Wrestling Ready for Raucous WeekendWrestling Ready for Raucous Weekend

Wrestling Ready for Raucous Weekend

The 17th-ranked Purdue wrestling team hosts a pair of Big Ten opponents this weekend.

Online Singlet Auction Opens in a new window Hoops & Headlocks Opens in a new window Watch Opens in a new window
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The 17th-ranked Purdue wrestling team hosts a pair of Big Ten opponents this weekend, welcoming Illinois to Holloway Gymnasium on Friday and following with a dual against No. 8 Wisconsin in Mackey Arena on Sunday. Both duals are centered around special events for the Boilermakers as Friday will be Purdue's annual "Hammer Down Cancer" match, while Sunday is the first-ever Hoops & Headlocks.
 
The Boilermakers enter the weekend at 7-3 overall and 1-2 in the conference, while Illinois is 2-2 (0-2 B1G) and Wisconsin is undefeated at 7-0 (3-0 B1G) and hosts Nebraska on Friday before coming to West Lafayette.
 
HAMMER DOWN CANCER
The Boilermakers will wear special edition singlets Friday, which will be auctioned off with all proceeds going to support the Purdue Center for Cancer Research.Purdue last held its "Hammer Down Cancer" event in 2020, raising $2,680 toward campus cancer research. This year's uniforms were donated by Rudis, a wrestling apparel company based out of Ohio.
 
The auctions for Friday's singlets will be held online, with bids starting at $100 for 13 total singlets. Cash and check donations can also be made at Friday's dual at the fan experience table. Bids online will be accepted through the end of Friday's dual meet, and singlets will be distributed to winners after being cleaned.
 

Our auction is LIVE! Help us takedown cancer this Friday! #BoilerUp #AlwaysAggressive

Bid: https://t.co/t4RfJCP2SM
Info: https://t.co/Lzbs8vmJ8a pic.twitter.com/ly9UCMeqm5

— Purdue Wrestling (@PurdueWrestling) January 18, 2022

 
HOOPS & HEADLOCKS
Sunday marks a first-of-its-kind event as Purdue wrestling will host Wisconsin in the second half of a doubleheader in Mackey Arena with our fourth-ranked men's basketball team. Purdue men's basketball's matchup against Northwestern is scheduled for a 1 p.m. ET tip, while the wrestling dual is slotted for a 4 p.m. start, with both events airing live on the Big Ten Network. At the conclusion of the men's basketball game, Mackey will be open for free admission with various concession specials beginning at approximately 3:15 p.m.
 

A DOUBLEHEADER on Sunday you need to be at.

Stay after our game to watch No. 12 @PurdueWrestling vs. Wisconsin.

Hoops & Headlocks ⬇️⬇️⬇️
🏀: Purdue vs. Northwestern - 1 PM
🤼‍♂️: Purdue vs. Wisconsin - 4 PM

More information:
🔗: https://t.co/bwhuAjwRut pic.twitter.com/XU56bddF5B

— Purdue Mens Basketball (@BoilerBall) January 18, 2022

 
PURDUE LINEUP & RANKINGS
Purdue held a national ranking in its 32nd straight NWCA Coaches Poll on Tuesday, settling in at No. 17. The Boilermaker individual marks climbed to eight this week as freshman Matt Ramos cracked the top-33 at 133 pounds via InterMat, while senior Michael Woulfe is still earning honorable mention recognition from FloWrestling. Three Boilermakers continue to hold top-15 marks at their respective weight classes, with sophomore Gerrit Nijenhuis just outside the top-15, sitting 16th at 174 via FloWrestling.
 
Wt. Wrestler Record FloWrestling InterMat TheOpenMat WIN
125 Devin Schroder (R-Sr.) 13-2 13 15 14 15
Kooper Loehr (R-So.) 4-0 -- -- -- --
133 Matt Ramos (R-Fr.) 12-4 HM 33 -- --
141 Parker Filius (R-Sr.) 16-6 20 24 -- --
Michael Leveille (R-So.) 6-9 -- -- -- --
149 Alec White (R-Jr.) 0-2 -- -- -- --
157 Kendall Coleman (R-Jr.) 10-3 10 9 11 12
Cooper Noehre (So.) 9-5 -- -- -- --
165 Hayden Lohrey (R-So.) 6-5 -- -- -- --
174 Gerrit Nijenhuis (So.) 13-9 16 19 18 18
184 Max Lyon (R-Sr.) 9-7 22 28 -- --
Macartney Parkinson (So.) 8-7 -- -- -- --
197 Thomas Penola (R-Jr.) 13-5 14 16 15 16
285 Michael Woulfe (R-Sr.) 12-8 HM -- -- --
Dorian Keys (So.) 0-0 -- -- -- --
 
LAST TIME OUT
Purdue suffered a heartbreaking loss to visiting Michigan State on Saturday, falling on criteria 17-16. Both sides won five matches, with one win each coming via major decision, but the Spartans outscored the Boilermakers via match points, 50-49, to earn the dual victory. It was Purdue's first-ever regular-season dual decided by criteria. Gerrit Nijenhuis picked up the Boilermakers' bonus points at 174 pounds, posting an 11-3 major decision, while Kendall Coleman posted a decisive ranked win as he toppled No. 19 Chase Saldate at 157 pounds, 10-3.
 
