MADISON, Wis. - The Welch trio of Luke, Doug and Chad were victorious, but it wasn't enough as Purdue wrestling fell to No. 20 Wisconsin, 22-13, Sunday inside the UW Field House. The Badgers claimed six weights, including three with bonus points, as they improved to 7-1, 4-0 B1G, while the Boilermakers slipped to 7-4, 0-2 B1G.
"We are a capable team and we need to stick to the plan," head wrestling coach Tony Ersland said. "We've been making progress; we need to finish the tough matches. We were two matches away from having this dual in our hands. We have to learn and close the deal in those tight matches. It's how we respond now that's key."
Wisconsin scored first in seven of the 10 bouts and held 23-17 takedown advantage. Purdue received a technical fall from L. Welch at 125 pounds and the Badgers received bonus points at 133, 165 and 285.
In the first match of the dual at 141 pounds, Nick Lawrence got back on the winning track in dramatic fashion with a reversal at the horn to defeat Jesse Thielke, 7-5. The redshirt senior took Thielke down in the second and third periods, holding a 5-1 edge. Thielke managed to escape and score a takedown of his own to make it 5-5 in the third. Lawrence battled following the takedown and earned the winning reversal. He improved to 16-9 while winning his 10 match via decision.
A reversal for D. Welch on Friday at Nebraska was the changing moment en route to an upset and it was the pivotal point in the match as he defeated Wisconsin's Seth Leigel, 4-0. The reversal came in the second period and he added a takedown in the third after Leigel opted for a neutral start. Tough on top, D. Welch rode Leigel out in the third after his takedown.
It was the third-straight win for the 157-pound redshirt junior. The 4-0 shutout is his eighth of the season while improving to 20-6 on the season and 10-1 in duals.
A strong ride out in the third period by C. Welch proved to be the difference maker in a 3-2 upset of No. 18 Frank Cousins at 174. The Badger hit with an early takedown, but that was all of the offense the match saw. Welch escaped from the early takedown and escaped from Cousins again at the start of the second period. Ninety seconds of riding time earned C. Welch the decisive point.
Cousins is the fourth nationally ranked opponent that C. Welch has defeated in his redshirt junior campaign. He owns a 16-9 record and is 7-3 in duals.
C. Welch's decision at 174 gave the Boilermakers a 9-8 lead heading into the intermission. The Badgers regained the lead with one-point decision at 184 and relied on 10th-ranked Timmy McCall at 197 and the nation's fifth-ranked 285-pounder to push them ahead 18-9.
The dual was not out of reach for Purdue, however and bonus points were necessary. L. Welch went out and put on a clinic in a 24-9 (6:30) technical fall against Matt Cavallaris at 125. The redshirt freshman had a first-period takedown and then exploded for four in the second period and seven in the third. All of Cavallaris' points came by escape. The technical fall is the first of the rookie's career and he picked up his eighth win of the season.
Without any back points, the tech fall only earned four team points, making the dual 18-13 in favor of Wisconsin heading into the final bout. No. 14 Ryan Taylor's major decision at 133 sealed the deal for the Badgers.
The Boilermakers return home to Holloway Gymnasium for the first time in over a month to host No. 18 Northwestern Jan. 16 at 7 p.m. ET for Purdue Staff/Faculty Appreciation and Alumni Reunion 2015.
No. 20 WISCONSIN 22, PURDUE 13
141 // Nick Lawrence (Purdue) dec. Jesse Thielke (Wisconsin), 7-5
149 // Rylan Lubeck (Wisconsin) dec. Brandon Nelsen (Purdue), 10-8
157 // Doug Welch (Purdue) dec. Seth Leigel (Wisconsin), 4-0
165 // No. 3 Issac Jordan (Wisconsin) tech. fall Pat Robinson (Purdue), 16-0 (6:01)
174 // Chad Welch (Purdue) dec. No. 18 Frank Cousins (Wisconsin), 3-2
184 // Ricky Robertson (Wisconsin) dec. Patrick Kissel (Purdue), 6-5
197 // No. 10 Timmy McCall (Wisconsin) dec. No. 8 Braden Atwood (Purdue), 7-1
285 // No. 5 Connor Medbery (Wisconsin) maj. dec. Tyler Kral (Purdue), 17-5
125 // Luke Welch (Purdue) tech. fall Matt Cavallaris (Wisconsin), 24-9 (6:30)
133 // No. 14 Ryan Taylor (Wisconsin) maj. dec. Danny Sabatello (Purdue), 18-6