Sunday, December 29
Hoffman Estates, Ill.
All Day
Northwestern
vs
Midlands Championships
Photo by: Ryan Kuttler/Northwestern Athletics
Mayfield Earns Runner-Up Finish, Five 'Cats Podium at Midlands
12/30/2024 6:20:00 PM | Wrestling
HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. - The 'Cats put five on the podium at the 60th Annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships this weekend at NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates, Ill. Maxx Mayfield headlined the group with a runner-up finish at 165 lbs for the second Midlands podium of his career.
Mayfield made quick work of his competition in the first session, picking up a pair of falls in less than two minutes apiece to secure a quarterfinal berth. From there, he secured a spot in the semifinals with a 21-6 technical fall over Cash Stewart, and came close to another technical fall before eventually advancing past No. 23 Evan Maag (George Mason) by injury default.
At 197 lbs, Evan Bates continued his dominant start to the season with a third-place finish. After falling narrowly in his quarterfinal matchup with No. 32 Dillon Bechtold (Bucknell), Bates battled back with a 10-0 major decision and a first-period fall Monday morning to earn a spot in the third-place match. There, he notched his second pin of the day just under the three-minute mark to defeat Nick Stemmet (Stanford) and earn the best Midlands Championship finish of his career.
Sam Cartella made it back-to-back seasons on the Midlands podium with a fifth-place finish at 149 lbs. Cartella racked up four wins during the tournament, including two technical falls, and did not surrender a single point in any of them.
Rounding out Northwestern's podium finishers were Dedrick Navarro (125 lbs) and Massey Odiotti (133 lbs). Navarro used two decisions and a technical fall to reach the podium, then beat Brady Pruett (Penn) in a decisive 23-6 technical fall to secure seventh place. After dropping his opening match of the tournament, Odiotti ran off three straight wins in consolation action to earn his spot on the podium. His eighth-place finish was good for the first Midlands podium of his career.
With tournament and non-conference action now behind them, the 'Cats will turn their attention to the Big Ten schedule, which begins next weekend on the road at Purdue. Northwestern will take on the Boilermakers on Friday, Jan. 10, beginning at 6 p.m. CT.
Complete Midlands Championships Results
125 lbs: Patrick Adams
Champ. Round 1 - Patrick Adams received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - No. 26 Blake West (Northern Illinois) won by major decision over Patrick Adams (Maj 10-2)
Cons. Round 2 - Patrick Adams received a bye
Cons. Round 3 - Patrick Adams won by major decision over Christian Tanefeu (Michigan) (Maj 15-3)
Cons. Round 4 - Patrick Adams won by decision over Caleb Weiand (Michigan State) (Dec 7-5)
Cons. Round 5 - Marc-Anthony McGowan (Princeton) won by major decision over Patrick Adams (Maj 13-1)
125 lbs: Dedrick Navarro
Champ. Round 1 - Dedrick Navarro received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Dedrick Navarro won by tech fall over Christopher Vargo (Edinboro) (TF 22-6)
Champ. Round 3 - Dedrick Navarro won by decision over Caleb Weiand (Michigan State) (Dec 8-2)
Quarterfinal - No. 18 Dean Peterson (Rutgers) won by tech fall over Dedrick Navarro (TF 19-4)
Cons. Round 6 - Dedrick Navarro won by decision over Blaine Frazier (Indiana) (Dec 7-2)
Cons. Round 7 - No. 20 Diego Sotelo (Harvard) won by decision over Dedrick Navarro (Dec 7-6)
7th Place Match - Dedrick Navarro won by tech fall over Brady Pruett (Penn) (TF 23-6)
133 lbs: Massey Odiotti
Champ. Round 1 - Sean Spidle (Central Michigan) won by major decision over Massey Odiotti (Maj 12-0)
Cons. Round 1 - Massey Odiotti received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Massey Odiotti won by major decision over Vince Perez (Central Michigan) (Maj 12-4)
