Blue Devils Split at Maryland Duals

Saturday, December 4

College Park, Md.

10 A.M.

Duke University

Drexel

Photo by: Sam Janicki

Blue Devils Split at Maryland Duals

12/4/2021 5:13:00 PM | Wrestling

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The Duke wrestling program (3-2) split its two duals on Saturday, defeating Drexel (1-4), 25-20 in the opener, before falling to Maryland (2-2), 23-17 in the finale at the Xfinity Center Pavilion on the campus of Maryland.

With the 3-2 record, the Blue Devils are off to the program's best dual match start since the 2014-15 season, when they started 5-1.

The Blue Devils began the day in thrilling fashion, edging out Drexel on the final match. The morning started out with a huge win by sophomore Logan Agin, who secured a win by fall over Antonio Mininno just 0:33 into the match to give Duke a 6-0 lead.

After Drexel secured 10 points off a fall and major decision, redshirt senior Josh Finesilver tied the match with a convincing 13-5 major decision over Tyler Williams. Junior Wade Unger followed it up with his biggest win of the season, defeating No. 32 Parker Kropman for the first ranked win of his collegiate career to give Duke a 13-10 lead.

Redshirt senior Matt Finesilver earned the highest ranked win of the day, downing No. 14 Mickey O'Malley in a 6-2 decision. Finesilver remains unblemished against ranked opponents this season, improving to 3-0 on the year.

After a win from redshirt senior Kaden Russell, Duke trailed 20-19 entering the final match. With the win up for grabs, junior Jonah Niesenbaum rose to the occasion, earning his fifth win by fall this season and securing a match clinching six points for the Blue Devils.

In the finale, the Blue Devils were locked in another close battle with long-time former ACC foe Maryland. Agin capped off a terrific personal day with another win by fall to start the match, and Josh Finesilver cruised to another major decision to give Duke a 10-9 lead.

Unger and Matt Finesilver added more points to the Duke lead and capped off 2-0 days, with Finesilver improving to a perfect 13-0 this season, as Duke jumped ahead 17-12. However, Maryland responded with eight points and held a 20-17 lead heading into the final match. Niesenbaum put up a tremendous fight against the No. 33 wrestler in his weight class, forcing a sudden victory period. However, Schrader secured the final two points for the win.

The Blue Devils will complete the road swing with two more duals against Hofstra and American at 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. in Washington, D.C., on Sunday. The dual against American will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Duke 25, Drexel 20
125: Logan Agin (Duke) def. Antonio Mininno (Drexel) – Fall, 0:33
133: Deon Pleasant (Drexel) def. Drake Doolittle (Duke) – Fall, 2:30
141: Jared Donahue (Drexel) def. Patrick Rowland (Duke) – MD, 11-0
149: No. 11 Josh Finesilver (Duke) def. Tyler Williams (Drexel) – MD, 13-5
157: Wade Unger (Duke) def. No. 32 Parker Kropman (Drexel) – Dec., 6-4
165: Evan Barczak (Drexel) def. Brandon LaRue (Duke) – MD, 13-4
174: No. 7 Matt Finesilver (Duke) def. No. 14 Mickey O'Malley (Drexel) – Dec., 6-2
184: Bryan McLaughlin (Drexel) def. Luke Chakonis (Duke) – Fall, 2:30
197: Kaden Russell (Duke) def. Santino Morina (Drexel) – Dec., 7-1
285: Jonah Niesenbaum (Duke) def. Liam Dietrich (Drexel) – Fall, 4:51
Extra Matches
174: Riley Onorato (Drexel) def. Conor Becker (Duke) – Dec., 3-1

Duke 17, Maryland 23
125: Logan Agin (Duke) def. Zach Spence (Maryland) – Fall, 3:18
133: King Sandoval (Maryland) def. Drake Doolittle (Duke) – Fall, 0:33
141: Danny Bertoni (Maryland) def. Patrick Rowland (Duke) – Dec., 6-1
149: No. 11 Josh Finesilver (Duke) def. Michael North (Maryland) – MD, 13-4
157: Wade Unger (Duke) def. Lucas Cordio (Maryland) – Dec., 11-4
165: John Martin Best (Maryland) def. Brandon LaRue (Duke) – Dec., 5-0
174: No. 7 Matt Finesilver (Duke) def. Dominic Solis (Maryland) – MD, 10-0
184: Kyle Cochran (Maryland) def. Vincent Baker (Duke) – MD, 13-3
197: Jaron Smith (Maryland) def. Kaden Russell (Duke) – MD, 15-2
285: No. 33 Zach Schrader (Maryland) def. Jonah Niesenbaum (Duke) – SV, 6-4

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