The MSU wrestling team is looking to rebound this weekend with a trip to the Hoosier State following a tumultuous home loss to No. 3 Penn State on Feb. 4 with a score of 30-9.
This weekend’s slate features a double dose of Big Ten action starting off 7 p.m. tonight at Indiana (10-6 overall, 1-4 Big Ten) and concluding 1 p.m. Sunday at No. 23 Purdue (6-7-1, 1-4).
The Spartans (9-5, 1-4) haven’t traveled since their trip Jan. 14 to West Virginia, but the traveling shouldn’t pose a problem for the team.
Junior 197-pounder Tyler Dickenson said the Spartans need to focus on themselves and their own skills rather than their opponents as they prepare for their first road trip in almost a month.
“Just focusing on wrestling,” Dickenson said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re home (or) away, you just need to focus on the match.
“You can’t get caught up in the environment and stuff like that. Just focus on what you’re going to do when you step on the mat, and as long as we focus on that, we should be alright.”
Dickenson will have his hands full this weekend as he faces off with two ranked wrestlers, Indiana’s No. 9 Matt Powless and Purdue’s No. 10 Logan Brown.
Head coach Tom Minkel weighed in on the Spartans’ previous loss against Penn State and said the loss helped identify some weaknesses.
“We wrestle one or two Big Ten duals every week and so being ready for the next dual of course is important,” Minkel said. “We try to learn each week from the previous week’s duals whether we won or lost.
“Penn State is a very good team and very talented, and yet I thought we did some good things. I thought we hustled pretty well, we attacked pretty well. They were just a better team than us right now.”
Minkel also noted that the team has been working hard since the loss and hopes to capitalize on what he said has been a good week of practice.
With two Big Ten foes to contend with this weekend, the Spartans look to improve on their record in conference competition.
Indiana also will be looking to rebound on the heels of a tough loss at No. 2 Iowa in its last meet. Purdue, however, is hot, coming off a victory at No. 12 Wisconsin.
Other notable matchups from the weekend include MSU’s No. 20 sophomore 149-pounder Dan Osterman against Indiana’s No. 13 Kurt Kinser and junior 174-pounder Curran Jacobs against Purdue’s No. 8 Luke Manuel.
The road trip has special interest to one Spartan grappler, freshman 157-pounder Sean McMurray — an Indiana native. This weekend he will be competing in close proximity to his home town of Portage, Ind.
The match will give McMurray a chance to show off.
“I’ve got a lot of friends and family coming to watch both dual meets,” he said. “I’m really excited to compete in front of everybody.”
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