Cons. Round 3 - Massey Odiotti won by fall over Jacob Macatangay (Purdue) (Fall 5:36)
Cons. Round 4 - Massey Odiotti won by major decision over Tristan Lujan (Michigan State) (Maj 14-1)
Cons. Round 5 - Sean Spidle (Central Michigan) won by major decision over Massey Odiotti (Maj 14-4)
7th Place Match - No. 29 Kurt Phipps (Bucknell) won by tech fall over Massey Odiotti (TF 15-0)
141 lbs: Giosue Hickman
Champ. Round 1 - Jayden Colon (Illinois) won by major decision over Giosue Hickman (Maj 10-1)
Cons. Round 1 - Joey Buttler (Indiana) won by decision over Giosue Hickman (Dec 5-3)
149 lbs: Sam Cartella
Champ. Round 1 - Sam Cartella received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Sam Cartella won by decision over Braden Bower (Bucknell) (Dec 4-0)
Champ. Round 3 - Sam Cartella won by tech fall over Jacob Mann (Princeton) (TF 15-0)
Quarterfinal - No. 8 Jaden Abas (Stanford) won by decision over Sam Cartella (Dec 4-0)
Cons. Round 6 - Sam Cartella won by decision over Kelly Dunnigan (Penn) (Dec 4-0)
Cons. Round 7 - Sam Cartella won by tech fall over Wyatt Krejsa (Purdue) (TF 15-0)
Cons. Semi - No. 33 Andrew Clark (Rutgers) won by decision over Sam Cartella (Northwestern) (Dec 3-1)
5th Place Match - Sam Cartella won by medical forfeit over No. 26 Finn Solomon (Pittsburgh) (MFF)
149 lbs: August Hibler
Champ. Round 1 - August Hibler received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Jaden Pepe (Harvard) won in sudden victory - 1 over August Hibler (SV-1 4-1)
Cons. Round 2 - August Hibler received a bye
Cons. Round 3 - August Hibler won by tech fall over Kelvin Griffin (Lehigh) (TF 16-1)
Cons. Round 4 - August Hibler won by medical forfeit over No. 23 Ryan Burgos (Edinboro) (MFF)
Cons. Round 5 - August Hibler won by decision over No. 32 Malyke Hines (Lehigh) (Dec 7-6)
Cons. Round 6 - No. 26 Finn Solomon (Pittsburgh) won by decision over August Hibler (Dec 9-4)
157 lbs: Jacob Bostelman
Champ. Round 1 - No. 22 Dylan Evans (Pittsburgh) won by major decision over Jacob Bostelman (Maj 9-1)
Cons. Round 1 - Jacob Bostelman won by decision over Cody Tavoso (Princeton) (Dec 6-4)
Cons. Round 2 - Jason Mara (Stanford) won by major decision over Jacob Bostelman (Maj 12-0)
157 lbs: Ty Wilson
Champ. Round 1 - Ty Wilson won by major decision over Kavan Troy (Northern Illinois) (Maj 12-3)
Champ. Round 2 - No. 30 James Harrington (Harvard) won by decision over Ty Wilson (Dec 7-4)
Cons. Round 2 - Brock Woodcock (SIU Edwardsville) won by decision over Ty Wilson (Dec 8-3)
165 lbs: Eddie Enright
Champ. Round 1 - Paul Ognissanti (Penn) won by decision over Edmund Enright (Dec 4-2)
Cons. Round 1 - Edmund Enright won by major decision over Josh Knudten (Michigan) (Maj 11-1)
Cons. Round 2 - Shawn Taylor (West Virginia) won by decision over Edmund Enright (Dec 4-3)
165 lbs: No. 19 Maxx Mayfield
Champ. Round 1 - Maxx Mayfield won by fall over Jeremy Jakowitsch (Missouri) (Fall 1:55)
Champ. Round 2 - Maxx Mayfield won by fall over Shawn Taylor (West Virginia) (Fall 1:50)
Quarterfinal - Maxx Mayfield won by tech fall over Cash Stewart (Cal Poly) (TF 21-6)
Semifinal - Maxx Mayfield won by injury default over No. 23 Evan Maag (George Mason) (Inj. 6:52)
1st Place Match - Tyler Lillard (Indiana) won by decision over Maxx Mayfield (Dec 7-3)
165 lbs: Gunnar Myers
Champ. Round 1 - Gunnar Myers won by fall over Adam Thomson (Penn) (Fall 1:35)
Champ. Round 2 - No. 25 Anthony White (Rutgers) won by decision over Gunnar Myers (Dec 6-5)
Cons. Round 2 - E`Than Birden (Ohio State) won by major decision over Gunnar Myers (Maj 9-0)
174 lbs: Joseph Martin
Champ. Round 1 - Joseph Martin won by fall over Carter Schmidt (California Baptist) (Fall 1:56)
Champ. Round 2 - No. 32 Myles Takats (Bucknell) won by tech fall over Joseph Martin (TF 18-0)
Cons. Round 2 - Aiden Vandenbush (Northwestern) won by decision over Joseph Martin (Dec 4-1)
174 lbs: Aiden Vandenbush
Champ. Round 1 - Jackson Turley (Rutgers) won by decision over Aiden Vandenbush (Dec 5-3)
