Tough but exciting road ahead for Badgers’ wrestlers

BY KELLI GRASHEL
UW Athletic Communications

MADISON, Wis. — A tough road lies ahead for the No. 17 Wisconsin wrestling team (3-3 overall, 1-3 Big Ten), set to face undefeated No. 2 Penn State Friday night at the UW Field House after returning from a two-week break from competition.

The coaching staff purposely scheduled a two-week break into the schedule. The rest couldn't be coming at a better time with Penn State this week for UW and No. 3 Iowa on the docket next week, just two short weeks after wrestling No. 6 Nebraska and No. 14 Minnesota on the road.

"We're growing as a team. This two-week break has helped us quite a bit," head coach Barry Davis said. "We're going in the right direction. I think the two-week break gives you a chance to work on a lot of individual skill work. We have to win the matches we're supposed to win."

Ten nationally-ranked Nittany Lions will be no easy feat, but their Badgers counterparts are up for the challenge as seven of the 10 bouts will be ranked matchups.

UW will be missing starters Johnny Jimenez and TJ Ruschell, who will both be wrestling at the Duhawk Open in Dubuque, Iowa over the weekend. In their place, Jens Lantz will take the start at 125 for Jimenez and Jared Scharenbrock will start in place of Ruschell at 157 pounds. The 197-pound weight class is still set to be determined between Wisconsin's Mason Reinhardt or Ricky Robertson.

Otherwise, the Cardinal and White's regular starters are set to appear. Badgers captains Isaac Jordan (165) and Connor Medbery (HWT) are both slated for top-5 matchups, preparing for some of their biggest challenges to date. Penn State's Nick Nevills and Vincenzo Joseph are just two of six top-5 Nittany Lions, which includes two No. 1 rankings in Zain Retherford (149) and Jason Nolf (157).

Junior Andrew Crone will match up with Retherford. Friday will mark the first time he's ever faced a No. 1-ranked wrestler in his career and only his third against a top-five contender, but that doesn't scare him.

"Our next couple of duals, we have Penn State and Iowa," Crone said. "They're number one and number three in the country, so obviously those are going to be difficult matches, but I know I just have to take it like any other match. Go out there and wrestle my style and bring a high pace and hopefully have a good outcome."

Crone has been on fire in the last two dual meets, coming back from behind to clinch dominant victories and truly live up to his nickname "Comeback Crone." But it hasn't been an easy road for the Delafield, Wisconsin, native who now holds a 21-7 record and is 3-3 in duals and 2-2 in Big Ten action. He has had to fight past a couple of tough losses from Midlands and a loss by decision to No. 5 Micah Jordan of Ohio State.

"I think it's about just having confidence in the process," Crone added. "Even when I'm in that slump, just sticking with it and still grinding throughout the season and not getting down on myself. Even when I don't know if I was wrestling my best a little earlier, just still working hard every day and know that eventually it's going to come around."

In addition to seeing some exciting top-ranked matchups, Wisconsin fans have another chance to witness history as Connor Medbery has the chance to break the 100-win career mark at Friday night's dual. Earlier this season, Badger fans also celebrated Jordan's 100^th career win at the UW Field House, so Friday's dual is a can't miss opportunity.

Friday night is Fan Appreciation night where fans can receive $1 Admission by printing a voucher from the Wisconsin Wrestling Facebook or Twitter page and presenting it at the gate. The match will also be streamed live on BTN Plus and live statistics will be available through UWBadgers.com.

University of Wisconsin Athletics

Tough but exciting road ahead for Badgers’ wrestlers

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Players Mentioned

Andrew Crone

Johnny Jimenez

Isaac Jordan

Jens Lantz

Connor Medbery

Mason Reinhardt

Ricky Robertson

TJ Ruschell

Jared Scharenbrock

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