Feb. 19, 2010
MADISON, Wis. -- In its final road dual match of the season, Northwestern received individual victories from first-year starters Levi Mele (125) and Brian Roddy, Jr. (174) in a 32-6 loss at No. 19 Wisconsin Friday in Madison. Roddy, a redshirt freshman, is 3-3 in his first Big Ten dual season and 9-7 overall for the 'Cats.
The Wildcats now have just one regular season dual match remaining before the start of championship season. NU hosts Michigan at 6 p.m. Sunday in a match that will be televised live by the Big Ten Network. For Northwestern's head coach of 20 years Tim Cysewski, it is the final dual contest before Cysewski switches roles to become associate head coach next season.
Mele opened the night on a positive note for the Wildcats with his 8-4 decision over Wisconsin's Drew Hammen, Mele's second Big Ten victory of the year. The second period was the critical one for Mele, who scored six points on two reversals and a two-point near-fall in the middle stanza to take control of the bout. Hammen scored one late takedown but the NU freshman held on for the win.
Roddy's win came in an 11-4 decision at 174 pounds over Wisconsin's Brandan Ard. Roddy scored two takedowns to take a 4-1 lead into the second period, which he opened with a reversal to go up 6-1 on Ard. Despite surrendering one stalling point, Roddy never let Ard threaten the rest of the way en route to the win.
Redshirt freshman Tyler Graff, one of Wisconsin's four top-10-ranked competitors, evened the team score at three apiece with a 7-2 decision over Eric Metzler at 133.
After an NU forfeit at 141 pounds, Northwestern's 13th-ranked Andrew Nadhir met No. 5 Kyle Ruschell, meaning Nadhir has now wrestled the nation's top five wrestlers at his weight class this season. The Wildcat trailed by a slim 1-0 margin after two periods, fending off several shots by Ruschell to remain in striking distance. Ruschell began the third period on top and rode out the entire period, amassing one riding time point and two near-fall points for a 4-0 victory. Nadhir is now 19-8 on the season.
The action was equally as tight at 157 pounds, with Northwestern freshman Kevin Bialka scoring on a stalling penalty against Wisconsin's Greg Burke to tie the match at four late in the third. But Burke had already secured the riding time, which lifted him to a 5-4 win and the Badgers to a 15-3 team lead.
Wisconsin sophomore and 2009 NCAA runner-up Andrew Howe was typically dominant at 165, winning a 17-5 major decision against Robert Kellogg of Northwestern (5-12-1, 0-7). After Roddy's win gave the Wildcats six team points, Wisconsin (8-9, 4-3) closed the night with a decision, major decision and fall at 184, 197 and heavyweight, respectively, to account for the final margin of victory. At 184, Aaron Jones worked hard to erase his deficit with a pin in the final 30 seconds of his match with Travis Rutt, but Rutt refused to let himself be caught off guard.
Second-ranked Trevor Brandvold picked up the win at 197 for the Badgers while Eric Bugenhagen closed the evening with a pin at heavyweight.
In addition to a halftime ceremony honoring Cysewski on Sunday, NU fans can also expect a pre-match autograph session with 2008 NCAA heavyweight champion Dustin Fox as well as the chance to win gear signed by two-time NCAA champ and World silver medalist Jake Herbert.
No. 19 Wisconsin 32, Northwestern 6
125: Levi Mele (NU) dec. Drew Hammen (WIS), 8-4 (NU 3, WIS 0)
133: #6 Tyler Graff (WIS) dec. Eric Metzler (NU), 7-2 (NU 3, WIS 3)
141: Cole Schmitt (WIS) win by forfeit (WIS 9, NU 3)
149: #5 Kyle Ruschell (WIS) dec. #13 Andrew Nadhir (NU), 4-0 (WIS 12, NU 3)
157: Greg Burke (WIS) dec. Kevin Bialka (NU), 5-4 (WIS 15, NU 3)
165: #1 Andrew Howe (WIS) Maj. Dec. Robert Kellogg (NU), 17-5 (WIS 19, NU 3)
174: Brian Roddy, Jr. (NU) dec. Brandan Ard (WIS), 11-4 (WIS 19, NU 6)
184: Travis Rutt (WIS) dec. Aaron Jones (NU), 12-6 (WIS 22, NU 6)
197: #2 Trevor Brandvold (WIS) Maj. Dec. John Schoen (NU), 10-0 (WIS 26, NU 6)
285: Eric Bugenhagen (WIS) FALL Marcus Shrewsbury (NU), 4:02 (WIS 32, NU 6)