The No. 7 Illinois wrestling team swept a two-match road trip to begin the new year, defeating No. 25 Pittsburgh, 26-10 on Saturday night. On Friday, the Illinois grapplers topped West Virginia, 26-19.

At Fitzgerald Field House, the team improved its dual match record to 7-0 on the season, winning seven of 10 bouts against Pittsburgh. B.J. Futrell began the night for the Illini with a pin in 4:43, followed by major decisions by Jimmy Kennedy and Mike Poeta.

“Tonight was probably the best we’ve wrestled all year,” Illinois head coach Mark Johnson said in a press release. “It was just a great team performance and John Wise’s win over one of the top guys in the nation topped it all off.”

With the win already clinched by Illinois, Wise defeated fourth-ranked Zach Sheaffer of Pittsburgh, 6-2.

The previous night, Poeta’s notched a 20-4 technical fall in his season debut to lead Illinois over West Virginia.

The Illini are off until Jan. 25, when the team will travel to Iowa City to face the top-ranked Hawkeyes. The dual meet, which officially kicks off Big Ten competition for the team, will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network at 5 p.m.