Jackson Upends No. 1 Nickal in Loss to Penn State

Sunday, January 10

Bloomington, Ind.

1:00 PM

Indiana University

Penn State

Jackson Upends No. 1 Nickal in Loss to Penn State

1/10/2016 10:04:00 PM | Wrestling

Goldman gets first collegiate pin in heavyweight bout

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – As the seconds ticked away in the third period, the crowd at University Gymnasium began to crescendo into a roar. Indiana junior Nate Jackson, the 11^th-ranked grappler at 174 lbs., had top-ranked Bo Nickal on the ropes.

Nickal sent a barrage of lunges at Jackson in the final 20 seconds, but Jackson swatted and parried each takedown attempt. In the final seconds, Nickal had Jackson in a single-leg, but the Hoosier junior maintained his footing.

Then, the final buzzer blared through the gymnasium. The referee reached for Jackson's arm and hoisted it to the rafters.

Jackson secured a decision win over the top-ranked grappler in the country.

"That's something he'll remember his whole life," said Indiana head coach Duane Goldman. "If you take out the No. 1 guy in the country, it doesn't matter when it was or how it was. That's something he'll remember, and that's a great victory for him."

Jackson earned one of Indiana's two bout wins in a 34-8 loss to No. 1 Penn State. Hoosier heavyweight Garret Goldman earned the first pin of his collegiate career in a win over Jan Johnson.

"It definitely shows that there's a lot of room to improve, but Penn State is a really good team," Goldman said. Overall, as a team we wrestled pretty hard and pushed ourselves. We definitely have room to improve, but that gives us an idea of where and how we can improve."

INDIANA vs. PENN STATE • Bloomington, Ind.
January 10, 2016 • University Gymnasium

Final Results: Indiana vs. Penn State
Weight	Indiana Hoosiers	Record	Result	Penn State Nittany Lions	Record
Score	8	(4-1, 1-1)		34	(8-0, 3-0)
125	Elijah Oliver, Fr.	21-5 (4-1)	D, 6-2	#4 Nico Megaludis, Sr. *	17-1 (7-1)
133	Alonzo Shepherd, Sr.	11-10 (3-2)	MD, 14-3	#4 Jordan Conaway, Sr. *	15-2 (8-0)
141	Cole Weaver, r-Fr.	16-10 (3-2)	MD, 11-3	#13 Jimmy Gulibon, Jr. *	7-4 (3-2)
149	Luke Blanton, r-So.	14-7 (3-1)	PIN, 2:43	#1 Zain Retherford, So. *	18-0 (8-0)
** 157	Jake Danishek, r-Fr.	11-4 (3-2)	MD, 21-8	#3 Jason Nolf, Fr. *	18-0 (8-0)
165	Bryce Martin, r-Fr.	15-11 (2-3)	MD, 11-2	Shakur Rasheed, Fr. *	12-5 (5-2)
174	#11 Nate Jackson, r-Jr. *	22-2 (5-0)	D, 7-6	#1 Bo Nickal, Fr.	18-1 (7-1)
184	Matt Irick, r-Jr.	12-9 (4-1)	D, 5-3	Devon Van Cura, Fr. *	7-4 (1-1)
197	Jake Masengale, r-So.	6-12 (1-4)	PIN, 2:50	#1 Morgan McIntosh, Sr. *	16-0 (8-0)
285	Garret Goldman, r-Sr. •	11-10 (3-2)	PIN 5:35	Jan Johnson, Fr.	1-5 (1-3)

* denotes match winner
** denotes starting point of the dual

The bout between Jackson and Nickal came third on Sunday's bout card, after Penn State built an 8-0 lead. Fans showed their support for Jackson as he took the mat for his first career match against a top-ranked wrestler.

"I think it's the loudest I've heard it since I've been here," Jackson said of the crowd at University Gymnasium. "That was a big deal."

After two minutes of locking up on their feet, Nickal got the first takedown. From that position, Nickal began to find leverage for some early nearfall points.

Then, without warning, Jackson made his move.

From the referee's position, Jackson sprung out of Nickal's snare for a reversal. He followed that with a four-point nearfall, and almost ended the bout with a pin. Jackson, to the delight of the Hoosier faithful, held his 6-2 lead to the end of the round.

"That's the awesome thing about wrestling—if you pin the guy, the match is over," coach Goldman said. "It doesn't matter who you are, or what the score is. His wasn't a fall, but a big six-point move helped him claim that win, and deservedly so."

Jackson displayed excellent defense in the second period. Nickal cut Jackson's lead to three points with an early-round escape, but the Hoosier held for a 6-3 lead heading into the final round.

Nickal earned a takedown at the start of the third. Jackson escaped to hold a two-point lead. Nickal nearly grabbed a second takedown with 50 seconds to go, but the official waved it off. The call was close enough to warrant a review, which halted the bout with less than a minute to go.

Fans believed that the review would slow Jackson's momentum and cost him the match. Fortunately for the junior, his coaching staff knows how to keep his mind on the bout.

"I sometimes get a little scatterbrained on the mat, and they know how to calm me down and temper me," Jackson said, explaining how he maintains his focus. "Then, I can refocus on the match. They did that for me today, so all the credit goes to them."

The officials confirmed that Nickal didn't secure a takedown, and the round resumed. Nickal forced a stalling call on Jackson to cut the lead to one, but Jackson maintained his lead to the final buzzer.

"Going in, I thought I could beat him," Jackson said after the dual. "I knew he would have some weapons, but I have my own skill set that guys haven't seen a lot of. I know I could beat anybody in the country; it's just about me showing up and having a good match.

"Getting your hand raised, that's what we work for."

Goldman Earns First Collegiate Pin

Jackson wasn't the only Hoosier with a raided hand on Sunday afternoon. Indiana senior Garret Goldman won the heavyweight bout over Penn State freshman Jan Johnson. His fall at the 5:35 mark was the first of his NCAA career.

"It's definitely a confidence booster," Goldman said regarding his win. "It's nice to get those Big Ten wins up, because they're hard to come by. It lets other guys know that you're a competitor in this conference."

Goldman got the first takedown 30 seconds into the round, followed by an escape from Johnson. IU's senior heavyweight picked up 1:16 of riding time by the end of the first.

Goldman started down in the second period, but jumped to his feet within 20 seconds. He followed with a thundering takedown for a 5-1 lead, then added another minute to his riding time. At the end of two periods, Goldman felt his moment was coming.

"From the start of the match, I wrestled hard and kept pushing him," Goldman said. "I worked to not give him any of his positions and kept him on his feet the whole time."

Goldman found his moment 25 seconds into the final period. He caught Johnson in a single-leg, tripped him onto his back, and made his move.

The pin was Goldman's first Big Ten dual win of the season.

"Garret's match today was a great thing for him, securing his first collegiate pin," coach Goldman said. "He capitalized on his opportunity and wrestled a solid match."

Up Next: #20 Indiana (4-1, 1-1) vs. Maryland (4-6, 1-3)
Friday, January 15 | 7PM | BTN Plus
Bloomington, Ind. | University Gymnasium

The Big Ten season rolls on next Friday, when the Hoosiers lock up for a home dual against the Maryland Terrapins. Indiana seeks their second Big Ten dual win for the first time since the 2009-10 season. The Hoosiers' approach to this match is the same that it's been all year.

"Our coaches have been telling us all season to not just go for it, but to go get it," Garret Goldman said. "The Big Ten is the toughest wrestling conference in the country, and Maryland is no exception. Nothing is given to you in this league, so we need to go and take it."