220109WRvsRutgers
Greg Anderson

Wrestling

Five Things to Know: Minnesota

No. 10 Badgers travel to wrestle No. 14 Golden Gophers in Border Battle

Wrestling

Five Things to Know: Minnesota

No. 10 Badgers travel to wrestle No. 14 Golden Gophers in Border Battle

MINNEAPOLIS — No. 10 Wisconsin (6-0, 2-0 Big Ten) travels across the border to Big Ten rival No. 14 Minnesota (3-2, 2-1 Big Ten) at Maturi Pavilion in Minneapolis on Sunday, Jan. 16 at 1 p.m. CT.

Quick Links

Don't miss head coach Chris Bono's latest Jump Around Weekly update video.

Here are five more things to know before the Badgers step on the mats:

1. LAST TIME OUT: Wisconsin opened the Big Ten dual season at home with a weekend sweep of No. 12 Northwestern (19-15) and No. 16 Rutgers (19-14) at the UW Field House. Austin Gomez earned a hard-fought 8-6 decision at 149 pounds for the upset win against Northwestern's fourth-ranked Yahya Thomas to rally the Badgers for a come-from-behind 19-15 victory over the Wildcats. Leading 16-14 with only the heavyweights left, Trent Hillger scored a quick takedown over Rutgers' Boone McDermott then kept a tight grip on his lead, later sealing the victory with an escape, takedown and riding time in the third period to win a 6-3 decision and ensure the 19-14 team victory.

2. TOP-10: The Badgers climbed into the Top-10 of two national rankings after the weekend's victories. The National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) slotted Wisconsin at No. 10 and Intermat ranks the Badgers at No. 9 for dual meets and No. 22 for tournaments.

3. NOTABLE IN THE NATION: Intermat kept all 10 of the Badgers top starters in their latest national rankings. Gomez (149, No. 10), true freshman Dean Hamiti (165, No. 8) and Hillger (285, No. 8) lead the polls among their Wisconsin teammates (all rankings noted below in lineups).

4. SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GOPHERS:

  • No. 14 Minnesota hosted No. 15 Nebraska on Friday in Minneapolis. The Gophers won six of the ten matches to earn themselves the Big Ten dual meet victory in a dramatic 19-13 finish and improve to 3-2 overall and 2-1 in the conference. 
  • Minnesota's notable victories included No. 1 Gable Steveson (285) earning a 18-16 major decision over No. 11 Christian Lance and No. 4 Brayton Lee fighting to a 4-0 decision over No. 5 Peyton Robb.
  • Read the recap here on GopherSports.com.

5. LINEUPS: PROBABLE STARTERS

Weight #10 WISCONSIN #14 MINNESOTA
125 #13 Eric Barnett #8 Patrick McKee
133 #27 Kyle Burwick or Ethan Rotondo #24 Jake Gliva or Aaron Nagao
141 #33 Joseph Zargo #17 Jake Bergeland
149 #10 Austin Gomez #24 Michael Blockhus
157 #33 Garrett Model #4 Brayton Lee
165 #8 Dean Hamiti #19 Andrew Sparks or Cael Carlson
174 #17 Andrew McNally #23 Bailee O'Reilly
184 #33 Chris Weiler #28 Isaiah Salazar or Sam Skillings
197 #24 Braxton Amos #30 Michial Foy
285 #8 Trent Hillger #1 Gable Steveson
Head Coach Chris Bono Brandon Eggum
Asst. Coach Jon Reader (Assoc. HC) Luke Becker (Head Asst. Coach)
Asst. Coach Seth Gross Trevor Brandvold
Preseason Team and Individual Rankings InterMat Jan. 11, 2021. Wisconsin is ranked #22 in Tournament; #9 in Duals; #10 by NWCA in Tournament
Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Trent Hillger

Trent Hillger

Redshirt Sophomore
Garrett Model

Garrett Model

Redshirt Sophomore
Ethan Rotondo

Ethan Rotondo

Junior
Eric Barnett

Eric Barnett

Freshman
Kyle Burwick

Kyle Burwick

Freshman
Seth Gross

Seth Gross

Redshirt Senior
Chris Weiler

Chris Weiler

6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
Braxton Amos

Braxton Amos

5' 11"
Freshman
Austin Gomez

Austin Gomez

5' 6"
Redshirt Junior
Dean Hamiti

Dean Hamiti

6' 0"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Trent Hillger

Trent Hillger

Redshirt Sophomore
Garrett Model

Garrett Model

Redshirt Sophomore
Ethan Rotondo

Ethan Rotondo

Junior
Eric Barnett

Eric Barnett

Freshman
Kyle Burwick

Kyle Burwick

Freshman
Seth Gross

Seth Gross

Redshirt Senior
Chris Weiler

Chris Weiler

6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
Braxton Amos

Braxton Amos

5' 11"
Freshman
Austin Gomez

Austin Gomez

5' 6"
Redshirt Junior
Dean Hamiti

Dean Hamiti

6' 0"
Freshman