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Wrestling
#19 Illini Drop Hard-Fought 18-16 Battle to #10 Missouri
Nov. 12, 2009
COLUMBIA, Mo. - No. 19 Illinois and No. 10 Missouri split the 10 bouts, but a fall at heavyweight gave the host Tigers the 18-16 victory at the Hearnes Center Thursday night. Junior John Deneen, filling in for B.J. Futrell at 125, scored Illinois' only bonus points of the night as he registered a 9-0 win over Troy Dolan. "We wrestled our tails off tonight," Jim Heffernan said. "We got upset in one match but we won all the toss-ups. Our effort was great and the guys did awesome." No. 7 Jordan Blanton started the dual well for the Illini, scoring a 7-4 win over No. 20 Dorian Henderson at 174. The pair battled to a 3-3 tie after the first period and Blanton started down in the second. He escaped to take a 4-3 lead and the period ended with the pair on their feet. In the third, Henderson started down and escaped, but Blanton scored a takedown and added riding time for the victory. But the Tigers won the next three bouts as No. 2 Max Askren notched a 9-4 win over No. 10 John Dergo at 184 despite Dergo holding a 4-3 lead in the third period. After earning a caution, Askren escaped, scored a takedown and got a three-point near-fall to pull away for the win. At 197, No. 13 Patrick Bond gave up an escape and a takedown in the third period before Brent Haynes added riding time for the 4-1 Tiger win. And No. 1 Mark Ellis earned a fall in 3:54 on redshirt-freshman Pat Walker to put Missouri ahead 12-3. But Deneen sparked the Illini comeback with his 9-0 win over Dolan, an opponent he dropped a 2-1 decision to last season, at 125. After a scoreless first period, Dolan started down and Deneen notched a three-point near-fall for a 3-0 lead after two periods. In the third, Deneen chose neutral and got a takedown before adding another three-point near-fall and riding time for the major decision. "John Deneen was awesome," Heffernan said. "He got thrown in there at the last minute, did a great job of making weight and majored a guy who beat him least year. He was phenomenal." At 133, redshirt-freshman Daryl Thomas couldn't mount a late rally against Missouri's Nathan McCormick, who led 3-1 after two periods and held off Thomas for the 3-2 win. But junior Ryan Prater got the Illini back on track at 141. Prater scored the first takedown against Todd Schavrien but the Tiger earned a reversal to even the score. Prater reversed Schavrien and added two near-fall points for a 6-2 lead after three minutes. Schavrien started down in the second and got a reversal and a three-point near-fall, but Prater eventually escaped and got another takedown to regain a 9-7 advantage. Prater started down in the third and escaped, but Schavrien got within a point at 10-9 with another takedown. Prater reversed him for two then added a two-point near-fall and riding time for the 15-9 win, bringing the Illini within 15-10.
Sophomore Eric Terrazas scored four third-period points to take a 4-2 win over Brandon Wiest at 149, cutting Missouri's team lead to two points and senior Clint Arlis gave Illinois its first lead since the opening bout with his 3-2 win at 157 as the Illini pulled ahead, 16-15. The match came down to 165 pounds, where redshirt-freshman Conrad Polz squared off with No. 7 Nick Marable, a two-time All-American. After a scoreless first period, Marable started down in the second. He escaped and got a takedown to take a 3-0 lead, but Polz escaped before time ran out. The Illini started down in the third and escaped, and Marable was hit with a stalling warning, but Polz wasn't able to finish any late shots as he dropped a 3-2 decision to the Tiger senior. "Conrad had two or three chances to take the guy down and came close," Heffernan said. "He's in a situation where if he beats a two-time All-American, we win the match; he did everything he could and Marable was just able to hold him off long enough." The Fighting Illini return to the practice room before splitting up for the Sprawl and Brawl duals and the Missouri Open on Sunday, Nov. 22. At Sprawl and Brawl, Illinois will face Pittsburgh, Davidson and West Virginia.
#10 Missouri 18, #19 Illinois 16 |
