HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Eric Barnett led Wisconsin to a fourth-place finish at the 2022 Midlands Championships after winning the 125-pound title on Friday. He joined six of his teammates to finish on the podium in the one of the country's top mid-season wrestling tournaments.

After leading the team standings in first place through three sessions, Wisconsin narrowly dropped down to fourth when all the results shook out with 114.5 team points. Host Northwestern won the tournament with 122 team points, followed by a tie between Penn and Pitt with 115 points a piece. Illinois rounded out the top five with 104.5 team points. The Badgers finished outside the top three by only one-half point.

Among four Badgers who advanced to the finals, Barnett won the team's lone crown after defeating Arizona State's Brandon Courtney in a high-flying 6-2 decision.

Wisconsin's Drew Scharenbrock (157), Dean Hamiti (165) and Braxton Amos (197) all finished second in their respective weight classes and first appearances in the Midland finals. Scharenbrock dropped an 8-0 loss by major decision to Northwestern's Trevor Chumbley.

Both Hamiti and Amos went down to the wire in their losses. Hamiti lost in the closing seconds in a tight 4-3 decision to Princeton's Quincy Monday, while Amos went into multiple overtimes and tiebreakers before losing 2-1 to Illinois' Zac Braunagel, easily the tournament's longest bout.

Garrett Model finished fifth overall at 157 pounds, earning a final victory 3-0 decision over Rutger's Andrew Clark to join Scharenbrock on the podium.

Trent Hillger finished sixth overall in the heavyweights after withdrawing from his final matches due to injury.

Taylor LaMont finished eighth overall at 133 pounds earlier on Friday in the consolation bracket.

Day Two - Session III - Dec. 30, 2022

Following Friday's Session III competition, Wisconsin holds a narrow half-point hold on first place at the 2022 Midlands Championships.

Wisconsin leads all teams with 110.5 team points, followed very closely by Penn (110.0), Northwestern (108), Pitt (103.5) and Illinois (92.5) rounding out the top five of the 30-team standings.

Four Badgers advanced through the semifinals on Friday morning and will wrestle for Midlands titles during the final session. All four Wisconsin wrestlers will be making their first career appearances in the Midlands finals, after the event has been canceled the prior two years.

In the 125-pound semifinal, Eric Barnett defeated Dean Peterson (Rutgers) with a 6-2 decision victory. Barnett will wrestle Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) in the title match. Barnett competed in Midlands as a freshman, but did not place.

At 157 pounds, Drew Scharenbrock continued his dominating performance with a 3-2 upset of Andrew Clark (Rutgers) and will wrestle Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) in the final. This is Scharenbrock's first Midlands title bout.

Dean Hamiti moved on to the 165-pound final with a 6-0 decision victory over Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois). Hamiti will wrestle Princeton's Quincy Monday for the title.

At 197 pounds, Braxton Amos remained undefeated with a 2-1 decision over Mac Stout (Pittsburgh) and he will wrestle Zac Braunagel (Illinois) for first-place.

Surprising fans, heavyweight Trent Hillger lost his semifinal in the final three seconds after seemingly having the victory locked up. Hillger lost to Dayton Pitzer (Pittsburgh) in a reverse fall at the 6:57 mark, as Pitzer ended up on top of Hillger and fought him down to the mat on his back. Hillger did not compete in the ensuing match due to medical forfeit.

Garrett Model will wrestle for fifth place against Andrew Clark (Rutgers). He lost his semifinal to 6-1 to Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) and then lost his consolation match to Anthony Artalona (Penn) in a 10-1 major decision.

Taylor LaMont finished in eighth place overall at 133 pounds to grab a spot on the podium. He defeated Marcel Lopez (SIUE) in a 8-5 decision after entering the consolation bracket. He then lost his next two bouts with tight 3-2 decisions to Julian Chlebove (Arizona State) and Hunter Adrian (Brown), respectively.

Josh Otto finished his run in the consolation bracket with a 5-1 loss to Brody Conley (West Virginia).

Day One Results - Sessions I & 2 - Dec. 30, 2022

Led by strong performances across the brackets, Wisconsin wrestling currently sits in first place with 78.5 points at the 2022 Midlands Championships.

