No. 6 Nebraska runs off six straight wins and edges No. 7 Minnesota, 21-18
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by Nebraska and Minnesota Athletics
Nebraska's Tyler Berger dumps down Steve Bleise of Minnesota at 157 pounds. Photo by Mark Lundy, LutteLens.
Nebraska press release by Edward Stevens
Huskers Grind Out Win in Top 10 Battle with Gophers
Lincoln, Neb. – The No. 6 Nebraska Cornhuskers rebounded from Sunday’s defeat against Iowa with a come-from-behind 21-18 win over seventh-ranked Minnesota.
The Gophers went up 14-0 early after a pin, tech. fall and decision in the first three matches, but the Huskers won the next six bouts to go up 21-14 to seal the win. Jordan Shearer (149) started the flurry of Husker victories with his best win of the year, a 10-2 major decision over All-American #19 Tommy Thorn of Minnesota.
The dual ended with a major decision victory at the heavyweight spot for Minnesota to cut the deficit to 21-18, but it was too little, too late as NU had given itself enough of a cushion to secure the victory.
“We just kept going and the energy stayed high,” Huskers 165-pounder Isaiah White said. “(Jordan) Shearer came in and started us off, (Tyler) Berger pulled out a win, Mikey (Labriola) came up big for us. We had the momentum and just kept it rolling. This is a good win for us.”
The dual started with a top-20 match at 125 pounds as NU’s #16 Zeke Moisey grappled with #6 Sean Russell of Minnesota. Moisey came out aggressively against Russell, notching two takedowns in the first period to go up 4-1 as he tried to earn his first top-10 victory of the year. Moisey led 5-1 in the third period before Russell took the momentum and the match with a takedown and subsequent pin of Moisey (5:53) to put his team up 6-0.
Minnesota took the 133-pound match with a 17-2 tech. fall by #8 Ethan Lizak over Jevon Parrish to go up 11-0. NU’s #19 Chad Red Jr. then dropped a 9-2 decision to #10 Mitch McKee as the Gophers built a 14-point cushion. That would be the last match Minnesota would win for a while, however, as the Huskers poured on 21 straight team points.
Jordan Shearer (149) had lost all four of his matches against top 20 opponents this year leading up to tonight’s bout with #19 Tommy Thorn of Minnesota. Shearer went down 2-0 early in the first period after a takedown by Thorn, but reeled off 10-straight points on the way to his second major decision of the season.
For the second straight match, #2 Tyler Berger (157) found himself tied 1-1 after three periods. In an almost exact imitation of his match against Kaleb Young of Iowa, he took down Minnesota’s #8 Steve Bleise less than 25 seconds into the first sudden victory period to earn his 20th victory of the season.
#6 Isaiah White (165) joined the fun with a 13-5 major decision of his own to bring NU back to within three points of the Gophers. In the 174-pound match, #9 Mikey Labriola battled #12 Devin Skatzka of Minnesota. Heading into the third period, the redshirt freshman from Easton, Pa., trailed 5-1. After starting on bottom to begin the third period, Labriola earned a reversal and a four-point nearfall to go up 7-5. Skatzka earned one more point on an escape, but Labriola was able to hold him off to win, 7-6.
“He (Skatzka) is a guy you’re not going to be able to take down a lot, so you just have to stay after it,” Labriola said. “I heard Coach Manning yelling at me in the third period, saying ‘you can still do this!’ and I just went out there and finished it off.”
#6 Taylor Venz (184) dominated Minnesota’s Brandon Krone from start to finish, working a 7-0 decision to put his team up 17-14. #11 Eric Schultz closed out the dual for the Huskers with a stellar finish to his match against Gophers 197-pounder Dylan Anderson. Schultz led 2-1 heading into the third period before finishing with a flurry of five consecutive takedowns to go up 13-5. Accumulating 1:20 of riding time, the Tinley Park, Ill., native pushed the dual out of reach with a 14-5 major decision.
