STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - The Purdue wrestling team wrapped up a sixth-place finish at the 2021 Big Ten Championships on Sunday, scoring 76.0 team points and placing eight individuals for the second straight year. The Boilermakers earned seven automatic qualifying spots for the national championships, and await word of an eighth qualifier on Tuesday when the NCAA announces the at-large pool.
The Boilermakers finish in the top-six for the second straight season, the first time they've posted back-to-back conference top-six showings since 1991 and 1992, when they took fifth each year. The second consecutive year with eight placewinners matches the first time since 2003 and 2004, and marks the fifth time in program history the Boilermakers have put eight on the conference championship podium.
At-large bids for nationals will be announced Tuesday, while all of Purdue's national qualifiers will receive their seeds and first-round matchups for NCAA's on Wednesday at 6 p.m. ET. The Boilermakers have had eight national qualifiers in each of the last two seasons, matching their highest total in program history. An at-large bid Tuesday would mark Purdue's sixth season all-time with eight NCAA qualifiers and the fourth under head coach Tony Ersland.
The Boilermakers struggled in the consolation semifinals to open the day, losing all four available contests. Freshman Jacob Rundell fell to No. 3 seed Lucas Byrd of Illinois, junior Parker Filius suffered a loss to No. 3 seed Sebastian Rivera of Rutgers, sophomore Kendall Coleman gave up a last-second takedown in a 3-1 loss to Chase Saldate of Michigan State and freshman Gerrit Nijenhuis dropped a decision to Nebraska's Peyton Robb.
Filius bounced back in the fifth-place match, using a pair of first-period takedowns to take a 5-2 decision over Northwestern's Colin Valdiviez. Filius scored early with a double-leg and snared another near the buzzer in the first period that was confirmed by review. It marks Filius' second straight year on the podium and his second national qualification. Coleman also took fifth, accepting a forfeit from Penn State's Brady Berge.
Nijenhuis rebounded with a dominant 10-3 decision over Michigan State's Jake Tucker, defeating him for the second time in the tournament. The Boilermaker rookie scored right off the whistle for an early lead, posted his team-best ninth reversal of the season in the third and then took Tucker to his back for six points at the buzzer, nearly getting the fall.
Rundell settled for sixth place, falling on a riding-time point to No. 9 seed Kyle Burwick of Wisconsin 4-3. Rundell controlled the mat for much of the match, drawing a stalling point from Burwick, but gave up a takedown in the third period and saw 1:10 of riding time as the difference.
Rundell and Nijenhuis are the first true freshman for the Boilermakers to place at Big Ten Championships since Christian Brunner in 2017, and Nijenhuis is the highest for a Purdue true freshman since Scott Pierre was fourth at 177 pounds in 1987.
Purdue swept the seventh-place bouts as seniors Griffin Parriott and Max Lyon and sophomore Thomas Penola all secured wins and key team points for the Boilermakers. Parriott's 2-1 tiebreaker win secured an automatic spot in the national field at 149 pounds, outlasting Northwestern's Yahya Thomas with a 30-second rideout in overtime. Lyon snared a first-period takedown against No. 4 seed Owen Webster of Minnesota and went on to avenge a regular-season loss with a 3-1 decision at 184 pounds. Penola picked up a big-time bonus point for the Boilermakers at 197, rolling to a 10-1 major decision over Rutgers' Billy Janzer. The win gives Penola another criteria for the NCAA Championship at-large pool, adding to his NCAA Coaches Ranking, his 2020 NCAA qualification and his 10-4 (.714) record on the season.
The NCAA Championships are scheduled for March 18-20 at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis. The championships will air on the ESPN family of networks.
