Wisconsin Badgers
Midlands
This Week in Badger Wrestling: Dec. 29-30
December 17, 2015 | Wrestling
Wisconsin takes part in 53rd annual Midlands Championships
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BADGERS TO COMPETE AT MIDLANDS CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Wisconsin (1-2, 0-1 Big Ten) heads to Evanston, Illinois, to compete in the Ken Kraft Midlands Championships. The tournament will be the Badgers' last until the Big Ten Championships in March. UW has previously taken part in the Michigan State Open, Navy Classic and Cliff Keen Invitational.
- Forty-nine teams will participate at Midlands, including seven other Big Ten schools, five of which are currently ranked in the USA Today/NWCA Coaches top 25. Iowa is the highest ranked competitor at No. 2.
| #16 Wisconsin at Midlands | |
| Date | Tues./Wed., Dec. 29/30 | All Day |
| Location | Evanston, Ill. | Welsh-Ryan Arena |
| Updates | Live Stats | @BadgerWrestling |
| Notes | Wisconsin |
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NOTES TO KNOW
1 TOP FIVE: In 35 total opportunities this season at three tournaments, Wisconsin wrestlers have placed fifth or better 13 times. At the MSU Open, five of 15 Badgers had one second-, three fourth- and one fifth-place finish. Six UW wrestlers had top-five placements at the Navy Classic. Isaac Jordan (165) and Brock Horwath (HWT) were first, while Johnny Jimenez (125) and Ryan Christensen (184) were second and fourth, respectively. Luke Rowh (141), Jared Scharenbrock (157) and Seth Liegel (165) finished at No. 5 in each of their weight classes. The Cliff Keen Invitational resulted in a tournament crown and fifth-place finish for Wisconsin. Jordan earned his second-consecutive tournament title and Ricky Robertson was fifth in the 174-pound bracket.
2 JUST JORDAN: Isaac Jordan maintained his perfect record, narrowly defeating Cody Wierioch of Pittsburgh in the 165-pound match. Jordan used a late takedown in the first period to go up 2-0. Wierioch answered with a takedown of his own in the second period but Jordan escaped for a 3-2 advantage going into the final period. Jordan eventually squeaked out a close 4-3 victory over Weirioch. Trailing, 4-2, with about 20 seconds left in the 165-pound match at Penn State, Jordan escaped Geno Morelli's hold and popped to his feet. The undefeated Badgers wrestler proceeded to aggressively lunge at his opponent before grabbing a hold of his legs and forcing to the ground to pick up a takedown as time expired. The 5-4 result at 165 pounds marked Jordan's second-straight one-point win and 13th-straight overall.
3 BIG TIME: Brock Horwath handled Penn State's Devon Van Cura in a 10-0 major decision in the heavyweight grapple. Other than his 16-0 domination of Jordan Festege in the Badger's first dual meet against UW-Whitewater, the triumph was Horwath's most dominant decision to date.
4 RANK 'EM: Two wrestlers are ranked by InterMat. Ryan Taylor, who has wrestled in just one match this season due to injury, comes in at No. 7 in the 133-pound weight class. Undefeated Isaac Jordan is ranked at No. 3 behind Oklahoma State's Alex Dieringer and Bo Jordan of Ohio State in the 165-pound weight class.
5 CHRISTENSEN COMING UP: 184-pounder Ryan Christensen has compiled the most results against ranked opponents this season: eight. He posts a 3-5 record with wins against No. 17 Dylan Gabel of Northern Colorado (D 2-1), No. 19 Cole Baxter of Kent State (D 6-2) and No. 20 Tom Sleigh of Bucknell (D 4-0).
6 LAST TIME: Last year at the Midlands, UW placed seventh with five Badgers earning top-eight finishes. Ryan Taylor claimed third place in the 133-pound bracket, while Ricky Robertson picked up a seventh-place finish at 174 pounds.
Players Mentioned
