Lincoln, Neb. – The No. 4 Nebraska wrestling team collected two dual wins over Wyoming and No. 25 UNI on Saturday at the Devaney Center in front of 2,503 fans.
NU dominated Wyoming in its first match of the day, securing four pins and two technical falls to take the 44-3 victory.
In a Cliff Keen rematch and top-ten matchup, No. 3 Caleb Smith (125) fell to No. 8 Jore Volk in a 5-1 decision. Smith tabbed an escape in the second period, but Volk tallied five points in the final period with an escape, takedown and penalty called on Smith.
At 133, No. 32 Jacob Van Dee tied up the team score with a 7-5 decision over Cooper Birdwell. Van Dee struck first with a takedown, but Birdwell secured five-straight points with a pair of escapes and a takedown. Van Dee earned a reversal to tie the bout at five and went on to get an escape and the riding time point to end the match.
No. 6 Brock Hardy dominated from start to finish in a 15-3 major decision over No. 31 Cole Brooks at 141. Hardy opened with a takedown and a combined seven nearfall points, ending the first period with a 10-1 advantage. Stretching his lead, Hardy managed a reversal in the second and third period, along with the riding time point.
Top-ranked Ridge Lovett was aggressive from the whistle, grabbing his third pin of the season over No. 23 Gabe Willochell in 1:25
At 157, No. 3 Peyton Robb jumped out to a 7-0 first-period lead over Wyoming’s Cooper Voorhees with a takedown and four nearfall points. He carried the momentum into the second period, tallying an escape and a takedown. With a takedown and the riding time point, Robb clinched the 18-1 technical fall in 3:18.
No. 24 Antrell Taylor took offensive control in the 165 bout, earning four takedowns in the first three minutes to hold the 12-3 lead over Brett McIntosh. In the second period, Taylor got three swipes and another takedown. He continued chipping away, moving the score to 22-5 to take the second-straight technical fall in 5:38.
No. 33 Bubba Wilson grabbed his third career pin, getting Kevin Anderson’s shoulders on the mat in just 50 seconds. With the pin, Wilson brought the team score to 29-3.
At 184, Elise Brown Ton secured a 10-3 decision over Tyce Raddon. Through the first two periods, Brown Ton held a 3-2 advantage with a takedown and a pair of Raddon escapes. Stretching his lead, Brown Ton grabbed an escape and two takedowns in the final period.
NU closed with two back-to-back first-period pins. At 197, No. 11 Silas Allred got No. 21 Joey Novak on his back in 2:15.
At heavyweight, Nash Hutmacher took the mat for the first time in a Nebraska singlet, pinning Mason Ding in 2:07.
Nebraska went on to win a close match against UNI with a final score of 18-17 after a pin and four decision victories.
In the first bout against the Panthers, No. 3 Smith and No. 26 Trever Anderson each had an escape through three periods. In sudden victory, Smith quickly used a double leg to get the takedown and earn the 4-1 decision.
At 133, No. 32 Van Dee dropped the bout to No. 22 Julian Farber in a 8-1 decision. In the first three minutes, Farber notched a takedown and Van Dee escaped for a point. The two went scoreless in the second period, but Farber managed a takedown, escape and the riding time point to get the win.
In the second top-ten matchup of the day, No. 6 Hardy (141) fell to No. 8 Cael Happel in sudden victory. Entering the final period, Hardy held a 4-3 advantage after a takedown and escape. Hardy grabbed another takedown in the third to build a margin, but a big reversal and takedown by Happel tied it at eight as time expired. In sudden victory, Happel struck first with a takedown to take the 11-8 victory.
No. 1 Lovett (149) tied up the team score at 6-6 with a 7-1 decision over Cael Rahnavardi. In the opening three minutes, Lovett went up 3-0 with a takedown. He led 6-0 after the second with a reversal and stalling called against Rahnavardi. To close, Rahnavardi was awarded an escape and Lovett took the riding time point.
