Updated Brackets
EVANSTON, Ill. – Fighting Illini wrestlers Isaiah Martinez (165) and Zane Richards (133) advanced to tonight's 54th Ken Kraft Midlands championship bouts this afternoon at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Both Illini won convincingly in their semifinal bouts, as Martinez defeated No. 4 seed Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) 10-1 and Richards won 18-5 over No. 12 seed Jamal Morris (NC State). 174-pounder Zac Brunson dropped his semifinal match to No. 1 seed Zahid Valencia (Arizona State), but advanced in the consolation bracket to tonight's third-place match.
The final session of the Midlands tournament will begin at 7:05 p.m. central time and can be seen live on Big Ten Network and BTN2Go. Three mats will be used with the first-place matches on mat 1.
Top seeds Martinez and Richards will be pitted against a pair of two seeds in Chad Walsh (Rider) and Eric Montoya (Nebraska), respectively. Martinez has not faced Walsh in his career, while Richards is 3-1 collegiately against Montoya, as well as defeating the Husker 9-7 at the 2016 NWCA All-Star Classic back on November 5. Brunson will wrestle No. 2 seed Alex Meyer of Iowa for third place.
Martinez (11-0) reached the finals of the 54th Midlands with an impressive major decision over No. 4 seed Anthony Valencia. The win over the 12th ranked at the weight is Martinez's second victory over a ranked opponent this season after defeating Daniel Lewis (Missouri) at the UNI Open on December 3.
In the opening three minutes, both Martinez and Valencia took shots but were unable to finish, as the match remained scoreless through the first period. With Martinez starting in the down position, the Illini redshirt junior quickly worked an escape to take the lead. Back in neutral, Martinez added to his lead with a takedown 37 seconds into the second period. Martinez rode Valencia for the remainder of the period, earning a two-point near fall in the process, to carry a 5-0 lead into the final two minutes. Valencia was merely able to get an escape point in the third, as Martinez grabbed two more takedowns to ice the victory.
Richards (12-0) advanced to his second Midlands final with a dominating final two periods against Jamal Morris of North Carolina State, outscoring Morris 14-1 in those four minutes. The victory extended Richards' regular season winning streak to 35 consecutive matches dating back to last season when he went 23-0 during the regular season.
Morris got on the board first with a takedown in the first minute of action, but Richards bounced back with a reversal to tie the match early. Starting the second period on bottom, Richards quickly escaped the grasp of Morris, and then went to work on the Wolfpack grappler. Richards used a takedown and four-point near fall combination to inflate the lead to 11-4. With Morris unable to keep up with Richards in the final period, the Carbondale, Illinois native tacked on two more takedowns and a two-point near fall. Richards finished the match with a 14-1 run in the final four minutes.
Brunson was unable to join Martinez and Richards in tonight's first-place matches, as the Illini senior fell by an 8-3 decision to No. 1 seed Zahid Valencia.  However, the Illini senior bounced back in the consolation semifinal with a 4-1 victory over Ryan Christiensen (Wisconsin) to advance to the third-place bout.
In his match against Valencia, Brunson opened the scoring with a takedown, but was unable to hold the lead as Valencia reversed Brunson to tie the match. The pivotal blow came with less than 15 seconds left in the second period and Brunson leading 3-2, as Valencia earned a late takedown to take control of the match. Valencia added another takedown in the third period to put the match out of reach.
Brunson rebounded against Christiensen, beginning with a takedown with 45 seconds left in the opening period. Christiensen earned his only point of the match with an escape at the beginning of period two, but Brunson tacked on another takedown midway through the period. Christiensen rode Brunson for the full two minutes in period three, but was unable to score.
The lone Illini eliminated in session three was 184-pounder Emery Parker. After dropping his quarterfinal match on Thursday evening, Parker was unable to advance in the consolation bracket, dropping his blood round bout to North Carolina State's Michael Micchiavello, 8-7. A back-and-forth match, Parker held leads of 3-1 and 4-3, but Micchiavello's third takedown of the match proved to be the difference, giving the NC State grappler the lead for good.
