Huskers Wrap Regular Season, Defeat Boilermakers 35-6

Behind seven bonus-point wins, the Nebraska wrestling team took down the Boilermakers 35-6 on Sunday night, closing the regular season with a victory. Purdue fell to 10-6 (3-5 Big Ten) as the Big Red claimed eight bouts, and NU heads to the Big Ten Championships off a two-dual win streak.

The No. 5 Huskers (11-3, 6-2 Big Ten) will finish tied for third in conference standings, as Lenny Pinto and Ridge Lovett made their marks with dominant tech. falls.

Starting at 157, it was a top-10 battle between sophomores on the mat. No. 4 Antrell Taylor faced No. 7 Joey Blaze, the Boilermaker the first on the board, scoring with an early escape in the second period. Taylor evened the score with an escape of his own in the third, and came out with a last-second takedown to win the bout, 4-1.

On the mat at 165, No. 8 Christopher Minto opened against Stoney Buell with a takedown. The redshirt freshman kept control and tallied four points nearfall to close the first period. Minto tallied another takedown in the second, and an escape in the third setting him up for his third takedown. Buell got an escape, but Minto secured the 17-1 (5:43) tech. fall with another takedown.

After a team-point deduction for a uniform violation, NU was up 7-0 heading into the 174 bout. A ranked matchup, No. 10 Lenny Pinto scored early against No. 25 Brody Baumann with a takedown. The pair traded reversals and went into the third period 11-4 after two Pinto takedowns and two Baumann escapes. The Husker used an escape and three takedowns in the final period to notch a 21-6 (6:46) tech. fall, and another five-point Big Red win.

At 184, redshirt freshman Ethan DeLeon took the mat against Orlando Cruz. The pair were scoreless through the first period, but DeLeon was first to score with an escape in the second. Cruz evened the bout with an escape of his own, and took the lead with a takedown. The Husker got another escape, but it was not enough to stop Cruz in the 4-2 decision.

Another ranked matchup, No. 20 Camden McDanel and No. 27 Ben Vanadia were up next at 197. McDanel struck first with a takedown, and another in the second period. Vanadia used two escapes to make the score 6-2 headed into the third. The true freshman Husker opened the final period strong, and cruised to a tech. fall finish using four takedowns. McDanel shut down the Boilermaker, who leads Purdue in third period scoring, with 69 points. The freshman cashed the 22-6 (6:35) win in for five more NU points, sending the Huskers into intermission with a 17-3 lead.

Up at heavyweight, No. 21 Harley Andrews met Hayden Filipovich on the mat. The pair had a scoreless first period, but the Boilermaker came out firing in the second period, building ridetime and claiming four nearfall points. Filipovich opened the final period with a reversal, answered by an Andrews cradle. However, the scrappy bout ended in a 9-4 decision for Filipovich, his second ranked win of the season.

At 125, No. 7 Caleb Smith took on Ashton Jackson, and started with a takedown. Another takedown and nearfall points pushed the Husker to a 10-1 lead heading into the second period. The senior used a reversal and three takedowns to claim his first tech. fall of the season, 21-5 (6:22).

Leading 22-6, No. 16 Jacob Van Dee met Dustin Norris at 133. Van Dee claimed a takedown to close period one, Norris responded with an escape, and the pair went into the third 3-1. The Husker notched another with an escape, and pushed the score to 11-1 with a takedown and four points nearfall to claim the major decision win and his 35th career victory.

At 141, No. 6 Brock Hardy started with a takedown against No. 27 Greyson Clark. The Husker opened the second period with a reversal, answered by a Boilermaker escape. Hardy used three more takedowns and the ride time point to best Clark with a 15-4 major decision. His 14th bonus-point win of the season, the junior notched another four points for NU.

In the final bout of the night, the conference dual closed at 149. No. 4 Ridge Lovett faced Isaac Ruble, putting up an action-packed first period, scoring 21 in three minutes. The senior notched his fourth tech. fall of the season, 21-5 (2:57), to lock in the 35-6 NU victory. With the five-point finish, Lovett ends the season having earned 57 dual points for the Big Red, the most since Mikey Labriola (58) in the 2018-19 season.

With the 29-point win, the Big Red conclude the regular season 11-3 (6-2 Big Ten). The Boilermakers fall to 10-6 (3-5 Big Ten), and 2-14 all-time against Nebraska. The Huskers finish tied for third with Minnesota in the Big Ten standings, behind Iowa and Penn State.

In the conference victory, Minto tallied his eighth tech. fall of the season and improved to 18-2. True freshman McDanel notched his fifth tech. fall and 15th bonus-point win. Pinto, who appeared at No. 9 in NCAA DI tech. fall leaders this past week, took his 11th of the season, the most for a Husker since TJ Dudley (11) in 2016-17.

UP NEXT
After an off-week, NU will begin its postseason with the Big Ten Championships in Evanston, Ill. The two-day tournament begins session one on Saturday, Mar. 8 at 10 a.m. (CT), and will be broadcast on Big Ten Network. Session two is slated for 7 p.m. (CT) on Saturday, and sessions three and four will take place on Sunday, Mar. 9.

No. 5 Nebraska 35, Purdue 6
157: No. 4 Antrell Taylor dec. No. 7 Joey Blaze (PUR) 4-0 (NEB 2, PUR 0)*
165: No. 8 Christopher Minto tech. fall Stoney Buell (PUR) 17-1 (5:43) (NEB 7, PUR 0)
174: No. 10 Lenny Pinto tech. fall No. 25 Brody Baumann (PUR) 21-6 (6:46) (NEB 12, PUR 0)
184: Orlando Cruz (PUR) dec. Ethan DeLeon 4-2 (NEB 12, PUR 3)
197: No. 20 Camden McDanel tech. fall No. 27 Ben Vanadia (PUR) 22-6 (6:35) (NEB 17, PUR 3)
HWT: Hayden Filipovich (PUR) dec. No. 21 Harley Andrews 9-4 (NEB 17, PUR 6)
125: No. 7 Caleb Smith tech. fall Ashton Jackson (PUR) 21-5 (6:22) (NEB 22, PUR 6)
133: No. 16 Jacob Van Dee major dec. Dustin Norris (PUR) 11-1 (NEB 26, PUR 6)
141: No. 6 Brock Hardy major dec. No. 27 Greyson Clark (PUR) 15-4 (NEB 30, PUR 6)
149: No. 4 Ridge Lovett tech. fall Isaac Ruble (PUR) 21-5 (2:57) (NEB 35, PUR 6)

*Team point deducted from NEB for a Uniform Violation