Cole Mattin avenges loss to Joey Olivieri with win in first round of Big Ten Tournament

Cole Mattin continued Michigan’s success over Rutgers early on in the Big Ten Wrestling Tournament. The No. 10 seed at 141 pounds knocked off Rutgers’ Joey Olivieri (No. 7) 5-3 in the first round of the tournament.

Mattin lost to Olivieri 3-1 when the teams faced off in January in the Wolverines’ dual win over the Scarlet Knights. Like 125 pounder Jack Medley, Mattin got some payback Saturday morning.

141: Mattin also avenges an earlier dual loss in the first round, beating Rutgers' Joe Oliveri, 5-3, with a big takedown and 2pt suck back late in the first.

— Michigan Wrestling (@umichwrestling) March 4, 2023

Mattin took down Olivieri and earned nearfall points in the first period for a 4-0 lead. He gave up a late takedown but held on for the win in the third period.

With the win over Olivieri, Mattin advanced to take on No. 2 seed Beau Bartlett of Penn State in the quarterfinals. The second round of the tournament took place in Saturday morning’s Session 1.

Mattin came into the tournament 13-6 on the season. He went 10-6 last year before injuries prematurely ended his season.

The Michigan Wolverine last wrestled in the Big Ten Tournament in 2020, where he went 2-2 at the championships.

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The 109th Big Ten Wrestling Championships were held from March 4-5, 2023, at Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, Mich., with the University of Michigan playing host to the event for the first time since 2010. All 14 conference schools participated in the championships, which began Saturday, March 4, with the first-round, quarterfinal, semifinal and wrestleback matches taking place during Sessions I and II. 

Action continues Sunday, March 5, with consolation semifinals and seventh-place matches getting underway during Session III and the first-, third- and fifth-place matches highlighting Session IV.