Illini Notes
- Isaiah Martinez and Zane Richards both advanced to their second career Midlands final. Martinez won the 157-pound title in 2014, while Richards finished runner-up to Iowa's Cory Clark at 133 pounds.
- Zane Richards extended his regular season winning streak to 35 straight matches dating back to his perfect 23-0 record during last year's regular season.
- Isaiah Martinez officially qualified for Illinois' all-time win percentage record on Thursday, overtaking Matt Lackey (0.896) with his record of 78-1 (.987). Lackey tallied 120 wins in 134 matches for a 0.896 win-percentage from 2000-03. Zane Richards (94-20) sits in 9th place on the all-time win-percentage list with a .824 mark.
- Redshirt senior Zane Richards entered the school's top-25 wins list in his first match of the 54th Midlands. His 26-8 tech fall over Ben Lamantia was the 91st of his career, tying Tony Dallago, Kirk Azinger and Seth Brady. Richards currently sits with 94 victories, two wins behind Nate Patrick (96).
- Zane Richards (12-0) and Isaiah Martinez (11-0) remain as Illinois' lone undefeated wrestlers
Finalists Match-By-Match Results (number in parentheses indicates seed)
(1) #2 Zane Richards (R-Senior, 133 pounds) | 4-0
|
| Round | Result |
| Round 1 | Bye |
| Round 2 | Won by technical fall over Ben Lamantia (Michigan), 26-8 |
| Round 3 | Won by technical fall over (16) Jacob Colon (Grand View), 21-5 |
| Quarterfinals | Won by decision over (9) Bryan Lantry (Buffalo), 6-3 |
| Semifinals | Won by major decision over (12) Jamal Morris (NC State), 18-5 |
| 1st Place Match | vs. (2) #4 Eric Montoya |
(1) #1 Isaiah Martinez (R-Junior, 165 pounds) | 5-0
Round 1: Won by technical fall over Joe Tavoso (Princeton), 24-9
Round 2: Won by fall over Andrew Scott (Northern Illinois), 2:38
Round 3: Won by major decision over (16) Luke Zilverberg (South Dakota State), 18-7
Quarterfinals: Won by major decision over (9) Alex Marinelli (Iowa), 14-5
Semifinals: vs. Won by major decision over (4) #12 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State), 10-1
1st Place Match: vs. (2) #9 Chad Walsh (Rider)
Consolation Bracket Match-By-Match Results (number in parentheses indicates seed)
(4) #12 Zac Brunson (R-Senior, 174 pounds) | 3-1
Round 1: Won by fall over Braxton Cody (Northwestern), 2:37
Round 2: Won by fall over Arsen Arshughyan (Ohio), 2:38
Quarterfinals: Won by decision over (5) #18 David Kocer (South Dakota State), 4-3
Semifinals: vs. Lost by decision against (1) #4 Zahid Valencia (Arizona State), 8-3
Cons. Semifinal: Won by decision over (7) Ryan Christiensen (Wisconsin), 4-1
3rd Place Match: vs. (2) #7 Alex Meyer (Iowa)
Eliminated Illini Match-By-Match Results (number in parentheses indicates seed)
Travis Piotrowski (Freshman, 125 pounds) | 2-2
Round 1: Won by major decision over Joshua Krammer (Arizona State) | 8-0
Round 2: Won by decision over (6) #18 LJ Bentley (Pittsburgh), 7-2
Round 3: Lost by decision against Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern), 3-1
Cons. Round 4: Lost by decision against Justin Patrick (Buffalo), 3-2
Travis Piotrowski is eliminated
Jake Silzer (Freshman, 125 pounds) *unattached | 1-2
Round 1: Bye