Hosted by Northwestern at NOW Arena, Wisconsin has 15 wrestlers competing in one of the nation's historically strongest mid-season tournaments with 43 schools participating. Six Badgers have advanced into the semifinals on Friday.

Wisconsin took an early lead in first place with 38 points after Session I on Thursday, then further cemented the lead as eight Badgers competed in the evening's quarterfinals during Session II. Wisconsin holds a 15.5-point lead ahead of second-place Northwestern (63.0 points), Pitt (61.5), Rutgers (60.0) and Penn (58.0).

Drew Scharenbrock (157 pounds) and Dean Hamiti (165) are leading the Badgers in scoring after both earning two pins a piece in the first two rounds, then advancing through the quarterfinals with bonus-point victories. Teammate Braxton Amos also collected two pins on Thursday, the first of his collegiate career, and advanced past quarterfinals.

Scharenbrock turned in a dominant performance on Thursday to give the Badgers 15.5 team points. The Sun Prairie, Wisconsin native pinned Corbyn Munson (Central Michigan) in just 36 seconds before pinning Cam Picklo (Oklahoma) in just 43 seconds. He then earned a 18-3 tech fall over Harvard's Cael Berg to advance to the tournament's semifinal round on Friday where he will wrestle Andrew Clark (Rutgers) in Bout 597.

The 2022 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and an NCAA All-American, Hamiti pinned Mason Spears (Brown) in 3:37 and then Luke Gayer (Rutgers) in 5:32. He then earned a 9-0 major decision over SIU Edwardsville's Cardi Wilson to advance to the semifinals on Friday. After earning 15 team points for the Badgers, Hamiti will wrestle Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois) in Bout 559.

A NCAA qualifier, Amos earned three bonus-point victories with his first collegiate career pin over SIUE's Ryan Yarnell in 2:56 and a 19-2 tech fall over Harvard's Michael Doggett. He then earned a second pin against John Crawford (Franklin & Marshall) in 2:33 to advance to the semifinals against Pitt's Mac Stout in Bout 605 on Friday at 197 pounds.

Three other Badgers - Eric Barnett (125), Garrett Model (157) and Trent Hillger (285) also remain undefeated and have advanced to Friday's semifinals. Barnett picked up three bonus-point victories on the day thanks to two major decisions and a tech fall, while Model and Hillger both finished with a major decision each.

Taylor LaMont (133) and Josh Otto (174) are also advancing through the consolation brackets into Friday morning's competition. Both LaMont and Otto had advanced into the quarterfinals on Thursday evening before their first losses.

Full results for the 15 Badgers are below. Austin Gomez (149 pounds) and Gavin Model (165 pounds) did not compete.

FINAL RESULTS

All rankings noted are Intermat (Dec. 22, 2022).

Final Team Standings

1. #15 Northwestern, IL 122.0
2. Penn, PA 115.0
3. #7 Pittsburgh, PA 115.0
4. #9 Wisconsin, WI 114.5
5. #28 Illinois, IL 104.5
6. #6 Arizona State, AZ 86.0
7. Rutgers, NJ 85.0
8. #13 Princeton, NJ 65.0 
9. SIU Edwardsviille, IL 64.5
10. Harvard, MA 55.5
11. Virginia, VA 53.0
12. #21 West Virginia, WV 49.0
13. Northern Illinois, IL 40.0
14. #16 Lehigh, PA 36.5
15. Indiana, IN 34.0
16. #3 Missouri, MO 28.0
17. Unattached, IN 27.5
18. Central Michigan, MI 24.5
19. UW-Whitewater, WI 22.0 (Div. III)
20. #17 NC State, NC 20.0
21. Bloomsburg, PA 19.5 (Div. 1 wrestling)
22. George Mason, VA 19.0
23. #11 Michigan, MI 18.5
24. Cleveland State, OH 17.5
25. Franklin & Marshall, PA 16.5 (Div. 1 wrestling)
26. Navy Prep, RI 16.5
27. Brown, RI 14.0
28. Rhode Island College, RI 11.0 (Div. III)
29. Oklahoma, OK 8.0
30. Thomas More, KY 6.5 (NAIA/Div. II)

