Padden Leads Huskers to Victory over Tigers

Lincoln -- Behind sophomore B.J. Padden’s 11-3 major decision over 18th-ranked Jeff Foust, the third-ranked Nebraska wrestling team overcame a seven-point deficit to record its 16th dual win of the season and defeat fourth-ranked Missouri, 23-13, in front of 1,372 fans Saturday night at the NU Coliseum.

The victory over the Tigers marked the first time since 2000-01 that NU opened conference play with a victory. The 1,372 fans were the largest crowd to see the Huskers wrestle since 1,076 fans watch NU take on Air Force at the Bob Devaney Center Track on Feb. 22, 2003.

Following fourth-ranked Travis Pascoe’s (Rathdrum, Idaho) 10-5 victory over 11th-ranked Matt Pell, Padden (Buffalo County) used a three-point near fall as time expired in the first period to break a 2-2 tie and lead him to victory.

"It felt good to go out there and wrestle as well as we did tonight," Padden said. "Especially in front of such a great crowd. They were awesome."

Following Padden’s victory, senior heavyweight Nathan McClain (Flora Vista, N.M.) gave NU the lead for good with his 18th victory of the year over No. 11 Mike Whithead, 8-1. Top-ranked Jason Powell rebounded from his first loss of the season as he defeated Austin DeVoe, 1-0 at 125 pounds. While neither wrestler was able to score and offensive points, Powell road DeVoe for the entire second period to earn the riding time victory. The last match of the night saw 12th-ranked Matt Keller dominate 13th-ranked Paul Collum, 10-1.

The opening match of the night saw the first of eight matches featuring ranked wrestlers as No. 12 Matt Murray (Colby, Mo.) faced off against No. 13 J.P. Reese. After a scoreless first period, Murray recorded a escape 1:35 into the second stanza to give him a 1-0 lead. Murray extended his lead to 3-0 with a take down at the 1:12 mark. Near the end of the second period, Murray was able to score a two-point near fall to give him a 5-0 lead heading into the final period. Despite being called for his second stall warning, Murray was able to hold of Reese, 5-1 to give the Huskers a 3-0 lead.

"I was ready to go out there and set the tempo," Murray said. "Our coaches say we’re the closest team they’ve ever been around, and that’s very true. We feed off each other, so I wanted to go out there and set the tempo, so everybody else could feed off me."

The next match saw two of the nation’s best wrestlers in second-ranked Travis Shufelt (Oconto, Wis.) face off against sixth-ranked Jeremy Spates. Spates recorded the first offensive point, 1:55 into the match before Shufelt recorded an escape to cut the lead to 2-1. Down by one, Spates extended his lead to 4-1 with a reversal at the :45 second mark. Shufelt followed with an escape to cut the lead to one. In the third period, Shufelt tied the match up at three with an escape at the 1:39 mark. Spates regained the lead with a takedown at :48. Shufelt again cut the lead to two with an escape but was unable to overcome the deficit as Missouri took the match, 6-4. The loss by Shufelt snapped his 22-match winning streak.

Following the Shufelt loss, Missouri extended its lead to 7-3 as eighth-ranked Kenny Burleson major decisioned 14th-ranked B.J. Wright (Elberta, Utah), 11-2.

At 165 pounds, sophomore Jacob Klein (Valley Center, Kan.) was trailing ninth-ranked and All-American Tyron Woodley, 2-0 in the third period before Woodley was called for his second stall waring, resulting in a point for Klein. Klein then tied the match at two with an escape at the 1:42 mark. Klein was able to withstand Woodley’s attempts at a takedown as he won the match because he had 1:23 riding time, giving him the 3-2 upset victory and bringing NU back to within one.

"I knew that this was going to be a big weight class for us," Klein said. "I knew that I could beat him, and all I had to do was go out there and do it."

Sophomore James Pummel (Spearfish, S.D.) followed the Klein victory at 174 pounds, falling to sixth-ranked Ben Askren, at the 4:29 mark of the second period to give Missouri a 13-6 lead. Fourth-ranked Travis Pascoe (Rathdrum, Idaho) brought NU back within four at 13-9 as he defeated No. 11 Matt Pell, 10-5. The win by Pascoe extended his record to 22-0 overall and 16-0 in duals.

"I’m happy for our guys, because it shows that they can be Big 12 Champions," Head Coach Mark Manning said. "They (the rest of the Big 12) know that we have a good team."

The Huskers return to action on Friday, Jan. 30 as they travel to Tempe, Ariz. to take on No. 13 Arizona State at 8 p.m. Earlier this year the Huskers defeated the Sun Devils, 38-(-1) at the Virginia Duals on Jan. 11.

#3 Nebraska 23, #4 Missouri 13
141 #12 Matt Murray (NU) dec. #13 J.P. Reese (MU), 5-1 NU 3, MU 0
149 #6 Jeremy Spates (MU) dec. #3 Travis Shufelt, 6-4 Tied at three
157 #8 Kenny Burleson (MU) by maj. dec. over #14 B.J. Wright (NU), 11-2 MU 7, NU 3
165 #15 Jacob Klein (NU) dec. #9 Tyron Woodley (MU), 3-2 MU 7, NU 6
174 #6 Ben Askren (MU) by fall over James Pummel (NU), 4:29 MU 13, NU 6
184 #4 Travis Pascoe (NU) dec. #11 Matt Pell (MU), 10-5 MU 13, NU 9
197 #3 B.J. Padden (NU) by maj. dec. over #18 Jeff Foust (MU), 11-3 Tied at 13
HWT #14 Nathan McClain (NU) dec. #17 Mike Whitehead (MU), 8-1 NU 16, NU 13
125 #1 Jason Powell (NU) dec. Austin DeVoe (MU), 1-0 NU 19, MU 13
133 #12 Matt Keller (NU) by maj. dec. over #13 Paul Collum (MU), 10-1 NU 23, MU 13