CMU wrestling defeats Ohio for second-straight win
After Central Michigan wrestling dropped two-straight matches that cut its lead down to 10 against Ohio on Sunday, the Chippewas were looking for a spark to get some momentum back. That’s when redshirt senior Alex Cramer took on No. 18 Sal Perrine in the 174 weight class.
With the match tied at one in overtime, Cramer secured the takedown, leading to a 4-1 win to give CMU the 19-6 lead.
“I think you just gotta have no fear and confidence in yourself,” Cramer said about his mentality heading into overtime. “... You can't be worried about whether this guy's gonna shoot, you gotta go out and take the win.”
The Chippewas kept the momentum going for the rest of the meet to give them their second-straight victory, 28-9.
“I really do think we're improving,” head coach Tom Borrelli said. “Today was a really good match … We wrestled some quality competition, and we didn't win all of those matches, but we were very, very competitive.”
The win brings the Chippewas to 3-1 in Mid-American Conference competition and 5-6 overall.
Redshirt sophomore Sean Spidle got the Chippewas out to the 5-0 lead following a dominating 20-3 victory in the 125 weight class. The win brings his MAC record to 3-1 and gives him his third tech fall victory of the season.
Continuing the momentum for CMU, redshirt senior Vince Perez also completed the tech fall victory in the 133 match after a 17-1 win. After starting the match out with a 3-0 advantage following a takedown in the first period, Perez continued to expand on his lead, securing two more takedowns and an escape.
Perez continued to dominate for the rest of the match, giving the Chippewas the 10-0 lead after two matches.
Sophomore Jimmy Nugent went down early in the 141 match, following a takedown in the first period from Ohio’s Kaden Jett. However, looking to continue CMU’s fast start Nugent came back with an escape and a takedown of his own to give him the slim 4-3 lead.
Nugent secured the decision victory 5-3 to extend the team score, 13-0.
After going down 7-5 heading into the third period of the 149 match, graduate student Corbyn Munson secured the take down late to give him the one-point advantage. Munson held his lead for the rest of the period, giving him the decision victory.
“I think (Munson’s) in a very very good condition,” Borrelli said. “He was never in this type of condition before. In the past I don't know that he would have been able to come back and then score when he needed to and then ride the match out.”
The win continues Munson's perfect conference record and extends his win streak to seven matches.
Following losses by redshirt senior Johnny Lovett and redshirt sophomore Tyler Swiderski, the Bobcats cut the team score deficit to 10, winning its first two matches of the day.
With the 174 match tied at one in overtime, Alex Cramer secured the takedown to give him the decision victory. The win extended the CMU lead, 19-6 with three matches to go.
The victory marks six-straight wins for Cramer as he moves to 3-0 in MAC competition.
Two matches later, Cameron Wood found himself down 4-3 late in the third period. With time winding down, he came up with the late takedown to take the 6-4 lead.
Following a stalling call that added one more point, Wood secured the decision victory to get McGuirk Arena loud and give the Chippewas the 22-9 lead.
Bryan Caves secured the pin in the final match of the day to seal the win against the Bobcats.
“(Caves is) really making strides,” Borrelli said. “He's wrestled a lot of really good heavyweights. His record is not indicative of how good he is.”
The Chippewas will stay at home as they take on MAC opponent Buffalo on Sunday at 2 p.m. at McGuirk Arena.