The consensus No. 1 285-pounder in the country, Minnesota heavyweight Gable Steveson came into tonight’s match holding a perfect 24-0 record. That record remained unblemished tonight after he worked a hard-fought 13-5 major decision over NU’s #10 David Jensen.
With the win tonight, the Huskers improve to 11-4 (5-3 Big Ten) and the Gophers fall to 12-3 (5-2 Big Ten). Minnesota will be right back in action against Maryland at Maturi Pavilion in Minneapolis, Minn., on Sunday, while NU gets eight days to prepare for a road trip to #2 Ohio State.
NO. 6 NEBRASKA 21, NO. 7 MINNESOTA 18
125: #6 Sean Russell (MN) pinned #16 Zeke Moisey (NEB) (5:53) (MN 6, NEB 0)
133: #8 Ethan Lizak (MN) tech. fall Jevon Parrish (NEB), 17-2 (MN 10, NEB 0)
141: #10 Mitchell McKee (MN) dec. #19 Chad Red Jr. (NEB), 9-2 (MN 14, NEB 0)
149: Jordan Shearer (NEB) major dec. #19 Thomas Thorn (MN), 10-2 (MN 14, NEB 4)
157: #2 Tyler Berger (NEB) SV-1 over #8 Steve Bleise (MN), 3-1 (MN 14, NEB 7)
165: #6 Isaiah White (NEB) major dec. Carson Brolsma (MN), 13-5 (MN 14, NEB 11)
174: #9 Mikey Labriola (NEB) dec. #12 Devin Skatzka (MN), 7-6 (NEB 14, MN 14)
184: #6 Taylor Venz (NEB) dec. Brandon Krone (MN), 7-0 (NEB 17, MN 14)
197: #11 Eric Schultz (NEB) major dec. Dylan Anderson (MN), 14-5 (NEB 21, MN 14)
285: #1 Gable Steveson (MN) major dec. #10 David Jensen (NEB), 13-5 (NEB 21, MN 18)
Attendance: 1,322
Up Next:
The Huskers will go on the road next weekend to take on #2 Ohio State on Sunday, Feb. 17 at 1 p.m. CT. NU will have one more home dual against Stanford on Senior Night, Feb. 23. Tickets are on sale at Huskers.com/tickets or by phone at 800-8BIGRED.
Minnesota press release
Steveson Wins 25th in a row, but No.7 Gophers Fall to No.10 Cornhuskers
by Josh Schmidt
LINCOLN, Nebraska -- The No.7 Gopher wrestling team fell to No.10 Nebraska in Lincoln on Friday night. The Gophers won the first three individual match-ups, but the Cornhuskers six consecutive victories between 149 and 197 pounds proved to be the difference.
Heavyweight Gable Steveson took sole possession of 19th place on the Gophers all-time consecutive win streak, breaking his tie with Bobbe Lowe and Scott Schiller by notching a major decision.
Steveson’s two first period takedowns gave him a 5-1 lead, including riding time, before he continued to pick No.10 David Jensen’s ankles.
The dual started with a ranked bout at 125-pound between No.6 Sean Russell and No.16 Zeke Moisey. After Russell defeated him in sudden victory last season, Russell pinned Moisey in the final period to erase a 5-1 lead which also included nearly three minutes of riding time for Moisey. The pin gave the Gophers a quick 6-0 advantage.
After giving up the first takedown of the match, 133-pound Ethan Lizak roared back to win his match handily. After getting a takedown of his own, Lizak rode out the entire second period and sprinkled in several nearfalls throughout the rest of his bout before earning the technical fall.
The redshirt senior secured victory 108 of his career with his ninth technical fall of the season.
141-pound Mitch McKee got a takedown within the first minute of the match and converted it into a critical four-point nearfall. McKee maintained his lead for the remained of the bout for his fourth ranked victory of the season and 14th overall.
