Michigan
Maryland
Wolverines to Wrap B1G Slate at Maryland, No. 18 Rutgers
2/13/2019 3:40:00 PM | Wrestling
» No. 4 Michigan will close out its Big Ten dual-meet slate on the road this weekend, taking on Maryland at 7 p.m. Friday (Feb. 15) in College Park, Maryland, and No. 18 Rutgers at noon on Sunday (Feb. 17) in Piscataway, New Jersey.
» U-M enters the weekend with a 6-1 Big Ten record and lists third in the conference's dual standings; the Wolverines have posted a 13-3 record in Big Ten duals over the last two seasons.
» Stevan Micic, ranked No. 1 nationally at 133 pounds, owns an 11-0 record with eight bonus wins; he is coming off a win over the nation's top-ranked 125-pounder in Northwestern's Sebastian Rivera.
THIS WEEK
Friday, Feb. 15 -- at Maryland (College Park, Md.), 7 p.m.
Live Stats | Live Video
Sunday, Feb. 17 -- at Rutgers (Piscataway, N.J.), noon
Live Stats | TV: Big Ten Network | BTN2Go
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The No. 4-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team (10-1, 6-1 Big Ten) will wrap up its Big Ten Conference slate with two duals on the road this weekend. The Wolverines will first travel to College Park, Maryland, to take on Maryland (0-10, 0-7 Big Ten) at 7 p.m. on Friday (Feb. 15), before closing out the weekend in Piscataway, New Jersey, where they will face No. 18 Rutgers (11-5, 4-3 Big Ten) at noon on Sunday (Feb. 17). The Rutgers dual will be aired live on the Big Ten Network.
Michigan's Projected Starting Lineup
| Wgt. | Name | Year/Elig. | Hometown (High School) |
| 125 | Drew Mattin | So./So. | Delta, Ohio (Delta) |
| 133 | Stevan Micic | Sr./Jr. | Cedar Lake, Ind. (Hanover Central) |
| 141 | Kanen Storr | Jr./So. | Leslie, Mich. (Leslie) |
| 149 | Malik Amine | 5th/Sr. | Brighton, Mich. (Detroit Catholic Central) |
| 157 | Alec Pantaleo | 5th/Sr. | Canton, Mich. (Canton) |
| 165 | Logan Massa | Sr./Jr. | St. Johns, Mich. (St. Johns) |
| 174 | Myles Amine | Sr./Jr. | Brighton, Mich. (Detroit Catholic Central) |
| 184 | Jelani Embree | So./Fr. | Eastpointe, Mich. (Warren Lincoln) |
| 197 | Jackson Striggow | Sr./Jr. | Orono, Minn. (Orono) |
| Hwt | Mason Parris | Fr./Fr. | Lawrenceburg, Ind. (Lawrenceburg) |
Wolverine Bites
• Michigan enters its final weekend of Big Ten dual competition with a 6-1 conference record and list third in the standings behind unbeaten Iowa and Penn State with similar 7-0 marks. The Wolverines have posted 13-3 record in Big Ten duals over the last two seasons. U-M similarly finished third in the regular-season standings last year.
• Michigan bounced back from its lone dual loss this season -- at No. 1 Penn State (Feb. 1) -- with a dominant 30-9 victory over Northwestern last Sunday (Feb. 10). U-M is now 10-1 under first-year head coach Sean Bormet and remains ranked No. 4 nationally -- where it also finished in last season's final NWCA poll.
• Senior/junior Stevan Micic is a perfect 11-0 on the season and has earned bonus points in eight bouts, including seven of his eight second-semester outings. He has defeated ranked opponents in four of his last six matches, notably a dominant 14-1 major decision over Ohio State's No. 6 Luke Pletcher last Friday (Jan. 25). Last year, Micic posted bonus points in 81 percent of his wins (21/26).
• Micic claimed the battle of No. 1-ranked wrestlers, 10-4, when Northwestern's top-ranked 125-pounder, Sebastian Rivera, bumped up to face Micic last Sunday. Micic scored four takedowns, nearly adding another at the final buzzer, and rode for 3:20. It was Rivera's first loss of the season.
• Sophomore Reece Hughes earned a quick first-period fall (1:18) against Northwestern's Braxton Cody last Sunday -- up a weight at 174 pounds. It was Hughes' second dual-meet fall of the season; he previously pinned Oregon State's Myles Terry at 5:42 while wrestling up two weights at 184 pounds on Jan. 3. Hughes is 4-4 in dual meets over the last two seasons. All four of his wins have come while wrestling up in weight. He went 2-3 while filling in for Logan Massa last year at 165 pounds.
