CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The No. 24 Fighting Illini wrestling team emerged victorious in both of their duals at Huff Hall on Sunday, Nov. 19; Illinois defeated Central Michigan (CMU) first, 32-3 and then No. 21 North Carolina (UNC) next, 20-13.

"Pretty happy with how today went," said head coach Mike Poeta "We beat a really tough team in UNC and we beat some really good individuals against CMU. Tony Madrigal being out there for the first time I thought he looked great; Kannon Webster is impressing us more and more.'

'Joe Roberts with a big win over Lovett (CMU) who's ranked 15th in the country, that's a big win for him. Roberts hasn't fully believed that he's belonged, but a win like that makes me very excited for him. He got a little banged up in that match that's why Braeden Scoles wrestled against UNC and he looked great in his first action. We gave both Caden Ernd and Chris Moore an opportunity at 165 and both guys made a good case for themselves.'

'Edmond Ruth really opened up, when he's on the attack something always happens. He either scores on the shot, scores on a body lock or gets a stall call. If my percentage of getting one of those three things happened every time I pulled the trigger I would be pulling it a lot on the mat.'

'Isiah Pettigrew showed a lot of heart, he only started wrestling his junior year of high school. That would be like starting a sport when you're 50 years old, it's very late in the wrestling world. Having Luke Luffman back is awesome I am extremely confident rolling into the last match with him and he's a big part of us being on a roll right now."

CMU NOTES
Sophomore Kole Brower got the Illini on the board with his 8-6 decision win over Vince Perez. Redshirt sophomore No. 26 Danny Pucino extended their lead with his 4-2 decision over Ja'Kerion Merritt. Freshman Kannon Webster followed that up with his first win over a ranked opponent today. Not only did he win, he picked up a bonus point with a major decision over No. 13 Corbyn Munson, 13-5.

Junior Joe Roberts undoubtedly had the most exciting match of the night. After taking a blow to the head and being evaluated for a concussion; Roberts was able to return and take the match into overtime. It took two overtimes and a second round of ride outs, but Roberts gutted out a win over No. 15 Johnny Lovett (TB-2, 2-1).

Junior Caden Ernd got the starting nod at 165 and didn't let it go to waste; he defeated Tyler Swiderski by a decision of 8-2. Redshirt junior No. 5 Edmond Ruth was dominant in his match against No. 17 Alex Cramer, he earned his first tech. fall of the year, 23-6, at the 6:02 mark.

Redshirt sophomore No. 25 Dylan Connell got the major over Cody Brenner, junior Isiah Pettigrew won via decision over Cam Wood and redshirt junior No. 8 Luke Luffman closed out the dual with his third straight major decision, 18-6, over Bryan Caves.

UNC NOTES
Graduate student No. 27 Tony Madrigal made his Illini debut today at 133 and he wasted no time making a statement. He did not surrender a single point to No. 21 Caden McCray and won with a major decision, 8-0. Webster moved himself to 3-0 in his college career with a 5-1 decision over Jayden Scott.

Freshman Braeden Scoles made his Illini debut at 157 in light of Roberts getting banged up against CMU. Scoles looked like a seasoned veteran on the mat in his 4-2 win over Sonny Santiago. Freshman Chris Moore made his debut in the Orange and Blue at 165. In a very defensive match, his reversal in the second period would be the only points scored in the whole match; he defeated Isaias Estrada 2-0.

Ruth notched another win to move to 4-0 on the year with his major decision over Sabino Portella, 10-1. Luffman himself moved to 4-0 as well with his 8-2 decision over Cade Lautt to close out the night.

Today's attendance at Huff Hall was 563.

UP NEXT
The Orange and Blue grapplers are back in action on Saturday, Dec. 3 for their first road trip of the year; they travel to Pittsburgh, Pa. to take on the Panthers at 5 p.m. CT.

Illinois 32, CMU 3
125: Sean Spidle (CMU) dec. Justin Cardani (ILL), 5-0 ILL 0 I CMU 3
133: Kole Brower (ILL) dec. Vince Perez (CMU), 8-6 ILL 3 I CMU 3
141: Danny Pucino (ILL) dec. Ja'Kerion Merritt (CMU), 4-2 ILL 6 I CMU 3
149: Kannon Webster (ILL) major dec. Corbyn Munson (CMU), 13-5 ILL 10 I CMU 3
157: Joe Roberts (ILL) dec. Johnny Lovett (CMU), TB-2 2-1 ILL 13 I CMU 3
165: Caden Ernd (ILL) dec. Tyler Swiderski (CMU), 8-2 ILL 16 I CMU 3
174: Edmond Ruth (ILL) tech. fall Alex Cramer (CMU), 23-6 (6:02) ILL 21 I CMU 3
184: Dylan Connell (ILL) major dec. Cody Brenner (CMU), 10-2 ILL 25 I CMU 3
197: Isiah Pettigrew (ILL) dec. Cam Wood (CMU), 10-3 ILL 28 I CMU 3
285: Luke Luffman (ILL) major dec. Bryan Caves (CMU), 18-6 ILL 32 I CMU 3

Illinois 20, UNC 13
125: Spencer Moore (UNC) dec. Justin Cardani (ILL), 5-2 ILL 0 I UNC 3
133: Tony Madrigal (ILL) major dec. Caden McCray (UNC), 8-0 ILL 4 I UNC 3
141: Lachlan McNeil (UNC) major dec. Danny Pucino (ILL), 8-0 ILL 4 I UNC 7
149: Kannon Webster (ILL) dec. Jayden Scott (UNC), 5-1 ILL 7 I UNC 7
157: Braeden Scoles (ILL) dec. Sonny Santiago (UNC), 4-2 ILL 10 I UNC 7
165: Chris Moore (ILL) dec. Isaias Estrada (UNC), 2-0 ILL 13 I UNC 7
174: Edmond Ruth (ILL) major dec. Sabino Portella (UNC), 10-1 ILL 17 I UNC 7
184: Gavin Kane (UNC) dec. Dylan Connell (ILL), 2-0 ILL 17 I UNC 10
197: Max Shaw (UNC) dec. Isiah Pettigrew (ILL), SV-1 8-5 ILL 17 I UNC 13
285: Luke Luffman (ILL) dec. Cade Lautt (UNC), 8-2 ILL 20 I UNC 13