IU senior wrestler Alonzo Shepherd had a pin against Minnesota that turned the match in a complete circle.
The Hoosiers (4-0) were down in the dual, and the match was slipping away. Shepherd was down in his match until he turned the Minnesota wrestler over for the pin.
IU went on to beat nationally-ranked Minnesota (4-5) on a bonus point tiebreaker, 19-18. This win was its first against Minnesota since 1968, and the first win in a Big Ten dual in 35 tries.
The team rode that momentum into the matches Sunday, winning 22 of 30 individual matches and beating nationally-ranked Eastern Michigan (6-2) by a score of 25-9 and Manchester (0-7) with a shutout victory, 55-0.
“It feels good to get the first Big Ten win we’ve had in years,” sophomore Luke Blanton said. “Today, we just kept the momentum going, and we’re in a hot spot right now. We need to keep it going.”
Blanton said the team is excited, but it knows the momentum won’t continue on its own. He emphasized the importance of keeping it going throughout the entire season.
IU Coach Duane Goldman said this was a good weekend and the team continues to get better everyday. Goldman stressed the importance of the team continuing to learn and stay humble through this period of success.
Despite the early success, there are still many improvements to be made in order to continue having this success with more Big Ten duals on the horizon.
Goldman said the team is heading in a positive direction, both for this season and in the future. However, he said the team also has a long way to go and doesn’t have much to "hang their hats" on yet.
Blanton went 2-0 on the weekend, outscoring two natinoally ranked wrestlers with a total score of 21-10.
Goldman said Blanton had a great weekend overall and his success should get him in the national rankings of the 149-pound weight class.
“Luke is just a byproduct of hard work and attitude,” Goldman said. “He’s just a great kid to have on the team academically, athletically, effort, he’s phenomenal.”
After an undefeated weekend, the Hoosiers will prepare to travel to Reno, Nevada, on Dec. 20 for the Reno Tournament of Champions.
This will be an opportunity for IU to improve its RPI against teams outside the Big Ten, and Blanton said he is looking forward to the challenge.
“We have finals this week, so it’s going to be a hell of a week,” Blanton said. “We have to keep trucking like we have been the last couple weeks, and take this momentum into next week.”
