Wolverines Jump to Early Lead, Hang on to Defeat Purdue

Saturday, February 22

West Lafayette, Ind.

7:00 PM

Michigan

Purdue

Wolverines Jump to Early Lead, Hang on to Defeat Purdue

2/22/2003 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The No. 6-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team closed its dual meet season with an 18-17 win over No. 16-ranked Purdue on Saturday (Feb. 22). Michigan jumped out to an early lead with wins in the first four matches and held on for the victory against the surging Boilermakers.

Churella's 5-4 OT decision helped U-M to a 15-0 lead.

The 165-pound bout proved to be the deciding factor in the Wolverine victory as senior/junior Pat Owen (Polson, Mont./Polson HS) gave Michigan the 15-point lead after the fourth bout of the meet by pinning 16th-ranked Oscar Santiago at the 3:39 mark. The fall was Owen's second consecutive pin and his third over a ranked opponent in the last five meets.

Owen's fall capped the Wolverines' early run of four straight victories in the first four matches. Senior/junior Clark Forward (Archbold, Ohio/Archbold HS) keyed the Michigan charge, earning a 7-3 decision over the Boilermakers' Doug Withstandley in the opening weight class of 141 pounds. Redshirt freshman Ryan Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS), ranked 17th by InterMat, squeezed past Dan Jankowski with a 5-4 overtime win, and at 157 pounds junior/sophomore Ryan Bertin (Broadview Heights, Ohio/St. Edward HS), ranked eighth, collected an 8-2 decision over Brad Harper.

The Boilermakers cut down the Michigan lead with back-to-back wins at 174 and 184 pounds. Fifth-ranked Ryan Lange collected four team points with his 15-4 major decision over redshirt freshman R.J. Boudro (Richmond, Mich./Armada HS). At 184 pounds, Benjamin Wissel earned an 11-5 victory over redshirt freshman Willie Breyer (Oxford, Mich./Oxford HS) to pull the team score within eight points.

Fifth-year senior captain Kyle Smith (Butte, Mont./Butte HS) kept the Wolverines out in front with a 10-6 decision over the Boilermakers' Jon Bush at 197 pounds.

The Boilermakers closed out the meet with another pair of wins in the final two matches. At 125 pounds, senior captain A.J. Grant (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston HS), ranked fourth, suffered only his second dual-meet loss of season, narrowly falling to top-ranked Chris Fleeger by a 2-0 margin. With Michigan up by five points with one bout remaining, Purdue's comeback fell just short as junior/sophomore Shaun Newton (Davison, Mich./Davison HS) held the Boilermakers' Rene Hernandez to a 15-3 major decision at 133 pounds.

After a two-week hiatus, the Wolverines will be back in action at the Big Ten Championships on Saturday and Sunday, March 8-9, in Madison, Wis.

#6 Michigan 18, #16 Purdue 17
(Individual rankings from Intermat)

141 -- Clark Forward (U-M) dec. Doug Withstandley, 7-3	U-M, 3-0
149 -- #17 Ryan Churella (U-M) dec. Dan Jankowsi, 5-4 OT	U-M, 6-0
157 -- #8 Ryan Bertin (U-M) dec. Brad Harper, 8-2	U-M, 9-0
165 -- Pat Owen (U-M) pinned #16 Oscar Santiago, 3:39	U-M, 15-0
174 -- #5 Ryan Lange (PU) major dec. R.J. Boudro, 14-4	U-M, 15-4
184 -- Benjamin Wissel (PU) dec. Willie Breyer, 11-5	U-M, 15-7
197 -- #14 Kyle Smith (U-M) dec. Jon Bush, 10-6	U-M, 18-7
Hwt -- Israel Blevins (PU) dec. Tony Grygorzyk, 6-1	U-M, 18-10
125 -- #1 Chris Fleeger (PU) dec. #4 A.J. Grant, 2-0	U-M, 18-13
133 -- Rene Hernandez (PU) major dec. Shaun Newton, 15-3	U-M, 18-17