No. 23 Spartan Wrestling Heads To Columbus To Battle 11th-Ranked Buckeyes Friday

Friday, January 29

Columbus, Ohio

4 PM ET

Michigan State University

No. 11 Ohio State

Photo by: Matthew Mitchell/MSU Athletic Communications

No. 23 Spartan Wrestling Heads To Columbus To Battle 11th-Ranked Buckeyes Friday

1/28/2021 3:12:00 PM | Wrestling

MSU meets OSU in Friday's lone Big Ten action.

No. 23 MICHIGAN STATE (1-1, 1-1 B1G) at No. 11 Ohio State (2-1, 2-1 B1G)
DATE	Friday, Jan. 29, 2021
TIMES	First seven extra matches: 4 p.m. Team Dual: 5:15 p.m. Last three extra matches: 7:15 p.m.
LOCATION	Columbus, Ohio • Covelli Center
TICKETS	NO TICKETS
STREAMING	Big Ten Network+ {WATCH LIVE}
MATCH NOTES	Michigan State \| Ohio State
SOCIAL MEDIA	@wrestlingmsu \| MichiganState Wrestling \| @wrestlingmsu

No. 23 Michigan State wrestling returns to action this weekend for its first road match of the 2021 season, traveling to Columbus, Ohio to take on No. 11 Ohio State on Friday, Jan. 29. Action from OSU's Covelli Center gets underway at 4 p.m. with the first seven extra matches, followed by the team dual at 5:15, before wrapping up with the last three extra matches at 7:15 p.m. The battle between the Spartans and Buckeyes will be streamed on Big Ten Network+.

Friday's dual is MSU's first action since a tri-meet on Jan. 16 with Maryland and then-No. 14 Minnesota, after last week's scheduled match at then-No. 2 Penn State was postponed due to COVID-19 concerns.

ROAD WARRIORS
• Friday is also the Spartans' first of a stretch of four matches away from home on three dates. Due to the delayed start of the season because of the COVID-19 pandemic, MSU's schedule features, along with Friday evening's match at Ohio State, a trip to Bloomington, Ind., for a quad meet at Indiana on Saturday, Feb. 6 with host-Indiana, along with Nebraska and Rutgers. The Spartans then return home to host Purdue on Friday, Feb. 12, before wrapping up regular-season action with Michigan on Friday, Feb. 19.

SPARTAN FROM THE BUCKEYE STATE
• Michigan State has one wrestler on its roster from the state of Ohio in 141-pounder, redshirt-senior Jacob Spiess, who is a native of Delta, Ohio ... Spiess is in his second season as a Spartan after transferring from Eastern Michigan ... he was a four-year letterwinner at Delta High School under Anthony Carrizales ... Spiess compiled a 178-13 record during high school, including three team state titles and four league championships.

RANKED FOES
• The match-up with No. 11 Ohio State is Michigan State's second-straight and part of possible stretch of six matches against ranked opponents of the now updated eight-match schedule, leaving only the season-opener against Maryland and next week's match vs. Indiana as the only regular-season matches against unranked opponents.

• MSU's last action was vs. then-No. 14 Minnesota on Jan. 16 in the second match of day after facing Maryland in the opener. After Friday's match-up with No. 11 Ohio State, the Spartans are slated to face unranked Indiana, No. 7 Nebraska and No. 20 Rutgers in a quad meet at Indiana next Saturday, Feb. 6. Michigan State then takes on No. 19 Purdue on Feb. 12, before No. 2 Michigan in the regular-season finale on Feb. 19.

SPARTAN WRESTLING IN NWCA RANKINGS
• Michigan State takes a No. 23 ranking in this week's NWCA Coaches Poll on the road for its second-straight match vs. a ranked team after facing No. 14 Minnesota in the opening weekend ... MSU was No. 21 in this season's preseason rankings (1/1/21), sliding out of first week's (1/5/21), but back in the first week's at No. 25 ... it was the first time since 2009 that the Spartans are in the NWCA's regular-season rankings, when MSU was No. 21 in the Nov. 11, 2009 poll ... prior to 2009, the Spartans were ranked in most of the 2007 weekly rankings.

