Michigan
Northwestern
Churella, Bertin Post Falls, Help U-M Defeat Northwestern
2/1/2003 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 8-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team dominated Northwestern University tonight (Saturday, Feb. 1) and took the 35-12 victory in front of 607 fans at Cliff Keen Arena. The Wolverines won seven individual matches in the team win and moved their Big Ten record to 3-0.
Senior captain A.J. Grant (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston HS) got the Wolverines off to a strong start at 125 pounds, taking a 15-3 victory over John Velez. After collecting a pair of takedowns through the first two periods, Grant went to work in the third, scoring three more takedowns and adding a three-point near fall in the final seconds of the bout to earn the major decision.
The Wildcats pulled the team score within one point after Jon Ott narrowly defeated junior/sophomore Shaun Newton (Davison, Mich./Davison HS) at 133 pounds. With the score tied at five points apiece at the end of regulation, Ott's riding time advantage of 1:25 proved the deciding factor, giving the Wildcat the 6-5 win. Newton had the early lead in the bout after scoring a reversal from the down position in the second period and turning Ott to collect three near-fall points. Ott responded with an escape followed by a quick takedown later in the period and tied the score early in the third with a reversal of his own.
A strong third period for senior/junior Clark Forward (Archbold, Ohio/Archbold HS) propelled the Wolverine wrestler past John Giacche at 141 pounds. With the score tied at two points heading into the final frame and both wrestlers scoring early takedowns, Forward surged late in the period, adding another takedown and riding out the Wildcat wrestler to collect over three minutes in riding-time advantage.
The Wolverines headed into the halftime break with the commanding 19-3 advantage after collecting back-to-back falls at 149 and 157 pounds. Redshirt freshman Ryan Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) dominated through all three periods against the Wildcats' Paul Oggle, scoring five takedowns and a three-point near fall before putting Oggle on his back and getting the fall at the 6:38 mark.
At 157 pounds, junior/sophomore Ryan Bertin (Broadview Heights, Ohio/St. Edward HS) had an explosive start against Mike Kimberlin, scoring three takedowns and a pair of three-point near falls in the first period. Kimberlin collected the quick escape to start the second frame, but Bertin responded seconds later with a takedown and the fall, ending the match at 3:24.
Each team picked up another six team points through the next two bouts at 165 and 174 pounds. After suffering an injury to his ankle late in the first period, fifth-year senior captain Mike Kulczycki (North Royalton, Ohio/St. Edward HS) withdrew from his match, giving the Wildcats' Jason Erwinski the win by injury default at the 2:17 mark. At 174 pounds, redshirt freshman R.J. Boudro (Richmond, Mich./Armada HS) earned a forfeit victory when Northwestern did not offer a challenger.
The Wildcats again cut down Michigan's lead following Brendan Curran's 8-6 victory over redshirt freshman Willie Breyer (Oxford, Mich./Oxford HS). After being taken down once in each period, Breyer pulled the score within one late in the third period after collecting his own takedown, but the Wildcat held on, and with nearly two and a half minutes in riding time took the decision.
Fifth-year senior captain Kyle Smith (Butte, Mont./Butte HS) came out strong against the Wildcats' Matt Delguyd at 197 pounds, scoring three takedowns in the first period and adding another in the second while only allowing Delguyd a pair of escapes. The Wildcat mounted a comeback in the final frame with two early takedowns to pull the score within three points. Smith finished strong, however, collecting two more takedowns to give himself the 8-6 major decision.
The heavyweight bout was cut short when just 1:30 into the first period Northwestern's Mike Little suffered an elbow injury and redshirt freshman Greg Wagner (Fort Wayne, Ind./Snider HS) was given the win by injury default.
The Wolverines will travel to Minneapolis, Minn., next Friday (Feb. 7) to take on two-time defending national champion Minnesota in a Big Ten Conference dual meet slated for 7:30 CST.
#8 Michigan 35, Northwestern 12
(Individual rankings from Intermat)
| 125 -- #5 A.J. Grant (U-M) major dec. John Velez, 15-3 | U-M, 4-0 |
| 133 -- Jon Ott (NU) dec. Shaun Newton, 6-5 | U-M, 4-3 |
| 141 -- Clark Forward (U-M) dec. John Giacche, 9-5 | U-M, 7-3 |
| 149 -- #17 Ryan Churella (U-M) pinned Paul Oggle, 6:38 | U-M, 13-3 |
| 157 -- #5 Ryan Bertin (U-M) pinned Mike Kimberlin (NU), 3:24 | U-M, 19-3 |
| 165 -- Jason Erwinski (NU) inj. default over #18 Mike Kulczycki, 2:17 | U-M, 19-9 |
| 174 -- R.J. Boudro (U-M) won by forfeit | U-M, 25-9 |
| 184 -- Brendan Curran (NU) dec. Willie Breyer, 8-6 | U-M, 25-12 |
| 197 -- #16 Kyle Smith (U-M) major dec. Matt Delguyd, 16-8 | U-M, 29-12 |
| Hwt -- #5 Greg Wagner (U-M) inj. default over Mike Little, 1:30 | U-M, 35-12 |
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
