February 19, 1999
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The 13th-ranked Purdue wrestling squad fell to second-ranked Minnesota by a score of 36-3 tonight in the Intercollegiate Athletic Facility in West Lafayette. With the loss, the Boilermakers drop to 15-5-1 overall (3-3-1 Big Ten), while the Golden Gophers improve to 17-2 (8-0 Big Ten). Minnesota now leads the overall series with the Boilers 38-16-2.
"They came out tonight with a lot more confidence than us," Purdue coach Jessie Reyes said. "Right now, they are a tough team that is building momentum and overflowing with confidence heading into the conference tournament." The Big Ten Championships will be held March 6-7 at Michigan.
The dual began at 125 pounds, where Minnesota's 10th-ranked freshman Leroy Vega defeated 12th-ranked Jason Silverstein, 4-2.
Down most of the match at 141 pounds, Purdue senior Jason Hayes scored a flurry of takedowns late in the third period, but ran out of time in the end, as he was defeated by 14th-ranked Chad Erickson, 8-7.
At 149 pounds, Purdue sophomore Eric Kerkhof was narrowly defeated by sixth-ranked senior Troy Marr 4-2. Kerkhof led throughout the first two periods only to fall to the experienced Gopher in the end.
In a battle of titans at 157 pounds, top-ranked and three-time All-American Chad Kraft withheld sixth-ranked Willie Wineberg 4-0 to end Wineberg's 17-match winning streak. This was the first loss of the season for the Fairfield, Ohio, native.
Senior captain James Crnich gave the Boilers their only victory of the evening with a 4-2 decision over Matt Kraft at 184 pounds. With the win, Crnich improves to 24-6 overall, 6-5 in Big Ten competition.
The Boilers will have one day to recover before sixth-ranked Illinois pays a visit to West Lafayette on Feb. 21. In the latest InterMat NCAA I rankings, Illinois has seven grapplers in the top 20. The action will hit the mat at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Prior to the final dual meet of the season, the Boilers will honor the seven seniors on this year's squad.
"We need to put this one behind us and prepare for Illinois," Reyes said. "This one on Sunday is a big one, we need to come back and wrestle more capable than we did tonight. "
FINAL: MINNESOTA 36, PURDUE 3
125 Vega (MN) dec. Silverstein 4-2133 Golyer (MN) default Robinson141 Erikson (MN) dec. Hayes 8-7149 Marr (MN) dec. Kerkhof 4-2157 Kraft (MN) dec. Wineberg 4-0165 Holiday (MN) major dec. Rendell 14-4174 Crnich (PU) dec. Kraft 4-2184 Eggum (MN) major dec. Holmgren 13-5197 Hartung (MN) pin WilliamsHwt.Lesnar (MN) pin Vercelli 2:52