In a home duel against No. 17 ranked Rutgers (5–2 overall, 0–0 Big Ten) on Sunday, Princeton Wrestling (2–4 overall, 0–0 Ivy League) lost eight of the ten total matches, with a final score of 7–32. Although Princeton was defeated by a sizable margin, a number of starting wrestlers were injured and unable to compete.
“We were definitely short handed in a lot of weights,” head coach Joe Dubuque told The Daily Princetonian. “I was actually pretty encouraged with the fight that those ten individuals (starters) brought.”
This event was hosted by Princeton in Jadwin Gymnasium, with hundreds of spectators filling the audience. The energy from the home crowd attempted to give the short-handed Tigers a boost, but the first half was all Scarlet Knights.
The duel began at the 141-pound weight class, with a close match ending in a loss for Princeton sophomore Drew Heethuis. The first half of the tournament continued with four more Princeton losses, including a major decision (8 to 14 point loss) in the 157-pound weight class and a pin against first-year Xavier Giles in the 174 weight class.
The second half of the duel proved more fruitful for the wrestling team in terms of success on the mat. Senior Michael Squires secured the first victory of the day in the 184 weight class, where he won the match with a final score of 3–0. Squires escaped in the second period, and started out the third period on top, keeping control throughout the period.
“That kid about a year ago majored me,” Squires told the ‘Prince.’ “Just to have that improvement, I feel like I’ve made a big mental jump. It just shows how much work I've been doing.”
Following three more Tiger losses, first-year Dan Jones from the 133-pound weight class finished out the duel with the final win of the afternoon. Jones won with a final score of 9–1, a major decision earning four team points for Princeton.
“I knew it was going to be tough coming in,” said Dubuque. “I told them before the match started we need to fight every position, every point, every minute of the match, and we need to represent our brand to the best of our ability. So I thought we did that, to the guys who stepped on the mat.”
Despite sitting at a 2–4 record, Princeton has made it a point to build a tough non-conference schedule to test themselves early on. Rutgers is already the fourth ranked opponent that the Tigers have faced in the young season, building experience against strong opponents before the Ivy League season.
This duel came after Princeton fell to No .2 ranked Iowa (6–0 overall, 0–0 Big Ten) on Friday, with only three team points total for the Princeton wrestlers. Earlier in the season, the Tigers also wrestled No. 6 ranked N. C. State (5–0 overall, 0–0 Atlantic Coast Conference), losing 6–34.
“I’m so happy that we have such a tough schedule, that we’re wrestling so many tough teams, because you get the test yourself every weekend, and you know exactly what you need to keep working on,” said Squires. “We’re going out, we’re wrestling the toughest teams, and that’s the best way to get better, win or lose.”
Princeton is hoping that the tough competition will serve as preparation for the Ivy League season in February and March, including the inaugural Ivy League tournament that they will host at Jadwin on March 9. Despite the losses, they still look to be early favorites behind highly ranked members of the team.
Moving forward, Dubuque has high hopes for the team as they continue towards the half-way mark of their season in the coming weeks.
“I want to go out to Midlands, and I think we have a team that can place top five,” Dubuque told the ‘Prince.’ “I think we can get a Midlands champ. I think we can beat West Virginia.”
The team will wrestle next at the Midlands Championships in Illinois from Dec. 29 to Dec. 30, and at home in Jadwin Gym on Jan. 4 against West Virginia (3–0 overall, 0–0 Big 12).
Devon Rudolph is a News and Sports contributor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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