Nick Suriano (Michigan) takes a shot. Photo by Sam Janicki.

What you need to know
» No. 3 Michigan claimed seven matches, including the first five and four with bonus points, to defeat No. 21 Pittsburgh 29-12 in a late-addition road dual.
» Logan Massa (174 pounds) and Myles Amine (184) earned back-to-back first-period falls in the dual's first two matches.
» Nick Suriano (125) went 2-0 on the day and outscored his opponents 38-9 in his Michigan debut.
» Patrick Brucki (197) claimed the dual's marquee against eighth-ranked Nino Bonaccorsi, using takedowns late in the first and third periods to rally to a 6-3 decision.

Site: Pittsburgh, Pa. (Fitzgerald Field House)
Score: #3 Michigan 29, #21 Pittsburgh 12
Records: U-M (4-0), Pitt (4-3)
Next U-M Event: Friday, Jan. 14 -- at Ohio State (Columbus, Ohio), 7 p.m.

PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- The No. 3-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team used bonus points, including back-to-back falls in the opening two weights, to earn a dominant 29-12 win over No. 21 Pittsburgh in its first official dual of 2022 on Sunday afternoon (Jan. 9) at Fitzgerald Field House. The Wolverines claimed seven individual matches, including each of the first five, and scored four bonus wins.

With the dual starting at 174 pounds, graduate students Logan Massa and Myles Amine set the tone with first-period pins. Massa, ranked sixth nationally by InterMat, pinned Hunter Kernan with a half at the 2:20 mark in his season dual debut after scoring three quick takedowns. It was Massa's 100th collegiate win.

Amine, ranked second at 184 pounds, needed even less time to pin Nicholas Meglino, turning the Panther wrestler with a turk before securing the fall just 47 seconds in. Amine improved to 6-0 on the season with a pair of pins.

Graduate student Nick Suriano and senior Mason Parris also earned bonus points at 125 pounds and heavyweight, respectively, in their season dual-meet debuts.

Suriano, an NCAA champion and two-time finalist who joined the Wolverines as a second-semester grad transfer, cruised to an 18-7 major decision over Gage Curry, scoring eight takedowns and accumulating 3:18 in riding-time advantage. Suriano also earned a 19-2 technical fall in an extra match against Army's Jake Staud, going 2-0 on the day with 38 points in his Maize and Blue debut.

Parris, ranked second nationally, posted a 14-4 major decision over Jake Slinger at heavyweight. He scored six takedowns -- two per period -- and rode for 3:44. Parris improved to 6-0 with six bonus wins.

Graduate student Patrick Brucki, ranked ninth at 197 pounds, claimed the dual's marquee match with a 6-3 decision against eighth-ranked Nino Bonaccorsi. Brucki rallied after giving up the first takedown, scoring on a single leg in the final 10 seconds of the first period and adding go-behind to ice it late in the third.

Pitt got on the board with decision wins at 133 and 141 pounds, including an upset in the latter, before Michigan responded with two more match wins at 149 and 157. Junior/sophomore Cole Mattin claimed a controlled 9-4 decision over Dan Mancini at the former weight, scoring a takedown in each period and earning 1:55 in riding-time advantage. Senior/junior Will Lewan, ranked 15th, used a late first-period takedown to defeat a familiar foe in No. 21 Elijah Cleary, formerly of Ohio State, by a 3-1 margin.

Michigan (4-0) will kick off Big Ten Conference action Friday (Jan. 14) when it takes on rival Ohio State at 7 p.m. at the Covelli Center in Columbus. The dual will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.

No. 3 Michigan 29, No. 21 Pitt 12
Individual rankings by InterMat
174 -- #6 Logan Massa (U-M) pinned Hunter Kernan, 2:18 -- U-M, 6-0
184 -- #2 Myles Amine (U-M) pinned Nicholas Meglino, 0:46 -- U-M, 12-0
197 -- #9 Patrick Brucki (U-M) dec. #8 Nino Bonaccorsi, 6-3 -- U-M 15-0
Hwt -- #2 Mason Parris (U-M) major dec. Jake Slinger, 14-4 -- U-M, 19-0
125 -- Nick Suriano (U-M) major dec. #31 Gage Curry, 18-7 -- U-M, 23-0
133 -- #7 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) dec. Jack Medley, 5-2 -- U-M, 23-3
141 -- #23 Cole Matthews (Pitt) dec. #3 Stevan Micic, 11-5 -- U-M, 23-6
149 -- Cole Mattin (U-M) dec. Dan Mancini, 9-4 -- U-M, 26-6
157 -- #15 Will Lewan (U-M) dec. #21 Elijah Cleary, 3-1 -- U-M, 29-6
165 -- #13 Jake Wentzel (Pitt) won by forfeit -- U-M, 29-9

