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Wisconsin Badgers Wrestling Record Setting Finish at Midlands Championships

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4 months ago

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Wisconsin Badgers wrestling

The No. 24 Wisconsin Badgers Wrestling program had a record setting finish at the Ken Kraft Midlands Championships. Wisconsin earned a second place finish amongst more than 50 participating teams.

Head Coach Chris Bono and the boys put in some serious work en route to a 104.5 point finish, the highest point total they have attained in the events history and most since their 2010 appearance that netted 95.5 team points.

Best Wisconsin Badgers finish at Midlands all-time? Is that good?

Let’s take a look at each weight class and see how the Badgers performed at the Midlands Championships.

125 pounds

No. 9 Eric Barnett started this tournament like an nuclear warhead decimating everything in sight. Finishing the tournament with a 3rd place finish is awesome – but the destruction to get there is what’s impressive to me.

In his six wins – five of them came by bonus points. DAWG!

133 pounds 

Zan Fugitt battled to a 3–2 record and an impressive showing for the true freshman. Going to the wire with Sam Latona, the two-time NCAA All-American from Virginia Tech is a great learning experience and this will benefit him in the long run.

Fugitt is legit and put the wrestling world on notice – he’s coming!

Nicolar Rivera did not have the tournament he hoped for and finished 1–2 at Midlands.

141 pounds

Felix Lettini did not have the tournament he hoped for and finished 1–2 at Midlands either.  After starting the tournament with a 16–6 major decision, Lettini dropped the next two matches and ended his run at the tournament.

149 pounds

No.12 Joseph Zargo, who has been dominant lately, just ran into some good wrestlers at the wrong time. After a bye, Zargo fell in a 9–8 decision before winning three in a row to get to Round 5 of the consolation bracket.  Zargo lost by an 8–4 decision.

Julian George got some much needed work at Midlands but finished 1–2. After his opening bye and 8–3 defeat, George ran through his next opponent en route to a 19–3 technical fall.

Danny Sheen was also in the mix at 149 pounds and finished similarly to that of his teammate, Julian George. Like George, Sheen followed up his opening bye with a tough defeat before a scrappy 11–7 decision.

157 pounds

Luke Mechler, Gavin Model, and Royce Nilo combined for a 5–6 record for the Wisconsin Badgers in the 157 pound division.

Mechler started the tournament strong with a 16–1 technical fall but ultimately couldn’t sustain his excellent start and finished 2–2.

Model started with a bye but was defeated in his first match before winning two in a row on his way to a 2–2 finish at Midlands.

Nilo entered Midlands on a bye before suffering the same fate of those before him and a loss to open his tournament. Nilo won the next bout before falling in his final bout by a 17–1 technical fall and a 1–2 finish at his first Midlands Championships.

165 pounds

The Big Dawg on the Block at 165 was back! The reigning, defending, undisputed, Big Ten Champion at 165 pounds returned to his weight lass after a short, yet impactful stint at 174 pounds.

No. 6 Dean Hamiti did Dean Hamiti things – shocker! Death. Taxes. DJ winning hardware.

Finishing his tournament 5–0 and a title, Hamiti not only earned the Jack Jesse Champion of Champions award and was named the Dan Gable Most Outstanding Wrestler, he did not give up a single point at Midlands.

Zero. Nada. None. Zilch.

Dean Hamiti continues to let the wrestling world know he ready for March.

Opening his tournament with three consecutive falls before a disappointing 10–0 major decision in the semi-finals and a 12–0 major decision victory to win the 165 pound title at Midlands.

He didn’t pin them all?  He must have fallen off, said this article writing stooge with heavy sarcasm.

174 pounds

No. 27 Max Maylor lost a match? Is that allowed?

Losing matches is a reality in college wrestling but after his sensational start, one may have thought he would never lose! Finishing his tournament with a 5–2 record and 4th place finish – Maylor got needed bouts heading into the Big Ten season.

Cale Anderson had a tough tournament and finished 2–2. All four of his matches were close and none were decided by bonus points. He secured 10–5 and 12–7 decisions and was defeated by 4–1 sudden victory and 12–6 decision.

Tough go of it but he will use this to get better.

184 pounds

Shane Liegel.  Have yourself a tournament, bub!

Liegel, the Spring Green native DOMINATED his competition en route to a 6–0 record and a Midlands Championship.

On his way to the top of the podium – he secured three victories over ranked opponents!

197 pounds

Mikey Talshahar was the lone Wisconsin Badgers wrestler at 197 pounds and its safe to say he not thrilled about his tournament. The accomplished wrestler finished 0–2 at Midlands and lost one of the matches by way of 15–0 technical fall.

285 pounds

Wisconsin heavyweights continued to struggle to get footing in the weight class and combined for an 0–4 record at Midlands.

Peter Christensen lost his first match by 11–1 major decision and the next match by medical forfeit. Hope all is well with him and he can get right because he is a far better wrestler than he has shown during the beginning of the 2023–2024 season thus far.

Gannon Rosenfeld didn’t fare any better in his matches. After losing by fall to open the tournament – he battled but lost by a 5–4 decision.

Coach Bono has some tough decisions to make with the 285 pound class as the Big Ten season is on the horizon and needs all ten weight classes at optimal levels during that gauntlet.

What’s Next for Wisconsin Badgers Wrestling?

The Wisconsin Badgers are idle for the next week or so as they are not scheduled to have any matches until January 12–13 at the Virginia Duals at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, VA.

Lets hope the Badgers can use this final tournament as a dress rehearsal for the Big Ten season and come out and make a mark on the sport and chase wrestling immortality.

Stay tuned to Badger Notes for coverage of the Wisconsin Badgers wrestling program and their upcoming competitions!

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Ryan Eilers covers the Wisconsin Badgers football and wrestling programs for BadgerNotes.com and has had his work published on Bleacher Report. He also makes up 1/4 of the BadgerNotes After Dark podcast crew.

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