenge in March when McKee defeated Moran at the NCAA tournament. Tristan Moran was better on that night, however, avenging his NCAA loss and winning 7–6.
In another ranked matchup, No. 12 Cole Martin took on Minnesota’s fourth ranked Brayton Lee, but lost 7–4. In the final match of the night, Evan Wick secured a 6–1 decision win. The Badgers lost the border battle 20-14.
The Badgers returned to Madison Jan. 12 for their first home Big Ten dual of the season against the then No. 5 ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers.
Barnett opened up the dual against a four time Iowa state champion and blue chip recruit, Alex Thomsen. Barnett showed his explosive nature, securing his second Field House pin in his second appearance.
Gross faced Nebraska’s No. 13 Ridge Lovett. Gross managed a major decision, shooting the Badgers out to a 10–0 lead against the Cornhuskers.
Wrestling: Wisconsin primed for strong season after new additions via recruitment, transfer portal
Moran was up against No. 6 Chad Red, his second top 10 opponent of the weekend. Moran showed he can score from anywhere with six of his nine points being off near fall points. Moran won a 9–4 decision to cap off an extraordinary weekend for the Badgers which secured him Big Ten Wrestler of the week honors.
Martin, not wanting to get upstaged, sent the Field House into a frenzy by securing the second Badger pin of the dual. Heading into 157, the Badgers had a 19–0 lead over the Cornhuskers.
At 165, No. 6 Wick faced No. 3 Isaiah White. Wick had a dominating performance, as he downed the Cornhusker 10–4.
Jared Krattiger and Tyler Dow both faced top 10 opponents at 174 and 184, respectively. Both wrestlers lost their highly ranked bouts. Taylor Watkins also lost his match at 197.
In the final match of the day, No. 5 Hillger faced No. 16 Christian Lance. Hillger secured the Badger victory with a 4–1 win. The Badgers downed the Cornhuskers 25–18.
Last Friday, the newly minted fourth ranked Badgers welcomed the third ranked Ohio State Buckeyes to the Field House. The scheduled matchups were with two ranked wrestlers at 133, 141, 149, 165, & HWT.
The action opened up at 125. Barnett secured an 8–6 decision to start the Badgers off the right way. No. 1 Gross faced Jordan Decatur who was ranked No. 20 for the Buckeyes. Gross got taken down three times but hardly let that affect him as he retaliated with a 15–6 major decision win.
Newly appointed No. 4 Moran faced a hard test against the nation’s best in the 141 weight class, Luke Pletcher. Pletcher showed why he’s the top dog in the country and downed Moran 11–3.
No. 12 Martin faced a tough opponent in the 149 pound bought with No. 6 Sammy Sasso. Sasso defeated Martin 12–3. After 157, the Badgers were down 7–11.
No. 4 Wick faced No. 12 Ethan Smith. Smith announced himself to the country last year against the Badgers when he was at 174, so Wick made sure to avenge that loss. Wick bested Smith 7–4 and put the Badgers back on track.
Wisconsin lost the next three matches, however. Krattiger lost a close 7–3 decision to No. 8 Kaleb Romero. Dow lost in a tech-fall to Rocky Jordan. True freshman Peter Christensen lost in a tech-fall to No. 1 in the country Kollin Moore.
No. 5 Hillger looked to end the dual on a good note. Trent did just that, and won the final match of the evening 6-0.
Though the Badgers lost the dual 24–13, they have a competitive lineup, and seem poised for a strong Big Ten dual season. The Badgers have a small break, and aren’t back in action until Jan. 31 against the Indiana Hoosiers. The Badgers’ next home dual will be Feb. 7 in the Field House against the current No. 2 ranked Penn State Nittany Lions, which is posed to be a fantastic dual.
