Michigan
Eastern Michigan
Big Victories Propel Wolverines Past Eastern Michigan
12/14/2003 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Despite missing a few prominent wrestlers from the starting lineup, the No. 6-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team cruised to a 29-16 victory over Eastern Michigan on Sunday (Dec. 14) in front of 488 fans at Cliff Keen Arena. Bonus points played an important role in the lopsided score as the Wolverines earned extra points from five of their individual wins.
| | Verdoorn's major decision clinched Michigan's victory. |
The Eagles put points on the board at 141 pounds as Jermaine Thompson squeezed past fifth-year senior captain Clark Forward (Archbold, Ohio/St. Edward HS) 9-8. Thompson took the lead early, taking down the Wolverine twice in the first period to set the tone of the match. He added another takedown in the second period and, despite being taken down himself in the third, held on for the win.
At 149 pounds, junior/sophomore Ryan Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) scored big points for the Wolverines with a 16-1 technical fall over Marcus Golden. After a scoreless opening period, Churella dominated throughout the final two frames, collecting three takedowns and eight back points. The Wolverine wrestler also accumulated 3:12 in riding time to earn the additional point at the match's end, giving him the 15-point advantage and the technical fall.
Eastern Michigan headed into the halftime intermission with the momentum after Chad Roush collected a fall at 157 pounds to cut the Wolverine advantage by six points. Senior/junior Jeremiah Tobias (Manchester, Mich./Manchester HS) nearly earned the pin himself after scoring a takedown early in the first period and using a double arm bar to roll the Eagle to his back and earn three near-fall points. With Tobias starting the second period in the down position, Roush applied the arm bar himself to roll the Wolverine over the top and earn the victory at 3:42.
Fifth-year senior captain Pat Owen (Polson, Mont./Polson HS) put on a takedown clinic at 165 pounds to put Michigan back on track after the intermission, earning a 20-5 technical fall over the Eagles' Ben Best. Owen collected a pair of takedowns, a reversal and five back points through the first two periods to earn the 10-point advantage heading into the final frame. Owen added four more takedowns in the period and was awarded the extra point at match's end for accumulating 5:39 in riding time.
The Eagles pulled within three points in the team score after collecting victories at 174 and 184 pounds. After building an early lead with a first-period reversal and second-period takedown, EMU's Tim Hoff held on to earn a 6-4 decision over junior/sophomore R.J. Boudro (Richmond, Mich./Armada HS). At 184 pounds Eddie Magrys scored a takedown in the closing seconds of the third period to give himself the 10-2 major decision against freshman Joshua Weitzel (Lincoln University, Pa./Oxford HS).
Michigan sealed the team victory with wins at the two closing weights, as sophomore/freshman Chase Verdoorn (Platte City, Mo./Platte County HS) and junior/sophomore Greg Wagner (Fort Wayne, Ind./Snider HS) earned the Wolverines bonus points with big wins at 197 pounds and heavyweight, respectively. Verdoorn scored five takedowns, including two in final period, to collect a 12-3 major decision over Tony Lyssiotis, while Wagner, after dominating the first period and a half, put the Eagles' Brandon Tate on his back to earn the fall at 4:01.
The Wolverines will take a two-week break for final exams and the holidays before returning to the mat on Friday, Jan. 3, at the Lone Star Duals in Dallas, Texas. Michigan will face three tough opponents at the annual event, wrestling Pennsylvania at 10 a.m., Harvard at 4 p.m. and Oklahoma at 8 p.m. (all times Central).
#6 Michigan 29, Eastern Michigan 16
(Individual rankings from Amateur Wrestling News)
| 125 -- Shaun Newton (U-M) dec. Matt Cole, 7-3 | U-M, 3-0 |
| 133 -- Chase Metcalf (U-M) pinned Vince Liceri, 2:07 | U-M, 9-0 |
| 141 -- Jermaine Thomas (EMU) dec. #15 Clark Forward, 9-8 | U-M, 9-3 |
| 149 -- #9 Ryan Churella (U-M) tech. fall Marcus Gordon, 16-1 | U-M, 14-3 |
| 157 -- Chad Roush (EMU) pinned Jeremiah Tobias, 3:42 | U-M, 14-9 |
| 165 -- #5 Pat Owen (U-M) tech. fall Ben Best, 20-5 | U-M, 19-9 |
| 174 -- Tim Hoff (EMU) dec. R.J. Boudro, 6-4 | U-M, 19-12 |
| 184 -- Eddie Magrys (EMU) major dec. Joshua Weitzel, 10-2 | U-M, 19-16 |
| 197 -- Chase Verdoorn (U-M) major dec. Tony Lyssiotis, 12-3 | U-M, 23-16 |
| Hwt -- #6 Greg Wagner (U-M) pinned Brandon Tate, 4:01 | U-M, 29-16 |
Q U O T E S
U-M Head Coach Joe McFarland
On the meet ... "We didn't wrestle our best meet today, that was pretty evident. This is a tough week to wrestle with finals and the holidays coming, but that's really no excuse. I don't think we did a very good job preparing for this meet. Eastern Michigan came here ready to wrestle, and I give those guys a lot of credit. They are a scrappy team; Charlie (Branch) and his coaching staff are doing a great job over there. They really have that team heading in the right direction."
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
