The UW wrestling team will look to reach .500 in the Big Ten and gain momentum for the Big Ten Championships as it takes on the Northwestern Wildcats (9-7, 0-6) Friday.
The match is the final dual meet of the season for the Badgers. The whistle will blow at 7 p.m. at the Field House.
The No. 13 Badgers (16-6, 3-4) come into the match on the heels of consecutive losses to Iowa and Michigan. Wisconsin will look for a repeat of last year’s 24-13 road victory against the Wildcats.
Sophomore Tom Clum will again find himself wrestling against a highly ranked opponent. Clum will take on John Velez (26-8) who currently holds a No. 14 ranking. Velez and Clum have both faced Luke Eustice.
Eustice defeated Velez 7-6 the first of two times they faced off this year. In their second meeting, Eustice prevailed with a pin.
Last week against Iowa, Clum battled Eustice to an overtime loss but controlled much of the match. Should Clum win his match, he will have finished the season with only one Big Ten loss while facing a highly ranked opponent in nearly every match.
At 165 pounds, Wisconsin will likely feature Kelly Flaherty in a match against Nick Hayes (11-5). Hayes has earned an honorable-mention status by Intermatwrestle.com and holds a 5-1 record against Big Ten opponents.
Another intriguing matchup on the night will come at 197 pounds, where Northwestern’s Matt Delguyd (22-6) faces off with Ryan Flaherty (18-9). The two find themselves both with honorable-mention rankings. Delguyd defeated Indiana’s Pat Degain earlier in the year by a 6-4 decision. Against Wisconsin, Degain caught Brady Reinke in the first period for a quick pin.
At 141 pounds, Tyler Laudon will hope to return to .500 in Big Ten competition. Last year, Laudon only managed one victory during the Big Ten season but finished fourth in the conference tournament.
At 165 and 197 pounds, Ryan and Kelly Flaherty will look to pick up their fifth win in Big Ten action. Of Kelly’s 14 overall victories this season, seven have come by technical fall.
Brady Reinker and freshman phenom Tyler Turner will also look to tack their fifth Big Ten victory of the season. Turner currently holds a 21-8 record and No. 19 ranking.
