Jan. 18, 2003
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The No. 16 Michigan State wrestling team upset No. 4 Cornell before falling to No. 5 Ohio State and No. 3 Minnesota Saturday (Jan. 18) at the Cliff Keen/NWCA National Duals, hosted by Ohio State University. The nation's top 16 teams were invited to compete in this prestigious event.
In the opening round, Cornell gained an early advantage as No. 2 Travis Lee of Cornell defeated No. 8 Nick Simmons (R-Fr., Williamston) in a 6-3 decision at 125 pounds. The Spartans rebounded in the next match at 133 pounds as Shane Martin (So., DeWitt) defeated Alejando Alvarez in an 8-5 decision that tied the match at three.
Michigan State's Eric Keith (So., Portage, Ind.) edged Byron Warner, 3-2, at 141 pounds, which gave the Spartans a 6-3 lead. Cornell battled back and knotted the score at six.
At 157 pounds, No. 6 Gray Maynard (Sr., Las Vegas, Nev.) put the Spartans ahead 10-6 by toppling Cornell's Gabe Webster 9-1.
In the 174-pound match, Michigan State's Rashad Evans (Sr., Niagara Falls, N.Y.) prevailed in overtime over Cornell's Tyler Baier 4-2. Evans' thrilling victory gave Michigan State a 13-9 advantage.
No. 8 Nik Fekete (Sr., Cranford, N.J.) was undefeated (3-0) at 197 pounds for the day. He captured his first victory over No. 16 Matt Greenberg of Cornell and put the Spartans ahead 16-13.
In the final match, Heavyweight Buck McLamb of Cornell upset No 19 John Wechter (Sr., Saginaw, Mich.) of Michigan State. Though the final score read 16-16, the Spartans advanced via criteria and awarded the victory.
Michigan State's hotly contested second-round match against No. 5 Ohio State was decided in the final match. With the score even at 15, No. 2 Tommy Rowlands of Ohio State defeated Wechter in the heavyweight contest, 24-10. Ohio State escaped with a 19-15 victory. A number of Spartans performed well in the match against Ohio State. Simmons dominated the opening match at 125 pounds, as he pinned Jeff Costello at 2:34. No. 12 Karl Nadolsky (Sr., Holland) cruised to an 8-1 victory over Josh Daugherty at 149 pounds. Evans and Fekete were also victorious for Michigan State at 174 and 197 pounds respectively.
In their third and final match of the day, the Spartans jumped out to an early 6-0 lead against Minnesota. Simmons recorded his second pin of the day at 2:02 of the match against No. 15 Bob Lowe of the Golden Gophers. Michigan State's Jeff Clemens (R-Fr., Bellbrook, Ohio) scored a 6-4 decision over Matt Nagel at 184 pounds. Fekete secured his third victory of the day at 197 pounds by defeating Damion Hahn, 6-5.
Match Summaries:Round 1 Michigan State 16, Cornell 16 (MSU wins via criteria)
Wt. Result Team Score 125 No. 2 Travis Lee (CU) def. No. 8 Nick Simmons (MSU), 6-3 Cornell, 3-0 133 Shane Martin (MSU) def. Alejandro Alvarez (CU), 8-5 Tied, 3-3 141 Eric Keith (MSU) def. Byron Warner (CU), 3-2 MSU, 6-3 149 No. 5 Dustin Manotti (CU) def. No. 12 Karl Nadolsky (MSU), 10-9 Tied, 6-6 157 No. 6 Gray Maynard (MSU) def. Gabe Webster (CU), 9-1 MSU, 10-6 165 Scott Roth (CU) def. Arsen Aleksanyan (MSU), 5-3 (OT) MSU, 10-9 174 Rashad Evans (MSU) def. Tyler Baier (CU), 4-2 (OT) MSU, 13-9 184 No. 2 Clint Wattenberg (CU) def. Jeff Clemens (MSU), 18-6 Tied, 13-13 197 No. 8 Nik Fekete (MSU) def. No 16 Matt Greenberg (CU), 9-3 MSU, 16-13 Hwt. Buck McLamb (CU) def. No. 19 John Wechter (MSU), 3-2 Tied, 16-16
Round 2
Ohio State 19, Michigan State 15
Wt. Result Team Score 125 No. 8 Nick Simmons (MSU) pinned Jeff Costello (OSU), Fall 2:34 MSU, 6-0 133 Jesse Leng (OSU) def. Shane Martin (MSU), 6-5 MSU, 6-3 141 Jeff Ratliff (OSU) def. Ryan L'Amoreaux (MSU), 12-8 Tied, 6-6 149 No. 12 Karl Nadolsky (MSU) def. Josh Daugherty (OSU), 8-1 MSU, 9-6 157 No. 2 Keaton Anderson (OSU) def. No. 6 Gray Maynard (MSU), 8-6 Tied, 9-9 165 No. 5 John Clark (OSU) def. Arsen Aleksanyan (MSU), 9-5 OSU, 12-9 174 Rashad Evans (MSU) def. Anthony Magistrelli (OSU), 8-4 Tied, 12-12 184 Casey Kapustka (OSU) def. Jeff Clemens (MSU), 5-3 OSU, 15-12 197 No. 8 Nik Fekete (MSU) def. No. 5 Anton Talamantes (OSU), 8-3 Tied, 15-15 Hwt. No. 2 Tommy Rowlands def. No. 19 John Wechter (MSU), 24-10 OSU, 19-15 (more)
Consolation Bracket
Minnesota 24, Michigan State 12
Wt. Result Team Score 125 No. Nick Simmons (MSU) pinned No. 15 Bob Lowe (Minn.), Fall 2:02 MSU, 6-0 133 No. 1 Ryan Lewis (Minn.) def. Shane Martin (MSU), 7-1 MSU, 6-3 141 Trent Hatlevig (Minn.) def. Darren McKnight (MSU), 8-4 Tied, 6-6 149 No. 2 Jared Lawrence (Minn.) def. No. 12 Karl Nadolsky (MSU), 5-2 Minn., 9-6 157 No. 1 Luke Becker (Minn.) def. No. 6 Gray Maynard (MSU), 6-2 Minn., 12-6 165 No. 3 Jacob Volkmann (Minn.) def. Arsen Aleksanyan (MSU), 4-2 Minn., 15-6 174 No. 8 Josh McLay (Minn.) def. Rashad Evans (MSU), 4-2 Minn., 18-6 184 Jeff Clemens (MSU) def. Matt Nagel (Minn.), 6-4 Minn., 18-9 197 No. 8 Nik Fekete (MSU) def. Damion Hahn (Minn.), 6-5 Minn., 18-12 Hwt. No. 10 Garrett Lowney (Minn.) pinned No.19 John Wechter (MSU), F, 1:22 Minn., 24-12
Individual Rankings according to Amateur Wrestling News. Team Rankings according to InterMat Wrestling.