Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
Cleveland State
No. 17 Spartan Wrestling Tops Cleveland State, 26-15
12/12/2004 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Dec. 11, 2004
CLEVELAND - No. 17 Michigan State wrestling (2-1 overall) needed a rally from its low weight classes to defeat the Cleveland State Vikings, 26-15, Saturday, Dec. 11 at Woodling Gymnasium in Cleveland. Huge pins from Nick Simmons (125 lbs.) and Ryan Froese (133 lbs.) as well as victories from Joe Williams (184 lbs.), Jeff Clemens (197 lbs.), Andy Simmons (141 lbs.) and Darren McKnight (149 lbs.) propelled the Spartans to the dual-match win.
"We dug ourselves a hole early, but we got some big performances from our younger guys to pull out the victory," said head coach Tom Minkel. "I was particularly impressed with Ryan Froese, who recorded a pin in his second dual meet match under pressure."
The match began at 157 lbs., where MSU senior Matt McCarty fell to Marcus Effner, 7-6. McCarty fell behind 6-2 and could not overcome the deficit late in the third period despite a strong finish. Down by four, McCarty tallied a two-point reversal and put Effner to his back. But he could only notch two back points, and lost the match by riding time.
At 165, Spartan Bryan Harney, who was wrestling a solid, aggressive match, made one wrong move, and was thrown to his back early in the first period off his own takedown attempt. David Gilkey then pinned him at the 37-second mark.
Wrestling in the second career dual meet of his college career at 174 lbs., MSU freshman Greg Goidosik dropped the decision to senior Matt Klinger, 8-4. The deciding factor in the match proved to be the two takedowns Klinger scored early in the second period.
The Spartans got on the board at 184 lbs., with a major decision victory by Joe Williams. Despite trailing 2-1 after two periods, Williams scored nine unanswered points, including a reversal and five back points, en route to the 11-3 win. Williams improves to 9-1 on the season, and is currently ranked No. 14 by Amateur Wrestling News.
Michigan State got its second straight victory in junior Jeff Clemens' hard-fought match at 197 lbs. Clemens held off a late charge by senior Joe Phillips to win, 7-2. Clemens led the match 3-0 going into the third period, where he outscored Phillips, 3-2, including a takedown in the last 10 seconds of the match, to improve to 9-5 on the season. The win was also Clemens' 10th dual meet career win.
In a thrilling match at 285 lbs., Spartan Max Lossen was taken down in overtime, and lost to Joe Dennis, 3-1. Both wrestlers chose the down position and successfully escaped in the second and third periods, sending the match to an extra session. In overtime, both wrestlers had opportunities to score the winning points, but it was Dennis who took advantage and scored the victory.
No. 3 Nick Simmons continues his tear through the 2004-05 season for the Spartans, tallying his fourth fall of the year over Joe Wornoff in the 125-pound match. Simmons led the match 5-0 on a takedown and three back points when he scored the pin at the 3:36 mark of the match. He now improves to 10-0 on the season. His victory also narrowed CSU's lead in the meet to 15-13.
MSU's Ryan Froese scored his first career dual meet victory over Matt Shultz at 133 lbs. Leading 4-0 in the second period, Froese put Shultz in a cradle and pinned him at 3:36 of the match, the same time that Nick Simmons pinned his opponent in the previous match. The pin was Froese's second official fall of the season and improved his record to 4-4 on the year. The decision also put State up for the first time in the meet, 19-15.
Andy Simmons' 6-0 victory over CSU's Mike Hurley at 141 lbs. guaranteed the dual meet win for the Spartans. No. 4 Simmons scored two takedowns, an escape and a riding time point, as well as notching his second shutout decision of the season in the win, moving his record to 15-0 on the season.
The final match of the night was the fourth straight victory for the Spartans. Darren McKnight defeated Ryan Hurley by a major decision, 16-7, at 149 lbs. McKnight was only leading 5-4 going into the third period, where he outscored Hurley 10-2. This included three takedowns and two back points in just under 45 seconds. McKnight improves to 14-4 on the season, and is ranked No. 11 by Amateur Wrestling News.
The Spartans return to action Dec. 28, when they travel to Evanston, Ill. to compete in the Midlands Championships. Wrestling starts at 10 a.m. and continues through Dec. 29.
157 lbs.- Marcus Effner (CSU) def. Matt McCarty 7-6 CSU, 3-0165 lbs.- David Gilkey (CSU) def. Bryan Harney Pin, :37 CSU, 9-0174 lbs.- Matt Klinger (CSU) def. Greg Goidosik 8-4 CSU, 12-0184 lbs.- Joe Williams (MSU) def. Ron Howard MD, 11-3 CSU, 12-4197 lbs.- Jeff Clemens (MSU) def. Joe Phillips 7-2 CSU, 12-7285 lbs.- Joe Dennis (CSU) def. Max Lossen SV, 3-1 CSU, 15-7125 lbs.- Nick Simmons (MSU) def. Joe Wornoff Pin 3:36 CSU, 15-13133 lbs.- Ryan Froese (MSU) def. Matt Shultz Pin 3:36 MSU, 19-15141 lbs.- Andy Simmons (MSU) def. Mike Hurley 6-0 MSU, 22-15149 lbs.- Darren McKnight (MSU) def. Ryan Hurley MD, 16-7
