Michigan
Big Ten Championships
Seven Wolverines Remain Alive After Day One of Big Tens
3/6/2010 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Crisler Arena)
Event: Big Ten Championships (Day 1 of 2)
U-M Standing: 10th Place of 11 Teams (46.5 Points) After Day 1
Next U-M Event: Sunday, March 7 -- host Big Ten Championships - Day Two (Crisler Arena), Noon
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Seven University of Michigan wrestlers will compete for spots on the podium tomorrow (Sunday, March 7), including four that could finish as high as third, after the first two sessions of the Big Ten Championships came to a close Saturday (March 6) inside Crisler Arena.
The day was headlined by senior/junior captain Anthony Biondo (Clinton Twp, Mich./Chippewa Valley), who was the lone U-M wrestler to advance to the semifinals after making easy work of Indiana's Matt Powless. Biondo used three takedowns and 2:29 seconds of riding time on his way to finishing with the 8-1 decision.
Biondo squared off against Wisconsin's Trevor Brandvold, the No. 2 seed, in the semifinals but was unable to come back from an early takedown, falling 3-1 and ending Michigan's hopes for a Big Ten champion in 2010.
Sophomore Zac Stevens (Monroe, Mich./Monroe) battled back from a loss at the end of session one against Michigan State's Franklin Gomez, the national champion at the 133-pound weight class last season, and finished the day with back-to-back wins. Prior to the match with Gomez, the sophomore captain put on a dominating performance against Indiana's Matt Ortega, securing a pair of takedowns from the front headlock position on his way to an 8-4 victory.
Wrestling for his tournament life, Stevens faced Penn State's Bryan Pearsall and Ohio State's Ian Paddock during the day's second session. Stevens scored a takedown in each period and gave up none in his match versus Pearsall but came up short against the No. 7 seed Paddock, unable to score against the Buckeye wrestler and falling out of NCAA qualifying position by the score of 5-0. He'll face Northwestern's Eric Metzler tomorrow for seventh place.
Junior/sophomore Dave Johnson (Jenison, Mich./Jenison) faced Illinois' Clinton Arlis in the wrestle-backs, after being upset in the quarterfinals, and advanced to the consolation semifinals after putting away the Illinois 157-pounder, 12-9. Johnson fell behind early in the match but used a takedown and three-point near fall to go up 6-2 after the first period. Arlis fought back, scoring a takedown late in the second and scrambling for a reversal in the third, but Johnson countered with an escape and a takedown of his own to put the match out of reach late.
Redshirt sophomore Justin Zeerip (Fremont, Mich./Hesperia) and redshirt freshman Ben Apland (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South) both rebounded from quarterfinal pins by defeating their opponents in the wrestle-backs and, along with Johnson, can finish in third if they win-out tomorrow.
Zeerip responded to an early loss to Iowa's top-ranked Jay Borschel by using an arm-bar series to get a pin of his own against Penn State's Justin Ortega and outlasting Ohio State's Dave Rella in overtime to keep his NCAA Tournament hopes alive.
Not to be outdone, Apland put together an equally impressive performance against Illinois' heavyweight Martin Smith. After taking the Illini big-man down in the first period, Apland turned Smith and collect two back points before riding him out the remainder of the period. Smith had no problem getting free to begin the second, but Apland was too much for him to handle on the edge as the Maize and Blue freshman scrambled for another two. Apland picked up an escape and a technical violation point in the third and, with 2:24 seconds of riding time, locked up the 9-1 major decision victory. Apland, like Zeerip, had an Ohio State wrestler waiting for him in his final match of the day and like Zeerip, came out victorious. Apland used a couple takedowns and a second-period escape to down Corey Morrison, 5-2.
The Wolverines will return to action tomorrow (Sunday, March 7) for the second and final day of competition at the Big Ten Championships. The session will begin at noon with consolation semifinals and seventh-place matches at Crisler Arena. The championship round, featuring first-, third- and fifth-place bouts, is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. and will be aired live on the Big Ten Network.
Team Standings (After Day 1)
1. Iowa 137.0 2. Minnesota 104.5 3. Ohio State 86.0 4. Wisconsin 82.0 5. Penn State 66.0 6. Purdue 65.0 7. Michigan State 58.5 8. Indiana 55.0 9. Illinois 48.5 10. MICHIGAN 46.5 11. Northwestern 17.0
Michigan Results
Numbers listed are tournament seedings
125 pounds - Sean Boyle
First Round - dec. #8 Drew Hammen (Wisconsin), 3-1
Quarterfinals - pinned by #1 Angel Escobedo (Indiana), 2:40
Consolations - pinned by Brenan Lyon (Michigan State), 4:59
Eliminated with a 1-2 record
133 pounds - #6 Zac Stevens
First Round - dec. Matt Ortega (Indiana), 8-4
Quarterfinals - major dec. by #3 Franklin Gomez (Michigan State), 10-2
Consolations - dec. Bryan Pearsall (Penn State), 6-2
Consolations - dec. by #7 Ian Paddock (Ohio State), 5-0
Seventh Place - vs. #5 Eric Metzler (Northwestern)
141 pounds - Mark Weber
First Round - major dec. by #3 Montell Marion (Iowa), 13-5
Consolations - dec. by #8 Cole Schmitt (Wisconsin), 4-0
Seventh Place - vs. #7 Dan Osterman (Michigan State)
149 pounds - Mark Boyer
First Round - major dec. by Nick Bertucci (Purdue), 9-1
Consolations - pinned by #7 Mario Mason (Minnesota), 6:26
Eliminated with a 0-2 record
157 pounds - #6 Dave Johnson
First Round - Bye
Quarterfinals - dec. by Anthony Jones (Michigan State), 9-3
Consolations - dec. #7 Clinton Alris (Illinois), 12-9
Consolations - vs. #4 Jake Kerr (Iowa)
165 pounds - Aaron Hynes
First Round - major dec. by #3 Colt Sponseller (Ohio State), 15-4
Consolations - major dec. by #5 Paul Young (Indiana), 13-4
Eliminated with a 0-2 record
174 pounds - #8 Justin Zeerip
First Round - Bye
Quarterfinals - dec. by #1 Jay Borschel (Iowa), 2-0
Consolations - pinned Justin Ortega (Penn State), 2:06
Consolations - dec. #4 Dave Rella (Ohio State), 2-1 TB
Consolations - vs. #7 Ian Hinton (Michigan State)
184 pounds - #7 Hunter Collins
First Round - Bye
Quarterfinals - dec. by #2 David Erwin (Penn State), 10-4
Consolations - dec. by Nick Palmieri (Michigan State), 7-3
Seventh Place - vs. Aaron Jones (Northwestern)
197 pounds - #3 Anthony Biondo
First Round - Bye
Quarterfinals - dec. #6 Matt Powless (Indiana), 8-1
Semifinals - dec. by #2 Trevor Brandvold (Wisconsin), 3-1
Consolations - vs. #4 Patrick Bond (Illinois)
Heavyweight - #7 Ben Apland
First Round - Bye
Quarterfinals - pinned by #2 Dan Erekson (Iowa), 1:17
Consolations - major dec. Martin Smith (Illinois), 9-1
Consolations - dec. #6 Corey Morrison (Ohio State), 5-2
Consolations - #4 Ben Berhow (Minnesota)
Players Mentioned
