Wrestling

Northwestern sophomore Sebastian Rivera won the title at the Midlands championships and the first Big Ten Wrestler of the Week award of his career.

He earned it by winning a 7-3 decision against previously undefeated No. 1 Spencer Lee of Iowa on December 30 and leading the Wildcats to third place – their best team finish in this event since 2014.

No. 2 Rivera – who wrestles in the 125-pound class – went 5-0 at Midlands and defeated Lee 7-3 in the finals to win the title in his weight class. After he outscored his opposition 85-16 over the two-day tournament, Rivera became the first NU wrestler to earn the Wrestler of the Week award since December 2016.

Second-ranked Ryan Deakin also brought home a championship title at Midlands by defeating No. 8 Kaleb Young of Iowa by a 6-2 score. After finishing in third in the tournament in his two prior attempts, the sophomore returns with a championship title and continues his undefeated campaign so far this season.

The Cats begin conference play on Jan. 6 in Lincoln, Nebraska against the Cornhuskers after finishing 5-4 in the Big Ten last season.

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