CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Orange and Blue will look to get back in the win column on Sunday afternoon as they take on the Purdue Boilermakers at 12 p.m. central time in West Lafayette. Illinois enters with a 2-2 record in the Big Ten, while Purdue is searching for its first conference dual victory as it enters with an 0-2 record against conference foes. The dual can be streamed live on BTN Plus or FloWrestling with a subscription required for both platforms.
Quick Hits
*Illinois is 24-4 against Purdue since Coach Heffernan joined the Illinois coaching staff prior to the 1992-93 season.
*The Illini hold a six-match win streak against the Boilermakers, including a 30-6 win last season on Feb. 5
*Emery Parker enters the weekend with a nine-match winning streak that dates back to December 1 at Iowa. Named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week on Jan. 9, Parker leads the team in wins (14) and is tied with Isaiah Martinez with an unblemished dual record (6-0) this season.
*During his nine-match winning streak, Emery Parker has outscored his opponents 78-39, and has tallied three wins over ranked opponents (Gravina, Venz and Sliga).
*Three Illini enter the Purdue dual ranked, according to InterMat: No. 2 Isaiah Martinez (165), No. 6 Emery Parker (184) and Travis Piotrowski (125). Mike Carr (141) is ranked No. 19, according to OpenMat.
*Isaiah Martinez ranks 23rd on Illinois' all-time wins list with 104 career victories. Martinez is one win shy of tying a trio of Illini -- Kevin Puebla (105), current Illini assistant coach Mike Poeta (105) and John Dergo (105) -- for 20th place. Martinez picked up his 100th win at Fresno State on November 17.
*Isaiah Martinez has won each of his six matches to start the season, five coming by either tech fall or fall. The redshirt senior is outscoring his opponents 107-38 through six matches, and his 29 dual points leads the squad.
Scouting The Boilermakers
On the upswing, Purdue enters the weekend ranked 24th in the country behind six wrestlers ranked by at least one poll between InterMat, WIN Magazine and OpenMat. The Boilermakers are led by redshirt senior Luke Welch at 125 pounds, ranked 12th with a 20-4 season record, and No. 12 Dylan Lydy, 23-8 overall, at 174 pounds. Purdue enters the weekend 5-3 overall, 0-2 in conference, and will take on top-ranked Penn State on Friday evening in University Park. The Illini and Boilers hold one common opponent thus far, as the Illini topped Nebraska 18-17 on January 5, while Purdue dropped their match to the Huskers a week later, 20-15, in Lincoln.
Series History: Illinois leads 57-27-2
The Orange and Blue have historically had plenty of success against their Big Ten brethren to the east. Since Coach Heffernan arrived under head coach Mark Johnson prior to the 1992-93 season, the Illini boast a 24-4 record against Purdue including an 11-dual winning streak from 1999 to 2010. More recently, the Illini hold a six-match winning streak that dates back to December 19, 2010. Last season, the Illini recorded a 30-6 victory at Huff Hall on February 5.
Illini Notes
Last Time Out
The Fighting Illini dropped their first dual in over a month, as the Orange and Blue were edged by Minnesota, 17-14. Their first loss since a December 1 dual at Iowa (17-18), the Illini received victories from No. 2 Isaiah Martinez (165), No. 6 Emery Parker (184), Andre Lee (197) and Dylan Duncan (133). Minnesota won three of the last four matches to overcome a 12-8 Illinois lead.
Illini to Watch
184: #12 Emery Parker
With his last loss coming prior to Thanksgiving, Illinois' 184-pounder has been as reliable a wrestler as the Illini have had, joining Isaiah Martinez with a perfect dual record. Having won nine straight dating back to December 1 at Iowa, Parker has knocked off three ranked opponents in that time span and won the 184-pound title at Midlands last month. Parker leads the teams in wins (14), dual wins (6) and is outscoring his opponents 78-39 during the winning streak.
165: #2 Isaiah Martinez
Now 6-0 on the season, all wins coming in duals, Martinez is coming off his first test of the season where he defeated No. 9 Nick Wanzek, 8-4, in Minneapolis last Sunday. So far this season, Martinez has outscored his victims to a tune of 107-38, earning four tech falls and a pin to go along with last weekend's decision for 29 dual team points scored. A win on Sunday would give Martinez 105 for his career, tying him with three former Illini: Kevin Puebla, John Dergo and current Illini assistant coach Mike Poeta.
125: #19 Travis Piotrowski
After tough losses to No. 12 Sebastian Rivera and No. 4 Ethan Lizak in recent weeks, Piotrowski will get another chance to get a win over a ranked Big Ten opponent in Purdue's Luke Welch. Starting off the season with eight straight wins, Piotrowski enters the dual with an 11-4 overall record, including 4-2 in dual competition. In facing Welch, Piotrowski will get a Purdue redshirt senior that is fresh off an 11-7 decision over No. 9 Drew Mattin of Michigan on January 7. The Boilermaker is 20-4 on the season overall, including 2-0 in Big Ten duals.
Home Cooking
The Illini have now won nine straight home duals, the longest streak under head coach Jim Heffernan and the longest in Illini history since former Illini head coach Mark Johnson led the Orange and Blue to 11 straight from February 8, 2004 to January 20, 2006. The nine straight victories dates back to a February 7, 2016 match against Northwestern where the Illini defeated the Wildcats, 25-24. In the nine matches, Illinois has defeated a pair of ranked foes, No. 13 Michigan (1/20/17) and No. 20 Nebraska (1/5/18).
Tech Support
Isaiah Martinez has boosted the Illini in each of its five duals with a tech fall in four of his six contests with one of the other decisions coming by fall. In the six victories, Martinez owns a 107-38 advantage in points scored, and leads the team with 29 dual team points. Martinez owns 43 tech falls in his career, his most common victory of the 104 career wins.
Parker Named Wrestler of the Week
Illinois 184-pounder Emery Parker was named the Big Ten Wrestler of the Week on January 9 following a 2-0 weekend that saw him take down No. 6 Taylor Venz (Nebraska) and No. 18 Mitch Sliga (Northwestern). Now on an nine-match win streak, Parker leads the team in wins (14) and has outscored his opponents 78-39 since the start of the December.
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