EVANSTON, Ill. – No. 11 Rutgers wrestling wrapped up the 2025 Big Ten Wrestling Championships on Sunday in Evanston, Illinois. Five Scarlet Knights – No. 3 seed Dean Peterson (125), No. 5 seed Dylan Shawver (133), No. 6 seed Joseph Olivieri (141), No. 6 seed Andrew Clark (149) and No. 7 seed Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184) – earned top-eight finishes and will represent the program at the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships later this month in Philadelphia.
Clark, Olivieri, Peterson and Shawver all finished sixth in their respective weight classes, while Cartagena-Walsh placed eighth. As a team, the Scarlet Knights finished ninth with 46 team points.
No. 6 seed Jackson Turley (174) and No. 10 seed Conner Harer (157) won their respective ninth-place brackets, finishing one spot out of the eight allocations for their weight classes. No. 10 seed Anthony White (165) also wrestled to within one spot of the nine allocations at 165 pounds, while No. 13 seed PJ Casale (197) competed in the ninth-place bracket after a win Saturday night.
Harer, Turley, White and Yaraslau Slavikouski (HWT) all own a coaches’ ranking, while Turley, Slavikouski and White appear in the latest RPI as the quartet looks to secure at-large bids to the national tournament when they are handed out next week. Turley, Slavikouski and White are all previous NCAA qualifiers, with Slavikouski finishing seventh in the country last season in Kansas City.
Harer and Turley muscled two wins apiece to finish ninth at 157 and 174, respectively. Harer defeated No. 27 Jason Kraisser (Illinois) before he earned the biggest win of his young career with a 2-1 win in first tiebreakers to No. 10 Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern). Turley earned back-to-back wins, including a pin of No. 33 Lucas Condon (Wisconsin) in his ninth-place bout.
Clark, Olivieri and Shawver all competed in fifth-place bouts to end the championships. Shawver lost a back-and-forth decision to No. 3 seed Braxton Brown (Maryland) in sudden victory, 9-6. Clark and Olivieri both lost by decisions to higher seeds.
2025 Big Ten Championships Placewinners/NCAA Qualifiers (5)
6th: Dean Peterson (125)**
6th: Dylan Shawver (133)**
6th: Joseph Olivieri (141)*
6th: Andrew Clark (149)*
8th: Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184)
Day One Recaps
Session II
Five from No. 11 Rutgers wrestling – No. 3 seed Dean Peterson (125), No. 5 seed Dylan Shawver (133), No. 6 seed Joseph Olivieri (141), No. 6 seed Andrew Clark (149) and No. 7 seed Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184) – locked up spots at the national tournament after the first day of the Big Ten Wrestling Championships on Saturday in Evanston, Illinois.
Peterson and Shawver advanced to their respective conference semifinal bouts before falling to the backside of the bracket. The Cartagena-Walsh, Clark, Olivieri, Peterson and Shawver all secured top eight conference finishes ahead of tomorrow’s third session, which begins at 1 p.m. ET from Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Cartagena-Walsh and No. 6 seed Yaraslau Slavikouski (HWT) were both forced to forfeit the remainder of their matches at the tournament due to injuries. Ranked No. 8 in the final coaches’ ranking, No. 10 in the RPI and No. 7 by Intermat, Slavikouski looks to secure an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships when they are handed out next week.
With nine allocations at 165 pounds, No. 10 seed Anthony White will wrestle tomorrow for a chance to secure an automatic bid to the national tournament. No. 6 seed Jackson Turley (174) and No. 10 seed Conner Harer (157) will also compete in ninth-place brackets, as their weight classes feature eight allocations.
Peterson opened the championships with back-to-back wins to face No. 2 seed Caleb Smith (Nebraska) in the 125-pound semifinal. Tied 1-1 in sudden victory, Smith caught Peterson in a potentially dangerous situation, which forced Peterson to use injury time and moved Smith to the bottom position with 38 seconds on a restart. Smith took advantage of the position with a reversal for a 3-1 win.
