Feb. 18, 2010

Illinois vs. Purdue Photo Gallery 

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - No. 21 Illinois won three bouts but dropped a pair of two-point bouts - including one in the second sudden-victory overtime period and a four-point match as No. 23 Purdue grabbed a 25-11 win in front of a season-high 2,469 fans at Huff Hall, the second-best crowd in school history. No. 2 John Dergo and No. 14 Ryan Prater each earned major decisions and Conrad Polz notched a decision.

No. 13 Jordan Blanton faced No. 6 Luke Manuel in the highlight bout of the evening to start the dual at 174, with Manuel notching a pair of first-period takedowns to take a 4-2 lead. Manuel started down in the second and escaped, then Blanton started down in the third and escaped to cut Manuel's lead to 5-3. But the Illini sophomore couldn't land any late offense as Manuel earned the close victory.

Dergo scored a takedown with 1:18 left in the first period and rode out Nick Corpe, then outscored the Boiler 5-1 in the second period for a 7-1 lead. Dergo pushed the pedal to the floor in the third period, recording three more takedowns and a riding-time point for a 14-4 major decision, giving the Illini a 4-3 lead.

But that's when the dual turned as Purdue's No. 15 Logan Brown scored a 20-4 technical fall over Jake Norman at 197 and David Pisarcik scored an 8-4 win over Marty Smith at heavyweight to push the Boilers on top 11-4. Purdue took control with major decisions at 125 and 133 to push its lead to 19-4.

Prater looked to stem the tide at 141 when he faced Purdue back-up Bill Putman. Prater got a takedown after a ridiculous scramble then added three near-fall points for a 5-0 lead after a period. Putman started down and Prater turned him twice for four back points, pushing his lead to 9-0, before starting down in the third period. Putman put on a good ride, though, before Prater escaped with 46 seconds left in the bout to make it 10-0. He got a takedown with 27 seconds left but couldn't get a late tilt, simply adding the riding-time point for the 13-0 major decision and cutting Purdue's lead to 19-8.

In what was the most riveting match of the night, No. 19 Eric Terrazas and Nick Bertucci traded takedowns and escapes in the first period at 149, going into the second period tied 3-3. Bertucci started down and escaped in the second period and Terrazas started down in the third and escaped. Bertucci was hit with a stalling warning with 40 seconds left in the third period but neither wrestler managed any offense, so they went to sudden-victory. The pair both had good opportunities in the overtime period but couldn't finish, pushing the match to the tiebreak periods. Terrazas started down in the first period and Bertucci rode him out, then the positions switched and Terrazas rode out the Boiler, sending the match to the second sudden-victory overtime. Terrazas got in on a leg with 30 seconds left in the period but Bertucci sprawled out and eventually worked into a takedown for the 6-4 win.

Clint Arlis showed fire at 157 but was outmatched by Colton Salazar, who took a 10-4 decision, before Polz squared off with Jason Martin at 165. Polz got a takedown with 1:45 left in the first period and rode out Martin, then Martin started down in the second and got out quickly to cut Polz' lead to 2-1. Polz started down in the third and escaped quickly, but Martin kept pushing and got a takedown with 10 seconds left in the bout, but Polz' riding-time advantage gave him a point and the 4-3 win to make the final score 25-11.

The Illini return to practice for the next week before heading to the Big Ten Championships on March 6-7 at Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor, Mich.

#23 Purdue 25, #21 Illinois 11
174: #6 Luke Manuel (PU) dec. #13 Jordan Blanton (ILL), 5-3 (0-3)
184: #2 John Dergo (ILL) maj. dec. Nick Corpe (PU), 14-4 (4-3)
197: #15 Logan Brown (PU) tech. fall Jake Norman (ILL), 20-4 (6:35) (4-8)
HWT: David Pisarcik (PU) dec. Marty Smith (ILL), 8-4 (4-11)
125: #19 Cashé Quiroga (PU) maj. dec. John Deneen (ILL), 14-4 (4-15)
133: Akif Eren (PU) maj. dec. Daryl Thomas (ILL), 12-2 (4-19)
141: #14 Ryan Prater (ILL) maj. dec. Bill Putman (PU), 13-0 (8-19)
149: Nick Bertucci (PU) dec. #19 Eric Terrazas (ILL), 6-4 SV-2 (8-22)
157: Colton Salazar (PU) dec. Clint Arlis (ILL), 10-4 (8-25)
165: Conrad Polz (ILL) dec. Jason Martin (PU), 4-3 (11-25)