Extra Matches
125 -- Nick Suriano (U-M) tech. fall Jake Staud, 19-2 (4:40)
174 -- Matt McKenna (U-M) tech. fall Dominic Falcone, 16-0 (4:51)
197 -- Bobby Striggow (U-M) tech. fall Thomas Godbee, 18-1 (5:35)
149 -- Luke Kemerer (Pitt) dec. Nick Freeman, 6-2

No. 21 Panthers Split Doubleheader with Army and No. 3 Michigan
Pitt Wrestling Started 2022 with a 29-10 Win over Army West Point

PITTSBURGH—The University of Pittsburgh wrestling team split a Sunday doubleheader of duals at Fitzgerald Field House, defeating Army West Point, 29-10, before losing to No. 3 Michigan, 29-12.

The No. 21 Panthers (4-3) competed for the first time in 2022 in front of a rowdy home crowd that saw some excellent matches, headlined by No. 23 Cole Matthews taking an 11-5 win over No. 3 Stevan Micic of Michigan. Matthews received a standing ovation after his win, which was his second of the day.

“There were some quality matchups in the Michigan dual,” said Pitt head coach Keith Gavin. “Cole won a great contest and was outstanding scrambling and on top. Really excited for him. But we lost a couple of close matches that we’ll look at and learn from.”

Gavin also thanked the Michigan and Army coaching staffs for agreeing to compete on Sunday after Pitt’s scheduled dual with Penn on Friday was canceled due to protocols with the Quakers.

“I’m super grateful to both teams today for wrestling us,” Gavin added. “We needed the matches after being canceled on Friday. They agreed to come here on short notice. Our team is now more prepared for the postseason than if they didn’t wrestle at all this weekend, that’s for sure.”

No. 3 Michigan (4-0) showed its top-end quality from the get go, taking pins in the opening two matches and building a 23-0 lead, but Pitt fought back with a trio of late wins.

Matthews, Micky Phillippi and Jake Wentzel all went 2-0 on Sunday, boosting their season resumes against some quality competition.

Meeting for the first time since 1993, Pitt and Army West Point (0-5) engaged in a competitive dual until the Panthers pulled away with six consecutive bout wins in the middle of the contest.

Matthews clinched victory for Pitt in the dual by pinning Thomas Deck at 2:59 of his match – one second before the end of the first period.

Also beating the buzzer, No. 21 Elijah Cleary continued his great run of form for the Panthers, defeating another ranked opponent in dramatic fashion. He secured a takedown of No. 28 Markus Hartman just before the final whistle of regulation to win by 4-2 decision.

Earning additional bonus-point wins for Pitt against West Point wrestlers were No. 31 Gage Curry and No. 7 Micky Phillippi at 125 and 133 pounds, respectively, with each fighting until the final seconds to score valuable points for the team.

Wentzel opened the match with a 1-0 decision over No. 32 Dalton Harkins, while No. 8 Nino Bonaccorsi also earned a decision over a ranked opponent in the Army dual, beating No. 25 JT Brown.

No. 31 Gregg Harvey and Jake Slinger added additional decision victories for the Panthers, who triumphed in eight bouts to improve to 11-9 all-time against Army and end a seven-match losing streak in duals with the Black Knights of West Point.

#21 Pitt 29, Army West Point 10
165: #13 Jake Wentzel (Pitt) dec. #32 Dalton Harkins (Army), 1-0
174: #29 Ben Pasiuk (Army) pins Hunter Kernan (Pitt), 4:37
184: #31 Gregg Harvey (Pitt) dec. Sahm Abdulrazzaq (Army), 6-4
197: #8 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. #25 JT Brown (Army), 8-4
285: Jake Slinger (Pitt) dec. Brandon Phillips (Army), 5-0
125: #31 Gage Curry (Pitt) maj. dec. Ryan Chauvin (Army), 12-4
133: #7 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) maj. dec. Mark Montgomery (Army), 14-5
141: #23 Cole Matthews (Pitt) pins Thomas Deck (Army), 2:59
149: #23 P.J. Ogunsanya (Army) maj. dec. Luke Kemerer (Pitt), 15-5
157: #21 Elijah Cleary (Pitt) dec. #28 Markus Hartman (Army), 4-2

Army-Michigan Extra Matches
125: Nick Suriano (Michigan) tech. fall Jake Staud (Army), 19-2 4:40
174: Matt McKenna (Michigan) tech. fall Dominic Falcone (Army), 16-0 4:51
197: Bobby Striggow (Michigan) tech. fall Thomas Godbee (Army), 18-1 5:35

Bonus points, Suriano debut lead No. 3 Michigan over No. 21 Pitt, 29-12; Pitt tops Army West Point also

Loading...