PURDUE NOTES
• Head coach Tony Ersland is in his eighth season at Purdue and is 64-53 in dual competition with the Boilermakers.
• Ersland wrestled for the University of Iowa from 1992-97, qualifying for the NCAA Tournament at 177, and competing on the highest scoring team at the NCAA Championships in history (170).
• Purdue's season-opening win at Drexel marks eight straight seasons that the Boilermakers have won their first dual of the year under Ersland.
• Purdue opened dual competition 6-0 for the first time since 2008-09.
• The Boilermakers' win at No. 9 Nebraska marked the program's first top-10 ranked victory since 2004 (a 21-20 win on criteria over Arizona State), and the first top-10 career dual victory for Ersland as a head coach.
• Devin Schroder and Max Lyon capitalized on the NCAA's COVID extension waiver, returning for an extra year of eligibility in 2021-22.
• Schroder ranks second in program history in back points, surpassing the 500-point mark at CKLV, and is 15th all-time at Purdue with a .733 win percentage (88-32).
• 48 of Schroder's 90 career wins have come via bonus points (.533), including 27 technical falls, while 39 of his career victories are shutouts (.433).
Matt Ramos won the 2018 Cadet Freestyle World Championship for the U.S., capturing the 51 kg title in Zagreb, Croatia.
• Ramos's two wins to open the season were his first official folkstyle matches since his senior year of high school at Lockport HS (Illinois) in 2019, winning by technical fall and fall in the two bouts.
• Parker Filius leads the team with 22 matches and 16 victories on the season, including a 9-1 dual record and five bonus-point wins.
• Alec White rejoined the Purdue lineup Saturday, competing for the first time since suffering an injury in the season-opener at Drexel.
• Kendall Coleman surpassed the 60-career match at CKLV, and earned a spot on Purdue's career win- percentage record list, coming in at No. 9 (.773, 51-15).
• Gerrit Nijenhuis has the highest-ranked win of any Boilermaker this season, topping No. 3 Mikey Labriola at Nebraska on Jan. 7. Eleven of his 22 matches this season have come against ranked opponents, earning wins against five of them.
• Max Lyon has cracked the top-20 for career takedowns at Purdue, tied for 20th with Colton Salazar (224.)
• Thomas Penola leads the team in takedowns (52) and total points (154), and nearly half of his scoring this season has come in the third-period, where he's outscoring opponents 73-26.
• Michael Woulfe is wrestling his first collegiate season since 2016 after serving in the United States Navy for the last five years and has picked up right where he left off, adding a team-high six falls to his career total (30) after posting 17 falls in his final year at Navy.
 
ILLINOIS NOTES
• The Fighting Illini come to West Lafayette at 2-2 in dual competition and 0-2 in the conference, falling to Rutgers (21-13) and Iowa (36-3) to start the Big Ten season.
• Illinois is led by first-year head coach Mike Poeta, who was a three-time All-American and two-time Big Ten Champion for his alma mater from 2004-08.
• The last two duals between Purdue and Illinois have been exceptionally close, with Purdue earning an 18-14 win in 2020, while Illinois came out on top 19-17 in 2021.
• The Illini have six individuals ranked in the latest InterMat polls, including top-10 wrestlers at 133 and 141 pounds.
 
ILLINOIS PROBABLES
 
125: No. 28 Justin Cardani (R-So.) – 9-4
133: No. 6 Lucas Byrd (R-Fr.) – 12-1
141: Josh Contreras (R-Jr.) – 0-3
or We Rachal (R-So.) – 8-9
149: Christian Kanzler (R-Sr.) – 8-7
157: Jake Reicin (So.) – 3-7
or Joseph Roberts (Fr.) – 9-9
165: No. 26 Danny Braunagel (R-So.) – 8-6
174: D.J. Shannon (So.) -5-4
184: No. 19 Zac Braunagel (R-So.) – 6-4
197: Nikita Nepomnyashchiy (R-Jr.) – 2-5
285: No. 17 Luke Luffman (So.) – 11-3
 
WISCONSIN NOTES
• The Badgers enter the weekend ranked No. 8 in the country at 7-0 overall and 3-0 in conference duals.
• Head coach Chris Bono is in fourth season at Wisconsin.
• Purdue assistant AJ Schopp worked with the Wisconsin staff at South Dakota State from 2015-17.
• Eight Wisconsin starters are nationally ranked heading into the weekend, including the No. 8 wrestler at 125, 149, 165 and heavyweight.
• The Badgers host Nebraska on Friday before coming to West Lafayette.
 
WISCONSIN PROBABLES
 
125: No. 8 Eric Barnett (Jr.) – 7-1
133: No. 25 Kyle Burwick (R-So.) – 9-8
or Ethan Rotondo (R-Sr.) – 5-5
141: Joey Zargo (Fr.) – 9-6
149: No. 8 Austin Gomez (R-Jr.) – 10-1
157: No. 27 Garrett Model (R-Sr.) – 10-6
165: No. 8 Dean Hamiti (Fr.) – 14-0
174: No. 22 Andrew McNally (R-Sr.) – 6-3
184: Chris Weiler (R-Sr.) – 6-7
197: No. 22 Braxton Amos (Fr.) – 13-3
285: No. 8 Trent Hilger (R-Sr.) – 11-2
 
Rankings listed InterMat