Indiana wrestling emerged victorious in a dual meet with the U.S. Military Academy West Point on Saturday, topping the Black Knights by a final score of 26-14.
Saturday’s contest was the Hoosiers’ first official contest inside Wilkinson Hall in Bloomington this season. The Hoosiers entered the dual meet as winners of two consecutive duals, most recently a 25-16 thumping of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock on Dec. 7. Army had yet to win a dual entering Saturday.
No. 14 graduate student Jacob Moran got the Hoosiers on the board first in the 125-pound bout, continuing his perfect 6-0 record in dual bouts on the season. Moran’s 22-6 technical fall victory over Army senior Charlie Farmer gave Indiana an early 5-0 lead. Moran’s seven takedowns in the bout, including three in the shortened third period, were the most by any wrestler Saturday.
Army freshman Jake Crapps took a 3-0 lead over Indiana redshirt sophomore Logan Frazier in the 133-pound bout with a takedown in the first period. The early score proved to be the only points Crapps needed, as he cruised to a 7-2 victory by decision. Frazier’s two points were earned through escapes in the first and third periods. The Hoosiers led 5-3 after two bouts.
Zero points were scored in the first two and a half minutes of the 141-pound bout between Indiana No. 23 redshirt junior Henry Porter and Army No. 14 junior Braden Basile, the first ranked matchup of the afternoon. With 20 seconds remaining in the first period, Porter put Basile on the mat, earning a takedown and three points for Indiana. Following a scoreless second period, Basile gained a point by way of escape and three with a takedown in the third. A late Porter escape knotted the score at 4, before a riding time point for Basile resulted in a 5-4 victory by decision and a 6-5 Army lead, its first lead of the afternoon.
Indiana retook the lead in the 149-pound bout after an 11-1 victory by major decision from redshirt sophomore Joey Buttler over sophomore Mason Barvitskie. Buttler earned five points in the final seconds of the first period, with a takedown and a near fall. An additional takedown in each of the final two periods allowed Butler to cruise to victory.
A 6-2 victory by decision from Army No. 28 freshman Joseph Antonio over Indiana No. 33 redshirt sophomore Bryce Lowery allowed the Black Knights to tie the dual before halftime. After a scoreless first period, Antonio took control of the 157-pound bout with a takedown, a penalty point and a reversal. The score was a deadlocked 9-9 at intermission.
No. 19 redshirt junior Tyler Lillard gave Indiana the first lead of the second half with a crucial victory in the 165-pound bout. A takedown late in the first period, followed by a reversal in the second gave Lillard a 5-0 lead, before pinning junior Dakota Morris, granting Lillard victory by fall and Indiana a 15-9 lead.
“We do a really good job of picking up on each other’s energy,” Lillard said after the meet. “I knew I needed to be there for my team. I needed to show up.”
Indiana extended its lead to 18-9 after a low-scoring 174-pound bout. No. 30 graduate student Derek Gilcher tallied two takedowns and an escape against sophomore Cooper Haase, who only mustered two escapes, which added up to a 7-2 Gilcher victory by decision.
No. 14 redshirt freshman Sam Goin earned a major decision victory in the 184-pound bout, besting sophomore Dave Barrett. Goin earned a takedown, reversal, near fall and a riding time point to topple the Army sophomore 10-1. The Hoosiers led 22-9 through eight bouts.
Army elected not to send No. 28 senior Wolfgang Frable against No. 13 redshirt junior Gabe Sollars. Instead, the Black Knights assigned sophomore Reid Schroeder the duty of the 197-pound bout. Sollars shut out Schroeder 8-0, adding another victory by major decision for the Hoosiers. Indiana’s fourth consecutive dual win extended the lead to 26-9.
With the dual out of reach for the Black Knights, Army No. 18 sophomore Brady Colbert closed the gap in the heavyweight bout, defeating redshirt freshman Caleb Marzolino 20-5. With the Colbert technical fall victory in vain, the Hoosiers celebrated the Saturday afternoon victory, as they improved their record to 5-1.
The victory over Army was Indiana’s final nonconference dual meet. The Hoosiers will start the Big Ten season with a gauntlet of matchups with Ohio State, Maryland and Penn State.
Indiana wrestling will continue its season at the Ken Kraft Midlands Championships on Dec. 29-30 in Evanston, Illinois, before kicking off conference duals on Jan. 11 in Columbus, Ohio.
