Michigan
Minnesota
Owen Collects Fall as Wolverines Cruise Past Minnesota
1/24/2004 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 3-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team won the final eight matches against No. 12 Minnesota to cruise to a 31-4 victory Saturday night (Jan. 24) at Crisler Arena.
| | Owen wrestled only 2:20 minutes in the weekend series, with first-period pins of his opponents from Iowa and Minnesota. |
Fifth-year senior captain Foley Dowd (Howell, N.J./The Peddie School) improved his season record to a perfect 11-0 with an 11-4 decision over Quincy Osborn at 133 pounds. Dowd outwrestled the Gopher through all three periods, scoring five takedowns, including two in the final period, and accumluating 2:04 in riding time to put the Wolverines back into the lead for good.
At 141 pounds, fifth-year senior Clark Forward (Archbold, Ohio/Archbold HS) earned a 4-0 decision over Danny Williams. After a scoreless first period, Forward put three points on the board with an escape and takedown in the middle frame. Forward held Williams without a point and collected 2:45 in riding time after riding out the Gopher for the entire third period.
Senior/junior Jeremiah Tobias (Manchester, Mich./Manchester HS) earned a dominant victory over Minnesota's Jeremy Anderson at 149 pounds to give Michigan a nine-point advantage heading into the halftime intermission. The Wolverine wrestler scored two takedowns, a first-period near fall and a reversal in the second to control the action throughout the match. Spending most of the first and third periods in the top position, Tobias accumulated 2:23 in riding time to earn the extra point at match's end to collect a 9-1 major decision.
In a close bout at 157 pounds, a second-period takedown was all senior/junior captain Ryan Bertin (Broadview Heights, Ohio/St. Edward HS) needed to squeeze past the Gophers' 16th-ranked Matt Nagel 2-1. Fifth-year senior captain Pat Owen (Polson, Mont./Polson HS) earned his second fall of the weekend, pinning Casey Flaherty at the 1:33 mark at 165 pounds. Owen struck just seconds into the first period, taking the Gopher to the mat and earning a three-point near fall before sticking Flaherty for six team points.
At 174 pounds, junior/sophomore R.J. Boudro (Richmond, Mich./Armada HS) scored a first-period takedown to gain the early lead against Minnesota's Jon Duncombe. The Gopher wrestler pulled into the lead with a takedown of his own midway through the third period, but Boudro got the escape and, after earning a point for riding time advantage, collected a 5-3 decision. After two scoreless periods in the 184-pound bout, an escape by freshman Joshua Weitzel (Lincoln University, Pa./Oxford HS) was enough to push him past Josh McLay 1-0.
In the closing match of the evening at 197 pounds, sophomore/freshman Chase Verdoorn (Platte City, Mo./Platte County HS) scored a takedown in each period and accumulated 2:23 in riding time to post a 8-3 decision over Mike Schmidt.
The Wolverines will continue their Big Ten dual season on Friday (Jan. 30) with a meet against intrastate rival Michigan State at 7 p.m. at Cliff Keen Arena.
#3 Michigan 31, #12 Minnesota 4
(Individual rankings from Amateur Wrestling News)
| Hwt -- #5 Greg Wagner (U-M) dec. #7 Cole Konrad, 5-1 | U-M, 3-0 |
| 125 -- Bobbe Lowe (Minn.) major dec. Shaun Newton, 14-2 | Minn., 4-3 |
| 133 -- #3 Foley Dowd (U-M) dec. Quincy Osborn, 11-4 | U-M, 7-4 |
| 141 -- #20 Clark Forward (U-M) dec. Danny Williams, 4-0 | U-M, 10-4 |
| 149 -- Jeremiah Tobias (U-M) major dec. Jeremy Anderson, 9-1 | U-M, 14-4 |
| 157 -- #2 Ryan Bertin (U-M) dec. #16 Matt Nagel, 2-1 | U-M, 17-4 |
| 165 -- #4 Pat Owen (U-M) pinned Casey Flaherty, 1:33 | U-M, 23-4 |
| 174 -- R.J. Boudro (U-M) dec. Jon Duncombe, 5-3 | U-M, 25-4 |
| 184 -- Joshua Weitzel (U-M) dec. Josh McLay, 1-0 | U-M, 28-4 |
| 197 -- Chase Verdoorn (U-M) dec. Mike Schmidy, 8-3 | U-M, 31-4 |
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Joe McFarland
On tonight's meet against Minnesota ... "I feel a lot better tonight than I did last night. I really liked the way we competed against Minnesota; we wrestled harder and scored early in all of our matches. I thought Greg Wagner got us on the right foot in the first match, and we maintained that intensity and aggressiveness for the entire meet."
On the weekend's dual meets ... "I remember looking at the schedule several months ago and thinking 'That's going to be a tough weekend.' We got the win last night, but I wasn't really happy with the way we competed. We really stepped it up tonight and came out strong and aggressively. The Big Ten season is tough; there are a lot of good teams, so it's nice to get off to such a good start."
On fifth-year senior captain Pat Owen ... "Pat had an outstanding weekend. He's a pinner, and he's a dangerous wrestler. It's exciting to watch his wreslter. I'm always hoping for bonus points when Pat steps on the mat and recently he has really been coming through."
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