#7 Eric Barnett - 125 pounds, Seed #1, 4-0 overall, 19.5 team points

• Champ. Round 1: #7 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) over Jace Schafer (West Virginia)  •  Major Dec. 9-1
• Champ. Round 2: #7 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) over Nick Gonzalez (Air Force)  •  Tech Fall 16-0 4:31
• Quarterfinal: #7 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) over Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh)  •  Major Dec. 13-4
• Semifinal: #7 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) over #18 Dean Peterson (Rutgers)  •  Dec. 6-2
• 1st Place Match: #7 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) over Brandon Courtney (Arizona State)  •  Dec. 6-2

#20 Taylor LaMont - 133 pounds, 8th Place, Seed #5, 4-2 overall, 7.5 team points

• Champ. Round 1: #20 Taylor Lamont (Wisconsin) over ()  •  Bye
• Champ. Round 2: #20 Taylor Lamont (Wisconsin) over Isaac Thornton (Indiana)  •  Major Dec. 12-4
• Champ. Round 3: #20 Taylor Lamont (Wisconsin) over Lucian Brink (Northern Illinois)  •  Dec. 9-6
• Quarterfinal: #13 Michael Colaiocco (Penn) over #20 Taylor Lamont (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 8-1
• Cons. Round 6: #20 Taylor Lamont (Wisconsin) over Marcel Lopez (SIU Edwardsville)  •  Dec. 8-5
• Cons. Round 7: Julian Chlebove (Arizona State) over #20 Taylor Lamont (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 3-2
• 7th Place Match: Hunter Adrian (Brown) over #20 Taylor Lamont (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 3-2

Nicolar Rivera - 133 pounds, 2-2 overall, 3.5 team points

• Champ. Round 1: Nicolar Rivera (Wisconsin) over ()  •  Bye
• Champ. Round 2: Nicolar Rivera (Wisconsin) over Cody Moosman (Cleveland State)  •  Major Dec. 9-0
• Champ. Round 3: Ryan Crookham (Lehigh) over Nicolar Rivera (Wisconsin)  •  Major Dec. 9-1
• Cons. Round 4: Nicolar Rivera (Wisconsin) over Anthony Clark (Princeton)  •  Dec. 8-5
• Cons. Round 5: Nico Nardone (Penn) over Nicolar Rivera (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 11-9

Felix Lettini - 141 pounds, 1-2 overall, 3.0 team points

• Champ. Round 1: Felix Lettini (Wisconsin) over Cayden Rooks (Indiana)  •  Fall 7:32
• Champ. Round 2: Michael Leveille (Purdue) over Felix Lettini (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 5-4
• Cons. Round 2: Felix Lettini (Wisconsin) over ()  •  Bye
• Cons. Round 3: Michael Dolan (West Virginia) over Felix Lettini (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 4-2 (SV-1)

#23 Joseph Zargo - 141 pounds, Seed #5, 2-1 overall, 3.5 team points (withdrew due to injury)

• Champ. Round 1: #23 Joseph Zargo (Wisconsin) over ()  •  Bye
• Champ. Round 2: #23 Joseph Zargo (Wisconsin) over Josh Mason (Bloomsburg)  •  Dec. 10-4
• Champ. Round 3: Saul Ervin (SIU Edwardsville) over #23 Joseph Zargo (Wisconsin)  •  Fall 1:54
• Cons. Round 4: #23 Joseph Zargo (Wisconsin) over Jackson Polo (Penn)  •  Major Dec. 12-4
• Cons. Round 5: Dylan Layton (Cleveland State) over #23 Joseph Zargo (Wisconsin)  •  Inj. 3:18*