At 149-pounds, redshirt senior Tommy Thorn dropped his first match since January 13. After notching the first takedown of the bout, Jordan Shearer tied things up in the second period before taking the lead in the third period.
157-pound Steve Bleise took No.2 Tyler Berger into sudden victory tied at one, but once Berger got in on a late shot he returned Bleise to the mat for the critical takedown.
165-pound Carson Brolsma fell to No.6 Isaiah White after he fell behind 5-2 in the first period and couldn’t recover. Brolsma fought hard to free himself from White’s grasp, but fell by major decision 13-5.
174-pound Devin Skatzka nearly got revenge on No.9 Mikey Labriola after falling to him early in the season, but Labriola rallied from a late deficit with a takedown and turn to take home the win.
184-pound Brandon Krone fell to No.6 Taylor Venz by decision 7-0. Krone rode Venz for nearly the entire third period to keep it from becoming a major decision and impacting the team score.
197-pound Dylan Anderson fought hard against No.11 Eric Schultz but gave up a takedown in the second period that proved to be all Schultz needed to get on a roll.
Nebraska 21, Minnesota 18
125: No.6 Sean Russell fall (5:53) No.16 Zeke Moisey | Minnesota 6-0
133: No.8 Ethan Lizak tech. fall Jevon Parrish (17-2) | Minnesota 11-0
141: No.10 Mitch McKee dec. No.19 Chad Red Jr. (9-2) | Minnesota 14-0
149: Jordan Shearer major dec. No.19 Tommy Thorn (10-2) | Minnesota 14-4
157: No.2 Tyler Berger SV-1 (3-1) No. 8 Steve Bleise | Minnesota 14-7
165: No.6 Isaiah White major dec. Carson Brolsma (13-5)| Minnesota 14-11
174: No.9 Mikey Labriola dec. No.12 Devin Skatzka (7-6) | Tied 14-14
184: No.6 Taylor Venz dec. Brandon Krone (7-0) | Nebraska 14-17
197: No.11 Eric Schultz major dec. Dylan Anderson (14-5) | Nebraska 14-21
HWT: No. 1 Gable Steveson major dec. No.10 David Jensen (13-5) | Nebraska 18-21
Nebraska press release by Edward Stevens
Huskers Grind Out Win in Top 10 Battle with Gophers
Lincoln, Neb. – The No. 6 Nebraska Cornhuskers rebounded from Sunday’s defeat against Iowa with a come-from-behind 21-18 win over seventh-ranked Minnesota.
The Gophers went up 14-0 early after a pin, tech. fall and decision in the first three matches, but the Huskers won the next six bouts to go up 21-14 to seal the win. Jordan Shearer (149) started the flurry of Husker victories with his best win of the year, a 10-2 major decision over All-American #19 Tommy Thorn of Minnesota.
The dual ended with a major decision victory at the heavyweight spot for Minnesota to cut the deficit to 21-18, but it was too little, too late as NU had given itself enough of a cushion to secure the victory.
“We just kept going and the energy stayed high,” Huskers 165-pounder Isaiah White said. “(Jordan) Shearer came in and started us off, (Tyler) Berger pulled out a win, Mikey (Labriola) came up big for us. We had the momentum and just kept it rolling. This is a good win for us.”
The dual started with a top-20 match at 125 pounds as NU’s #16 Zeke Moisey grappled with #6 Sean Russell of Minnesota. Moisey came out aggressively against Russell, notching two takedowns in the first period to go up 4-1 as he tried to earn his first top-10 victory of the year. Moisey led 5-1 in the third period before Russell took the momentum and the match with a takedown and subsequent pin of Moisey (5:53) to put his team up 6-0.
Minnesota took the 133-pound match with a 17-2 tech. fall by #8 Ethan Lizak over Jevon Parrish to go up 11-0. NU’s #19 Chad Red Jr. then dropped a 9-2 decision to #10 Mitch McKee as the Gophers built a 14-point cushion. That would be the last match Minnesota would win for a while, however, as the Huskers poured on 21 straight team points.
