Stanford Holds Off Duke

STANFORD, Calif. - The 16th-ranked Stanford wrestling team topped Duke, 27-15, Saturday, at Burnham Pavilion in Stanford, California. The Cardinal, which won seven of the 10 bouts, improves to 7-2 on the year, while the Blue Devils drop to 1-5.

Duke jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the dual as fifth-ranked Conner Hartmann pinned redshirt senior Michael Sojka in 4:36. Sojka drops to 11-6 on the year and 4-3 in duals.

Redshirt sophomore Nathan Butler got the Cardinal on the board with a dominating 13-0 major decision over Brendan Walsh at heavyweight. Leading 10-0 after two, Butler collected two stalling points and finished with 5:27 of riding time to improve to 19-4 on the year and 6-1 in duals.

The Blue Devils forfeited at 125 pounds, giving Stanford a 10-6 lead in the dual. Wrestling up a weight, No. 20 Connor Schram then notched a 10-3 decision over Brandon Leynaud at 133 pounds. Leading 5-2 heading into the third, Schram chose to start the third in the neutral position. From there he scored two more takedowns and finished with 1:21 of riding time. He is now 13-3 on the year and 3-1 in duals.

True freshman Joey McKenna, ranked second nationally, made it 17-6 in favor of the Cardinal with a 9-1 major decision over Zach Finesilver at 141 pounds. McKenna tallied three takedowns, a reversal and 6:02 of riding time for his 14th win of the year.

The Blue Devils cut the Cardinal lead to 17-12 after Stanford's Paul Fox had to default due to injury in the third period. 

Redshirt freshman Walker Dempsey then posted a 14-9 decision over Connor Bass at 157 pounds. Dempsey tallied four takedowns, two escapes and four near fall points in the win. He moves to 5-6 on the year and 4-2 in duals.

Wrestling for the third time this season, Duke's Jake Faust earned his third win over redshirt junior Jim Wilson with a 9-4 decision at 165 pounds. Faust, ranked 17th nationally, led 7-2 heading into the third. Wilson, who is ranked 12th, chose to start the final period in the neutral position. He scored a takedown but was unable to secure any back points before Faust recorded a reversal as time expired. Wilson drops to 16-5 on the year and 8-1 in duals.

Stanford's Peter Galli solidified the Cardinal win with a 10-2 major decision over Alec Schenk at 174 pounds. He racked up three takedowns, three escapes and 2:14 of riding time for his 13th win of the year.

Redshirt sophomore Garet Krohn capped off the scoring with a 9-4 decision over Trey Adamson at 184 pounds. Krohn improves to 11-4 and 2-1 in duals. 

Stanford hits the road next week, travelling to Tempe, Arizona for duals against West Virginia and Arizona State on Saturday, Jan. 23. Both duals will be televised live on Pac-12 Bay Area. 

No. 16 Stanford 27, Duke 15