Nebraska Dominates Maryland

For the second straight day, the 18th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team rode a hot start to a dual victory. The Huskers won the first four matches in their dual at Maryland to build a 13-point lead and never looked back in a 27-12 win Saturday in College Park, Md.

The win was Nebraska’s 20th straight against ACC opponents, including its ninth straight win over ACC schools under seventh-year head coach Mark Manning.

The Huskers’ four-match winning streak started with an 11-5 win by 133-pounder Mike Rowe, who was wrestling in his home state of Maryland. Rowe won both his matches in his first weekend as a varsity starter.

Dominick Moyer followed with a 7-3 win over Charlie Pinto. Then, Robert Sanders got back on the winning track with a 6-5 win over Andrew Schlaffer. Chris Oliver capped the winning streak with a 16-3 major decision triumph over Mike McGill. Oliver closed the weekend 2-0 with two bonus-point victories.

After back-to-back losses cut Nebraska’s lead to seven, Levi Wofford put the Huskers back in the driver’s seat of the dual with a win by fall over Rich DiPietro at 184 pounds. Wofford closed his first weekend as a starter in NU’s dual lineup at 2-0, including a win against ninth-ranked Steve Borja of Virginia Tech on Friday.

Maryland cut Nebraska’s lead to seven with two matches remaining in the dual, but heavyweight Jon May clinched the dual victory for NU with a 4-0 win over Jerry Afari. With the dual in hand, Paul Donahoe won by technical fall at 125 pounds over James Knox, 19-4.

The Huskers (2-0) return to tournament competition next weekend in the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitiational in Primm, Nev. Nebraska participates in the Las Vegas Invitiational this year after a one-year absence. The Huskers won the 2004 Las Vegas Invitational championship in 2004 and took second place in 2005.

#18 Nebraska 27, Maryland 12
Comcast Center Pavilion, College Park, Md.
Saturday, Nov. 25, 2006
133?#12 Mike Rowe (NU) by dec. over Jon Kohler (MD), 11-5
141?#16 Dominick Moyer (NU) by dec. over Charlie Pinto (MD), 7-3
149?#10 Robert Sanders (NU) by dec. over Andrew Schlaffer (MD), 6-5
157?#13 Chris Oliver (NU) by major dec. over Mike McGill (MD), 16-3
165?Jason Kiessling (MD) by dec. over #12 Marc Harwood (NU), 11-6
174?Mike Letts (MD) by dec. over Casey Roberts (NU), 3-1
184?Levi Wofford (NU) by fall over Rich DiPietro (MD), 6:11
197?#11 Hudson Taylor (MD) by fall over Nick Schaefer (NU), 1:51
HWT?#14 Jon May (NU) by dec. over Jerry Afari (MD), 4-0
125?#6 Paul Donahoe (NU) by tech. fall over James Knox (MD), 19-4, 5:51