#16 Garrett Model - 157 pounds, Seed #2, 3-2 overall, 11.0 team points

• Champ. Round 1: #16 Garrett Model (Wisconsin) over ()  •  Bye
• Champ. Round 2: #16 Garrett Model (Wisconsin) over Nick Sanko (Virginia)  •  Dec. 6-3
• Champ. Round 3: #16 Garrett Model (Wisconsin) over Nick Vafiadis (Navy Prep)  •  Major Dec. 9-1
• Quarterfinal: #16 Garrett Model (Wisconsin) over Derek Gilcher (Indiana)  •  Dec. 4-2
• Semifinal: #14 Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) over #16 Garrett Model (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 6-1
• Cons. Semi: #15 Anthony Artalona (Penn) over #16 Garrett Model (Wisconsin)  •  Major Dec. 10-1
• 5th Place Match: #16 Garrett Model (Wisconsin) over Andrew Clark (Rutgers)  •  Dec. 3-0

Drew Scharenbrock - 157 pounds, 4-0 overall, 22.5 team points

• Champ. Round 1: Drew Scharenbrock (Wisconsin) over ()  •  Bye
• Champ. Round 2: Drew Scharenbrock (Wisconsin) over #31 Corbyn Munson (Central Michigan)  •  Fall 0:36
• Champ. Round 3: Drew Scharenbrock (Wisconsin) over Cam Picklo (Oklahoma)  •  Fall 0:43
• Quarterfinal: Drew Scharenbrock (Wisconsin) over Cael Berg (Harvard)  •  Tech Fall 18-3 7:00
• Semifinal: Drew Scharenbrock (Wisconsin) over Andrew Clark (Rutgers)  •  Dec. 3-2
• 1st Place Match: #14 Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) over Drew Scharenbrock (Wisconsin)  •  Major Dec. 8-0

#4 Dean Hamiti - 165 pounds, Seed #1, 4-0 overall, 22.0 team points

• Champ. Round 1: #4 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) over ()  •  Bye
• Champ. Round 2: #4 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) over Mason Spears (Brown)  •  Fall 3:37
• Champ. Round 3: #4 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) over Luke Gayer (Rutgers)  •  Fall 5:32
• Quarterfinal: #4 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) over Cardi Wilson (SIU Edwardsville)  •  Major Dec. 9-0
• Semifinal: #4 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) over #10 Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois)  •  Dec. 6-0
• 1st Place Match: Quincy Monday (Princeton) over Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 4-3

Josh Otto - 174 pounds, 2-2 overall, 2.0 team points

• Champ. Round 1: Josh Otto (Wisconsin) over Spencer Steiner (Central Michigan)  •  Dec 9-7
• Champ. Round 2: Josh Otto (Wisconsin) over Victor Marcelli (Virginia)  •  Dec. 3-2
• Quarterfinal: #22 Nick Incontrera (Penn) over Josh Otto (Wisconsin)  •  Major Dec. 10-1
• Cons. Round 4: Brody Conley (West Virginia) over Josh Otto (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 5-1

James Rowley - 174 pounds, 1-2 overall, 1.0 team points

• Champ. Round 1: James Rowley (Wisconsin) over #31 Jackson Turley (Rutgers)  •  Dec. 7-1
• Champ. Round 2: Kole Mulhauser (Princeton) over James Rowley (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 3-1 (SV-1)
• Cons. Round 2: Hayden Pummel (Northern Illinois) over James Rowley (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 3-2

Tyler Dow - 184 pounds, Seed #11, 1-2 overall, 2.0 team points

• Champ. Round 1: Tyler Dow (Wisconsin) over ()  •  Bye
• Champ. Round 2: Tyler Dow (Wisconsin) over Deron Pulliam (SIU Edwardsville)  •  Dec. 2-0
• Champ. Round 3: Dylan Fishback (NC State) over Tyler Dow (Wisconsin)  •  Fall 7:00
• Cons. Round 4: Nate Dugan (Princeton) over Tyler Dow (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 3-2

#12 Braxton Amos - 197 pounds, Seed #1, 4-0 overall, 21.5 team points

• Champ. Round 1: #12 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) over Ryan Yarnell (SIU Edwardsville)  •  Fall 2:56
• Champ. Round 2: #12 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) over Michael Doggett (Harvard)  •  Tech Fall 19-2 6:08
• Quarterfinal: #12 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) over John Crawford (Franklin & Marshall)  •  Fall 2:33
• Semifinal: #12 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) over Mac Stout (Pittsburgh)  •  Dec. 2-1
• 1st Place Match: #13 Zac Braunagel (Illinois) over #12 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 2-1 (TB-2)

