CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Fighting Illini wrestling returns to Huff Hall to host its first of three home duals to round out the season on Sunday, January 28, against Maryland at 1 p.m. The Orange and Blue enter on a nine-match home winning streak that dates back to February 7, 2016. The dual on Sunday will stand as Illinois' 'WrestleMania' promotion, as singlet T-shirts and rally towels will be handed out to the first 500 fans along with free pizza and raffle prizes. Sunday's match can also be streamed live on BTN Plus and FloWrestling with a subscription to either platform.
Quick Hits
*The Illini are hosting 'WrestleMania' with giveaways, free food and two raffle opportunities
*Illinois enters a perfect 5-0 all-time against the Maryland, including 4-0 since the Terrapins joined the Big Ten.
*The Illini enter Sunday winners of nine straight duals at Huff Hall dating back to a 25-24 win against Northwestern on February 7, 2016. The longest streak in program history is 11 straight, accomplished twice between 1999 and 2006.
*Emery Parker Has won ten straight matches dating back to December 1 at Iowa. During the 10-match winning streak, Parker has outscored his opponents 86-43, and has two wins over top-10 wrestlers.
*Isaiah Martinez has won each of his seven matches to start the season, six coming by either tech fall or fall. The redshirt senior is outscoring his opponents 125-41 in the seven matches, and leads the Illini with 34 dual points.
*Isaiah Martinez is tied for 20th on Illinois' all-time wins list with 105 career victories. Martinez is tied with a trio of Illini -- Kevin Puebla (105), current Illini assistant coach Mike Poeta (105) and John Dergo (105).
*Three Illini enter the Maryland dual ranked, according to InterMat: No. 2 Isaiah Martinez (165), No. 6 Emery Parker (184) and No. 18 Travis Piotrowski (125).
*Illini freshman Mike Carr is starting to gain notoriety after a pair of wins over ranked opponents this month. FloWrestling moved Carr into its rankings this week, jumping to No. 12 at 141 pounds.
Match Notes
Series History: Illinois leads 5-0
Illinois owns a perfect record in its brief series history against the Maryland Terrapins. A series that only dates back to 2006, the Illini are 4-0 against Maryland since they joined the conference in 2012. The Illini defeated the Terrapins in College Park last year by a score of 30-15.
Scouting The Terrapins
Maryland enters the contest still searching for its first conference win of the season. Despite being 0-7, Maryland does boast a couple of talented grapplers in Alfred Bannister at 149 pounds and Youssif Hemida at heavyweight. Bannister is currently 15-6 on the season and owns eight pins. Meanwhile, Hemida enters ranked seventh among fellow heavyweights, sporting a 20-2 record with seven of the wins coming by fall.
Illini Notes
Last Time Out
The Orange and Blue got back into the win column last Sunday with a 21-12 win over Purdue. Winning six of their first eight matches, the Illini received wins from Dylan Duncan, Mike Carr, Kyle Langenderfer, Isaiah Martinez, Emery Parker and Andre Lee. Martinez and Parker remain undefeated in dual meets this season. Martinez's 18-3 tech fall against Jacob Morrissey at 165 pounds is the fifth in seven matches for the Illini redshirt senior, while Parker's win marks his 10th straight dating back to December 1 at Iowa.
Home Cooking
The Illini have won nine straight home duals, the longest streak under head coach Jim Heffernan, and the longest in Illini history since former Illini head coach Mark Johnson led the Orange and Blue to 11 straight from February 8, 2004 to January 20, 2006. The nine straight victories dates back to a February 7, 2016 match against Northwestern where the Illini defeated the Wildcats, 25-24. In the nine matches, Illinois has defeated a pair of ranked foes, No. 13 Michigan (1/20/17) and No. 20 Nebraska (1/5/18).
Parker's Win Streak Continues
With an 8-4 win over Max Lyon (Purdue) last weekend, Parker's winning streak reached double-digits. Outscoring his opponents 86-43 during the ten-match stretch, Parker has defeated three ranked opponents in the process. Parker's 15 wins this season lead the team, while his 24 dual team points is second only to Isaiah Martinez.
Tech Support
Isaiah Martinez has boosted the Illini in each of its seven duals with a tech fall in five of the seven contests with one of the other decisions coming by fall. In the seven victories, Martinez owns a 125-41 advantage in points scored, and leads the team with 34 dual team points. Martinez owns 44 tech falls in his career, his most common victory of the 105 career wins.
Carr Making Moves
Having won four of his five Big Ten matches, redshirt freshman Mike Carr is gaining national attention for his first-year surge. This week, FloWrestling placed him into their top-20 at 141 pounds, moving him all the way up to No. 12. Carr also jumped into the WIN Magazine rankings this week, checking in at No. 17. 7-4 on the season, Carr already has wins over two ranked opponents, the most notable coming at home against Nebraska's No. 9 Chad Red Jr.
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