EAST LANSING, Mich. – The No. 18 Illinois wrestling squad closed out Big Ten dual season with a 17-16 win over Michigan State on Sunday, Feb. 5. Redshirt freshman Danny Pucino picked up a tech. fall win over Blake Noonan (23-8, 6:15) that gave the Illini the necessary bonus points to edge the Spartans.
Redshirt freshman Maximo Renteria (125 lbs.) got the scoring started for the Illini right off the bat. He defeated Benny Gomez by a 5-1 decision and complied 1:09 of ride time. Redshirt sophomore No. 10 Lucas Byrd (133 lbs.) extended his win streak to 11 with his 6-1 decision over No. 18 Rayvon Foley. He built up 1:19 of riding time and the Illini led 6-0.
Freshman Jake Harrier won his bout at 149 pounds by an 8-4 decision over Peyton Omania to put the Fighting Illini ahead 14-0. He scored six unanswered points between periods one and two. No. 12 Edmond Ruth (174 lbs.) handled his business over Ceasar Garza with his 13-7 decision win and pushed the lead to 17-7.
UP NEXT
The Illini wrestling crew has one more dual meet before they are off for a few weeks ahead of the Big Ten Championships. The travel out to Ames, Iowa on Sunday, Feb. 12 to take on No. 3 Iowa State at Noon CT.
FULL RESULTS
| Weight |
Matchup |
Score |
| 125: |
Maximo Renteria dec. Benny Gomez, 5-1 |
ILL 3 | MSU 0 |
| 133: |
#10 Lucas Byrd dec. #18 Rayvon Foley, 8-1 |
ILL 6 I MSU 0 |
| 141: |
#16 Danny Pucino tech. fall Blake Noonan, 23-8 (6:15) |
ILL 11 I MSU 0 |
| 149: |
Jake Harrier dec. Peyton Omania, 8-4 |
ILL 14 I MSU 0 |
| 157: |
#12 Chase Saldate dec. Anthony Federico, 2-0 |
ILL 14 I MSU 3 |
| 165: |
#27 Caleb Fish major dec. #20 Danny Braunagel, 12-4 |
ILL 14 I MSU 7 |
| 174: |
#12 Edmond Ruth dec. Ceasar Garza, 13-7 |
ILL 17 I MSU 7 |
| 184: |
#14 Layne Malczewski dec. #24 Dylan Connell, 2-0 |
ILL 17 I MSU 10 |
| 197: |
#21 Cameron Caffey dec. #10 Zac Braunagel, 6-4 |
ILL 17 I MSU 13 |
| HWT: |
Ryan Vasbinder dec. Matt Wroblewski, 1-0 |
ILL 17 I MSU 16 |
