Michigan
Big Ten Championships
Coon Advances to Heavyweight Final at Big Ten Championships
3/5/2016 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
March 5, 2016
» Seven Wolverines will place top eight at their respective weights; U-M has six already qualified for the NCAA Championships with two more needing one more win.
» The Wolverines sit in seventh place with 70 points after the first day.
Site: Iowa City, Iowa (Carver-Hawkeye Arena)
Event: Big Ten Championships (Day 1 of 2)
U-M Team Standing: 7th Place of 14 Teams (70 points) after Day 1
Next U-M Event: Sunday, March 6 -- at Big Ten Championships - Day 2 (Iowa City, Iowa), Noon CST
IOWA CITY, Iowa -- With junior Adam Coon advancing to the heavyweight championship matches and six more alive in the wrestlebacks, the No. 8-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team holds the seventh spot (70 points) after the first day of competition at the 2016 Big Ten Conference Championships on Saturday (March 5) at Iowa's Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Six Wolverines have already earned automatic qualifiers for the NCAA Championships.
Coon, the top seed at heavyweight, needed extra time to claim his semifinal bout and advance to his first Big Ten final, edging Minnesota's Michael Kroells, 3-2, on a rideout in the second tiebreaker. Coon drew an early stall warning in the first period, but the wrestlers traded little more than escapes through regulation and two sudden-victory frame. He earned a pair of bonus wins in the morning session, including a quick 38-second pin against Wisconsin's Brock Horwath in the quarterfinals, taking advantage of a flurry on the edge to catch the Badger in a crusher and get him straight to his back.
Coon's semifinal provided a positive at the end of a tough evening session for the Wolverines, who dropped their three other semifinal bouts, including two by close decisions.
Sophomore Alec Pantaleo, seeded fifth at 149 pounds, was pinned by Penn State's top-seeded Zain Retherford at the 2:45 mark in his semifinal bout. Pantaleo got there with a pair of solid decision wins in the morning round, including a 3-2 decision against Northwestern's fourth-seeded -- and former NCAA champion -- Jason Tsirtsis on a late takedown in the third period. It avenged his close overtime loss to Tsirtsis in the dual-meet meeting.
Junior Brian Murphy, seeded sixth at 157 pounds, led Illinois' second-seeded Isaiah Martinez -- the defending NCAA champ -- for much of his semifinal bout but gave up a late duck-under takedown with just 50 seconds remaining and could not escape to fall, 5-4. Murphy grabbed the initial advantage on a slick takedown early in the first, catching Martinez on a snap down and planting him hard on the mat before riding for 1:18. Murphy escaped early in the third to take the one-point lead and appeared to have another takedown on a throw by attempt on the edge but did not get the call.
Murphy, like Pantaleo, avenged an earlier-season loss with a 2-1 tiebreaker decision over Rutgers' third-seeded Richie Lewis in the quarterfinal round. He rode out the first go and escaped quickly in the second to secure the win.
Junior Domenic Abounader, the top seed at 184 pounds, dropped a 4-1 decision to Nebraska's fourth-seeded TJ Dudley in his semifinal bout after giving up a takedown out of a flurry early the third period and getting ridden out. It snapped a 13-match win streak for the Wolverine captain. He earned extra points in the morning session, cruising to a 9-1 major decision against Wisconsin's Ryan Christensen in the quarterfinals. He scored three takedowns, a reversal and 3:40 riding-time advantage.
Senior/junior Conor Youtsey and graduate student Max Huntley both rallied from losses in the quarterfinal round to advantage to the consolation semifinals and, like U-M's four semifinalists, earn an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Championships.
Youtsey, seeded seventh at 125 pounds, posted a 3-1 record on the day and earned a pair of major decision victories. His lone loss came to Iowa's second-seeded Thomas Gilman, 14-4, but he bounced back with two straight wins in the wrestlebacks, including a 5-1 decision against Wisconsin's Johnny Jimenez to lock up his NCAA bid. Youtsey scored a quick takedown in the first, added a reversal in the second and accumulated 2:19 in time advantage in that contest.
Huntley, seeded fourth at 197 pounds, dropped a surprising 17-2 technical fall to Nebraska's fifth-seeded Aaron Studebaker in the quarterfinals, but like Youtsey, bounced back with a pair of bonus wins, including a 16-0 technical fall of his own against Purdue's Drake Stein in his last match of the day. Huntley posted three takedowns and eight back points to end the bout at the 5:18 mark.
Junior/sophomore George Fisher will wrestle for seventh place at the 141 pounds -- and the weight class' final automatic NCAA bid -- after posting a 1-2 mark on the day. His lone win came, 4-2, over Northwestern's fourth-seeded Jameson Oster in the consolation bracket.