Preseason 1-1   21
Week 1 - 1/5   -- (31)
Week 2 - 1/12   25
Week 3 - 1/19   24
Week 4 - 1/26   23

RANK 'EM
• Along with the NWCA rankings, MSU is in several different team rankings, as high as No. 12 by Wrestle Stat's Dual Rankings to No. 23 in NWCA Coaches Poll and No. 25 in TrackWrestling's team rankings.

• Individually, eight different Spartans are ranked in at least one of the five rankings from Flowrestling (Top 25 individuals in each weight class), Intermat (Top 20 individuals), OnTheMat (Top 33 individuals), Trackwrestling (Top 33 individuals) and Wrestle Stat (Top 33 individuals).

• Redshirt-junior 125-pounder Rayvon Foley is one of the two highest-ranked Spartans, coming in at No. 3 in two of the rankings, WrestleStat and OnTheMat, along with redshirt-junior Cameron Caffey, who is No. 3 in OnTheMat.

• Foley and Caffey are two of the three Spartans to be ranked in all five polls, joined by 165-pounder Jake Tucker (R-SR), while 174-pounder Drew Hughes (R-SR) and 184-pounder Layne Malczewski (R-SO) are in four of the five.

HIGHLY CAFFEY-NATED
• Despite moving up to 197-pounds this season after wrestling at 184 last year, redshirt-junior Cameron Caffey opened up the 2021 season by picking up right where he left off in 2020, as he has now won 12-straight regular-season matches and 14 of his last 15 matches overall and 16 of last 18 matches.

• Caffey's lone loss in his last 15 matches was to No. 1-seed Aaron Brooks of Penn State in a close 3-2 decision in the 184-pound Big Ten Championship.

• To open up the 2021 season, Caffey went 2-0 in his first matches in his new weight class ... he posted a 14-4 major decision over Kevin Makosy of Maryland and beat Garret Joles of Minnesota in a 12-5 decision during the tri-meet on Jan. 16.

COACH CHANDLER SAYS
"What I have learned, and tell our guys is that we need to be grateful for the opportunity to compete. Nothing is guaranteed especially in these times of the COVID pandemic. Our guys are excited to get back to competition and represent the Green & White. I know they will take full advantage of getting out on the mat again.

Ohio State has been a benchmark program for quite some time. There is no doubt they will be ready to compete. We will be ready to compete as well and I look forward to this opportunity to measure the growth of each and every guy competing."

NEW SEASON, NEW RESTRICTIONS DURING THESE UNPRECEDENTED TIMES
• Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 season will feature several Michigan State University, Big Ten, local, state and national restrictions and guidelines during these unprecedented times.

• There will be no fans in the stands, however, a limited number of family members of the student-athletes will be allowed.

• Due to the NCAA granting a blanket waiver for 2020-21, all wrestlers will be eligible to compete in varsity action this season without losing the ability to redshirt.

• The Big Ten Conference will be competing in conference-only matches, with each team competing in nine matches on either six or seven dates, with the Big Ten Championships slated for March 6-7 at University Park, Pa., hosted by Penn State and the NCAA Championships, scheduled for March 18-20 at Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Mo.

• Extra Matches: Due to only wrestling within the conference, the Big Ten will permit schools to hold extra matches on competition dates ... Though they will not count towards dual scoring, they will count towards an individual's varsity record for purposes of seeding for the conference and national tournament.

MOVIN' ON UP
Four of the Spartans NCAA Qualifiers from a year ago have moved up a weight class:
• Jake Tucker • R-SR: From 157 to 165
• Drew Hughes • R-SR: From 165 to 174
• Layne Malszewski • R-SO: From 174 to 184
• Cameron Caffey • R-JR: From 184 to 197

ABOUT OHIO STATE
• The Buckeyes are 2-1 on the season ... OSU split its opening weekend, getting edged, 18-15, by No. 24 Illinois, but bouncing back to blast the No. 21 Badgers of Wisconsin, 25-9 ... Ohio State then knocked off No. 17 Rutgers, 19-14, last Sunday at home.

