Ohio State
Big Ten Championship **
Sasso Wins Big Ten Title, Four Buckeyes Finish Top 5
3/7/2021 8:09:46 PM | General, Wrestling
FINAL RESULTS | BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP SITE
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – Ohio State redshirt-sophomore Sammy Sasso became the 35th different Buckeye to win a Big Ten Individual title as he defeated Nebraska’s Ridge Lovett 5-2 in the 149-pound championship match on Sunday.
Sasso is undefeated this season at 12-0. He’s been ranked No. 2 in the country in the 149-pound class all season and he claimed the program’s 56th Big Ten title.
Elite culture breeds elite wrestlers. Sasso is calling all young savages #GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/O0xKgdHnY9
— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks) March 7, 2021
From 2nd place last season to B1G Champion this season. @sammysasso is showing us determination and how to #WinWithPurpose. @wrestlingbucks @ncaawrestling
@TIAA pic.twitter.com/M70842j8TP
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 7, 2021
Ethan Smith also wrestled in the title match of the 165-pound weight class. He had a tall task as he faced Iowa’s Alex Marinelli, who was the No. 1 seed and is also No. 1 ranked nationally. But Smith was up to the challenge and fought all the way to the end. He was impressive and turned a lot of heads in a narrow 3-2 defeat.
Malik Heinselman ended up finishing fourth in the 125-pound weight class while Kaleb Romero took fifth in the 174-pound class and Tate Orndorff finished sixth at heavy weight. All five of those wrestlers have punched their title to the NCAA Championships in two weeks.
After a tough Saturday, Dylan D’Emilio and Elijah Cleary both ended up winning the 9th-place matches on Sunday afternoon to finish on a high winning note.
This year’s NCAA Championship will be held at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri on March 18-20.
125 | Malik Heinselman
- R1 | Def. Zach Spence (MD) | PIN 2:56
- QF | Def. Eric Barnett (WIS) | D, 3-2
- SF | Lost to Devin Schroder (PUR) | MD, 10-0
- Con SF | Def. Robert Howard (PSU) | D, 5-2
- 3rd-Place Match | Lost to Rayvon Foley | D, 8-2
141 | Dylan D’Emilio
- R1 | Def. Danny Bertoni (MD) | D, 3-1
- QF | Lost to Nick Lee (PSU) | TF, 3:12 (17-1)
- Con Rd 2 | Lost to Drew Mattin (MICH) | D, 2-1
- Con (1) | Def. Danny Bertoni (MD) | D, 9-4
- 9th-Place Match | Def. Cayden Rooks | D, 4-3
149 | Sammy Sasso
- R1 | BYE
- QF | Def. Peyton Omania (MSU) | MD, 9-1
- SF | Def. Kanen Storr (MICH) | D, 5-0
- F | Def. Ridge Lovett (NEB) | D, 5-2
157 | Elijah Cleary
- R1 | Def. Garrett Model (WISC) | D, 9-6
- QF | Lost to Ryan Deakin (NU) | MD, 8-0
- Con Rd 2 | Lost to Caleb Licking (NEB) | D, 2-1
- Con (1) | Def. Michael Doetsch (MD) | Forfeit
- 9th-Place Match | Def. Garrett Model (WIS) | D, 6-3
165 | Ethan Smith
- R1 | Def. Josh Otto (WISC) | D, 8-4
- QF | Def. Jonathan Spadafora (MD) | MD 15-6
- SF | Peyton Robb (NEB) | SV1, 5-3
- F | Lost to Alex Marinelli (IOWA) | D, 3-2
174 | Kaleb Romero
- R1 | Def. DJ Shannon (Ill) | D, 4-1
- QF | Lost to Carter Starocci (PSU) | D, 2-0
- Con Rd 2 | Def. Emil Soehnlen (PUR) | D 4-1
- Con Rd 3 | Def. Jake Allar (MINN) | D, 9-4
- Con SF | Lost to Logan Massa (MICH) | D, 4-3
- 5th-Place Match | Def. Donnell Washington (IND) | D, 5-0
184 | Rocky Jordan
- R1 | Lost to Max Lyon (PUR) | D, 3-2
- Con R2 | Lost to Nelson Brands (IOWA) | D, 5-2
- Con (1) | Def. Kyle Cochran (MD) |TF, 2:53 (16-0)
- 9th-Place Match | Lost to Zach Braunagel (ILL) | D, 5-4
197 | Gavin Hoffman
- R1 | Def. Matt Wroblewski (Ill) | SV1, 3-1
- QF | Lost to Eric Schultz (NEB) | D, 2-0
- Con R2 | Lost to Billy Janzer (RUT) | D, 3-2
285 | Tate Orndorff
- R1 | Def. Christian Rebottaro (MSU) | D, 6-0
- QF | Lost to Gable Steveson (MINN) | TF, 5:34 (19-4)
- Con Rd 2 | Def. Jack Heyob (NU) | D, 5-2
- Con Rd 3 | Def. Luke Luffman (ILL) | SV1, 3-1
- Con SF | Lost to Tony Cassioppi (IOWA) | PIN 2:24
- 5th-Place Match | Lost to Christian Lance (NEB) | D, 3-2
Final Team Standings:
- Iowa 159.5
- Penn State 124
- Nebraska 105.5
- Michigan 92
- Minnesota 77.5
- Purdue 76
- Northwestern 74
- Michigan State 73.5
- Ohio State 69.5
- Rutgers 52
- Illinois 32
- Wisconsin 30.5
- Indiana 22
- Maryland 2
