Wrestling splits Boilermaker Duals

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Jarrett Huff | Northern Star

Then-redshirt sophomore Brit Wilson smiling as he holds redshirt senior Dylan Wisman to the mat March 8, 2020 upon realization that he would be crowned Mid-American Conference Champion at the Convocation Center. The 2020 NCAA Wrestling Championships was ultimately canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

By Carlos Finney Jr., Sports Reporter

DeKALB — The NIU wrestling team competed in the Boilermaker Duals Sunday and finished the day 2-2 in their dual matchups.

“The guys wrestled really hard,” NIU head coach Ryan Ludwig said in a Sunday NIU athletics news release. “We just need to continue to work on our execution in scoring position. Looking forward to our next opportunity.”

The Huskies two wins were dominant, with 33-5 over Bellarmine University and 33-9 over Brown University. They fell to Duke University 25-17 and host Purdue University 28-10.

Redshirt senior Brit Wilson finished perfect on the day, as did redshirt junior Izzak Olejnik. Senior Anthony Cheloni and junior Javion Jones each win three of their four matches. 

Olejnik had a great day at 165 with two of his wins coming via pinfall and the other two coming in shutout decisions. He pinned Duke redshirt sophomore Brandon Larue in the first period and then his second against Brown university freshman Keegan Rothrock. 

Jones contributed as well with a first period pin over Brown’s sophomore Justin Bierdumpfel at 141. He also won a 12-0 majority decision match against redshirt sophomore Patrick Rowland and a 8-1 victory over Bellarmine sophomore Logan Hoskins.

Wilson not only went unblemished on the day, but also remains perfect on the season. He won 9-3 against Brown’s freshman Drew Clarie and had two majority decision victories, 14-5 over Duke junior Vincent Baker, and a 18-3 victory over Bellarmine sophomore Sam Schroeder. He finished his day with a victory over a ranked opponent, redshirt senior Max Lyon, in a 7-3 decision. 

“We will continue to build, adjust and improve as the season rolls on,” Ludwig said. “Props to Olejnik and Wilson on setting the tone for how we want to wrestle.”

The Huskies next matchup is Dec. 4 when they compete in the Cougar Clash, in Edwardsville, Illinois.