Huskers Suffer First Loss of Season to No. 6 NC State

Lincoln, Neb. – The No. 12 Nebraska wrestling team (2-1) fell to No. 6 NC State, 29-3, at the Devaney Center on Friday night.

The Huskers and Wolfpack (10-0) were tied 3-3 after two matches, but NC State won each of the last eight bouts to end the dual on a 26-0 run. No. 10 Isaiah White notched a 9-3 decision over Brian Hamann at 165 pounds after the dual started at 157 pounds. White, a Chicago, Ill., native improves to 12-2 on the season after finishing third at the Cliff Keen Invitational earlier this month.

In the opening match of the night, No. 7 Tyler Berger (157) dropped a 6-3 decision to 16th-ranked Hayden Hidlay. Berger, an All-American last season, falls to 10-3 this season. The Wolfpack won by decision in seven of the last eight matches and added a technical fall at 133 pounds.

At 174 pounds, Beau Breske fell to Daniel Bullard, 6-5, before No. 6 Taylor Venz (184) dropped a 9-6 decision to third-ranked Pete Renda. Eric Schultz (197) lost to No. 7 Michael Macchivello, 6-2, giving NC State a 12-3 lead at halftime.

Mitchell Maginnis battled back and forth with Tommy Cox, but the Wolfpack grappler broke a 6-6 tie with one point for riding time to take the decision victory.

After dropping a technical fall at 133 pounds, NU tried to gain ground on the Wolfpack in a top-10 matchup between No. 8 Chad Red Jr. and second-ranked Kevin Jack, but the NC State wrestler was too much for Red, as Jack won a 9-3 decision.

In the final bout of the night, Collin Purinton battled strong against a top-20 wrestler, but fell by an 11-10 decision to No. 17 Beau Donahue. Purinton held a lead late in the match, but Donahue scored three takedowns in the third period, including one in the final seconds, as the Wolfpack clinched the final margin.

NU’s three team points were its lowest in a dual since suffering a 33-3 loss to top-ranked Iowa in January of 2010.

The Huskers return to action on Sunday when they host North Carolina at the Devaney Center starting at 2 p.m. (CT). The dual will be streamed on BTN Plus/Flowrestling.

No. 6 NC State 29, No. 12 Nebraska 3
Dec. 15, 2017
Lincoln, Neb. - Bob Devaney Sports Center (Attendance: 1,030)

Match Results
157: #16 Hayden Hidlay (NCSU) dec. #7 Tyler Berger (NEB), 6-3 (NCSU 3, NEB 0)
165: #10 Isaiah White (NEB) dec. Brian Hamann (NCSU), 9-3 (NCSU 3, NEB 3)
174: Daniel Bullard (NCSU) dec. Beau Breske (NEB), 6-5 (NCSU 6, NEB 3)
184: #3 Pete Renda (NCSU) dec. #6 Taylor Venz (NEB), 9-6 (NCSU 9, NEB 3)
197: #7 Michael Macchiavello (NCSU) dec. Eric Schultz (NEB), 6-2 (NCSU 12, NEB 3)
HWT: Malik McDonald (NCSU) dec. David Jensen (NEB), 9-5 (NCSU 15, NEB 3)
125: Tommy Cox (NCSU) dec. Mitchell Maginnis (NEB), 7-6 (NCSU 18, NEB 3)
133: Tariq Wilson (NCSU) tech. fall Zak Hensley (NEB), 17-1 (NCSU 23, NEB 3)
141: #2 Kevin Jack (NCSU) dec. #8 Chad Red Jr. (NEB), 9-3 (NCSU 26, NEB 3)
149: #17 Beau Donahue (NCSU) dec. Collin Purinton (NEB), 11-10 (NCSU 29, NEB 3)