Jordan Shearer (149) had lost all four of his matches against top 20 opponents this year leading up to tonight’s bout with #19 Tommy Thorn of Minnesota. Shearer went down 2-0 early in the first period after a takedown by Thorn, but reeled off 10-straight points on the way to his second major decision of the season.
For the second straight match, #2 Tyler Berger (157) found himself tied 1-1 after three periods. In an almost exact imitation of his match against Kaleb Young of Iowa, he took down Minnesota’s #8 Steve Bleise less than 25 seconds into the first sudden victory period to earn his 20th victory of the season.
#6 Isaiah White (165) joined the fun with a 13-5 major decision of his own to bring NU back to within three points of the Gophers. In the 174-pound match, #9 Mikey Labriola battled #12 Devin Skatzka of Minnesota. Heading into the third period, the redshirt freshman from Easton, Pa., trailed 5-1. After starting on bottom to begin the third period, Labriola earned a reversal and a four-point nearfall to go up 7-5. Skatzka earned one more point on an escape, but Labriola was able to hold him off to win, 7-6.
“He (Skatzka) is a guy you’re not going to be able to take down a lot, so you just have to stay after it,” Labriola said. “I heard Coach Manning yelling at me in the third period, saying ‘you can still do this!’ and I just went out there and finished it off.”
#6 Taylor Venz (184) dominated Minnesota’s Brandon Krone from start to finish, working a 7-0 decision to put his team up 17-14. #11 Eric Schultz closed out the dual for the Huskers with a stellar finish to his match against Gophers 197-pounder Dylan Anderson. Schultz led 2-1 heading into the third period before finishing with a flurry of five consecutive takedowns to go up 13-5. Accumulating 1:20 of riding time, the Tinley Park, Ill., native pushed the dual out of reach with a 14-5 major decision.
The consensus No. 1 285-pounder in the country, Minnesota heavyweight Gable Steveson came into tonight’s match holding a perfect 24-0 record. That record remained unblemished tonight after he worked a hard-fought 13-5 major decision over NU’s #10 David Jensen.
With the win tonight, the Huskers improve to 11-4 (5-3 Big Ten) and the Gophers fall to 12-3 (5-2 Big Ten). Minnesota will be right back in action against Maryland at Maturi Pavilion in Minneapolis, Minn., on Sunday, while NU gets eight days to prepare for a road trip to #2 Ohio State.
NO. 6 NEBRASKA 21, NO. 7 MINNESOTA 18
125: #6 Sean Russell (MN) pinned #16 Zeke Moisey (NEB) (5:53) (MN 6, NEB 0)
133: #8 Ethan Lizak (MN) tech. fall Jevon Parrish (NEB), 17-2 (MN 10, NEB 0)
141: #10 Mitchell McKee (MN) dec. #19 Chad Red Jr. (NEB), 9-2 (MN 14, NEB 0)
149: Jordan Shearer (NEB) major dec. #19 Thomas Thorn (MN), 10-2 (MN 14, NEB 4)
157: #2 Tyler Berger (NEB) SV-1 over #8 Steve Bleise (MN), 3-1 (MN 14, NEB 7)
165: #6 Isaiah White (NEB) major dec. Carson Brolsma (MN), 13-5 (MN 14, NEB 11)
174: #9 Mikey Labriola (NEB) dec. #12 Devin Skatzka (MN), 7-6 (NEB 14, MN 14)
184: #6 Taylor Venz (NEB) dec. Brandon Krone (MN), 7-0 (NEB 17, MN 14)
197: #11 Eric Schultz (NEB) major dec. Dylan Anderson (MN), 14-5 (NEB 21, MN 14)
285: #1 Gable Steveson (MN) major dec. #10 David Jensen (NEB), 13-5 (NEB 21, MN 18)
Attendance: 1,322
Up Next:
The Huskers will go on the road next weekend to take on #2 Ohio State on Sunday, Feb. 17 at 1 p.m. CT. NU will have one more home dual against Stanford on Senior Night, Feb. 23. Tickets are on sale at Huskers.com/tickets or by phone at 800-8BIGRED.
