"We had a couple really good wins tonight and a solid team showing," head coach Jim Heffernan said. "B.J. Futrell and Eric Terrazas won decisively over highly ranked guys. We had good energy and were aggressive throughout."
The dual started at 141 with Daryl Thomas earning his ninth bout this season as he defeated Purdue's Brandon Nelsen in a 13-11 decision to put the Illini up an early 3-0. Thomas now owns a 1-1 record against Nelsen as the two met last week at the Midlands Championship with Nelsen coming out with the victory. 14th-ranked Eric Terrazas defeated his first ranked opponent this season with his 10-4 decision over Purdue's Ivan Lopouchanski. The win marked his 15th victory this year and his ninth in the past eleven matches to increase the team score to 6-0.
At 157, Jackson Morse jumped out to a 7-2 lead over the first two periods, but Purdue's Tommy Churchard scored three takedowns and escapes to tie the score to 9-9 and force extra time. In overtime, Churchard scored the takedown to defeat Morse 11-9, bringing the score to 6-3.
The Illini got on track with back-to-back decisions by Conrad Polz and Dan Stelter to bring Illinois to a 12-3 lead heading into the intermission. Polz, recorded his first dual win since he was injured on Nov. 20, after scoring four takedowns in a 9-5 win over Kyle Mosier while Stelter followed his teammate with a 9-6 victory over Drake Stein at 174.
At 184, after tying his bout at 2-2 after the second period, redshirt-sophomore Tony Dallago dropped his bout against No. 19 Braden Atwood by a 4-2 decision to bring the team score to 12-6 in favor of the Illini. Illinois then got a quick pin from sophomore Mario Gonzalez as he needed only 1:55 to move past Justin Dinius to score his fourth fall of the season and increase the Orange and Blue's score to 18-6 with three bouts remaining in the match.
Pat Walker was ousted by Roger Vukobratovich as the two were tied 1-1 after the third period to force overtime. After a scoreless first overtime, the two traded escapes in the tie-breaker to make it 2-2, however Walker dropped the bout in a takedown by Vukobratovich, bringing the Illini's score to 18-9.
Jesse Delgado (125) and B.J. Futrell (133) scored consecutive decisions to close the meet for the Illini. The fifth-ranked freshman recorded his 19th victory of the season after defeating Camden Epert in a 8-3 decision while fifth-ranked junior moved past sixth-ranked Cashe Quiroga to earn a 13-6 decision to seal the victory for the Illini with a final score of 24-9.
"Tomorrow presents another challenge," Heffernan said. "We will have a few new guys in the line up that will have the chance to compete at home."
The Fighting Illini return home tomorrow as they host Lock Haven at Huff Hall beginning at 1 pm CT before heading to Ann Arbor on Sunday to compete against No. 8 Michigan. Live results will be available at the @IlliniWrestling Twitter Page.
Results:
141 - Daryl Thomas (ILL) dec. Brandon Nelsen (PUR) 13-11
149 - Eric Terrazas (ILL) dec. Ivan Lopouchanski (PUR), 10-4
157 - Tommy Churchard (PUR) dec. Jackson Morse (ILL), 11-9
165 - Conrad Polz (ILL) dec. Kyle Mosier (PUR), 9-5
174 - Dan Stelter (ILL) dec. Drake Stein (PUR), 9-6
184 - Braden Atwood (PUR) dec. Tony Dallago (ILL), 4-2
197 - Mario Gonzalez (ILL) pinned Justin Dinius (PUR), 1:55
Hwt. - Roger Vukobratovich (PUR) dec. Pat Walker (ILL), 4-2 SV2
125 - Jesse Delgado (ILL) dec. Camden Eppert (PUR), 8-3
133 - B.J. Futrell (ILL) dec. Cashe Quiroga (PUR), 13-6
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