Wisconsin @ Northwestern

Northwestern edged Wisconsin 27-11 in Evanston on February 14, 2025, taking the dual at Welsh-Ryan Arena to claim a 16-point victory on the road. The meet featured several bonus-point decisions that ultimately decided the outcome.

Wisconsin picked up two major decisions when Nicolar Rivera downed Dedrick Navarro 11-2 at 125 and Zan Fugitt scored an 11-2 major over Massey Odiotti at 133, keeping the Badgers competitive on the scoreboard. Those wins showed Wisconsin could rack up bonus points, but they were not enough to overcome Northwestern’s response.

The difference came in the middle and upper weights, where Northwestern strung together multiple bonus wins. Sam Cartella turned in a dominant 17-0 technical fall at 149, and Evan Bates closed a chunk of the dual with a 16-1 technical fall at 197. Trevor Chumbley’s 11-2 major at 157 and Maxx Mayfield’s 15-5 major at 165 added crucial extra team points that pushed Northwestern decisively ahead.

That run of bonus-point victories in the tougher weights created the decisive swing in the dual, generating the margin that separated the teams. With four bonus wins against Wisconsin’s two, Northwestern’s upper-weight production was the difference in the 27-11 final.