Wisconsin got off to a dismal start Friday at the Field House, but rebounded quickly to claim another victory.
Wisconsin senior Santonio Cathery and Michigan State senior Drew Barnes had been even for the first two periods, but in the third, Barnes pinned Cathery to give the Spartans an early 6-0 lead. The Spartans were fired up on the bench and looked to use the first pin as a catalyst.
The Badgers had other ideas. After the first match disappointment, No. 18 Wisconsin (4-5 Big Ten, 6-5 overall) finished strong, beating the Spartans (1-8, 5-11) 26-12 to finish its Big Ten season on a high.
The Badgers came out with a vengeance after the first match. Sophomore Hunter Ritter and No. 12 senior Ricky Robertson won both their matches to tie the score up at 6-6. Then senior Connor Medbery pinned Michigan State’s Jacob Cooper in the heavyweight match to give the Badgers an 11-6 lead. Medbery, the No. 2 ranked heavyweight, has gone undefeated this season, and his last victory in Big Ten play ended up being the clinching victory, as the Badgers never looked back from their lead.
Junior Johnny Jimenez won before half-time in a match that featured coaches’ challenges on both sides, then sophomore Eli Stickley won a tight contest 5-2, bringing the fans to their feet. After an early takedown for the Spartans by Logan Griffin, Eli came back with two takedowns of his own to keep up the momentum for the Badgers after the break.
With the score at 17-6, the crowd could sense a third straight win for the Badgers. Even with a pin by Michigan State senior Javier Gasca in the next match, the next three matches went in Wisconsin’s favor for a final score of 26-12, giving the Badgers their biggest margin of victory of the season.