Round 2: Lost by major decision against No. 8 Lucas Malmberg (Messiah), 10-1
Cons. Round 2: Won by decision over Michael Cullen (Wisconsin), 1-0
Cons. Round 3: Lost by decision against (9) Anthony Rubinetti (Northwestern), 6-3
Jake Silzer is eliminated
Dylan Duncan (R-Freshman, 133 pounds) *unattached | 2-2
Round 1: Won by major decision over Brandon James (Indiana), 16-4
Round 2: Lost by decision against (11) Scott Delvecchio (Rutgers), 9-7
Cons. Round 2: Won by decision over Trae Blackwell (Oklahoma), 5-0
Cons. Round 3: Lost by decision against (6) Tyson Dippery (Rutgers), 12-8
Dylan Duncan is eliminated
Mousa Jodeh (Sophomore, 141 pounds) | 1-2
Round 1: Lost by major decision against No. 8 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State), 12-3
Cons. Round 1: Bye
Cons. Round 2: Won by major decision over Trevor Feagans (SIU Edwardsville), 13-3
Cons. Round 3: Lost in tiebreaker-one against Kevin Budock (Old Dominion), 3-2
Mousa Jodeh is eliminated
Eric Barone (R-Freshman, 149 pounds) | 1-2
Round 1: Bye
Round 2: Won by decision over (11) Chris Perez (Indiana), 3-0
Round 3: Lost by decision against (6) #18 Joey Delgado (Oregon State), 4-1
Cons. Round 4: Lost by decision against Alex Kocer (South Dakota St.), 9-3
Eric Barone is eliminated
(12) Kyle Langenderfer (R-Junior, 157 pounds) | 2-2
Round 1: Won by decision over Zach Wilson (Ohio), 11-7
Round 2: Won by decision over Karsten Van Velsor (SIU Edwardsville), 9-3
Round 3: Lost by decision against (5) #12 Colin Heffernan (Central Michigan), 12-7
Cons. Round 4: Lost by decision against (16) Evan Wick (Wisconsin), 10-5
Kyle Langenderfer is eliminated
Nick Gasbarro (R-Freshman, 157 pounds) | 0-2
Round 1: Lost by decision against Jared Scharenbrock (Wisconsin), 8-1
Cons. Round 1: Lost by decision against Tyler Ponte (Columbia), 4-0
Nick Gasbarro is eliminated
Carver James (R-Freshman, 157 pounds) | 0-2
Round 1: Bye;
Round 2: Lost by major decision against (2) #4 Michael Kemerer (Iowa), 18-6
Cons. Round 1: Bye
Cons. Round 2: Lost by major decision against (16) Evan Wick (Wisconsin), 13-4
Carver James is eliminated
9) #14 Emery Parker (R-Sophomore, 184 pounds) | 2-2
Round 1: Bye
Round 2: Won by major decision over (16) Kevin Parker (Princeton), 12-4
Round 3: Won by fall over (8) #13 Jordan Ellingwood (Central Michigan), 5:37
Quarterfinals: Lost by major decision against (1) #3 TJ Dudley (Nebraska), 14-1
Cons. Round 6: Lost by decision against (10) #16 Michael Macchiavel (NC State), 8-7
Andre Lee (R-Sophomore, 197 pounds) | 0-2
Round 1: Bye
Round 2: Lost by major decision against Nate Rose (Buffalo), 16-2
Cons. Round 2: Bye
Cons. Round 3: Lost by sudden victory against Johnathen Dennis (Grand View), 4-3
Andre Lee is eliminated
(4) #10 Brooks Black (R-Junior, HWT) | 1-2
Round 1: Bye
Round 2: Won by decision over Steven Holloway (Iowa), 2-0
Round 3: Lost by decision against (13) Jordan Wood (Lehigh), 2-1
Cons. Round 4: Lost in sudden victory against Gage Hutchison (Eastern Michigan), 3-1
Brooks Black is eliminated
Deuce Rachal (R-Sophomore, HWT) | 0-2
Round 1: Lost by decision against Zak Parker (Ohio), 7-3
Cons. Round 1: Bye
Cons. Round 2: Lost by fall against David Henry (Oregon State), 4:41
Deuce Rachal is eliminated
