Ohio State and Michigan brought their long-running feud to the mat on Saturday, and the No. 4 Buckeyes left little to chance against their biggest rival.
The No. 4 Buckeyes (12-1, 3-1 Big Ten) jumped on the No. 18 Wolverines (5-4, 2-4 Big Ten) from the opening bout, cruising to a 25-14 victory at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, Mich. Saturday’s victory marked the third-consecutive time Ohio State secured golden singlets against the Wolverines.
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No. 18 Brenden McCrone set the Buckeyes on the right path in the 125-pound weight class, surging to a 12-3 major decision over Michigan’s Christian Tanefeu. No. 10 Nic Bouzakis followed suit in the 133-pound weight class with a 19-3 technical fall of Nolan Wertanen, lifting Ohio State’s advantage to 9-0 just two bouts into the match.
The Buckeyes continued to roll from there, securing a major decision from No. 1 Jesse Mendez in the 141-pound weight class and an 8-2 win by No. 9 Dylan D’Emilio in the 149-pound weight class to extend their lead to 16-0.
Michigan struck just before the halfway point of the dual, as No. 17 Sammy Sasso fell to No. 15 Chase Saldate in an 8-0 major decision in the 157-pound weight class — giving the Wolverines their first four points of the afternoon. The Wolverines also captured a second-straight victory in the 165-pound weight class, with e’Than Birden unable to upset No. 10 Beau Mantanona in a 12-5 defeat.
No. 5 Carson Kharchla quickly shifted momentum back to Ohio State’s side with a 5-3 victory over Joseph Walker in the 174-pound weight class, lifting the Buckeyes’ lead to 19-7. No. 19 Ryder Rogotzke followed that up with a victory by fall, pinning No. 23 Jaden Bullock in the first period and extending Ohio State’s hold on the match to 25-7.
Michigan claimed the final two bouts of the dual, with No. 18 Seth Schumate falling in a major decision to No. 2 Jacob Cardenas in the 197-pound weight class, while No. 7 Nick Feldman was unable to hold off No. 9 Josh Heindselman in the heavyweight class — bringing the final score to 25-14 in favor of Ohio State.
The victory put Ohio State back on the winning track after the Buckeyes dropped their first dual off the season to No. 2 Iowa on Jan. 25.
Ohio State returns to the mat on Friday, Feb. 7, at 7 p.m. to take on Minnesota at the Covelli Center in Columbus, Ohio.
