After a commanding victory against No. 23 Indiana in its Big Ten opener Saturday, Northwestern (6-1, 1-1 Big Ten) clocked in at No. 16 in the nation this week.
The Wildcats defeated Indiana 27-12, with seven wrestlers winning their bouts against the Hoosiers, including two with bonus points.
Redshirt freshman Jason Tsirtsis, who has climbed to No. 5 nationally at 149 pounds in the InterMat Wrestling’s rankings, displayed his talent with a major decision against Indiana’s Eric Roach.
Tsirtsis, who head coach Drew Pariano said he expects to be a national champion, also performed well in December at the 51st Ken Kraft Midlands Championship and against SIU-Edwardsville.
At the Midlands tournament, Tsirtsis collected a fifth-place finish. The four-time Indiana state high school champion also defeated SIU-Edwardsville’s Karsten Van Velsor with a 17-1 tech fall.
After leading the Cats with a fourth-place finish at Midlands, junior Pierce Harger defeated Indiana’s Ryan LeBlanc in a 2-0 decision. Harger has now climbed into the top 10 of InterMat Wrestling’s rankings at 165 pounds.
All-American heavyweight Mike McMullan suffered his first defeat in his bout against Indiana’s Adam Chalfant in a 9-4 decision. After the loss, McMullan dropped to No. 8 in InterMat’s heavyweight rankings.
The Cats are back on the mat Friday night, hosting No. 2 Minnesota.
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