MSU wrestling’s unbeaten start to the season was ended by No. 12 Michigan this Sunday by a score of 29-12. The Spartans now fall to 7-1 on the season as they drop their first Big Ten Conference meet.

The first action of the night was the 133-pound weigh-in with Michigan State’s 183rd-ranked redshirt sophomore Andrew Hampton (4-12), who faced off against 5th-ranked redshirt junior Dylan Ragusin (12-0) from the University of Michigan.

Ragusin took a commanding 9-2 lead just halfway into the first period and continued his effortless domination against Hampton, ending the dual with 30 seconds left in the first period following his fifth takedown to win by technical fall, with a score of 19-4. This led to Michigan racking up an early 5-0 lead in the meet.

In the 141-pound weigh-in, 30th-ranked redshirt senior Jordan Hamdan (14-3) represented the Spartans, who faced off against 29th-ranked freshman Sergio Lemley (9-3) of the Wolverines.

The matchup saw minimal action in the first three periods, which led the match to a sudden victory. In the overtime period, Lemley comfortably secured a takedown seconds in, to earn the 4-1 decision for the Wolverines and extend their lead to 8-0.

The 149-pound weigh-in saw 5th-ranked graduate Austin Gomez (2-0) step onto the mat for the Wolverines as he faced 148th-ranked redshirt freshman Braden Stauffenberg (5-9).

Gomez asserted himself early on and secured two takedowns in the first minute and a half of the first period. Just moments later, Gomez secured his third takedown and flawlessly transitioned the takedown into a fall to end the match and add to the Wolverine’s now 14-0 commanding lead. 

23rd-ranked senior and captain Chase Saldate (14-3) took the mat next for the Spartans in the 157-pound weigh-in who faced 62nd-ranked redshirt sophomore Zack Mattin (9-5).

Saldate secured a takedown almost instantly at the start of the first period and pinned Mattin down with just under one minute and 50 seconds left on the clock. Saldate continued his unstoppable form with his third fall in three meets and brought the Spartans back within six points.

The Spartan’s 1-2 punch they’ve looked to all season continued with 14th-ranked senior Caleb Fish (16-4), who faced off against Michigan’s 6th-ranked redshirt senior Cameron Amine (7-2) in the 165-pound weigh-in.

Amine took an early lead because of a first-period takedown before hunkering down and protecting a 4-3 lead until the final ten seconds of the third period. But with just under ten seconds left, Fish flew onto Amine’s back and secured what was virtually a buzzer-beater takedown to win 6-4 over the 6th-ranked 165-pounder and bring the Spartans within five points going into the break with the score at 14-9.

The 174-pound weigh-in matchup was Michigan’s 3rd-ranked graduate Shane Griffith (7-2) against Michigan State’s 74th-ranked redshirt senior D.J. Shannon (7-8). Griffith took a period to get going but early in the second period, he secured a commanding 4-0 lead following a takedown and escape. Griffith’s lead was controlling and secured an 8-1 win following a second takedown with ten seconds left, earning another four points for the Wolverines.

In the 184-pound weigh-in, the Spartan’s 19th-ranked graduate student Layne Malczewski (5-3) faced Michigan’s 35th-ranked redshirt junior Jaden Bullock (10-4). 

Bullock started off strong and secured a takedown in the first period, earning an early 3-1 lead. In the second period following review, Bullock was awarded a reversal over Malczewski, who instantly responded at the restart with a reversal of his own as the pair entered the third period at a score of 5-4. During the third period, Malczewski hunted for a way back into the battle but Bullock defended valiantly and secured a takedown of his own with just seconds left as Bullock secured an 8-4 decision victory.

Later in the 197-pound weigh-in, 46th-ranked redshirt freshman Kael Wisler (19-8) took the mat next for the Spartans, who faced the Wolverine’s 83rd-ranked graduate Bobby Striggow (4-4). 

Wisler and Striggow battled relentlessly across the first two periods with neither able to score a point. It wasn’t until the third period for the scoring to start when Wisler took a 1-0 lead due to an escape. Wisler built on the lead to a 5-0 decision victory. 

The heavyweight division saw Michigan State’s 37th-ranked redshirt freshman Josh Terrill (23-6) against Michigan’s 6th-ranked graduate Lucas Davison (8-1). For Terrill, this was one of the biggest matchups of his young collegiate career as a potential national champion.

Davison established himself early on with an early takedown in the first period to take a 3-0 lead going into the second. The second and third periods of the battle were much of the same as Davison went on to secure a second, third, fourth and fifth takedown on his way to a convincing 17-3 win, tallying up a total meet score of 26-12 in favor of the Wolverines thus far. 

The final matchup of the night took place in the 125-pound weigh-in with 41st-ranked redshirt junior Tristan Lujan (13-6), who stepped onto the mat for the Spartans against Michigan’s 10th-ranked graduate Michael DeAugustino (5-1). 

DeAugustino secured the team’s final three points of the night with a 7-2 decision victory. He took the lead with an early takedown on Lujan in the first period, but Lujan would bring the score to 2-4 in the third period because of escapes. Later on, with a minute left, DeAugustino secured his second takedown to end the meet. The final score was 29-12, with the University of Michigan Wolverines coming out victorious. 

The Spartans will continue Big Ten action on Friday, Jan. 19, where they will host No. 14 Rutgers. The meet is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. at Jenison Fieldhouse with streaming available on Big Ten Plus.