Joey McKenna earned a big win, conference honors and major momentum heading into the postseason with his biggest victory of the year. Sunday's upset of No. 2 Kevin Jack, a 6-2 decision, not only helped fuel the Buckeye beatdown of the North Carolina State Wolfpack, but also earned him Big Ten Wrestler of the Week honors.
McKenna's pair of first-period takedowns set the tone for the match, and the decision gave the offseason Stanford transfer his signature win of the season. He improved to 12-1 overall and 3-1 against Top-15 opponents at the close of regular-season action.
It was only Jack's second loss of the season, and propelled McKenna back in the consensus top 5 of the rankings.
McKenna joins Te'Shan Campbell, Kollin Moore and Nathan Tomasello as Ohio State wrestlers to receive Wrestler of the Week honors from the Big Ten.
The Big Ten Tournament is March 3-4 in East Lansing. With the move back into the Top 5 nationally, McKenna may have earned himself some consideration for the No. 1 seed.
