In a back and forth battle between national championship contenders, one second made the difference in the outcome of the matchup.

The duel between the two Senior All-Americans, Illinois’ Pete Freidl and Purdue’s Ben Wissel, was so highly anticipated that it was moved so it would be the last dual of the meet.

Freidl and Wissel, No. 2 and No. 4 in the rankings at 184 pounds, had met twice before and they were 1-1 against each other going into Friday’s match. So it was fitting that the actual score of the match was 1-1 going into the final seconds in what was seemingly a match headed for overtime.

But with only one second left on the clock, Wissel pulled off a takedown to earn two points and a 3-1 win.

“It kind of put a damper on the meet, but they’re two good athletes out there and they are going to meet a couple more times,” Illini head coach Mark Johnson said. “You want to win every dual you can, and I feel bad for Pete, but it’s part of the game.”

The No.3 Illini still earned the victory, 27-7 over the Boilermakers, to push their undefeated record in dual meets to 5-0.

“It was a short week for us, we came back from California Monday night, so we were worried about the turnaround time, but I was very pleased; we wrestled well tonight,” Johnson said.

In front of a crowd of nearly one thousand people, senior Tyrone Byrd put the Illini in a good position to start off with when he earned a 3-2 victory and his third of the season over Nathan Moore.

“It’s nice to be able to get it out of the way,” Byrd said. “It’s nice to be able to relax and just watch everybody wrestle and cheer them on.”

Junior heavyweight Matt Weight also excelled as he earned a 3-2 victory over Aaron Keough. Senior All-American Kyle Ott showed why he’s No.3 in the nation at 125 pounds, earning six takedowns against Brandon Tucker, and winning with a major decision, 13-4.

The Illini’s first loss of the meet was in the 133-lb match, when sophomore Gabe Flores took on Purdue’s sixth year senior All-American Chris Fleeger. Fleeger, No.6 in the country at 133-lbs, defeated Flores with a major decision, 13-3.

Junior All-American Cassio Pero got things back on track for the Illini with a 5-0 victory over Jason Cook. Redshirt freshman Troy Tirapelle (149 lbs) earned his teamleading 18th victory in dominating fashion, with a 12-6 win.

Not to be outdone, his brother senior All-American and No.1 Alex Tirapelle (157 lbs) defeated Jake Murphy 6-1. Redshirt freshman Mike Poeta, No.9 at 165 lbs, added another major decision for the Illini with an 11-2 victory over Dan Bedoy.

No. 17 junior Donny Reynolds (174 lbs) finished the scoring for the Illini with a major decision victory over Nick Corpe, 14-3.