Wisconsin Badgers
Ohio State
Badgers drop second straight, fall to No. 6 Ohio State
January 20, 2013 | Wrestling
Jan. 20, 2013
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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- For the second time this weekend, the No. 19 Wisconsin wrestling team (6-4, 3-2 Big Ten) lost on the road to a top-10 Big Ten team, falling to No. 6 Ohio State (9-2, 3-2), 29-10, in Columbus, Ohio, Sunday.
The loss to the Buckeyes is the Badgers’ second straight in Big Ten competition after coming into the weekend on a three-dual conference winning streak.
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Starting the dual at 133 lbs., Wisconsin got off to a solid start as No. 3 Tyler Graff got back on track following his upset loss on Friday at Penn State, completing a team-high 11 takedowns to earn a major decision victory, 25-11, over Kyle Visconti.
The biggest upset on the afternoon came at 149 lbs., where Cole Schmitt went on the aggressive to earn an 8-7 win over Ohio State’s No. 14-ranked Cam Tessari. Schmitt started the match with a quick takedown and followed that with a two-point nearfall before sealing the win with reversals in both the second and third periods.
After three matches the Badgers led, 7-6, on the strength of Graff and Schmitt’s victories, but that would be the last time Ohio State trailed on the afternoon.
Following the 149 lbs. match, the sixth-ranked Buckeyes flexed their muscle and rattled off five-straight match wins—four by decision and one by technical fall—to build their lead to an insurmountable 23-7 with just two matches remaining.
No. 11 Connor Medbery got the Badgers back on the board with a 5-2 win in the heavyweight match, which was just one of two matches contested between two ranked opponents on the afternoon.
In that match, Medbery and No. 12 Peter Capone were tied at two going into the third period. Capone started down for the final period, but Medbery not only prevented an escape, but also was also able to tilt Capone for a two-point near fall that secured the win.
The victory upped Medbery’s undefeated dual record on the season to 9-0. He is also now an undefeated 5-0 against Big Ten competition and has victories over four ranked Big Ten heavyweights.
Ohio State put the finishing touch on its 29-10 win with a pin at 125 lbs., in the afternoon’s final match.
Wisconsin returns home to the UW Field House and continues its Big Ten season on Friday, Jan. 25, at 7 p.m. against Indiana. That dual will be streamed live online through the Big Ten Digital Network (BTDN) at BTN.com.
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Ryan Evans
UW Athletic Communications
