Michigan State University
Rutgers
Spartans Push No. 14 Rutgers in 22-13 Defeat
1/19/2024 10:58:00 PM | Wrestling
EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan State wrestling team took four matches as it battled to the wire against No. 14-ranked Rutgers on Friday night at Jenison Field House, but was unable to pull off the upset to ultimately fall short, 22-13.
With a loss, the Spartans record drops to 7-2 overall with an 0-2 record in the Big Ten. Rutgers improves to 10-1 overall and 3-0 in Big Ten matches.
"Obviously we came up on the short end of it tonight," said head coach Roger Chandler. "I told our guys in the locker room; they had a choice to either let up after last week or put their foot to the floor, and they stepped up. This team is getting better every time they step on the mat, there were some toss up matches that we could have won. Our guys found a way to be in matches and be in a position to win."
Rutgers began the match taking the 125, 133 and 149-pound bouts. In a low-scoring 125-pound bout, No. 13-ranked Dean Peterson took down redshirt junior Tristan Lujan in sudden victory for the 4-1 victory to begin the dual. At 133, redshirt sophomore Andy Hampton couldn't get past No. 8 Dylan Shawver. Redshirt freshman 149-pounder Braden Stauffenberg dropped a 5-3 decision to Michael Cetta.
At 141, No. 33-ranked redshirt senior Jordan Hamdan nabbed his biggest victory of the season against No. 11-ranked Mitch Moore. Hamdan went into the third period down 1-0 but had riding time in his favor. The Hudson, Michigan, native would escape the grasp of Moore then followed with a takedown and controlled for over two minutes of riding time to hand Moore his first loss of the season in a 5-1 decision.
"This week we tried to focus on staying in our box when we wrestle," said Hamdan on his big victory. "We want to stick with what we're good at, focus on myself throughout the match and not focus what he's going to do."
No. 21-ranked senior 157-pounder Chase Saldate had an early takedown, but was quickly reversed by Rutgers' Al DeSantis who couldn't hold Saldate down long as he quickly escaped. Going into the second period with a narrow 4-2 lead, the senior captain began to separate himself with an escape to begin the round and took down DeSantis en route to a 9-5 victory. Saldate remains undefeated in dual competition going 8-0 for the first time in his career.
At 165, No. 10-ranked senior Caleb Fish went into the third period with a tight 1-0 lead against Anthony White. A stalling point was awarded for White and from there Fish maneuvered White to his shoulders to earn a four-point near fall. Fish racked up riding time point to shrink the team score deficit to only two where the Spartans trailed, 11-9. Redshirt senior DJ Shannon took No. 19-ranked Jackson Turley to the wire at 174 pounds, showing strong effort by hustling for a late takedown, but fell by decision.
No. 22-ranked graduate 184-pounder Layne Malczewski picked up the only bonus point victory on the evening for the Green and White as he defeated Brian Soldano, 19-6. Malczewski held a 6-3 advantage going into the third period where he turned on a second gear as he picked up a takedown and a four-point near fall. After he and Soldano traded reversals, the Macomb, Michigan, native added one more takedown for good measure for the major decision victory. The win pulled the Spartans within one as they trailed, 14-13.
The Scarlet Knights would secure the victory by taking the next two matches at 197 and heavyweight. Kael Wisler would fall to All-American John Poznanski, 22-6, at 197. In the final bout of the night, Josh Terrill was looking for the top-10 upset over No. 7 Yaraslau Slavikouski, but an early takedown by Slavikouski was the determining factor as Terrill put up a strong effort to drop, 4-2.
Michigan State welcomes the No. 1-ranked team in the country and back-to-back Nation Champions Penn State on Sunday, Jan. 21 at 1 p.m.
January 19, 2024 // Rutgers Dual // Jenison Field House
Rutgers 22, Michigan State 13
ATT. 481
125 | Dean Peterson (RU) SV-1 Tristan Lujan (MSU) 4-1 | Rutgers leads 3-0
133 | Dylan Shawver (RU) tech fall over Andy Hampton (MSU) 22-6 | Rutgers leads 8-0
141 | Jordan Hamdan (MSU) dec. Mitch Moore (RU) 5-1 | Rutgers leads 8-3
149 | Michael Cetta (RU) dec. Braden Stauffenberg (MSU) 5-3 | Rutgers leads 11-3
157 | Chase Saldate (MSU) dec. Al DeSantis (RU) 9-5 | Rutgers leads 11-6
165 | Caleb Fish (MSU) dec. Anthony White (RU) 6-1 | Rutgers leads 11-9
174 | Jackson Turley (RU) dec. DJ Shannon (MSU) 4-2 | Rutgers leads 14-9
184 | Layne Malczewski (MSU) major dec. Brian Soldano (RU) 19-6 | Rutgers leads 14-13
197 | John Poznanski (RU) tech fall over Kael Wisler (MSU) 22-6 | Rutgers leads 19-13
HWT. | Yaraslau Slavikouski (RU) dec. Josh Terrill (MSU) 4-2 | Rutgers won 22-13
Players Mentioned