Cons. Round 1 - Aiden Vandenbush received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Aiden Vandenbush won by decision over Joseph Martin (Northwestern) (Dec 4-1)
Cons. Round 3 - Connor Owens (Michigan) won by decision over Aiden Vandenbush (Dec 7-2)
184 lbs: Jon Halvorsen
Champ. Round 1 - Jon Halvorsen received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Sam Goin (Indiana) won by decision over Jon Halvorsen (Dec 5-1)
Cons. Round 2 - Jon Halvorsen received a bye
Cons. Round 3 - Jon Halvorsen won by major decision over Hoke Hogan (West Virginia) (Maj 11-1)
Cons. Round 4 - No. 22 Maximus Hale (Penn) won by decision over Jon Halvorsen (Dec 11-5)
184 lbs: Matt Kubas
Champ. Round 1 - No. 22 Maximus Hale (Penn) won by fall over Matt Kubas (Fall 1:51)
Cons. Round 1 - Matt Kubas received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Lucas Daly (Michigan State) won by fall over Matt Kubas (Fall 4:55)
197 lbs: No. 12 Evan Bates
Champ. Round 1 - Evan Bates received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Evan Bates won by tech fall over Donovan Sprouse (George Mason) (TF 15-0)
Quarterfinal - No. 32 Dillon Bechtold (Bucknell) won by decision over Evan Bates (Dec 7-5)
Cons. Round 4 - Evan Bates won by major decision over Tyler Kocak (George Mason) (Maj 10-0)
Cons. Round 5 - Evan Bates won by fall over Brook Byers (Stanford) (Fall 2:57)
Cons. Semi - Evan Bates won by medical forfeit over No. 14 John Poznanski (Rutgers) (MFF)
3rd Place Match - Evan Bates won by fall over No. 22 Nick Stemmet (Stanford) (Fall 2:58)
285 lbs: Dirk Morley
Champ. Round 1 - Dirk Morley received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - No. 33 Sebastian Garibaldi (Princeton) won by tech fall over Dirk Morley (TF 17-0)
Cons. Round 2 - John O`Donnell (Rutgers) won by tech fall over Dirk Morley (TF 15-0)
* All individual rankings courtesy of InterMat (Dec. 24)
Mayfield made quick work of his competition in the first session, picking up a pair of falls in less than two minutes apiece to secure a quarterfinal berth. From there, he secured a spot in the semifinals with a 21-6 technical fall over Cash Stewart, and came close to another technical fall before eventually advancing past No. 23 Evan Maag (George Mason) by injury default.
?????? ???? ????.
— Northwestern Wrestling (@NUWrestle) December 30, 2024
We'll see you in the final, @maxxmayfield5 ??#GoCats | #Midlands60 pic.twitter.com/5kpqlAy5Nn
At 197 lbs, Evan Bates continued his dominant start to the season with a third-place finish. After falling narrowly in his quarterfinal matchup with No. 32 Dillon Bechtold (Bucknell), Bates battled back with a 10-0 major decision and a first-period fall Monday morning to earn a spot in the third-place match. There, he notched his second pin of the day just under the three-minute mark to defeat Nick Stemmet (Stanford) and earn the best Midlands Championship finish of his career.
Put an exclamation point on it??#GoCats | #Midlands60 pic.twitter.com/E5GL6BHEK1
— Northwestern Wrestling (@NUWrestle) December 31, 2024
Sam Cartella made it back-to-back seasons on the Midlands podium with a fifth-place finish at 149 lbs. Cartella racked up four wins during the tournament, including two technical falls, and did not surrender a single point in any of them.
Rounding out Northwestern's podium finishers were Dedrick Navarro (125 lbs) and Massey Odiotti (133 lbs). Navarro used two decisions and a technical fall to reach the podium, then beat Brady Pruett (Penn) in a decisive 23-6 technical fall to secure seventh place. After dropping his opening match of the tournament, Odiotti ran off three straight wins in consolation action to earn his spot on the podium. His eighth-place finish was good for the first Midlands podium of his career.
With tournament and non-conference action now behind them, the 'Cats will turn their attention to the Big Ten schedule, which begins next weekend on the road at Purdue. Northwestern will take on the Boilermakers on Friday, Jan. 10, beginning at 6 p.m. CT.
