Ohio State wrestling triumphs over No. 6 Nebraska with 21-12 win

COLUMBUS, Ohio — A celebration of the 2019 senior class and St. John Arena was highlighted by Ohio State wrestling’s 21-12 conference victory over No. 6 Nebraska (11-5, 5-4 B1G). Four seniors took the mat for their final time in front of the home crowd and St. John Arena hosted its last wrestling dual as the primary competition home of the @wrestlingbucks (11-2, 7-2 B1G).

College wrestling: Rankings

Te’Shan Campbell, Joey McKenna, Micah Jordan, and Myles Martin represented the 2019 Senior Class.

Three senior managers were recognized prior to the match as well:  Jarret Logan, Nancy Nguyen, and Sam Tremblay.

Thank you, Myles!#SeniorDay pic.twitter.com/1xtWxPAp53

— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks) February 17, 2019

A traditional 125-pound start to the dual pitted Malik Heinselman against two-time All-American Zeke Moisey. The Buckeye true freshman dug himself an 8-0 hole versus the fifth-year senior before ripping off five unanswered points to close the bout. Heinselman posted two takedowns while surrendering just one in an 8-5 defeat.

Luke Pletcher returned to his early season form, throwing bonus points up on the scoreboard with a 13-4 major decision. He tallied five takedowns to secure his 20th win this season.

McKenna faced an All-American in Chad Red at 141 pounds, emerging as a 7-1 victor. He took down the Husker twice and forced the action to nab a stalling penalty point in the third period.

"Now you see my leg. Now you don't."
--@MyMar184, probably. pic.twitter.com/7cY9AciPn4

— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks) February 18, 2019

Jordan put on a show at 149 pounds, loading up four takedowns in the first frame alone. He added four more and a 4-spot worth of nearfall points by bout’s end, ultimately ending it early via a 22-7 tech fall.

Three consecutive decisions for Nebraska came next to pull even at a dozen team points apiece. Ke-Shawn Hayes notched the first takedown versus No. 2 Tyler Berger, jumping up 2-0. Berger would battle back though and register a 10-5 winner. Te’Shan Campbell fired off several shots in the final minute of his bout, each denied by Isaiah White in holding on for a 4-2 triumph. Ethan Smith vs. Mikey Labriola (174 lbs) was arguably the most entertaining bout of the afternoon from start to finish. Scrambles and action were aplenty. Labriola came out on the right end, winning 9-5.

Division I wrestling coaches’ panel and RPI rankings

The next three bouts all featured top-20 tilts. Martin, Kollin Moore, and Chase Singletary each got the job done versus their nationally-ranked adversaries as Ohio State garnered the day’s final nine team points.

Martin was a magician in his 16th win in as many matches to maintain his flawless season record (16-0). Facing fourth-ranked Taylor Venz, Martin gave up zero offensive points in a 12-5 decision.

One last time at St. John.

No. 2 @wrestlingbucks wins 21-12 over the No. 6 Cornhuskers! Watch here as our crew recaps all of today's action: pic.twitter.com/RPnizVBVkC

— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) February 17, 2019

Moore let up a bit late in the third period and it cost him. No. 11 Eric Schultz sent the bout into sudden victory with a late takedown. Unfazed, Moore fired off an immediate shot and found pay dirt for his 7-5 SV takedown — bringing the Buckeye faithful to their feet inside St. John Arena.

7-5 was the final score at heavyweight, too. Similarly, a crowd-erupting takedown also concluded the big fella battle when Singletary scrambled for the two-pointer with a lone tick left in regulation (:01). It marked just the fourth loss this season for No. 7 David Jensen (13-4).

2019 Championship Info

BOUT RESULTS | Dual Score Sheet
No. 2 Ohio State 21, No. 6 Nebraska 12
125 lbs | No. 14 Zeke Moisey (NEB) def. Malik Heinselman (OSU) | D, 8-5; Team Score:  0-3
133 lbs | No. 6 Luke Pletcher (OSU) def. Jevon Parrish (NEB) | MD, 13-4; TS:  4-3
141 lbs | No. 3 Joey McKenna (OSU) def. Chad Red (NEB) | D, 7-1; TS:  7-3
149 lbs | No. 3 Micah Jordan (OSU) def. Jordan Shearer (NEB) | TF, 22-7; TS:  12-3
157 lbs | No. 2 Tyler Berger (NEB) def. No. 8 Ke-Shawn Hayes (OSU) | D, 10-5; TS:  12-6
165 lbs | No. 6 Isaiah White (NEB) def. Te’Shan Campbell (OSU) | D, 4-2; TS:  12-9
174 lbs | No. 9 Mikey Labriola (NEB) def. No. 18 Ethan Smith (OSU) | D, 9-5; TS:  12-12
184 lbs | No. 1 Myles Martin (OSU) def. No. 4 Taylor Venz (NEB) | D, 12-5; TS:  15-12
197 lbs | No. 2 Kollin Moore (OSU) def. No. 11 Eric Schultz (NEB) | SV1, 7-5; TS:  18-12
285 lbs | No. 18 Chase Singletary (OSU) def. No. 7 David Jensen (NEB) | D, 7-5; TS:  21-12