Ohio State Tentative Lineup
125   King Sandoval (R-SO | 0-1) -OR- Dainon Kappes (FR | 0-1)
125   No. 12 Mailk Heinselman (JR | 3-0)
133   No. 24 Jordan Decatur (SO | 2-2)
141   Anthony Echemendia (R-FR | 2-0)
149   No. 2 Sammy Sasso (R-SO | 3-0)
157   TBA
165   No. 6 Ethan Smith (R-JR | 2-1)
174   No. 4 Kaleb Romero (R-JR | 3-0)
184   No. 16 Rocky Jordan (R-SO | 1-2)
197   No. 25 Gavin Hoffman (R-SO | 2-1)
HWT   No. 8 Tate Orndorff (R-JR | 1-2)

UP NEXT
MSU's next action is also on the road, heading to Bloomington, Ind., for a quad meet at Indiana on Saturday, Feb. 6 with host-Indiana, along with Nebraska and Rutgers.

TUNE IN
The Big Ten Conference and Big Ten Network announced on Jan. 8 that the Michigan State vs. Michigan match from Jenison Field House in East Lansing will be nationally televised on BTN ... match start time will be announced at a later date.

MSU'S RETURNING NCAA QUALIFIERS
• The Spartans have five returning NCAA Qualifiers, featuring four from 2020, before the Championships were cancelled, plus one from 2019 in redshirt-junior Rayvon Foley, who redshirted the 2019-20 season.

• Rayvon Foley • R-JR • 125: Redshirted 2019-20 ... NCAA All-American at 125 in 2019 Championships, finishing seventh.

• Jake Tucker • R-SR • 165: 27-9 in 2019-20 at 157 ... sixth at B1G Championships.

• Drew Hughes • R-SR • 174: 18-11 in 2019-20 at 165 ... MSU's 1st three-time NCAA Qualifier since '15 ... seventh at B1G Championships.

• Cameron Caffey • R-JR • 197: 27-7 in 2019-20 at 184 ... B1G Runner-Up ... 2020 NWCA All-American ... 2020 NWCA Scholar All-American ... Won gold medal at 87 kg at the 2020 U23 Greco-Roman Championships.

• Layne Malszewski • R-SO • 184: 25-13 in 2019-20 at 174 ... seventh at B1G Championships.

SPARTAN WRESTLING PREVALENT IN PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATIONS
• Michigan State wrestling will open the 2021 season in the top 20 of four different polls and have several wrestlers ranked in their respective weight classes, as of Dec. 29, 2020.

• In the team rankings, MSU is ranked as high as No. 13 in Wrestle Stat's team tournament rankings to No. 19 in Intermat's team dual rankings. Along with being No. 13 Wrestle Stat's team tournament rankings, the Spartans are No. 14 in Wrestle Stat's team tournament rankings. The Green & White is also No. 15 in Trackwrestling's team rankings and tied for No. 17 in FloWrestling's rankings, along with No. 16 in Intermat's team tournament rankings and No. 19 in their team dual rankings.

• Individually, a total of eight different Spartans are ranked in at least one of the four rankings from Flowrestling (Top 25 individuals in each weight class), Intermat (Top 20 individuals), Trackwrestling (Top 33 individuals) and Wrestle Stat (Top 33 individuals).

• MSU's highest-ranked wrestler is 125-pounder Rayvon Foley, as the redshirt-junior is No. 2 in all four rankings. Foley redshirted last season after a recovering from an injury, but was an NCAA All-American at 125 pounds in 2019 following a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Championships, ending with a 36-6 overall record.

• At 133 pounds, redshirt-freshman Jordan Hamdan is ranked No. 23 by Wrestle Stat and No. 25 in the Trackwrestling rankings. While redshirting last season, Hamden competed only in open tournaments, leading all freshmen with 18 wins on way to 18-5 mark.

• Redshirt-freshman Peyton Omania returns to action at 149 pounds and is No. 31 in the Trackwrestling rankings. Omania took an Olympic redshirt last season to train for the originally scheduled 2020 Olympics. He secured a bronze medal at the US Junior World Greco-Roman Championships at 67kg in Tallinn, Estonia in August, 2019, and captured the gold medal at 67 kg in the U23 Greco-Roman championship at the USA Wrestling Greco-Roman National Championships in Omaha, Nebraska this past November.

