The No. 16 Hoosiers find themselves at 3-5 in conference play after dropping two matches this weekend against No. 2 Iowa and No. 24 Purdue.
IU fell to Iowa, 45-0, Friday before coming up short against No. 24 Purdue, 18-14.
Despite the losses, IU Coach Duane Goldman said he knows what the future can hold for this group.
“Hope,” Goldman said. “We had guys out there really close that can make the adjustments. With guys that are going to be back with several years left, I think the idea that we have a young group of guys that are competing well, they just need to mature and get a little bit better. There is that hope of what lays ahead.”
Nationally ranked Hoosiers No. 19 Elijah Oliver and No. 11 Nate Jackson picked up major-decision wins against Purdue on Sunday.
Oliver defeated Luke Schroeder 19-8 in convincing fashion, picking up nine takedowns and adding a bonus point for having more than a minute of riding time.
The freshman now finds himself 25-6 on the year and 5-3 in the Big Ten.
Junior Nate Jackson won 15-4 after losing three in a row.
Goldman said he knew this was a vital match for Jackson so he could get his arm raised once again.
“It was an important match. He’s struggled a little bit lately,” Goldman said. “He has had very tough opponents. Most of them were matches he could win. Most were close, but he didn’t come out the victor.”
Also finding the winners column was sophomore Jake Masengale. His match went to extra time tied at four.
Halfway through the extra period, he found his takedown and won the match for his third Big Ten win of the year.
Senior Garrett Goldman improved to 4-2 in the Big Ten by defeating Tyler Kral 3-2.
The senior got an escape point early in the third period, managed to hold his own for the final minute and a half, and secured the victory.
“It’s always a fun one to win,” Goldman said. “Purdue is our big rival, and they’ve gotten the better of us as far as team scores go the past couple years, but we’re coming up and getting there.”
The Hoosiers will look to finish the Big Ten season strongly when IU plays host to No. 12 Rutgers next Friday on the teams’ senior night.
“It’s cool that it’s senior night, but I feel like that’s something more to think about later,” Goldman said. “As far as the match goes, it’s just another match, and no matter what night it is, we all have to perform and do our best.”
