Marsh set the pace throughout the entire 157-pound contest and used a four-point move early in the second and a strong finish in the third to ice his 9-6 upset victory and hand Poeta his first loss of the season. Marsh shot in deep on a single leg off the opening whistle, but it was Poeta who scored first, converting on the subsequent counter to take the initial advantage. After Poeta picked up a quick escape in the second, Marsh dove in on low single, and, as Illini wrestler tried to counter, he wrapped an arm around Poeta's neck and forced him to his back for an additional two points. Poeta neutralized the score with a low single of his own midway through the final frame, but Marsh cut free just seconds later to preserve his lead and, with Poeta flurrying late, countered a throw attempt in the final five seconds to add another takedown and put his team in control of the dual meet.
The Wolverines fell behind early in the contest after giving up bonus points in the 125- and 133-pound matches, but freshman Kellen Russell (High Bridge, N.J./Blair Academy) initiated the U-M rally with a hard-fought 4-3 decision over 11th-ranked Ryan Prater at 141 pounds. Russell, ranked fourth, secured the initial lead with a single-leg takedown early in the opening frame and nearly built up riding-time advantage before Prater escaped midway through the period. The Illini wrestler rode Russell for the entirety of the second and evened the score midway through the third with another escape, but Russell stayed on the offensive and retook the lead in the final 30 seconds of the match after shooting in on a double leg and coming out on top of the ensuing scramble on the mat. After Prater pulled within one point with a quick escape, Russell fought off a couple deep shots late to hang on for the win. The U-M rookie leads the Wolverines this season with 23 wins.
Fifth-year senior Josh Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) earned his second pin in as many matches at 149 pounds, sticking Grant Paswall at the 4:39 mark to pull the Michigan team within one point on the scoreboard. Churella, ranked eighth, controlled the match from start to finish, gaining the early lead on a double leg late in the first period before adding another midway through the second. Churella rode tough on top after the second takedown and accumulated his riding-time advantage. After Paswall picked up a second stalling call on bottom, Churella turned him with a leg turk, and, when the Illini tried to come up to counter, he covered to push Paswall straight to his back. Churella already owns a career-high five falls this season.
Michigan came out of the intermission with its first -- and final -- lead of the evening after Marsh's win at 157 and carried its momentum through the next three bouts to seal up the conference win. Fifth-year senior Eric Tannenbaum (Naperville, Ill./North HS) needed only a second-period escape to earn a 1-0 decision over Roger Smith-Bergsrud at 165 pounds. Tannenbaum, ranked third, pushed the action throughout the match but was unable to score off of a handful of shots and tie-ups. The Wolverine has not lost a Big Ten dual in 12 straight matches, dating back to the 2005-06 season.
Senior/juniors Steve Luke (Massillon, Ohio/Perry HS) and Tyrel Todd (Bozeman, Mont./Bozeman HS) claimed decisive back-to-back wins at 174 and 184 pounds to put the dual out of reach for Illinois. Luke, ranked fourth, finished on takedowns in the first and second periods against 17th-ranked John Dergo, countering a front headlock on his first score before adding a low single late in the middle frame. The Wolverine wrestler earned a quick escape in the final period to preserve his riding time -- he ended with 1:06 -- and claim a 6-2 victory.
Todd, ranked second at 184 pounds, put on a takedown clinic in the subsequent match, using a mix of singles, doubles, lifts and dumps to score seven takedowns against Ben Friedl. Todd added three back points late in the first period after taking Friedl straight to his back on a single leg and was pursuing the technical fall late in the match when he slipped up and allowed Friedl to take him down. The Wolverine captain had to settle with the 21-9 major decision and extended his winning streak to 20 consecutive matches. Todd has claimed bonus points in 12 of his last 15 matches.
Illinois won the final two bouts at 197 pounds and heavyweight but was unable to overcome the Wolverines' advantage as sophomore/freshmen Eddie Phillips (Woodland, Mich./Lakewood HS) and Chad Bleske (Washington, Mich./Romeo HS) held a pair of ranked Illini opponents to decision victories.
The Wolverines (15-4, 2-1 Big Ten) will kick off a four-meet road swing next weekend for a pair of Big Ten duals. U-M will head to State College, Pa., face Penn State on Friday (Feb. 8) at 7 p.m. before wrapping up the weekend in Columbus, Ohio with a 4 p.m. meeting against Ohio State.
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