No. 16 Illinois Defeated in Dual at No. 5 Ohio State

By University of Illinois Athletics

COLUMBUS, Ohio – No. 16 Illinois was defeated by No. 5 Ohio State, 28-6, on Sunday afternoon in Columbus. The Illini saw wins from redshirt freshman Justin Cardani at 125-pounds and senior Travis Piotrowski at 133-pounds.

Justin Cardani was able to get a win for the Illini against Malik Heinselmen in the day’s first matchup. Heinselman got out to the early lead, but Cardani was able to fight back, picking up two points for a takedown in the final seconds of the third to force overtime. Cardani then achieved the match winning takedown in the final seconds of Sudden Victory-1, winning the match by a final score of 8-6. Cardani is now 10-5 on the season and 3-0 in Big Ten Duals.

Travis Piotrowski was able to keep rolling by winning his fifth consecutive bout on Sunday. Piotrowski got a takedown late in the first to take the initial, 2-0, lead over Jordan Decatur. Piotrowski got two more points in the second with a reversal. The Illini senior controlled the match and earned the riding time point, defeating Decatur by a final score of 6-2. Piotrowski is now 16-2 on the season, and a perfect 7-0 in dual bouts.

Up next, the Illini will host three straight Big Ten duals at Huff Hall, beginning with a matchup with Michigan on Sunday, January 26, at 1 p.m. CT. Free Pink T-shirts will be given to the first 150 fans, as the Illini show their continued support in the fight against cancer for Illinois Wrestling’s Take Down Cancer Day. Illinois will host Michigan State on Friday, January 31, and No. 18 Northwestern on Sunday, February 1 at Huff Hall.

Full Results

125: No. 24 Justin Cardani (ILL) SV-1 Malik Heinselman (OSU), 8-6 | ILL 3, OSU 0
133: No. 8 Travis Piotrowski (ILL) dec. No. 20 Jordan Decatur (OSU), 6-2 | ILL 6, OSU 0
141: No. 1 Luke Pletcher (OSU) dec. No. 12 Dylan Duncan (ILL), 12-5 | ILL 6, OSU 3
149: No. 6 Sammy Sasso (OSU) major dec. Mousa Jodeh (ILL), 13-3 | OSU 7, ILL 6
157: Elijah Cleary (OSU) TB-1 No. 22 Eric Barone (ILL), 4-3 | OSU 10, ILL 6
165: No. 12 Ethan Smith (OSU) dec. No. 14 Danny Braunagel (ILL), 3-1 | OSU 13, ILL 6
174: No. 8 Kaleb Romero (OSU) dec. No. 16 Joey Gunther (ILL), 6-3 | OSU 16, ILL 6
184: Rocky Jordan (OSU) dec. No. 11 Zac Braunagel (ILL), 6-4 | OSU 19, ILL 6
197: No. 1 Kollin Moore (OSU) Fall Matt Wroblewski (ILL), 4:35 | OSU 25, ILL 6
285: Gary Traub (OSU) dec. Luke Luffman (ILL), 11-4 | OSU 28, ILL 6