Indiana Wrestling Falls Short-Handed to MSU, Nebraska

Indiana was without some its main starters on Saturday, so the Hoosiers struggled to score points against two Big Ten foes.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Right before Indiana's matches on Saturday, senior Brock Hudkins and sophomore Graham Rooks were scratched from the starting lineup, putting the Hoosiers at a disadvantage against two of the tougher teams in the Big Ten.

Head coach Angel Escobedo said he thought everything "snowballed" after those two were scratched, and the Hoosiers weren't able to gain any ground on either Michigan State or Nebraska, dropping both matches in Wilkinson Hall.

First up was Michigan State, where Indiana fell down 7-0 early in the match. But a win from Cayden Rooks got the Hoosiers on the board.

A couple of other Hoosiers were able to get wins over the Spartans, including Nick South and Donnell Washington, but that was all Indiana was able to muster, dropping the match 28-10.

There were a few moments against the green and white where Escobedo thought Indiana had a chance to turn the tide and create some momentum.

“I still believe we’re almost right there,” Escobedo said. “I think in those matches we were competitive, but again we just have to continue to get better so we can make that jump.”

Then the Hoosiers had a quick turnaround and had to compete against the seventh-best team in the country in Nebraska. Things got out of hand quick against the Cornhuskers, and the Hoosiers didn't put any points on the board, losing 47-0.

South, who went 1-1 on the day, said the team can't let themselves get down about losing starters before a match.

“The overall message is, ‘It’s up to us,'" South said. "We have to make the decision to not let that happen again."

Against Nebraska, Washington suffered his first defeat in three matches. He was on a roll prior to that match, being named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week prior to Saturday's contest.

Washington got down early, and although he was able to score some points on Nebraska's Mikey Labriola, he ultimately lost a 13-7 decision.

“There were some bright spots for him, and he can realize that he can wrestle in the third period and score a lot of points if he needs to,” Escobedo said. “I’m not too upset with DJ — he had great effort, and I think he’s learning a lot in this process.”

With the loss, Indiana now falls to 1-5 on the season and will take on Maryland at home this weekend. The Terrapins have yet to find a win this season at 0-6.

Escobedo hopes the Hoosiers are at full strength next weekend and come out with a tougher mentality.

Indiana vs. Michigan State Matches

• 125: #13 Rayvon Foley (MSU) def. Jacob Moran (IU) major decision 12-0 (IU 0, MSU 4)
• 133: #26 Jordan Hamdan (MSU) def. Kyle Luigs (IU) decision 10-7 (IU 0, MSU 7)
• 141: Cayden Rooks (IU) def. Matt Santos (IU) decision 4-3 (IU 3, MSU 7)
• 149: #30 Peyton Omania (MSU) def. Jonathan Moran (IU) major decision 15-5 (IU 3, MSU 11)
• 157: #25 Chase Saldate (MSU) def. Matt Ortiz (IU) major decision 8-0 (IU 3, MSU 15)
• 165: #24 Nick South (IU) def. #17 Jake Tucker (MSU) decision 5-0 (IU 6, MSU 15)
• 174: #6 Donnell Washington (IU) def. #17 Drew Hughes (MSU) major decision 16-3 (IU 10, MSU 15)
• 184: #12 Layne Malczewski (MSU) def. Drayton Harris (IU) fall 1:12 (IU 10, MSU 21)
• 197: #5 Cam Caffey (MSU) def. #28 Nick Willham (IU) decision 4-2 (IU 10, MSU 24)
• 285: Christian Rebottaro (MSU) def. Rudy Streck (IU) major decision 13-5 (IU 10, MSU 28)

Indiana vs. Nebraska Matches

125: #6 Liam Cronin (NEB) def. Jacob Moran (IU) decision 4-2 (IU 0, NEB 3)
133: Alex Thomsen (NEB) def. Kyle Luigs (IU) fall 3:53 (IU 0, NEB 9)
141: #6 Chad Red Jr. (NEB) def. Cayden Rooks (IU) fall 1:00 (IU 0, NEB 15)
149: #22 Brock Hardy (NEB) def. Jonathan Moran (IU) fall 0:51 (IU 0, NEB 21)
157: Caleb Licking (NEB) def. Matt Ortiz (IU) decision 6-0 (IU 0, NEB 24)
165: #18 Peyton Robb (NEB) def. #24 Nick South (IU) major decision 10-2 (IU 0, NEB 28)
174: #3 Mikey Labriola (NEB) def. #6 Donnell Washington (IU) decision 13-7 (IU 0, NEB 31)
184: Nathan Haas (NEB) def. Drayton Harris (IU) major decision 12-3 (IU 0, NEB 35)
197: #2 Eric Schultz (NEB) def. #28 Nick Willham (IU) injury default 5:30 (IU 0, NEB 41)
285: #10 Christian Lance (NEB) def. Jacob Bullock (IU) injury default 2:08 (IU 0, NEB 47)