No. 11 Illinois (11-4, 4-2) claimed a decisive 28-6 victory over No. 24 Purdue (9-5, 2-4) on Sunday at Holloway Gymnasium. The Illini claimed eight of 10 bouts in the rout.
The Illini jumped out to an early 6-0 lead as graduate students Spencer Moore and Lucas Byrd secured victories at 125 and 133 pounds, respectively. Moore set the tone with a 6-2 decision over redshirt sophomore Ashton Jackson to stay perfect at 5-0 in conference duals. Byrd followed with a 5-4 decision win, solidifying his undefeated 15-0 record this year.
The closest the dual got was 6-3 after Purdue claimed an 11-4 decision at 141 pounds. However, Illinois redshirt sophomores Michael Gioffre and Kannon Webster quickly claimed victories at 149 and 157 pounds, respectively, to extend the lead to 14-3. Webster secured his seventh technical fall win of the season, 19-3, with multiple takedowns.
Purdue claimed a narrow 3-0 win in the 165-pound bout, but Illinois took the final four bouts of the meet. Illinois redshirt freshman Colin Kelly claimed the 174-pound bout with a 17-2 technical fall. Illinois redshirt sophomore Chris Moore and graduate students Cade Lautt and Luke Luffman all secured decisive victories, each winning their bouts with over 20 points.
The Illini return to the mat Friday when they face the No. 5 Nebraska Cornhuskers for senior day in Huff Hall at 7 p.m. CT.
Get The Daily Illini in your inbox!