Michael Talshahar - 197 pounds, 1-2 overall, 2.5 team points

• Champ. Round 1: #14 Luke Stout (Princeton) over Michael Talshahar (Wisconsin)  •  Fall 2:00
• Cons. Round 1: Michael Talshahar (Wisconsin) over Tommy Hagan (Missouri)  •  Fall 5:34
• Cons. Round 2: Eli Sheeren (Buffalo) over Michael Talshahar (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 8-2

Peter Christensen - 285 pounds, 1-2 overall, 1.0 team points (withdrew due to injury)

• Champ. Round 1: Peter Christensen (Wisconsin) over John O`Donnell (Rutgers)  •  Dec. 2-0
• Champ. Round 2: #7 Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard) over Peter Christensen (Wisconsin)  •  Dec. 9-2
• Cons. Round 2: Sebastian Garibaldi (Princeton) over Peter Christensen (Wisconsin)  •  MFF*

#10 Trent Hillger - 285 pounds, Seed #4, 3-1 overall, 10.0 team points

• Champ. Round 1: #10 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) over Sebastian Garibaldi (Princeton)  •  Dec. 5-0
• Champ. Round 2: #10 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) over Daulton Mayer (Thomas More)  •  Major Dec. 14-1
• Quarterfinal: #10 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) over #23 Boone Mcdermott (Rutgers)  •  Dec. 6-0
• Semifinal: Dayton Pitzer (Pittsburgh) over #10 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin)  •  Fall 6:57
• Cons. Semi: #7 Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard) over #10 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin)  •  MFF*
• 5th Place Match: #25 Colton McKiernan (SIU Edwardsville) over #10 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin)  •  MFF*

Medical Forfeits do not count as a loss in overall record.

Midlands History for Badgers

Work in Progress

• 2022: 4th, 114.5 points - 7 place-winners
• 2021: No Tournament (Canceled due to Covid)
• 2020: No Tournament (Canceled due to Covid)
• 2019: 4th, 93 points - 5 place-winners - recap
• 2018: 4th, 97.5 points - 7 place-winners - recap
• 2017: 16th, 31.5 points - 2 place-winners - recap
• 2016: 7th, 70.5 points - 6 place-winners - recap
• 2015: 24th, 17.5 points - 0 place-winners - recap
• 2014: 7th, 80.5 points - 5 place-winners - recap
• 2013: 8th, 62.5 points - 4 place-winners - recap
• 2012: 12th, 50.5 points - 3 place-winners (1 unattached - recap
• 2011: 18th, 40 points - 3 place-winners - recap
• 2010: 2nd, 95.5 points - 4 place-winners - recap
• 2009: 5th, 90.5 points - 4 place-winners - recap
• 2008: 4th, 98.5 points
• 2007: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 2006: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 2005: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 2004: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 2003: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 2002: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 2001: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 2000: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1999: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1998: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1997: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1996: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1995: No team scoring
• 1994: No team scoring
• 1993: No team scoring
• 1991: No team scoring
• 1990: 5th, 47.25 points
• 1989: 8th, 40.75 points
• 1988: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1987: 2nd, 70.5 points
• 1986: 3rd, 45.0 points
• 1985: 6th, 42.0 points
• 1984: 5th, 47.75 points
• 1983: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1982: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1981: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1980: 2nd, 48.75 (Wisconsin W.C.)
• 1979: 3rd, 61.5 points
• 1978: 3rd, 71.5 points
• 1977: 4th, 61.00 points
• 1976: 4th, 63.50 points
• 1975: 3rd, 59.25 points
• 1974: 3rd, 57.5 points
• 1973: 4th, 67.5 points
• 1972: 10th, 32 points
• 1971: 10th, 19 points
• 1970: 7th, 26 points
• 1969: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1968: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1967: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1966: 8th, 21 points
• 1965: 5th, 42 points
• 1964: Outside of Top 10 (To be added)
• 1963: 10th, 4 points