• In the 157-pound rankings, redshirt-junior Nathan Atienza checks in at No. 21 by Wrestle Stat and No. 31 by Trackwrestling. Atienza went 10-8 last season, competing at 149 and 157 pounds for the Spartans in open tournaments, including three wins by fall on the way to claiming a first-place finish at the Edinboro Open.

• At 165, redshirt-senior Jake Tucker is ranked No. 14 by both Wrestle Stat and Intermat, as well as No. 16 by Trackwrestling and No. 19 by Flowrestling. Tucker was a 2020 NCAA Qualifier at 157 pounds, posting a 27-9 record sharing the team-lead in victories, including two wins over top 25 opponents, while finishing sixth at the Big Ten Championships.

• Fellow redshirt-senior Drew Hughes is in all four rankings at 174, including No. 13 by Trackwrestling, No. 15 by Intermat, No. 17 by Flowrestling and No. 18 by Wrestle Stat. Hughes also was a 2020 NCAA Qualifier at 165 pounds, becoming the first Spartan wrestler to become a three-time NCAA Qualifier since John Rizqallah in 2015. Hughes finished with an 18-11 record, ending sixth at the Big Ten Championships.

• At 184, redshirt-sophomore Layne Malczewski is ranked No. 14 by Trackwrestling, No. 17 by Wrestle Stat and No. 22 by Flowrestling. Also a 2020 NCAA Qualifier, Malczewski finished third on the team with 25 wins, ending with a 25-13 ledger, finishing seventh at the Big Ten Championships at 174 pounds.

• Rounding out the eight Spartans in the preseason rankings is redshirt-junior Cameron Caffey, who is MSU's second-highest ranked individual, collecting four top 10 rankings. Caffey will enter the 2021 season ranked No. 3 by Wrestle Stat, along with No. 6 by Trackwrestling, No. 7 by Intermat and No. 8 by Flowrestling. Caffey was a 2020 NCAA Qualifier, as well as 2020 Big Ten finalist at 184 pounds, on the way to finishing with a 27-7 record, sharing the team-lead for wins, finishing as an NWCA All-American. Caffey, who also topped the Spartans in dual wins with 16, finishing with a 16-2 dual mark, also led MSU with nine falls as well as topping the team with 67 dual points.

MSU WRESTLING SHINES AT USA WRESTLING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
• Michigan State wrestlers collected nine All-American accolades, including two national champions, at the USA Wrestling Greco-Roman National Championships over the weekend of Nov. 14-15 in Omaha, Nebraska.

• Cameron Caffey won the 87 kg U23 Greco-Roman championship, while Peyton Omania captured the 67 kg U23 Greco-Roman championship. Caffey won on a 10-2 technical fall over Guy Patron of Dubuque Wrestling Club, rallying from an early 2-0 deficit by reeling off 10 unanswered points. This is the second national title for Caffey, who won the UWW Junior Nationals in 2019 and competed in the 2019 UWW Junior Worlds.

• Omania won his title bout by forfeit over Benjamin Peak of Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club. Omania collected his second-straight U23 National crown, and won a bronze medal at the 2019 Junior Worlds in Greco-Roman.

• Other Spartans earning All-American honors in the U23 division were Matt Santos finishing seventh at 60 kg and Jackson Renicker placing fourth at 63 kg. In the UWW Junior division, Andrew Chambal was fourth at 55 kg and Jordan Hamdan was fifth at 60 kg.

• In freestyle in the U23 division, Caffey was third at 86 kg, while Rayvon Foley was fifth at 57 kg. In the UWW Junior division, Layne Malczewski was fourth at 86 kg.

• Caffey and Omania qualified for the 2021 Senior World Team Trials.

Greco-Roman
U23:
60kg - Matt Santos - 7th
63kg - Jackson Renicker - 4th
67kg - Peyton Omania - Champion
87kg - Cameron Caffey - Champion

UWW Junior:
55kg - Andrew Chambal - 4th
60kg - Jordan Hamdan - 5th

Freestyle
U23:
57kg - Rayvon Foley - 5th
86kg - Cameron Caffey - 3rd

UWW Junior:
86kg - Layne Malczewski - 4th