Senior Day brings win

No evidence of an upset was present at University Gymnasium Sunday as the No. 17 Hoosiers (12-7) struggled with No. 9 Illinois.\nSenior Brandon Becker squared off against the Illini’s No. 1 ranked Mike Poeta.\nThe wrestlers were in a dead heat for the majority of two periods and traded points before Becker broke through with an impressive maneuver to put him ahead for good. Becker pulled off a well-executed takedown on Poeta that left him, and his No. 1 ranking, helpless on the mat.\nBecker’s match was the highlight of a rather dark weekend for the Hoosiers. IU lost to Purdue on Friday, 18-16, and also fell to No. 9 Illinois Sunday, 23-9. The Illini won the match, but Becker’s upset met a roar from the crowd.\nBecker leapt into the air and showed the crowd the cream and crimson uniform he had donned for four years. It was a fitting end to IU’s Senior Day on Sunday.\n“Coming out and beating Poeta was a good thing,” Becker said, “but it’s not the end of the season. It was one of my goals for the season and for the weekend.”\nThe victory was icing on the cake for Becker, who was not only honored as a senior at the match, but also celebrated his 23rd birthday on Saturday.\n“Brandon has been a great athlete for us,” IU coach Duane Goldman said. “He’s brought a lot of honor to the school with his All-American status and his Big Ten finishes. You couldn’t ask for a better situation for him, not only winning but also beating the No. 1 kid in the county. Regardless of how the rest of the season goes, that was a really cool thing.”\nThe two-time All-American has totaled a 108-33 record throughout his career, including 21 pins.\nNot to be outdone, senior Marc Bennett also picked up one of IU’s three victories against the Illini. Bennett overcame an early deficit in the first period to prevail by a score of 9-6 over Illinois Ben Friedl.\n“It was fun,” Bennett said, “but it would have been a lot nicer if my win could have put us over the top for the dual match.”\nBennett overcame torn cartilage in his ribs earlier this season to wrestle in the 184-pound weight class for the Hoosiers. For his career thus far, Bennett has amassed 63 wins, 18 by pin.\n“Marc Bennett has been one of the most inspirational guys I’ve ever had on my team,” Goldman said. “He’s one of my favorite wrestlers of all time, and I have a lot of respect and admiration for him. I’m very happy he was able to win.”\nHeavyweight John Sandberg did not wrestle for the Hoosiers Sunday, but Goldman said he wouldn’t keep him on the sidelines for the rest of the season.\n“Even though Sandberg wasn’t able to wrestle today we’re really appreciative of his efforts in choosing to help us out for the rest of the season,” Goldman said. “He’ll probably get an opportunity to wrestle again this year.”\nAngel Escobedo (25-0) maintained his perfect record for the Hoosiers in the 125-pound weight class by defeating both opponents he faced over the weekend. Escobedo is ranked No. 2 in the nation behind Minnesota’s Jayson Ness, who is 28-0. The two will not have a chance to face each other until the Big Ten Championships on March 9.