With the NIU wrestling team trailing 17-16 going into the final match against Ohio on Sunday, the fate of the Huskies fell on the shoulders of a freshman.

The freshman, heavyweight Joe Sapp (9-13), came through with a 5-4 decision over Jeremiah Beltran, giving NIU a 19-17 win that snapped an Ohio six-match winning streak.

“Joe did a great job. He’s been kind of down lately,” NIU coach Dave Grant said. “A win like this can change your whole attitude and can give you some great confidence. Any time a wrestler has a win like that, in a situation like that, it can alter his outlook on the rest of the season.”

Beltran was ranked as high as 18th in the nation in the heavyweight division. It was the first time in Sapp’s young career he has beaten a ranked opponent.

In the preseason coach’s poll, Ohio was picked second and NIU third – both behind Central Michigan.

NIU’s 174-pound George Kirgan (15-8) helped get the Huskies (8-3 overall, 2-0 MAC) back into the match with his second pin in as many matches. It was his team-leading sixth pin of the season. After a pin, a team receives six team points.

NIU trailed 14-6 before Kirgan’s match.

“George’s pin got us back in the match,” Grant said. “We needed a pin in George’s match. It was really the only way we could get back in it. We got behind early and were down before George’s win kept us in it. That match gave our whole team the confidence to win.”

Ben Heizer (19-1), the nation’s second-ranked 184-pounder, had an 11-0 major decision over Travis Smith of Ohio (6-3, 1-1). A major decision is when a wrestler wins by a margin of 8-14 points.

Another ranked NIU wrestler, 20th-ranked 149-pound Josh Wooton (16-7), had a 9-4 decision over Mike Allen.

NIU’s Andy Hiatt (17-7) added a 9-5 win over Jon Spires.

Sam Hiatt (15-5), the 10th-ranked 133-pound wrestler, lost for the first time in his last six matches. Hiatt’s win streak was snapped during Anthony Carrizales’ 7-5 win.