Senior Rossi Bruno, seeded eighth at 133 pounds, was eliminated after posting a 1-2 record, with his weight class qualifying nine to the NCAA Championships, he needs just one more win to earn his automatic spot. He will face Northwestern's Dom Malone in the ninth-place match; Bruno pinned Malone at the 6:36 mark in his first-round bout this morning.
Michigan will wrap up action at the Big Ten Championships tomorrow (Sunday, March 6). The third session is slated to begin at noon CST, while the finals will start at 3 p.m. and be aired live on the Big Ten Network.
Team Standings (After Day 1)
1. Penn State 133 2. Iowa 106 3. Ohio State 100 4. Nebraska 97.5 5. Rutgers 90.5 6. Illinois 78.5 7. MICHIGAN 70 8. Wisconsin 53 9. Minnesota 3810. Purdue 3011. Indiana 2612. Michigan State 10.513. Northwestern 814. Maryland 7.5
Michigan Results (Day 1)
Numbers listed are tournament seedings
125 Pounds -- #7 Conor Youtsey
First Round - major dec. Garrison White (Northwestern), 9-1
Quarterfinals - major dec. by #2 Thomas Gilman (Iowa), 14-4
Consolations - major dec. Ben Thornton (Purdue), 12-2
Consolations - dec. #6 Johnny Jimenez (Wisconsin), 5-1
Consolations - vs. #4 Tim Lambert (Nebraska)
133 Pounds -- #8 Rossi Bruno
First Round - pinned #9 Dom Malone (Northwestern), 6:36
Quarterfinals - dec. by #1 Zane Richards (Illinois), 10-3
Consolations - dec. by #10 Anthony Giraldo (Rutgers), 3-2 TB
Eliminated with a 1-2 record
Ninth Place Semifinals* - major dec. Alonzo Shepherd (Indiana), 15-7
Ninth Place* - vs. Dom Malone (Northwestern)
141 Pounds -- George Fisher
First Round - pinned by #3 Anthony Ashnault (Rutgers), 3:40
Consolations - dec. #4 Jameson Oster (Northwestern), 4-2
Consolations - major dec. by #1 Micah Jordan (Ohio State), 10-0
Seventh Place - vs. #6 Anthony Abidin (Nebraska)
149 Pounds -- #5 Alec Pantaleo
First Round - dec. Tyson Dippery (Rutgers), 6-2
Quarterfinals - dec. #4 Jason Tsirtsis (Northwestern), 3-2
Semifinals - pinned by #1 Zain Retherford (Penn State), 2:45
Consolations - vs. Tyson Dippery (Rutgers)
157 Pounds -- #6 Brian Murphy
First Round - dec. Jake Danishek (Indiana), 6-1
Quarterfinals - dec. #3 Richie Lewis (Rutgers), 2-1 TB
Semifinals - dec. by #2 Isaiah Martinez (Illinois), 5-4
Consolations - vs. #4 Jake Ryan (Ohio State)
165 Pounds -- Jordan Amine
First Round - tech. fall by #5 Chad Welch (Purdue), 16-0 (2:27)
Consolations - major dec. by #6 Austin Wilson (Nebraska), 12-4
Eliminated with a 0-2 record
174 Pounds -- Aaron Calderon
First Round - dec. by #6 Micah Barnes (Nebraska), 10-3
Consolations - dec. Andrew Hosleton (Purdue), 11-4
Consolations - #5 Nate Jackson (Indiana), 21-6 (6:54)
Eliminated with a 1-2 record
Ninth Place Semifinals* -- major dec. by Mitch Sliga (Northwestern), 9-1
184 Pounds -- #1 Domenic Abounader
First Round - Bye
Quarterfinals - major dec. Ryan Christensen (Wisconsin), 9-1
Semifinals - dec. by #4 TJ Dudley (Nebraska), 4-1
Consolations - vs. #7 Jeff Koepke (Illinois)
197 Pounds -- #4 Max Huntley
First Round - Bye
Quarterfinals - tech. fall by #5 Aaron Studebaker (Nebraska), 17-2 (7:00)
Consolations - major dec. Eric Peissig (Wisconsin), 14-3
Consolations - tech. fall Drake Stein (Purdue), 16-0 (5:18)
Heavyweight -- #1 Adam Coon
First Round - major dec. Garret Goldman (Indiana), 14-4
Quarterfinals - pinned Brock Horwath (Wisconsin), 0:38
Semifinals - #5 Michael Kroells (Minnesota), 2-1 TB
Final - vs. #2 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State)
* additional matches for NCAA automatic qualifying bid; weight class qualifies nine
Communications Contact: Leah Howard
Players Mentioned
