No. 13 Rutgers wrestling defeats Princeton, Buffalo in dominant fashion
The Rutgers wrestling team had a busy weekend at Jersey Mike's Arena on Livingston campus, defeating in-state rival Princeton and Buffalo. The Scarlet Knights (5-1, 0-0) won 17 of their 20 total bouts and are now on a three-game winning streak.
No. 13 Rutgers started off the weekend with a 24-9 win against the Tigers (0-2, 0-0) on Friday night. No. 7 junior 125-pounder Dean Peterson dominated in the first bout of the night, working a 7-3 decision over Drew Heethuis with two takedowns.
The Knights would keep their foot on the gas pedal, as No. 26 junior 133-pounder Dylan Shawver racked up six takedowns in his one-sided win against Sean Pierson.
No. 16 graduate student 141-pounder Mitch Moore had a riding time of more than 3 minutes in his 13-2 major decision victory against Tyler Vazquez. Moore spoke on the win and his level of confidence at the moment.
"(In) the first period, I don't think the other kid's taking a single step forward," Moore said. "I'm bigger, stronger (and) meaner. (If) somebody wants to actually wrestle me, they're gonna get pinned."
Princeton would get its first win of the dual from Eligh Rivera. After three periods, the bout between Rivera and junior 149-pounder Michael Cetta went to overtime, but Rivera worked a 4-1 decision to come out on top.
No. 24 junior 157-pounder Andrew Clark gave Rutgers a 14-3 lead heading into the intermission following a 9-4 decision over Rocco Camillaci.
The Knights would fall in the bout at 165 pounds, but ultimately put the dual out of reach after No. 29 senior 174-pounder Jackson Turley, No. 12 sophomore 184-pounder Brian Soldano and No. 8 junior 197-pounder John Poznanski emerged victorious to seal the win for Rutgers.
Poznanski grudged out an 8-4 decision over No. 10 Luke Stout in what was a top-10 matchup in the 197-pound weight class. Poznanski spoke on what led to the hard-fought win.
"Right off the bat, I got a little slow, got that little takedown there, but ... I kept my pressure on him, kept pulling on his head, kept moving forward and going from our training," Poznanski said. "I feel really good, and I closed that match out well."
The win against the Tigers meant that the Knights were able to retain the B1G-IVY Trophy for the third consecutive season.
Rutgers continued its perfect weekend with a 40-0 shutout win against the Bulls (6-7, 1-0) on Sunday afternoon.
The Knights would dominate the dual from start to finish.
Sophomore 133-pounder Brandan Chletsos began the match with a 5-1 decision over Jordan Reyes in his first dual start this season.
Rutgers had a 14-0 advantage after three bouts, as Shawver landed a technical fall and Moore worked a pin.
Cetta and Clark's wins gave the Knights a 20-0 lead heading into the intermission.
Rutgers began the second half with victories from No. 25 junior 165-pounder Anthony White and Turley.
Soldano's bout against Chase Kranitz only lasted 56 seconds, as he secured the Knights' second pin of the day.
Poznanski recorded five takedowns in his 18-4 major decision over Sam Mitchell. Junior 285-pounder John O'Donnell finished off the contest with his first dual win of the season.
Head coach Scott Goodale had multiple wrestlers fill in against Buffalo, including Chlestos, Cetta and O'Donnell. Goodale confirmed that No. 32 graduate student 149-pounder Jacob Butler is currently injured, which is why Cetta earned the start this weekend.
Rutgers will have some time off before it hits the road to take on UPenn on January 6.
"It's good for those guys to get opportunities — they train really really hard," Goodale said of the wrestlers getting the chance to compete today.
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