For the first time since 1951, The Ohio State Wrestling Buckeyes win a B1G (Big Ten) title; however, Coach Tom Ryan had to share the spotlight with the Coach Tom Brands and his Iowa Hawkeyes.
Though they fell short in some key areas, the Buckeyes battled hard and carry some important momentum into the Division I NCAA tournament in St. Louis in two weeks.
Key Moments…
Though there were many, a few key moments are worth noting:
1. The ever present absence of Hunter Stieber in the lineup continued to bring questions. Fortunately, we were able to see him wrestle through, what appeared to be, tremendous pain in his elbows in order to win a couple early key matches scoring invaluable points for the Buckeyes. No doubt one of the gutsiest performances I’ve witnessed.
2. Logan Stieber dominated the field, wrapping up the event with a devastating tech-fall of a talented Josh Dziewa of Iowa in 3:07 in the finals, earning him the B1G Wrestler of the Year and B1G Wrestler of the Championships individual awards. Check out his interview with Flow here.
3. Redshirt freshman Nate Tomasello brought the house down with two incredible victories over worthy opponents in Jesse Delgado (Illinois – returning 2X NCAA Champ) and Thomas Gilman (Iowa).
4. In a highly anticipated bout, Isiah Martinez v. Dylan Ness did not disappoint. Martinez came prepared and put together an impressive, fundamentally dominant performance, earning him the B1G Freshman of the Year award. You can check out a few highlights here.
5. The Buckeyes found themselves needing a victory by Northwestern’s HWT, Mike McMullan, who had not won a tournament since 2010 and had not yet beaten Iowa’s Bobby Telford. McMullan pulled off the upset earning himself a B1G title and securing the co-championship for the Buckeyes.
Congrats to the Buckeyes and good luck in St. Louis!
Go Bucks!
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