Michigan State wrestling closed out its season by beating Central Michigan University 18-13 in a nail-biting meet. With the victory, the Spartans ended the season with a 10-6 overall record and a 2-6 record in the Big Ten.
Before the meet, five Spartan wrestlers were honored for Senior Night: No. 6 graduate student Layne Malczewski, redshirt junior Marty Larkin, senior Colton Blaha, redshirt junior Blake Noonan and No. 27 redshirt senior Jordan Hamdan.
Head coach Roger Chandler praised the growth he has seen in the graduating Spartans and the commitment his wrestlers made to not only bettering themselves but the program as a whole.
“There’s no doubt this group (of) guys are leaving this place better than they found it," Chandler said. "They’re guys who fight for each other and there's no doubt they put the program in a better place."
The first action of the night kicked off in the 125-pound weigh-in where redshirt junior Tristan Lujan (14-12) represented the Spartans and faced off against the Chippewas' redshirt sophomore Sean Spidle (13-8).
Spidle was the first to get on the scoreboard as he earned a takedown halfway into the first period, taking a 3-1 lead. The second period saw Spidle tag on another point with an escape while fending off multiple takedown attempts from Lujan. In the third period, Spidle neutralized a desperate Lujan for the 4-1 decision victory.
With a 3-0 lead, the Chippewas’ redshirt senior Vince Perez (8-11) faced off against Michigan State's freshman Caleb Weiand (8-6) in the 133-pound weigh-in.
During the first period, Weiand nearly pin Perez in the first 15 seconds following a remarkable reversal. Perez recovered but not before falling behind 6-1 in the bout. With just under 20 seconds left in the first period, Perez secured a takedown and brought the score back to 6-4 heading into the second period. Perez built on the momentum and tagged on two points for a reversal early in the second period. Tied heading into the third period, Perez got to work and secured his second takedown with just under a minute into the third period to eventually see out the 14-6 major decision.
No. 27 redshirt senior Hamdan (17-8) stepped onto the mat next for the Spartans in the 141-pound weigh-in as he faced sophomore Jimmy Nugent (16-7) of Central Michigan University.
The first points of the bout weren't scored until the beginning of the second period when Hamdan earned an escape point. He looked to continue adding to his score fighting for a takedown that with just under a second left he would score. With a 4-0 lead, Hamdan weathered Nugent’s attacks before he secured his second takedown of the bout and earned the 7-1 decision victory and get the Spartans their first points of the night.
In the 149-pound weigh-in, No. 14 graduate student Corbyn Munson (20-4) represented the Chippewas and faced off against redshirt freshman Braden Stauffenberg (5-15) for the Spartans.
Munson asserted himself early on and secured two takedowns to take a 6-1 lead by the end of the first period. In the second and third periods, Munson went on cruise control as he amassed over two-and-a-half minutes of riding time to see out the 8-2 decision.
No. 26 redshirt senior Johnny Lovett (22-5) followed for CMU as he faced off against No. 20 senior Chase Saldate (21-4) in hopes of adding to Central Michigan's 10-3 lead.
It was a back-and-forth affair as both seniors threatened takedowns in the first period. In the second, Lovett secured a reversal just a minute into the second period before tagging on another four points for a near fall as he took a 6-1 lead into the third period. In the final period, Saldate got an important takedown and brought the match to 7-5 with just under a minute left. Shortly after, Saldate secured his second takedown of the period to complete the comeback 9-7 decision victory and score the Spartans a crucial three points.
After the meet, Chandler highlighted the importance of Saldate’s fight for the team, an influential bout in the meet.
“It’s why he’s going to compete for an All-American National Championship," Chandler said. "Two years ago he would have gotten rattled. Now it’s, 'Okay, I’m down (6-0) and now I need to get one point at a time.' That’s a champion mentality."
With the score at 10-6, the Spartans looked to No. 9 senior Caleb Fish (22-6) to turn the tides back in their favor as he faced off against redshirt sophomore Tyler Swiderski (10-10) for Central Michigan.
Swiderski shocked Fish with a quick takedown to take a 3-0 lead less than 40 seconds into the first period. Fish brought the bout back within one point in the second following an escape point but valiant defense from Swiderski saw the pair head into the third period at 3-2. In the final period, Fish came out of the gates shooting. A swift escape and reversal saw Fish suddenly take a 5-3 lead but not before Swiderski responded with a reversal of his own. At 6-5 with a minute left following a Fish escape, Swiderski looked for a way back but Fish remained resilient to see out the victory. The Spartans found themselves within one point at 10-9 in the overall score of the meet.
In the 174-pound weigh-in, redshirt senior DJ Shannon (8-15) represented the Spartans and faced off against Central Michigan's redshirt sophomore Chandler Amaker (8-7).
Shannon got on the board within the first 10 seconds of the bout due to a swift takedown. Shannon tagged on another takedown that was reversed by Amaker as the pair found themselves at 7-4 heading into the second period. With a comfortable lead, Shannon went with a more defensive approached and neutralized the attacks of Amaker to see out an 8-5 decision victory. With the victory, the Spartans found themselves with their first lead of the meet at 12-10.
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Redshirt sophomore Adrian Cramer (7-6) represented the Chips in the 184-pound weigh-in as he faced off against Michigan State's Malczewski (10-6).
Malczewski got on the board early with a takedown in the first minute of the first period before adding over two minutes of riding time heading into the second. An escape point and takedown in the second period saw Malczewski take a comfortable 7-0 advantage heading into the final period. The final two minutes of the bout was full of takedowns, but Cramer didn't do enough as Malczewski saw out the 11-5 victory to earn his 100th career win for the Spartans.
“It’s a surreal moment," Malczewski said. "Not only 100 wins but to get it on Senior Night, it was a very emotional day. Obviously (there's) a lot of stuff running through my mind … but all I can do is be grateful for everybody that supported me through my journey here."
With the score at 15-10, Michigan State's No. 30 redshirt freshman Kael Wisler (22-13) faced off against redshirt sophomore Cameron Wood (9-12) for Central Michigan in the 197-pound weigh-in.
Wisler got himself on the board early with a takedown in the first minute to take a 3-1 going into the second period. Wisler added to his lead in the second with an escape point and takedown and final period saw Wisler continue his domination as he earned an 11-4 decision victory and clinched the meet for the Spartans at 18-10.
The final bout of the night took place in the heavyweight weigh-in. Redshirt freshman Josh Terrill (25-12) represented the Spartans as he faced off against redshirt sophomore Bryan Caves (10-12), who represented the Chips.
Terrill got on the board first and secured a takedown in the final 30 seconds of the first period. In the second, Caves secured an escape point which was quickly followed by a takedown to sneak ahead 4-3 heading into the final period. During the final two minutes, Caves stacked up his riding time and saw out a 5-4 decision victory.
The meet ended with an overall score of 18-13 in Michigan State's favor over Central Michigan University.