Minnesota press release
Steveson Wins 25th in a row, but No.7 Gophers Fall to No.10 Cornhuskers
by Josh Schmidt
LINCOLN, Nebraska -- The No.7 Gopher wrestling team fell to No.10 Nebraska in Lincoln on Friday night. The Gophers won the first three individual match-ups, but the Cornhuskers six consecutive victories between 149 and 197 pounds proved to be the difference.
Heavyweight Gable Steveson took sole possession of 19th place on the Gophers all-time consecutive win streak, breaking his tie with Bobbe Lowe and Scott Schiller by notching a major decision.
Steveson’s two first period takedowns gave him a 5-1 lead, including riding time, before he continued to pick No.10 David Jensen’s ankles.
The dual started with a ranked bout at 125-pound between No.6 Sean Russell and No.16 Zeke Moisey. After Russell defeated him in sudden victory last season, Russell pinned Moisey in the final period to erase a 5-1 lead which also included nearly three minutes of riding time for Moisey. The pin gave the Gophers a quick 6-0 advantage.
After giving up the first takedown of the match, 133-pound Ethan Lizak roared back to win his match handily. After getting a takedown of his own, Lizak rode out the entire second period and sprinkled in several nearfalls throughout the rest of his bout before earning the technical fall.
The redshirt senior secured victory 108 of his career with his ninth technical fall of the season.
141-pound Mitch McKee got a takedown within the first minute of the match and converted it into a critical four-point nearfall. McKee maintained his lead for the remained of the bout for his fourth ranked victory of the season and 14th overall.
At 149-pounds, redshirt senior Tommy Thorn dropped his first match since January 13. After notching the first takedown of the bout, Jordan Shearer tied things up in the second period before taking the lead in the third period.
157-pound Steve Bleise took No.2 Tyler Berger into sudden victory tied at one, but once Berger got in on a late shot he returned Bleise to the mat for the critical takedown.
165-pound Carson Brolsma fell to No.6 Isaiah White after he fell behind 5-2 in the first period and couldn’t recover. Brolsma fought hard to free himself from White’s grasp, but fell by major decision 13-5.
174-pound Devin Skatzka nearly got revenge on No.9 Mikey Labriola after falling to him early in the season, but Labriola rallied from a late deficit with a takedown and turn to take home the win.
184-pound Brandon Krone fell to No.6 Taylor Venz by decision 7-0. Krone rode Venz for nearly the entire third period to keep it from becoming a major decision and impacting the team score.
197-pound Dylan Anderson fought hard against No.11 Eric Schultz but gave up a takedown in the second period that proved to be all Schultz needed to get on a roll.
Nebraska 21, Minnesota 18
125: No.6 Sean Russell fall (5:53) No.16 Zeke Moisey | Minnesota 6-0
133: No.8 Ethan Lizak tech. fall Jevon Parrish (17-2) | Minnesota 11-0
141: No.10 Mitch McKee dec. No.19 Chad Red Jr. (9-2) | Minnesota 14-0
149: Jordan Shearer major dec. No.19 Tommy Thorn (10-2) | Minnesota 14-4
157: No.2 Tyler Berger SV-1 (3-1) No. 8 Steve Bleise | Minnesota 14-7
165: No.6 Isaiah White major dec. Carson Brolsma (13-5)| Minnesota 14-11
174: No.9 Mikey Labriola dec. No.12 Devin Skatzka (7-6) | Tied 14-14
184: No.6 Taylor Venz dec. Brandon Krone (7-0) | Nebraska 14-17
197: No.11 Eric Schultz major dec. Dylan Anderson (14-5) | Nebraska 14-21
HWT: No. 1 Gable Steveson major dec. No.10 David Jensen (13-5) | Nebraska 18-21
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