Ryan Cumbee won both his matches in the final 30 seconds. Josh Saul persevered through tough competition to go undefeated. Ryan Kane recorded a pin in his first start in more than a month.
And the Northwestern wrestling team still couldn’t win this weekend.
The Wildcats (3-8-1, 0-3 Big Ten) welcomed No. 21 Wisconsin (9-4-1, 1-0) to Evanston on Friday, jumped out to an early lead, then watched it disintegrate into a 28-9 loss. On Sunday, the Cats got a Big Ten breather against Northern Illinois (6-5-2), but they still required timely performances to eke out an 18-18 tie.
“Matches are getting closer, guys are wrestling better,” Cumbee said. “I’m starting to see everything come together.”
NU was optimistic about a Badgers upset and the team started off in the right direction. At 149 pounds, Cumbee rallied for a 10-5 win against Corey McNellis. Then Jason Erwinski (157 pounds) coasted to an 8-4 win over Nate Erdman. After two weight classes, NU led 6-0.
“We feel like we are pretty strong at those weight classes and that we can put pressure on the other team,” NU coach Tim Cysewski said.
But the Badgers recovered to reel off four consecutive victories and take control of the match. At 165 pounds, defending NCAA champion Donny Pritzlaff showcased his talent by quickly pinning J.P. Boulus. Following Pritzlaff’s example, three Wisconsin freshmen won convincingly to give the Badgers a comfortable 15-6 lead.
Saul, a junior heavyweight, faced stiff competition against the Badgers’ Justin Staebler, ranked No. 17 in the nation. Saul held on for a 3-2 win, which capped NU’s scoring for the match, as junior Rob Potashnick’s thrilling comeback bid at 125 pounds came up short in overtime.
The match was the Cats’ third-straight loss — but they anticipated a win Sunday against Northern Illinois.
Again NU started off strong, with Potashnick, Josh Ballard and Cumbee posting wins. NU forfeited six points in the 133-pound weight class, and after a rare Erwinski loss the score was tied halfway through at 9-9.
At 165 pounds, sophomore Ryan Kane returned to action and easily regained his winning form. He had been on the sidelines since sustaining a concussion in late December.
Kane recorded the match’s lone pin by defeating Northern Illinois’ Michael Pater at the 2:46 mark.
“Any time a guy comes off a long layoff, you don’t know what you are going to get,” Cysewski said. “That pin was welcome and nice to see.”
Northern Illinois rebounded with three-straight victories to take an 18-15 lead with only the heavyweights left.
Saul wrestled Jon Lovrich, who won their head-to-head matchup in high school. But Saul gained control immediately and rolled to a 10-4 win, preventing another Cats loss.
“Josh (Saul) has a lot more confidence this year, and the team has a lot of confidence in him,” Kane said. “It came down to his match, he had a tough opponent, and he was clutch.”
With the individual win secured, Saul had Lovrich in a vulnerable position with his leg up in the air. Saul needed only two more points for a major decision — which would have given the Cats a 19-18 win — but his chance slipped away when the final horn sounded.
“Another two or three seconds and we would have won,” Cysewski said.
Kane said that injuries have hampered the Cats throughout a tough season, but now there appears to be a light at the end of the tunnel.
“Nothing seems to have gone right this year for us,” he said. “We had been on a losing streak. We came in and got a tie and also have another starter back in the lineup, which is a confidence boost.”
