Sophomore/freshman Casey White (Commerce, Mich./Walled Lake Central HS) turned the Gophers' Mitch Kuhlman in the closing seconds of the 197-pound bout to secure a 7-2 decision and clinch the Wolverine victory with one match still remaining. After a scoreless first period and offsetting reversals in the second, White held just a narrow one-point advantage entering the final frame with Kulhman starting on bottom. White kept the Gopher on the mat for the two full minutes and used a high-leg turk to hold Kulhman in a near-fall situation for the final 30 seconds.
With each team claiming five individual bouts, bonus points played the deciding factor in the contest as Michigan's fifth-year senior captain Ryan Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) and junior/sophomore Josh Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) picked up extra points at 165 and 141 pounds, respectively.
Ryan Churella, ranked No. 1 nationally by NWCA/InterMat, earned a six-point victory over Matt Nagel when the Gopher wrestler was disqualified after receiving his fifth stalling call with just 13 seconds remaining in the third period. Churella scored on a quick high-crotch early in the second frame and added a reversal in the third to get on top and build up riding-time advantage. Churella could not get much else accomplished as Nagel simply lay flat on the mat to start picking up stalling calls -- one in each of the first two periods and three in the third. The victory gave the Wolverines the lead for good in the dual meet and kept Churella undefeated at 21-0 on the season.
Josh Churella, ranked fourth at 141 pounds, earned a dominant 13-5 major decision against Tyler Safratowich to pick up an extra team point early in the dual. Churella scored five takedowns in the match, most notably a double leg with only 30 seconds remaining to secure the major after riding time. With the win, Churella extended his winning streak to 11 straight matches.
Freshman Michael Watts (Riverton, Utah/Riverton HS) got the momentum rolling early for the Wolverines with a 9-6 decision over Travis Lang at the opening weight of 125 pounds. Watts struck first with a quick double leg just 20 second into the bout, but the Gopher stole away the lead with an escape and takedown at the end of the period. Watts again struck quickly in the second, earning a fast escape and using a cement mixer to get the go-ahead takedown. The Wolverine added two more in the final frame to claim the victory and give U-M the first lead in the dual.
Senior/junior Nick Roy (Wall, N.J./Wall HS) rounded out the Wolverines' individual victors with a close 3-2 decision against 13th-ranked Gabriel Dretsch at 174 pounds. With the score knotted at one point apiece early in the third, Roy shot in on a single leg late in the frame, finishing with a double to secure the deciding takedown. The win gave Michigan a seven-point advantage with three bouts to go.
The Wolverines will wrap up the regular-season portion of their 2005-06 schedule against No. 17 Indiana on Sunday (Feb. 19) in a 2 p.m. dual at Cliff Keen Arena.
#3 Michigan 19, #1 Minnesota 15
125 -- Michael Watts (Mich.) dec. Travis Lang, 9-6 Mich., 3-0
133 -- #3 Mack Reiter (Minn.) dec. #11 Mark Moos, 13-6 Tie, 3-3
141 -- #4 Josh Churella (Mich.) major dec. Tyler Safratowich, 13-5 Mich., 7-3
149 -- #1 Dustin Schlatter (Minn.) dec. #4 Eric Tannenbaum, 6-0 Mich., 7-6
157 -- #4 C.P. Schlatter (Minn.) dec. #13 Steve Luke (Mich.) 2-1 TB Minn., 9-7
165 -- #1 Ryan Churella (Mich.) won by disqualification over #9 Matt Nagel Mich., 13-9
174 -- #10 Nick Roy (Mich.) dec. #13 Gabriel Dretsch, 3-2 Mich., 16-9
184 -- #9 Roger Kish (Minn.) dec. #18 Tyrel Todd, 6-4 SV Mich., 16-12
197 -- Casey White (Mich.) dec. Mitch Kuhlman, 7-2 Mich., 19-12
Hwt -- #1 Cole Konrad (Minn.) dec. #3 Greg Wagner, 1-0 Mich., 19-15
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now