Illini wrestling falls at Nebraska
By: Matt Wettersten
Updated: January 18, 2013
U of I Release:
LINCOLN, Neb. -- No.
5 Illinois won four of the bouts at No. 14 Nebraska, but the
Cornhuskers took six of the 10 total bouts as they took a 18-15 win
at NU Coliseum Friday. Jesse Delgado (125) was the only wrestler in the
match to score bonus points while the Illini also got wins from No. 5
Mario Gonzalez (197), No. 7Conrad Polz (174) and No. 9 Daryl Thomas
(133). Illinois falls to 5-1 overall and 1-1 in
the Big Ten.
"This
match more than anything showed how important it is to be at full
strength in this conference," head coach Jim Heffernan said. "It also
shows how important
BJ Futrell is as a leader on our team. It was great having Jesse and
Daryl return and they both looked good. Conrad and Tony Dallago wrestled
well and made some gains. We will need more guys carrying the load as
we move forward."
The
match started at 133, where Thomas picked up his third dual meet
victory this season and first over a Big Ten opponent when he defeated
Nebraska's Shawn
Nagel 10-8 to put the Illini up an early 3-0. Illinois then dropped
three consecutive weight classes. At 141, Logan Arlis and No. 19 Ridge
Kiley competed hard throughout the scoreless first period, but the
Cornhusker escaped, score a three-point takedown and
earned the riding time to defeat Arlis 4-0. Nebraska earned more team
points at 149 and 157, as Caleb Ervin dropped his bout to No. 15 Jake
Sueflohn by a 8-1 decision while Matt Nora was defeated by a 9-4
decision over No. 5 James Green to extend the Cornhuskers
team score to 9-3.
Illinois
got back on the board at 165, when No. 7 Conrad Polz moved past
Nebraska's Tyler Koehn by a 10-4 decision to stayed undefeated in dual
meets this season.
The victory was his 14th overall while the Orland Park, Ill., native
remains unbeaten in conference play.
No.
3 Robert Kokesh was too much for No. 8 Jordan Blanton on Friday night,
as Kokesh defeated the Illini grappler by an 8-3 decision to give the
Cornhuskers
the 12-6 lead. In what was one of the closest bouts of the night, No. 11
Tony Dallago narrowly missed beating No. 7 Josh Ihnen by a 5-4
decision.
At
197, #5 Mario Gonzalez notched his second consecutive victory over a
Big Ten opponent, as he defeated Caleb Cobb by a 4-3 decision to inch
the Illini closer,
15-6 with two bouts remaining. Chris Lopez dropped a 3-1 decision at
heavyweight to seal the victory for the Cornhuskers and push the team
score to 18-9.
In
the final bout of the night, No. 4 Delgado scored the most points of
any Illini, before pinning Eric Coufal in 6:55 to score the only bonus
points of the
entire match. However the Cornhuskers moved on with the final score of
18-15 over the Illini.
The
Illini will continue their Big Ten season on Monday, Jan. 21 when they
travel to No. 4 Minnesota. The dual will be aired live on the Big Ten
Network beginning
at 7:30 p.m. CT.
#14 Nebraska 18, #5 Illinois 15
133: #11 Daryl Thomas (ILL) dec. Shawn Nagel (NEB), 10-8 (3-0)
141: Ridge Kiley (NEB) dec. Logan Arlis (ILL), 4-0 (3-3)
149: #15 Jake Sueflohn (NEB) dec. Caleb Ervin (ILL), 8-1 (3-6)
157: #5 James Green (NEB) dec. Matt Nora (ILL), 9-4 (3-9)
165: #7 Conrad Polz (ILL) dec. Tyler Koehn (NEB), 10-4 (6-9)
174: #3 Robert Kokesh (NEB) dec, #4 Jordan Blanton (ILL), 8-3 (6-12)
184: #7 Josh Ihnen (NEB) dec. #11 Tony Dallago (ILL), 5-4 (6-15)
197: #5 Mario Gonzalez (ILL) dec. Caleb Cobb (NEB), 4-3 (9-15)
HWT: Spencer Johnson (NEB) dec. Chris Lopez (ILL), 3-1 (9-18)
125: #4 Jesse Delgado (ILL) pinned Eric Coufal (NEB), 6:55 (15-18)
