University of Minnesota Athletics
WR: Minnesota Upsets No. 2 Michigan in National Dual Quarterfinals
1/22/2005 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
For the second straight dual meet, the match was decided at heavyweight and for the second straight match, sophomore All-American Cole Konrad delivered for Minnesota. Ranked second in the nation, he earned a 4-1 decision against third-ranked Greg Wagner of the Wolverines to seal the Golden Gopher upset.
Minnesota got off to a strong start thanks to a Michigan default at 125 pounds and then a pin by fifth-ranked Mack Reiter at 133 pounds. Reiter earned a fall in 4:04 against 18th- ranked Mark Moos to give Minnesota a 12-0 lead.
The Wolverines got back in the match thanks to the heart of their lineup. The Wolverines won the next five matches to claim a 16-12 lead. Seventh-ranked Josh Churella withstood a strong challenge at 141 pounds against Golden Gopher junior Tommy Owen. Churella had a 5-0 lead entering the third period and held on for a 6-4 decision.
Seventh-ranked Eric Tannenbaum followed with a 5-4 decision against Minnesota freshman C.P. Schlatter at 149 pounds. Tannenbaum took a 4-2 first-period lead thanks to a pair of takedowns, while Schlatter was only able to score a couple of escapes the remainder of the match.
Second-ranked Ryan Bertin cut the Golden Gopher lead to 12-10 with a 14-3 major decision against freshman Nik Lentz, while second-ranked Ryan Churella escaped with a 5-4 decision at 165 pounds against eighth-ranked Matt Nagel. Nagel took a 4-3 lead with a third-period takedown, but needed to ride Churella out in the final 20 seconds to claim the win. Churella earned the escape with 14 seconds left to tie the match, but earned a bonus point for a 1:06 advantage in riding time.
The Wolverines extended their lead to four as 15th-ranked Nick Roy scored a takedown with nine seconds to go in the match to escape with a 3-1 win at 174 pounds against Josh McLay.
Minnesota took over from there in the final three matches. Freshman Roger Kish cut the Michigan lead to 16-15 with a 3-1 decision against Josh Weitzel at 184 pounds. Following a scoreless first period, Kish rode Weitzel for the entire two minutes of the second period. He added a third-period takedown to seal the win.
Making just his second career start at 197 pounds after moving up from 174, senior Jon Duncombe provided a crucial three points with a 7-3 decision against Steve Heleniak. Duncombe took an early 2-0 lead in the first period and extended the lead to 5-1 in the second period. He put the match away with another takedown with just over 30 seconds to go in the match. His win gave the Golden Gophers an 18-16 and set up Konrad to clinch the match with his win at heavyweight.
Illinois enters tonight's semifinal with a 9-0 record. The Golden Gophers upset then- undefeated Illinois, 19-16, last year in Champaign, Ill.
#8 Minnesota 21, #2 Michigan 16
Jan. 22, 2005
National Dual Quarterfinals
125 - #4 Bobbe Lowe (MN) wins by default
133 - #5 Mack Reiter (MN) pins #18 Mark Moos (MICH), 4: 04
141 - #7 Josh Churella (MICH) dec. Tommy Owen (MN), 6-4
149 - #7 Eric Tannenbaum (MICH) dec. #11 C.P. Schlatter (MN), 5-4
157 - #2 Ryan Bertin (MICH) maj. dec. Nik Lentz (MN), 14-3
165 - #2 Ryan Churella (MICH) dec. #8 Matt Nagel (MN), 5-4
174 - #15 Nick Roy (MICH) dec. Josh McLay (MN), 3-1
184 - #7 Roger Kish (MN) dec. Josh Weitzel (MICH), 3 -1
197 - Jon Duncombe (MN) dec. Steve Heleniak (MICH), 7-3
HWT - #2 Cole Konrad (MN) dec. #3 Greg Wagner (MICH), 4-1
