CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – After splitting their first two Big Ten duals, the No. 14 Fighting Illini will travel to Columbus, Ohio for a dual against the fourth-ranked Buckeyes of Ohio State on Sunday, January 15. The dual meet is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. central time and will be streamed live on BTN Plus with a paid subscription. Fans can also follow live scoring of the dual on trackwrestling.com.

	#14 Illinois at #4 Ohio State
When	Sunday, January 15 // 1 p.m. CT
Where	St. Johns Arena // Columbus, Ohio
Follow Live	Live Results
Watch	Live Stream (BTN Plus)
Printable Notes	Illinois | Ohio State
Season Stats	Illinois | Ohio State
Media Guides	Illinois | Ohio State
Social Media	@IlliniWrestling  | #Illini | @Illinwrestling  | Facebook | YouTube

Quick Hits

*Eight Illini will wrestle against ranked opponents on Sunday, as #4 Ohio State features #12 Jose Rodriguez (125), #2 Nathan Tomasello (133), Luke Pletcher (141), #5 Micah Jordan, #1 Bo Jordan (174), #10 Myles Martin (184), #5 Collin Moore (197) and #1 Kyle Snyder (HWT)

*Five Illini are currently ranked in their respective weight classes according to Intermat: #4 Zane Richards (14-1), #1 Isaiah Martinez (14-0), #12 Zac Brunson (19-3), #13 Emery Parker (18-3) #17 Brooks Black (5-3). The team checks in at No. 14 in the latest Intermat dual rankings.  

*Isaiah Martinez officially qualified for Illinois' all-time win percentage record, overtaking Matt Lackey (0.896) with his record of 81-1 (.988). Lackey tallied 120 wins in 134 matches for a 0.896 win-percentage from 2000-03. Zane Richards (96-21) sits tied for 9th place on the all-time win-percentage list with a .821 mark. 

*Redshirt senior Zane Richards moved into a tie for 24th place on Illinois' all-time career wins list with his tech fall of Alex Vargas at Maryland (1/8), tying Nate Patrick with 96 wins. Next up on the list is Carl Perry with 98 wins.

*Travis Piotrowski (125) and Mousa Jodeh (141) each won their first career Big Ten duals last weekend, as Jodeh knocked off Jhared Simmons and Piotrowski defeated Michael Beck on Sunday at Maryland. Deuce Rachal (HWT) made his first dual appearance for the Illini, wrestling in place of an injured Brooks Black (HWT).

*184-pounder Emery Parker picked up his team-leading 14th victory by major decision or greater at Maryland with a 19-9 major decision of Idris White, while Zac Brunson notched his team-high sixth pin against Sam Rowell.

* Ohio State head coach Tom Ryan and Illinois head coach Jim Heffernan were teammates at the University of Iowa. Ryan won two NCAA titles, while Heffernan was a four-time All-American and a part of three NCAA Championships.

Series History: Illinois Leads 37-33-1

Having faced the Buckeyes 71 times dating back to 1922, the Illini lead the all-time series, 37-33-1. The most recent meeting came last season when the Buckeyes defeated the Illini in Champaign, 22-17. The Buckeyes carry a three-match winning streak into the series with the last Illinois victory coming on February 4, 2011 in Champaign when Coach Heffernan's squad won 21-12.

Last Meeting: Ohio State 21, Illinois 17 – January 3, 2016

The Orange and Blue dropped their 2016 Big Ten opener at Huff Hall, falling to sixth-ranked Ohio State, 22-17. The Illini scored bonus points in three of their four victories and led the Buckeyes 13-11 heading into the 165-pound match, but dropped three of the final four bouts. No. 3 Zane Richards (133), Kyle Langenderfer (149), No. 1 Isaiah Martinez (157) and No. 16 Jeff Koepke (184) all earned victories for Coach Heffernan.

Weight Classes to Watch

133

A top-five match-up, No. 4 Zane Richards (Illinois) wrestles No. 2 Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) for the first time in their collegiate careers after Tomasello wrestled at 125 pounds last season. Richards (14-1) enters the contest after winning each of his first two Big Ten duals this season. Last year, the Illini 133-pounder went undefeated in Big Ten duals on his way to a runner-up finish at Big Ten Championships and a fourth-place finish at NCAA Championships. Tomasello is coming off of an impressive first two seasons with the Buckeyes, highlighted by an NCAA title in 2015 and Big Ten titles in 2015 and 2016. Tomasello is 8-0 to start his junior season; including wins over No. 9 Stevan Micic (Michigan) and No. 9 Jaydin Eierman (Missouri). 

184

After upsetting No. 11 Nicholas Gravina (Rutgers) last Friday night, No. 13 Emery Parker will be tested again with a match against 174-pound champion Myles Martin. Wrestling down a weight class last year, Martin became just the 15th true freshman in NCAA history, and first at Ohio State, to win a national championship. Now at 184 pounds, No. 10 Martin is 18-3 on the season, including 2-0 in conference duals. However, Martin is just 2-3 against ranked wrestlers this season. Martin leads the Buckeyes in dual team points scored (30), dual bonus points (30), dual tech falls (4), and dual takedowns (36), while Parker leads Illinois in wins by major decision or greater (14) and is third on the team in individual dual match points scored (45).

174

Ranked No. 12 at 174, Zac Brunson is riding a four-match winning streak coming into the match since dropping the Midlands semifinal bout to No. 4 Zahid  Valencia (Arizona State), including a win over No. 7 Alex Meyer (Iowa) in the third-place bout. Leading the Illini with 19 wins on the season, Brunson is 2-0 in Big Ten duals, including his team-leading sixth pin of the season last Sunday against Sam Rowell (Rutgers). The Illini senior is closing in on the school's all-time wins list as his 94 wins ranks two behind Zane Richards and Nate Patrick who are tied for 24th. Opposing Brunson will InterMat's top-ranked wrestler, Bo Jordan. Jordan (8-0) has won all eight of his matches this season with bonus points, including three pins. However, Brunson will be Jordan's first bout against a ranked opponent this season. Previously at 165 pounds, Jordan is a two-time All-American and has twice finished runner-up at Big Ten Championships. 

Zane Climbs All-Time Wins List 

Zane Richards moved into a tie with Nate Patrick with two victories at Rutgers (1/6) and Maryland (1/8) last week. Current Illini Zac Brunson (94) and Isaiah Martinez (81) are both on pace to enter the list this season.  

I-Mar All-Time Win-Percentage Leader 

With Martinez's first match at Midlands was the 75th of his career, making him eligible for the Illinois all-time win percentage list. Upon entering the list, the Illini redshirt junior took over as the record holder with a current win percentage of .988. Richards also ranks in the top-10 of the list with a .821 percentage that is tied for ninth.  

Pinning It Down

Zac Brunson continues to move closer to joining the school's all-time career pins list. After scoring his sixth pin of the season against Maryland's Sam Rowell, Brunson is two pins away from entering the top-10 on Illinois' all-time list. With six this season, Brunson has 18 for his career, two behind No. 10 Troy Tirapelle (2006-09) who finished his career with 20. Tony Dallago owns the school record with 40 pins from 2009-13. 

Illini Host Great Escape January 20

Illinois wrestling will host a number of promotions across their five home dual meets this season, beginning with the annual Great Escape on January 20 vs. Michigan. Prior to the match against the Wolverines, kids can participate in the youth clinic, led by Fighting Illini athletes and coaches. Other promotions include Hometown Heroes (Jan. 22), 'Frats to the Mats' (Jan. 27), Take Down Cancer (Feb. 5) and senior day (Feb. 12).