2021 Big Ten Championships
Bryce Jordan Center – Penn State University
Team Standings
1: Iowa – 159.5
2: Penn State – 124.0
3: Nebraska – 105.5
4: Michigan – 92.0
5: Minnesota – 77.5
6: Purdue – 76.0
7: Northwestern – 74.0
8: Michigan State – 73.5
9: Ohio State – 69.5
10: Rutgers – 52.0
11: Illinois – 32.0
12: Wisconsin – 30.5
13: Indiana – 22.0
14: Maryland – 2.0
125 - #7 Devin Schroder (R-Senior) – SECOND PLACE
First Round: #10 Justin Cardani (Illinois) - W, D 2-0
Quarterfinals: #2 Liam Cronin (Nebraska) - W, SV 3-1
Semifinals: #3 Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) - W, MD 10-0
Finals: #1 Spencer Lee (Iowa) - L, TF 21-3 (4:30)
133: #8 Jacob Rundell (Freshman) – SIXTH PLACE
First Round: #9 Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin) - W, 3-2
Quarterfinals: #1 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) - L, D 9-3
Conso. Second Round: #7 Jordan Decatur (Ohio State) - W, Forfeit
Conso. Quarterfinals: #11 Jordan Hamden (Michigan State) - W, D 6-2
Conso. Semifinals: #3 Lucas Byrd (Illinois) - L, MD 8-0
Fifth-Place Match: #9 Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin) - L, D 4-3
141: #9 Parker Filius (R-Junior) – FIFTH PLACE
First Round: #8 Drew Mattin (Michigan) - W, D 4-3
Quarterfinals: #1 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) - L, Fall 3:58
Conso. Second Round: #10 Danny Bertoni (Maryland) - W, D 6-2
Conso. Quarterfinals: #5 Dylan Duncan (Illinois) - W, D 11-7
Conso. Semifinals: #3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) - L, TF 22-6 (5:28)
Fifth-Place Match: #13 Colin Valdiviez (Northwestern) - W, D 5-2
149: #3 Griffin Parriott (R-Senior) – SEVENTH PLACE
First Round: #14 Michael North (Maryland) - W, D 4-0
Quarterfinals: #6 Michael Blockhaus (Minnesota) - L, D 4-1
Conso. Second Round: #12 Drew Scharenbrock (Wisconsin) - W, D 7-5
Conso. Quarterfinals: #8 Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) - L, TB1 7-2
Seventh-Place Match: #4 Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) - W, TB1 2-1
157: #4 Kendall Coleman (R-Sophomore) – FIFTH PLACE
First Round: #13 Luke Baughman (Indiana) - W, MD 12-3
Quarterfinals: #5 Brady Berge (Penn State) - W, D 3-2
Semifinals: #1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) - L, MD 14-1
Conso. Semifinals: #7 Chase Saldate (Michigan State) - L, D 3-1
Fifth-Place Match: #5 Brady Berge (Penn State) - W, Medical Forfeit
165: #9 Gerrit Nijenhuis (Freshman) – FIFTH PLACE
First Round: #8 Jake Tucker (Michigan State) - W, D 3-2
Quarterfinals: #1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) - L, D 8-2
Conso. Second Round: #10 Nick South (Indiana) - W, D 6-3
Conso. Quarterfinals: #6 Joe Lee (Penn State) - W, Fall 4:29
Conso. Semifinals: #7 Peyton Robb (Nebraska) - L, D 6-3
Fifth-Place Match: #8 Jake Tucker (Michigan State) - W, D 10-3
174: #12 Emil Soehnlen (R-Freshman)
First Round: #5 Donnell Washington (Indiana) - L, Fall 1:53
Conso. First Round: #13 Troy Fisher (Northwestern) - W, D 4-3
Conso. Second Round: #6 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) - L, D 4-0
Ninth-Place Bracket First Round: #13 Troy Fisher (Northwestern) - W, D 3-2*
Ninth-Place Bracket Semifinals: #8 Jared Krattinger (Wisconsin) - W, Forfeit*
Ninth-Place Match: #7 Jackson Turley (Rutgers) - L, D 6-2*
184: #7 Max Lyon (Senior) – SEVENTH PLACE
First Round: #10 Rocky Jordan (Ohio State) - W, D 3-2
Quarterfinals: #2 Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) - L, D 9-4
Conso. Second Round: #8 Zach Braunagel (Illinois) - W, SV 7-5
Conso. Quarterfinals: #3 Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) - L, D 9-8
Seventh-Place Match: #4 Owen Webster (Minnesota) - W, D 3-1
197: #6 Thomas Penola (R-Sophomore) – SEVENTH PLACE
First Round: #11 Garrett Joles (Minnesota) - W, D 8-3
Quarterfinals: #3 Jacob Warner (Iowa) - L, D 4-0
Conso. Second Round: #12 Jaron Smith (Maryland) - W, D 7-3
Conso. Quarterfinals: #7 Michael Beard (Penn State) - L, D 6-5
Seventh-Place Match: #10 Billy Janzer (Rutgers) - W, MD 10-1
285: #12 Dorian Keys (Freshman)
First Round: #5 Christian Lance (Nebraska) - L, 4-0
Conso. First Round: #13 Rudy Streck (Indiana) - L, Fall 4:11
Numbers represent Big Ten Tournament seedings
* - Matches for ninth place do not count towards team scoring
The Boilermakers finish in the top-six for the second straight season, the first time they've posted back-to-back conference top-six showings since 1991 and 1992, when they took fifth each year. The second consecutive year with eight placewinners matches the first time since 2003 and 2004, and marks the fifth time in program history the Boilermakers have put eight on the conference championship podium.