Shawver, the reigning Big Ten Champion, faced No. 1 seed Drake Ayala (Iowa) in his 133-pound semifinal bout. Shawver hung tough with Ayala before the Hawkeye advanced with an 8-2 decision. Prior to Saturday night, Shawver picked up two wins during the morning session, including a 3-1 decision over No. 4 seed Braeden Davis (Penn State) in the quarterfinals.
Clark and Olivieri both won two matches in Saturday night’s wrestlebacks to secure their spots at the national tournament. Olivieri defeated No. 12 seed Dario Lemus (Maryland) by 4-2 decision before pinning No. 8 seed Henry Porter (Indiana) in the first period to advance to the consolation semifinals. Clark recorded back-to-back decisions, including a 4-0 win over No. 9 seed Dylan Gilcher (Michigan) to move to the consolation semifinals.
Cartagena-Walsh earned a win over No. 8 seed Ryder Rogotzke (Ohio State) after the Buckeye landed an illegal move in the first period that resulted in injury. Because of the illegal move, Cartagena-Walsh was awarded the win on DQ before bowing out of the remainder of the tournament.
Session I
No. 3 seed Dean Peterson (125) and No. 5 seed Dylan Shawver (133) each earned spots in their respective Big Ten Championships semifinal bouts after Session I of the conference tournament on Saturday in Evanston, Illinois. Nine starters for No. 11 Rutgers wrestling will compete during tonight’s second session, which begins at 6 p.m. ET on Big Ten Plus.
Tonight’s semifinals will air at 8 p.m. on Big Ten Network. Peterson faces No. 2 seed Caleb Smith (Nebraska), while Shawver wrestles No. 1 seed Drake Ayala (Iowa) for a chance to advance to his second consecutive Big Ten title match. With their two wins during the morning session, Peterson and Shawver secured automatic bids to the 2025 NCAA Wrestling Championships, held March 20-22 in Philadelphia.
No. 6 seed Joseph Olivieri (141), No. 6 seed Andrew Clark (149), No. 6 seed Yaraslau Slavikouski (HWT), No. 7 seed Shane Cartagena-Walsh (184) and No. 10 seed Anthony White (165) all won their opening-round matches before losing in the quarterfinals. No. 6 seed Jackson Turley (174) and No. 10 seed Conner Harer (157) are also alive on the backside of the bracket, while No. 13 seed PJ Casale (197) bowed out of his first Big Ten Championships despite wrestling tough in both loses.
Peterson muscled a 6-3 decision over No. 14 seed Tyler Garvin (Maryland) in the opening round to secure a rematch with No. 6 Jacob Moran (Indiana) in the quarterfinals. After a scoreless first period, Peterson landed takedowns in the second and third periods en route to an 8-0 major decision. The bonus-point victory secured Peterson’s second consecutive appearance in the Big Ten semifinals after he defeated then-No. 1 Matt Ramos (Purdue) in the quarterfinals of last year’s championships.
After a 10-0 major decision against No. 12 seed Massey Odiotti (Northwestern), Shawver faced No. 4 seed Braeden Davis in the quarterfinals. Davis earned an escape point in the third after back-to-back scoreless periods for an 1-0 lead on Shawver, who lost to Davis in January by 2-1 decision at Jersey Mike’s Arena. Shawver took control of the remainder of the match, working shots until he landed his match-sealing takedown with 10 seconds to go for a 3-1 final. The win moved Shawver to his second consecutive Big Ten semifinal, as the reigning 133-pound Big Ten Champion looks to defend his title.
The opening round featured several notable results, including an overtime win from White over No. 7 seed Tyler Lillard (Indiana). Lillard held a 3-2 lead with 18 seconds left in Tiebreaker two before White worked a reversal for a 4-3 decision. The win was White’s first over Lillard, who defeated the Scarlet Knight in two previous meetings this season.
