Kokesh Captures Midlands Title

Evanston, Ill. - Sophomore Robert Kokesh won both his matches on Sunday at the Midlands Invitational en route to the individual crown at 174 pounds.

The Nebraska wrestling team tied for 15th with 39 points. Illinois took home the team title with 99.5 points, edging Virginia Tech by two.

Following a 4-0 Saturday, Kokesh picked up right where he left off on Sunday with a 10-2 major decision over Northwestern's Lee Munster in the semifinals. In the championship match, the Wagner, S.D. native won an 8-4 decision over Lehigh's Nate Brown.

Over the course of his championship run, Kokesh outscored his opponents 46-7 and added two pins to extend his number to eight on the season. He improves to 22-1 for the 2012-13 campaign after earning his 17th consecutive victory on Sunday.

Redshirt freshman Austin Wilson advanced to the second day of the Midlands Invitational in the wrestleback bracket at 165 pounds. Following a 4-1 showing on Saturday, Wilson dropped a 7-5 decision to Rider's Ramon Santiago on Sunday.

The Huskers return to action on the road at Michigan on Jan. 11 at 6 p.m. The match will be available on Big Ten Network. The following night, Nebraska faces Northwestern at 7 p.m. in Evanston, Ill. NU's next home match is on Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. against Illinois.

Midlands Invitational Complete Results
125 pounds
First Round
Tim Lambert (Nebraska) by major dec. over Derek Elmore (Northern Illinois), 12-0
Eric Coufal (Nebraska) by dec. over Jake Papke (UW Park), 6-1
Second Round
Jesse Delgado (Illinois) by major dec. over Tim Lambert (Nebraska), 12-4
Jarrod Garnett (Virginia Tech) by pin over Eric Coufal (Nebraska), 3:50
Wrestleback
Miguel Comparan (CSU Bakersfield) by dec. over Eric Coufal (Nebraska), 9-5
Dylan Peters (Northern Iowa) by dec. over Tim Lambert">Tim Lambert (Nebraska), 8-1

133 pounds
First Round
Levi Wolfensperger (Northern Iowa) by major dec. over Shawn Nagel (Nebraska), 11-1
Wrestleback
Shelton Mack (Pittsburgh) by dec. over Shawn Nagel (Nebraska), 6-2

141 pounds
First Round
Frank Goodwin (Maryland) by pin over Ridge Kiley (Nebraska), 5:50
Mark Erickson (North Dakota State) by dec. over Skylar Galloway (Nebraska), 9-3
Wrestleback
Ridge Kiley (Nebraska) by dec. over Jameson Oster (Northwestern), 12-5
Skylar Galloway (Nebraska) by dec. over Timmy Box (CSU Bakersfield), 10-5
Travis Shaffer (Pittsburgh) by major dec. over Ridge Kiley (Nebraska), 8-0
Ryan Lubeck (Wisconsin) by dec. over Skylar Galloway (Nebraska), 3-2

157 pounds
First Round
Taylor Walsh (Indiana) by pin over Brandon Wilbourn (Nebraska), 6:36
Wrestleback
Brandon Wilbourn (Nebraska) by med. forfeit over Zac Cibula (Rider)
Jake Crawford (North Carolina) by dec. over Brandon Wilbourn (Nebraska), 8-4

165 pounds
First Round
Taylor Massa (Michigan) by dec. over Tyler Koehn (Nebraska), 11-8
Pete Yates (Virginia Tech) by major dec. over Austin Wilson (Nebraska), 14-3
Wrestleback
Austin Wilson (Nebraska) by major dec. over Curtis Cook (Utah Valley), 12-0
Frank Cousins (Wisconsin) by default over Tyler Koehn (Nebraska)
Austin Wilson (Nebraska) by dec. over Doug Welch (Purdue), 6-1
Austin Wilson (Nebraska) by dec. over Mike Ottinger (Central Michigan), 9-4
Austin Wilson (Nebraska) by dec. over Casey Kent (Penn), 6-3
Ramon Santiago (Rider) by dec. over Austin Wilson (Nebraska), 7-5

174 pounds
First Round
Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) by pin over Ryan Darch (Clarion), 5:55
Second Round
Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) by major dec. over Austin Morehead (Oregon State), 13-1
Third Round
Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) by pin over Harrison Cook (Penn), 2:52
Quarterfinals
Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) by tech. fall over Bryce Hammond (CSU Bakersfield), 15-0
Semifinals
Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) by major dec. over Lee Munster (Northwestern), 10-2
Championship
Robert Kokesh (Nebraska) by dec. over Nate Brown (Lehigh), 8-4

197 pounds
First Round
Hudson Taylor (Lions WC) by dec. over Caleb Kolb (Nebraska), 3-1
Wrestleback
Caleb Kolb (Nebraska) by dec. over Brad Johnson (Oklahoma), 3-2
Caleb Kolb (Nebraska) by dec. over Anthony Abro (Eastern Michigan), 7-2
Braden Atwood (Purdue) by dec. over Caleb Kolb (Nebraska), 2-1

Heavyweight
First Round
Collin Jensen (Nebraska) by dec. over Carl Buchholz (Maryland), 6-2
Second Round
Collin Jensen (Nebraska) by pin over Steven Graziano (Penn), 2:32
Third Round
Michael McMullan (Northwestern) by dec. over Collin Jensen (Nebraska), 7-0
Wrestleback
Justin Dozier (Michigan) by dec. over Collin Jensen (Nebraska), 10-6