• Sophomore/freshman Jelani Embree cruised to a 16-5 major decision over Northwestern's Brendan Devine for his first win in nearly two months. Embree, who missed all of January due to injury, dropped a narrow 5-3 decision to Penn State's No. 2 Shakur Rasheed (Feb. 1) in his first match back. Embree is 10-4 on the season and 4-1 in dual meets.
• Fifth-year senior Alec Pantaleo surged back into the nation's top five at 157 pounds -- he is a consensus No. 5 -- after defeating Ohio State's then-No. 6 Ke-Shawn Hayes, 3-2, on Jan. 25. Pantaleo, who has seen limited action after missing most of the first semester with mononucleosis, has faced ranked opponents in five of his last six bouts -- with three wins over the stretch. Pantaleo took sixth place at Midlands (Dec. 29-30) at 149 pounds but returned to and will remain at 157 pounds, where he took fifth place at last season's NCAA Championships.
• Freshman heavyweight Mason Parris clinched the Wolverines' 19-17 dual win at Ohio State in the final bout, defeating No. 19 Chase Singletary, 6-3, behind two takedowns and 1:13 in riding-time advantage. With the win, Parris avenged one of his three season losses -- a 15-9 decision to Singletary in the Ohio Intercollegiate Open semifinals (Nov. 11). It was Parris' fifth win over a ranked opponent this season.
• All 10 Wolverine starters are ranked nationally by at least one media outlet, including seven who are ranked within the top 10 at their respective weights. Based on their highest ranking, No. 1 Stevan Micic (133 pounds), No. 4 Myles Amine (174), No. 5 Alec Pantaleo (157), No. 6 Kanen Storr (141), No. 7 Logan Massa (165) and No. 7 Mason Parris (Hwt) lead the U-M squad.
• The Wolverines' 9-0 start was the program's best since an undefeated 14-0 season in 1973-74. The Wolverines have defeated five ranked opponents this season and, over its 9-0 start, outscored their dual opposition by a combined 241-98 margin.
U-M Individual Rankings
| Wt. | Wrestler | InterMat | Flo | TW | TOM | AWN | WIN |
| 125 | Drew Mattin | 13 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 |
| 133 | Stevan Micic | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 141 | Kanen Storr | 6 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| 149 | Malik Amine | NR | NR | 24 | NR | NR | NR |
| 157 | Alec Pantaleo | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| 165 | Logan Massa | 7 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 7 | 8 |
| 174 | Myles Amine | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 184 | Jelani Embree | 20 | 19 | 20 | NR | NR | 20 |
| 197 | Jackson Striggow | NR | NR | 18 | NR | 19 | 14 |
| Hwt | Mason Parris | 7 | 11 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 8 |
Scouting The Opposition
Maryland: The Terrapins are 0-10 this season and 0-7 in Big Ten duals, most recently falling to Minnesota (45-5, Feb. 10) on the road last weekend. Ninth-ranked heavyweight Youssif Hemida is the lone Maryland wrestler to be ranked nationally. The Wolverines lead the all-time series against Maryland, 4-1-1, with wins in the last two meetings, including a 25-16 decision at home during the 2016-17 season.
Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights are 11-5 on the season and 4-3 in Big Ten duals after defeating Indiana (24-11, Feb. 8) and Purdue (22-15, Feb. 10) on the road last weekend. Three Rutgers wrestlers are ranked nationally at their respective weights -- No. 4 Nick Suriano (133 pounds), No. 1 Anthony Ashnault (149) and No. 14 John Van Brill (157). The Wolverines lead the all-time series against Rutgers, 3-0, and posted a 19-13 victory in the most recent meeting two seasons ago in Ann Arbor.
Last Time Out
The Wolverines routed Northwestern, 30-9, to stay perfect at home last Sunday (Feb. 10) at Keen Arena. Michigan claimed seven matches, earning bonus points in five with pins from Drew Mattin and Reece Hughes at 125 and 174 pounds, respectively. Stevan Micic ranked No. 1 at 133 pounds, used four takedowns to claim a 10-4 decision over Sebastian Rivera, the nation's No. 1-ranked 125-pounder, who bumped up to face him. [ Full Recap ]
Up Next
Sunday, Feb. 24 -- vs. Clarion (Cliff Keen Arena), 2 p.m.
Players Mentioned