Complete Midlands Championships Results
125 lbs: Patrick Adams
Champ. Round 1 - Patrick Adams received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - No. 26 Blake West (Northern Illinois) won by major decision over Patrick Adams (Maj 10-2)
Cons. Round 2 - Patrick Adams received a bye
Cons. Round 3 - Patrick Adams won by major decision over Christian Tanefeu (Michigan) (Maj 15-3)
Cons. Round 4 - Patrick Adams won by decision over Caleb Weiand (Michigan State) (Dec 7-5)
Cons. Round 5 - Marc-Anthony McGowan (Princeton) won by major decision over Patrick Adams (Maj 13-1)
125 lbs: Dedrick Navarro
Champ. Round 1 - Dedrick Navarro received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Dedrick Navarro won by tech fall over Christopher Vargo (Edinboro) (TF 22-6)
Champ. Round 3 - Dedrick Navarro won by decision over Caleb Weiand (Michigan State) (Dec 8-2)
Quarterfinal - No. 18 Dean Peterson (Rutgers) won by tech fall over Dedrick Navarro (TF 19-4)
Cons. Round 6 - Dedrick Navarro won by decision over Blaine Frazier (Indiana) (Dec 7-2)
Cons. Round 7 - No. 20 Diego Sotelo (Harvard) won by decision over Dedrick Navarro (Dec 7-6)
7th Place Match - Dedrick Navarro won by tech fall over Brady Pruett (Penn) (TF 23-6)
133 lbs: Massey Odiotti
Champ. Round 1 - Sean Spidle (Central Michigan) won by major decision over Massey Odiotti (Maj 12-0)
Cons. Round 1 - Massey Odiotti received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Massey Odiotti won by major decision over Vince Perez (Central Michigan) (Maj 12-4)
Cons. Round 3 - Massey Odiotti won by fall over Jacob Macatangay (Purdue) (Fall 5:36)
Cons. Round 4 - Massey Odiotti won by major decision over Tristan Lujan (Michigan State) (Maj 14-1)
Cons. Round 5 - Sean Spidle (Central Michigan) won by major decision over Massey Odiotti (Maj 14-4)
7th Place Match - No. 29 Kurt Phipps (Bucknell) won by tech fall over Massey Odiotti (TF 15-0)
141 lbs: Giosue Hickman
Champ. Round 1 - Jayden Colon (Illinois) won by major decision over Giosue Hickman (Maj 10-1)
Cons. Round 1 - Joey Buttler (Indiana) won by decision over Giosue Hickman (Dec 5-3)
149 lbs: Sam Cartella
Champ. Round 1 - Sam Cartella received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Sam Cartella won by decision over Braden Bower (Bucknell) (Dec 4-0)
Champ. Round 3 - Sam Cartella won by tech fall over Jacob Mann (Princeton) (TF 15-0)
Quarterfinal - No. 8 Jaden Abas (Stanford) won by decision over Sam Cartella (Dec 4-0)
Cons. Round 6 - Sam Cartella won by decision over Kelly Dunnigan (Penn) (Dec 4-0)
Cons. Round 7 - Sam Cartella won by tech fall over Wyatt Krejsa (Purdue) (TF 15-0)
Cons. Semi - No. 33 Andrew Clark (Rutgers) won by decision over Sam Cartella (Northwestern) (Dec 3-1)
5th Place Match - Sam Cartella won by medical forfeit over No. 26 Finn Solomon (Pittsburgh) (MFF)
149 lbs: August Hibler
Champ. Round 1 - August Hibler received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Jaden Pepe (Harvard) won in sudden victory - 1 over August Hibler (SV-1 4-1)
Cons. Round 2 - August Hibler received a bye
Cons. Round 3 - August Hibler won by tech fall over Kelvin Griffin (Lehigh) (TF 16-1)
Cons. Round 4 - August Hibler won by medical forfeit over No. 23 Ryan Burgos (Edinboro) (MFF)
Cons. Round 5 - August Hibler won by decision over No. 32 Malyke Hines (Lehigh) (Dec 7-6)
Cons. Round 6 - No. 26 Finn Solomon (Pittsburgh) won by decision over August Hibler (Dec 9-4)
157 lbs: Jacob Bostelman
Champ. Round 1 - No. 22 Dylan Evans (Pittsburgh) won by major decision over Jacob Bostelman (Maj 9-1)
Cons. Round 1 - Jacob Bostelman won by decision over Cody Tavoso (Princeton) (Dec 6-4)
Cons. Round 2 - Jason Mara (Stanford) won by major decision over Jacob Bostelman (Maj 12-0)