At-large bids for nationals will be announced Tuesday, while all of Purdue's national qualifiers will receive their seeds and first-round matchups for NCAA's on Wednesday at 6 p.m. ET. The Boilermakers have had eight national qualifiers in each of the last two seasons, matching their highest total in program history. An at-large bid Tuesday would mark Purdue's sixth season all-time with eight NCAA qualifiers and the fourth under head coach Tony Ersland.
The Boilermakers struggled in the consolation semifinals to open the day, losing all four available contests. Freshman Jacob Rundell fell to No. 3 seed Lucas Byrd of Illinois, junior Parker Filius suffered a loss to No. 3 seed Sebastian Rivera of Rutgers, sophomore Kendall Coleman gave up a last-second takedown in a 3-1 loss to Chase Saldate of Michigan State and freshman Gerrit Nijenhuis dropped a decision to Nebraska's Peyton Robb.
Filius bounced back in the fifth-place match, using a pair of first-period takedowns to take a 5-2 decision over Northwestern's Colin Valdiviez. Filius scored early with a double-leg and snared another near the buzzer in the first period that was confirmed by review. It marks Filius' second straight year on the podium and his second national qualification. Coleman also took fifth, accepting a forfeit from Penn State's Brady Berge.
Nijenhuis rebounded with a dominant 10-3 decision over Michigan State's Jake Tucker, defeating him for the second time in the tournament. The Boilermaker rookie scored right off the whistle for an early lead, posted his team-best ninth reversal of the season in the third and then took Tucker to his back for six points at the buzzer, nearly getting the fall.
Rundell settled for sixth place, falling on a riding-time point to No. 9 seed Kyle Burwick of Wisconsin 4-3. Rundell controlled the mat for much of the match, drawing a stalling point from Burwick, but gave up a takedown in the third period and saw 1:10 of riding time as the difference.
Rundell and Nijenhuis are the first true freshman for the Boilermakers to place at Big Ten Championships since Christian Brunner in 2017, and Nijenhuis is the highest for a Purdue true freshman since Scott Pierre was fourth at 177 pounds in 1987.
Purdue swept the seventh-place bouts as seniors Griffin Parriott and Max Lyon and sophomore Thomas Penola all secured wins and key team points for the Boilermakers. Parriott's 2-1 tiebreaker win secured an automatic spot in the national field at 149 pounds, outlasting Northwestern's Yahya Thomas with a 30-second rideout in overtime. Lyon snared a first-period takedown against No. 4 seed Owen Webster of Minnesota and went on to avenge a regular-season loss with a 3-1 decision at 184 pounds. Penola picked up a big-time bonus point for the Boilermakers at 197, rolling to a 10-1 major decision over Rutgers' Billy Janzer. The win gives Penola another criteria for the NCAA Championship at-large pool, adding to his NCAA Coaches Ranking, his 2020 NCAA qualification and his 10-4 (.714) record on the season.
The NCAA Championships are scheduled for March 18-20 at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis. The championships will air on the ESPN family of networks.