No. 3 Robb dropped a top-15 matchup to No. 13 Ryder Downey at 157, 6-5. Downey led 5-3 after two periods, using a takedown and two escapes. Robb tied it up with a big reversal, but allowed an escape to drop the match by one.
At 165, No. 24 Taylor got the Huskers back on track with a 6-3 decision over RJ Weston. The two remained scoreless through two periods. In the final two minutes, Taylor notched a pair of takedowns and Weston escaped twice. The win put Nebraska ahead in the team score, 9-8.
No. 33 Wilson continued the success with a 3-1 decision over No. 30 Jared Simma. Using an escape and two stall points called against Simma, Wilson earned three team points, bringing the score to 12-8.
Brown Ton took on No. 1 Parker Keckeisen at 184, falling in a 17-2 technical fall in 5:37. UNI regained the team lead, 13-12 with two bouts remaining.
No. 11 Allred pinned No. 19 Wyatt Voelker in 5:53 at 197. Allred used a pair of takedowns to lead 6-3 after two periods and went on to capture the six team points with the fall.
Harley Andrews wrestled at heavyweight, dropping a 9-1 major decision to No. 17 Tyrell Gordon. After the bout, the team scores were tied at 17, but Nebraska won by criteria, 18-17, with Allred’s fall.
Nebraska returns to the mat on Friday, Jan. 12 to host No. 3 Iowa for a top-five matchup at the Devaney Center. With a 6:30 p.m. (CT) start time, the dual will be streamed on the Big Ten Network.
#4 Nebraska 44, Wyoming 3
125: #8 Jore Volk (WYO) dec. #3 Caleb Smith 5-1 (NEB 0, WYO 3)
133: #32 Jacob Van Dee dec. Cooper Birdwell (WYO) 7-5 (NEB 3, WYO 3)
141: #6 Brock Hardy maj. dec. #31 Cole Brooks (WYO) 15-3 (NEB 7, WYO 3)
149: #1 Ridge Lovett pinned #23 Gabe Willochell (WYO) (1:25) (NEB 13, WYO 3)
157: #3 Peyton Robb tech. fall Cooper Voorhees (WYO) 18-1 (3:18) (NEB 18, WYO 3)
165: #24 Antrell Taylor tech. fall Brett McIntosh (WYO) 22-5 (5:38) (NEB 23, WYO 3)
174: #33 Bubba Wilson pinned Kevin Anderson (WYO) (0:50) (NEB 29, WYO 3)
184: Elise Brown Ton dec. Tyce Raddon (WYO) 10-3 (NEB 32, WYO 3)
197: #11 Silas Allred pinned #21 Joey Novak (WYO) (2:15) (NEB 38, WYO 3)
HWT: Nash Hutmacher pinned Mason Ding (WYO) (2:07) (NEB 44, WYO 3)
#4 Nebraska 18, #25 Northern Iowa 17
125: #3 Caleb Smith dec. #26 Trever Anderson (UNI) SV-1 4-1 (NEB 3, UNI 0)
133: #22 Julian Farber (UNI) dec. #32 Jacob Van Dee 8-1 (NEB 3, UNI 3)
141: #8 Cael Happel (UNI) dec. #6 Brock Hardy SV-1 11-8 (NEB 3, UNI 6)
149: #1 Ridge Lovett dec. Cael Rahnavardi (UNI) 7-1 (NEB 6, UNI 6)
157: #13 Ryder Downey (UNI) dec. #3 Peyton Robb 6-5 (NEB 6, UNI 8)
165: #24 Antrell Taylor dec. RJ Weston (UNI) 6-3 (NEB 9, UNI 8)
174: #33 Bubba Wilson dec. #30 Jared Simma (UNI) 3-1 (NEB 12, UNI 8)
184: #1 Parker Keckeisen (UNI) tech. fall Elise Brown Ton 17-2 (5:37) (NEB 12, UNI 13)
197: #11 Silas Allred pinned #19 Wyatt Voelker (UNI) (5:53) (NEB 17, UNI 13)
HWT: #17 Tyrell Gordon (UNI) maj. dec. Harley Andrews 9-1 (NEB 18, UNI 17)