157 lbs: Ty Wilson
Champ. Round 1 - Ty Wilson won by major decision over Kavan Troy (Northern Illinois) (Maj 12-3)
Champ. Round 2 - No. 30 James Harrington (Harvard) won by decision over Ty Wilson (Dec 7-4)
Cons. Round 2 - Brock Woodcock (SIU Edwardsville) won by decision over Ty Wilson (Dec 8-3)
165 lbs: Eddie Enright
Champ. Round 1 - Paul Ognissanti (Penn) won by decision over Edmund Enright (Dec 4-2)
Cons. Round 1 - Edmund Enright won by major decision over Josh Knudten (Michigan) (Maj 11-1)
Cons. Round 2 - Shawn Taylor (West Virginia) won by decision over Edmund Enright (Dec 4-3)
165 lbs: No. 19 Maxx Mayfield
Champ. Round 1 - Maxx Mayfield won by fall over Jeremy Jakowitsch (Missouri) (Fall 1:55)
Champ. Round 2 - Maxx Mayfield won by fall over Shawn Taylor (West Virginia) (Fall 1:50)
Quarterfinal - Maxx Mayfield won by tech fall over Cash Stewart (Cal Poly) (TF 21-6)
Semifinal - Maxx Mayfield won by injury default over No. 23 Evan Maag (George Mason) (Inj. 6:52)
1st Place Match - Tyler Lillard (Indiana) won by decision over Maxx Mayfield (Dec 7-3)
165 lbs: Gunnar Myers
Champ. Round 1 - Gunnar Myers won by fall over Adam Thomson (Penn) (Fall 1:35)
Champ. Round 2 - No. 25 Anthony White (Rutgers) won by decision over Gunnar Myers (Dec 6-5)
Cons. Round 2 - E`Than Birden (Ohio State) won by major decision over Gunnar Myers (Maj 9-0)
174 lbs: Joseph Martin
Champ. Round 1 - Joseph Martin won by fall over Carter Schmidt (California Baptist) (Fall 1:56)
Champ. Round 2 - No. 32 Myles Takats (Bucknell) won by tech fall over Joseph Martin (TF 18-0)
Cons. Round 2 - Aiden Vandenbush (Northwestern) won by decision over Joseph Martin (Dec 4-1)
174 lbs: Aiden Vandenbush
Champ. Round 1 - Jackson Turley (Rutgers) won by decision over Aiden Vandenbush (Dec 5-3)
Cons. Round 1 - Aiden Vandenbush received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Aiden Vandenbush won by decision over Joseph Martin (Northwestern) (Dec 4-1)
Cons. Round 3 - Connor Owens (Michigan) won by decision over Aiden Vandenbush (Dec 7-2)
184 lbs: Jon Halvorsen
Champ. Round 1 - Jon Halvorsen received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Sam Goin (Indiana) won by decision over Jon Halvorsen (Dec 5-1)
Cons. Round 2 - Jon Halvorsen received a bye
Cons. Round 3 - Jon Halvorsen won by major decision over Hoke Hogan (West Virginia) (Maj 11-1)
Cons. Round 4 - No. 22 Maximus Hale (Penn) won by decision over Jon Halvorsen (Dec 11-5)
184 lbs: Matt Kubas
Champ. Round 1 - No. 22 Maximus Hale (Penn) won by fall over Matt Kubas (Fall 1:51)
Cons. Round 1 - Matt Kubas received a bye
Cons. Round 2 - Lucas Daly (Michigan State) won by fall over Matt Kubas (Fall 4:55)
197 lbs: No. 12 Evan Bates
Champ. Round 1 - Evan Bates received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - Evan Bates won by tech fall over Donovan Sprouse (George Mason) (TF 15-0)
Quarterfinal - No. 32 Dillon Bechtold (Bucknell) won by decision over Evan Bates (Dec 7-5)
Cons. Round 4 - Evan Bates won by major decision over Tyler Kocak (George Mason) (Maj 10-0)
Cons. Round 5 - Evan Bates won by fall over Brook Byers (Stanford) (Fall 2:57)
Cons. Semi - Evan Bates won by medical forfeit over No. 14 John Poznanski (Rutgers) (MFF)
3rd Place Match - Evan Bates won by fall over No. 22 Nick Stemmet (Stanford) (Fall 2:58)
285 lbs: Dirk Morley
Champ. Round 1 - Dirk Morley received a bye
Champ. Round 2 - No. 33 Sebastian Garibaldi (Princeton) won by tech fall over Dirk Morley (TF 17-0)
Cons. Round 2 - John O`Donnell (Rutgers) won by tech fall over Dirk Morley (TF 15-0)
* All individual rankings courtesy of InterMat (Dec. 24)
Players Mentioned
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