Ohio State Senior Malik Heinselman wrestles against sophomore Jake Arnold during the Ohio State-Notre Dame College match Nov. 23, 2021. Ohio State won 51-0. Credit: Casey Smith | Assistant LTV Sports Producer
The No. 8 Buckeyes battled at No. 14 Minnesota Friday, winning the dual meet 24-14.
No. 11 senior Malik Heinselman started the night for the Buckeyes, facing No. 9 redshirt junior Patrick McKee in the 125-pound weight class. The match led off by a takedown from Heinselman, quickly followed by a McKee escape, giving Heinselman the 2-1 lead entering the second period.
An escape and takedown by Heinselman in the second period was accompanied by an escape by McKee, putting the bout at a score of 5-2 into the third period. Another escape by McKee moved the score to 5-3, which Heinselman quickly responded to with a takedown.
McKee earned an escape and a takedown himself, bringing the match to a score of 7-6. Heinselman wasn’t done, though, as he tacked on another takedown and escape, giving him the 10-6 victory by decision.
Wrestling next was redshirt junior 133-pounder Brady Koontz versus No. 29 redshirt junior Jake Gliva. Scoreless through the first period, Gliva got on the board early in the second with an escape followed by a penalty point and a takedown, giving him the 4-0 lead into the third period. Koontz earned an escape in the third period, but it wasn’t enough as Gliva won 4-1 by decision.
In an exciting matchup in the 141-pound weight class, No. 20 redshirt sophomore Dylan D’Emilio faced off against No. 15 redshirt senior Jake Bergeland. D’Emilio got on the board quickly with a takedown in the first period.
Late in the first period, Bergeland earned an escape to bring the score to 2-1 entering the second period. D’Emilio earned the sole escape, extending his lead to 3-1 into the third period. D’Emilio won by fall with a pin in the third.
Following D’Emilio‘s performance, No. 2 redshirt junior Sammy Sasso squared off against No. 30 redshirt junior Michael Blockhus in the 149-pound weight class. Sasso struck first with a takedown, giving him the 2-0 edge early in the first period.
Blockhus earned an escape, making the score 2-1. Sasso earned another takedown, followed by a near fall, extending his lead to 8-1 entering the second period. An escape and a takedown by Blockhus narrowed the score to 8-4, and was followed by an escape by Sasso to move the score to 9-4 into the third period.
Sasso added another escape in the third period, giving him the 10-4 win by decision. With that win, Sasso has 31-consecutive dual meet victories.
In the 157-pound weight class, Sophomore Isaac Wilcox won by injury default early in the first period against No. 4 redshirt junior Brayton Lee.
After the halftime break, No. 4 redshirt sophomore Carson Kharchla faced redshirt sophomore Cael Carlson in the 165-pound weight class. Kharchla took the early lead with three takedowns in the first, giving him the 6-3 lead entering the second period.
The score narrowed to 6-4 before entering the third period. With just a few seconds left in the bout, Carlson earned a takedown, bringing the match to a 7-6 score. Kharchla held onto his lead, earning one more point from an escape and won the bout by decision 8-6.
No. 7 redshirt senior 174-pounder Ethan Smith squared off against No. 18 redshirt senior Bailee O’Reilly. A handful of takedowns from both Smith and O’Reilly brought the score to 6-4 after the first period.
Another Smith takedown gave him the 8-4 lead into the third period. O’Reilly earned a late takedown in the third period but Smith held on to win 11-8 by decision.
Redshirt junior Rocky Jordan and No. 20 sophomore Isaiah Salazar duked it out in the 184-pound weight class. A pair of takedowns by Salazar gave him the early 7-2 lead through the first period.
Jordan earned another takedown in the second period, followed by an escape from Salazar, giving the latter the 9-5 lead entering the third period. A late takedown by Jordan brought the bout close, but was not enough as Salazar won 10-8 by decision.
Redshirt junior 197-pounder Gavin Hoffman wrestled against fifth-year Michial Foy. After a scoreless first period, Hoffman took the early lead in the second period with a reversal followed by a quick escape by Foy, giving Hoffman the 2-1 lead entering the third period.
Hoffman was penalized for clasping his hands early in the third period, followed by a takedown by Foy to propel him to a 5-2 victory by decision.
No. 13 redshirt senior Tate Orndorff took on No. 1 Olympic gold medalist and reigning NCAA champion senior Gable Steveson in the heavyweight class. Steveson started fast and early, not letting up. Steveson won in dominant fashion with a score of 19-4 by way of technical fall in the second period.
The Buckeyes will celebrate Senior Day and host their final home match of the season Sunday versus Indiana at 1 p.m. The match will stream on BTN+.