2021 Big Ten Championships
Bryce Jordan Center – Penn State University
Team Standings
1: Iowa – 159.5
2: Penn State – 124.0
3: Nebraska – 105.5
4: Michigan – 92.0
5: Minnesota – 77.5
6: Purdue – 76.0
7: Northwestern – 74.0
8: Michigan State – 73.5
9: Ohio State – 69.5
10: Rutgers – 52.0
11: Illinois – 32.0
12: Wisconsin – 30.5
13: Indiana – 22.0
14: Maryland – 2.0
125 - #7 Devin Schroder (R-Senior) – SECOND PLACE
First Round: #10 Justin Cardani (Illinois) - W, D 2-0
Quarterfinals: #2 Liam Cronin (Nebraska) - W, SV 3-1
Semifinals: #3 Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) - W, MD 10-0
Finals: #1 Spencer Lee (Iowa) - L, TF 21-3 (4:30)
133: #8 Jacob Rundell (Freshman) – SIXTH PLACE
First Round: #9 Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin) - W, 3-2
Quarterfinals: #1 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) - L, D 9-3
Conso. Second Round: #7 Jordan Decatur (Ohio State) - W, Forfeit
Conso. Quarterfinals: #11 Jordan Hamden (Michigan State) - W, D 6-2
Conso. Semifinals: #3 Lucas Byrd (Illinois) - L, MD 8-0
Fifth-Place Match: #9 Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin) - L, D 4-3
141: #9 Parker Filius (R-Junior) – FIFTH PLACE
First Round: #8 Drew Mattin (Michigan) - W, D 4-3
Quarterfinals: #1 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) - L, Fall 3:58
Conso. Second Round: #10 Danny Bertoni (Maryland) - W, D 6-2
Conso. Quarterfinals: #5 Dylan Duncan (Illinois) - W, D 11-7
Conso. Semifinals: #3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) - L, TF 22-6 (5:28)
Fifth-Place Match: #13 Colin Valdiviez (Northwestern) - W, D 5-2
149: #3 Griffin Parriott (R-Senior) – SEVENTH PLACE
First Round: #14 Michael North (Maryland) - W, D 4-0
Quarterfinals: #6 Michael Blockhaus (Minnesota) - L, D 4-1
Conso. Second Round: #12 Drew Scharenbrock (Wisconsin) - W, D 7-5
Conso. Quarterfinals: #8 Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) - L, TB1 7-2
Seventh-Place Match: #4 Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) - W, TB1 2-1
157: #4 Kendall Coleman (R-Sophomore) – FIFTH PLACE
First Round: #13 Luke Baughman (Indiana) - W, MD 12-3
Quarterfinals: #5 Brady Berge (Penn State) - W, D 3-2
Semifinals: #1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) - L, MD 14-1
Conso. Semifinals: #7 Chase Saldate (Michigan State) - L, D 3-1
Fifth-Place Match: #5 Brady Berge (Penn State) - W, Medical Forfeit
165: #9 Gerrit Nijenhuis (Freshman) – FIFTH PLACE
First Round: #8 Jake Tucker (Michigan State) - W, D 3-2
Quarterfinals: #1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) - L, D 8-2
Conso. Second Round: #10 Nick South (Indiana) - W, D 6-3
Conso. Quarterfinals: #6 Joe Lee (Penn State) - W, Fall 4:29
Conso. Semifinals: #7 Peyton Robb (Nebraska) - L, D 6-3
Fifth-Place Match: #8 Jake Tucker (Michigan State) - W, D 10-3
174: #12 Emil Soehnlen (R-Freshman)
First Round: #5 Donnell Washington (Indiana) - L, Fall 1:53
Conso. First Round: #13 Troy Fisher (Northwestern) - W, D 4-3
Conso. Second Round: #6 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) - L, D 4-0
Ninth-Place Bracket First Round: #13 Troy Fisher (Northwestern) - W, D 3-2*
Ninth-Place Bracket Semifinals: #8 Jared Krattinger (Wisconsin) - W, Forfeit*
Ninth-Place Match: #7 Jackson Turley (Rutgers) - L, D 6-2*
184: #7 Max Lyon (Senior) – SEVENTH PLACE
First Round: #10 Rocky Jordan (Ohio State) - W, D 3-2
Quarterfinals: #2 Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) - L, D 9-4
Conso. Second Round: #8 Zach Braunagel (Illinois) - W, SV 7-5
Conso. Quarterfinals: #3 Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) - L, D 9-8
Seventh-Place Match: #4 Owen Webster (Minnesota) - W, D 3-1
197: #6 Thomas Penola (R-Sophomore) – SEVENTH PLACE
First Round: #11 Garrett Joles (Minnesota) - W, D 8-3
Quarterfinals: #3 Jacob Warner (Iowa) - L, D 4-0
Conso. Second Round: #12 Jaron Smith (Maryland) - W, D 7-3
Conso. Quarterfinals: #7 Michael Beard (Penn State) - L, D 6-5
Seventh-Place Match: #10 Billy Janzer (Rutgers) - W, MD 10-1
285: #12 Dorian Keys (Freshman)
First Round: #5 Christian Lance (Nebraska) - L, 4-0
Conso. First Round: #13 Rudy Streck (Indiana) - L, Fall 4:11
Numbers represent Big Ten Tournament seedings
* - Matches for ninth place do not count towards team scoring