No. 4 Ohio State Wrestling Remains Perfect After Defeat Over No. 16 Rutgers

No. 4 Ohio State, 10-0, wrestling defeated No. 16 Rutgers University (RU), 9-3, in a close-scoring dual that featured several back-and-forth matches. The Buckeyes experienced multiple close bouts and struggled to score in sudden victory matches. The team was slow to score and attack their opponents throughout the evening, often scoring points in the last second in their matches. Despite the struggles, the team showed determination in every match to secure the overall team win. The Buckeyes lead the series against Rutgers 10-0.

Heavyweight No. 7 Nick Feldman secured the 17-15 team win for Ohio State after a last-second takedown over No. 8 Yaraslau Slavikouski (RU). Feldman had hit the mat but flipped Slavikouski over and slammed him to the ground to secure the dual win.

In the first upset of the night, Sammy Sasso (157) came out ready to win and keep Ohio State in the lead. Sasso had a takedown halfway through the first period over No. 31 Conner Harer (RU), but the referees did not include any near-fall points. Harer got two escapes, but Sasso held on to his lead to win by a 3-2 decision.

Since he's been here, Sammy Sasso has been a staple of toughness and grit in this program...We just saw another example of him getting tough. He didn't let allow whether it was a tough call or not to bother him. You keep wrestling and find a way to win the match.
Ohio State head coach Tom Ryan

No. 11 at 165 lbs Sammy Sasso secures the win over Connor Harer 😮‍💨#B1GWrestling x @wrestlingbucks pic.twitter.com/7X2RJ2D2zX
— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) January 13, 2025

At 141 pounds, No. 1 Jesse Mendez put the Buckeyes back on the scoreboard with a technical fall against Max Hermes (RU), finishing the match at 5:05 with a score of 17-2.

No. 12 Dylan D'Emilio had an even match-up against No. 24 Andrew Clark (RU). Both wrestlers received stall warnings in the first period, and neither scored during regulation outside of one escape each. In sudden victory, both remained scoreless, but D'Emilio won 2-1 in the second tiebreaker, securing an escape and maintaining the riding time.

No. 12 at 149 lbs Dylan D’Emilio gets the overtime win 😤#B1GWrestling x @wrestlingbucks pic.twitter.com/B7kPf2kb1q
— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) January 13, 2025

At 165 pounds, it was the battle of the true freshmen, with e'Than Birden and Andrew Barbosa (RU) going head to head. They were 1-1 heading into sudden victory with no points scored. In tiebreaker one, Birden attacked quickly to try and get Barbosa down and get the points. In tiebreaker number two, Barbosa had an escape and rode out Birden to win the match 2-1.

No. 9 Carson Kharchla remains undefeated after defeating No. 23 Jackson Turley (RU) by a score of 3-2, with his only point coming from a takedown. The 184 and 197-pound matches were both won by last-second takedowns from Rutgers wrestlers. No. 27 Shane Cartagena-Walsh (RU) defeated No. 14 Ryder Rogotzke 6-4 after a takedown late in the third period. John Poznanski (RU) got a takedown in the last second of his match with Seth Shumate to win 5-4 in a surprising comeback.

Ohio State began the dual by giving two decision matches to Rutgers, giving the Scarlet Knights an early 6-0 lead. In the 125-pound weight class, No. 10 Brendan McCrone was down early against No. 16 Dean Peterson (RU) after Peterson scored two takedowns and a two-point near fall. Although McCrone managed to score two escapes, he could not score any major points. Peterson won the match 11-4.

In the next match at 133 pounds, No. 9 Nic Bouzakis dropped his match to No. 17 Dylan Shawver (RU) late in the third period. Bouzakis was ahead 1-0 at the end of the second period, but with just 30 seconds remaining in the third period, Shawver scored a takedown and won the match 4-3.

Up Next

Ohio State will host Purdue University on Sunday, Jan. 19 at 1 p.m. The dual will be streamed on the Big 10 + Network.

Purdue is currently unranked according to the NWCA DI Wrestling Rankings. According to Ohio State Athletics, Ohio State currently leads the series 12-3 and won the last meeting 23-12 in February of 2021, and the Buckeyes lead with an eight dual win streak.