LINCOLN, Neb. - No. 13 Fighting Illini Wrestling took the first three matches of the afternoon but ended up falling to No. 6 Nebraska in Lincoln Sunday, 30-9. Junior No. 12 Travis Piotrowski defeated No. 15 Zeke Moisey in a 6-5 decision to give the Illini the initial 3-0 lead. Redshirt sophomore No. 18 Dylan Duncan followed up with a 10-7 decision over Jevon Parrish, and redshirt sophomore Mike Carr remained undefeated in B1G duals with his 4-3 tiebreaker decision agains Chad Red Jr.
"Travis was awesome," said head coach Jim Heffernan. "He beat a former NCAA finalist. Michael Carr wasn't sharp, but gutted it out and found a way. We gave up three pins, and two were guys ranked highly nationally. That cannot happen."
Piotrowski had to come behind to earn his 13th victory of the season and third in Big Ten duals. He trailed 3-0 to start the final period, but picked up a takedown early in the period to cut the deficit to 3-2. Moisey then escaped to put him ahead 4-2, but Piotrowski responded with a takedown to tie the match at four with 41 seconds to go. After Moisey regained a 5-4 lead , Piotrowski answered with his third takedown of the period to take a 6-5 lead. That takedown was the difference as Piotrowski held on in the final 30 seconds to win a 6-5 decision over Moisey. Piotrowski is now 13-7 on the season and 3-2 in Big Ten duals.
Dylan Duncan takedown was dominant from the start in his match up against Jevon Parrish. He started the 133-pound bout with a takedown to take a 2-0 lead, then added another in the opening frame to take a 4-1 lead into the second. In the next period, Duncan escaped and added another takedown to push his lead to 7-1 over Parrish. Duncan's hot start was too much for Parrish, and Duncan won the match in a 10-7 decision. The win is Duncan's second in Big Ten duals and he is now 10-7 overall.
Redshirt sophomore Mike Carr battled with Chad Red Jr. in the 141-pound match to keep his win streak going. Carr and Red Jr. were tied at one heading into the final period, and Red Jr. took the lead on an escape early in the frame. However, Red Jr. was later called for stalling, which tied the match at two. The bout would head to overtime and eventually a tiebreaker period with the score still even at two. In the tiebreaker period, Carr escaped and Red Jr. was once again called for stalling, giving Carr a 4-2 lead. Red Jr. would escape in the next 30 second frame, but it was not enough and Carr won the match in a 4-3 decision. Carr has now won five straight matches to push his record to 9-2 and 5-0 in Big Ten competition. His victory gave the Illini a 9-0 lead, but Nebraska would win the next seven matches to win the dual, 30-9.
Up next, the Illini return home to host No. 2 Ohio State at Huff Hall Friday night at 8 p.m. CT. The dual will be televised on Big Ten Network. Friday night is Great Escape night at Huff Hall. There will be a pre-dual youth wrestling clinic, and 2-point takedown foam fingers will be given fans. A post-dual autograph session will also take place after Friday's match.
Full Results
125 -- #12 Travis Piotrowski (ILL) dec. #15 Zeke Moisey (NEB), 6-5; ILL 3, NEB 0
133 -- #18 Dylan Duncan (ILL) dec. Jevon Parrish (NEB), 10-7; ILL 6, NEB 0
141 -- #4 Mike Carr (ILL) dec. Chad Red Jr. (NEB), TB1, 4-3; ILL 9, NEB 0
149 -- Jordan Shearer (NEB) dec. Christian Kanzler (ILL), 7-3; ILL 9, NEB 3
157 -- #2 Tyler Berger (NEB) fall #12 Eric Barone (ILL), 6:37; ILL 9, NEB 8*
165 -- #6 Isaiah White (NEB) dec. Joey Gunther (ILL), 7-2; NEB 11, ILL 9
174 -- #9 Mikey Labriola (NEB) major dec. Carver James (ILL), 16-7; NEB 15, ILL 9
184 -- #4 Taylor Venz (NEB) fall #2 Emery Parker (ILL), 5:33; NEB 21, ILL 9
197 -- #11 Eric Schultz (NEB) dec. Andre Lee (ILL), 2-1; NEB 24, ILL 9
285 -- #14 David Jensen (NEB) fall Deuce Rachal (ILL), 3:32; NEB 30, ILL 9
*-1 team point unsportsmanlike conduct against Nebraska after 157
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