Cartagena-Walsh, Clark, Olivieri and Slavikouski all earned wins over lower seeds in the opening round, with Clark picking up a 13-2 major decision over No. 11 seed Isaac Ruble (Purdue). After an opening-round win over No. 11 seed Harley Andrews (Nebraska), Slavikouski forced No. 3 seed Joshua Heindselman (Michigan) into overtime before losing 2-1 in sudden victory.
125: (3) Dean Peterson (Sixth Place, 2-2)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (14) Tyler Garvin (Maryland) | W-D, 6-3 |
| Quarterfinals | (6) Jacob Moran (Indiana) | W-MD, 8-0 |
| Semifinals | (2) Caleb Smith (Nebraska) | L-SV1, 3-1 |
| Conso. Semis. | (8) Nicolar Rivera (Wisconsin) | L-MFF |
| 5th-Place Match | (6) Jacob Moran (Indiana) | NC |
133: (5) Dylan Shawver (Sixth Place, 2-3)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (12) Massey Odiotti (Northwestern) | W-MD, 10-0 |
| Quarterfinals | (4) Braeden Davis (Penn State) | W-D, 3-1 |
| Semifinals | (1) Drake Ayala (Iowa) | L-D, 8-2 |
| Conso. Semis. | (9) Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State) | L-D, 6-4 |
| 5th-Place Match | (3) Braxton Brown (Maryland) | L-SV1, 9-6 |
141: (6) Joseph Olivieri (Sixth Place, 3-3)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (11) Cullan Schriever (Iowa) | W-D, 4-2 |
| Quarterfinals | (3) Brock Hardy (Nebraska) | L-MD, 11-1 |
| Conso. Rd. 2 | (12) Dario Lemus (Maryland) | W-D, 4-2 |
| Conso. Quarters. | (8) Henry Porter (Indiana) | W-Fall (2:31) |
| Conso. Semis. | (1) Beau Bartlett (Penn State) | L-D, 4-2 |
| 5th-Place Match | (5) Sergio Lemley (Michigan) | L-D, 5-1 |
149: (6) Andrew Clark (Sixth Place, 3-3)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (11) Isaac Ruble (Purdue) | W-MD, 13-2 |
| Quarterfinals | (3) Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) | L-MD, 13-2 |
| Conso. Rd. 2 | (13) Joey Buttler (Indiana) | W-D, 8-1 |
| Conso. Quarters. | (9) Dylan Gilcher (Michigan) | W-D, 4-0 |
| Conso. Semis. | (1) Shayne Van Ness (Penn State) | L-MD, 12-1 |
| 5th-Place Match | (4) Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) | L-D, 4-2 |
157: (10) Conner Harer (2-2)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (7) Trevor Chumbley (Indiana) | L-D, 7-0 |
| Conso. Rd. 1 | Bye | |
| Conso. Rd. 2 | (1) Ethan Miller (Maryland) | L-D, 5-2 |
| 9th-Place Quarts. | (11) Jason Kraisser (Illinois) | W-D, 6-3 |
| 9th-Place Match | (7) Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) | W-TB1, 2-1 |
165: (10) Anthony White (2-3)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (7) Tyler Lillard (Indiana) | W-TB2, 4-3 |
| Quarterfinals | (2) Mike Caliendo (Iowa) | L-TF, 20-4 (4:49) |
| Conso. Rd. 2 | (8) Maxx Mayfield (Northwestern) | L-D, 5-1 |
| 9th-Place Quarts. | (11) Stoney Buell (Purdue) | W-D, 4-1 |
| 9th-Place Match | (13) Cody Goebel (Wisconsin) | L-SV1, 4-1 |
174: (6) Jackson Turley (3-2)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (11) Joseph Walker (Michigan) | L-D, 10-4 |
| Conso. Rd. 1 | (14) Aiden Vandenbush (Northwestern) | W-D, 8-2 |
| Conso. Rd. 2 | (12) Branson John (Maryland) | L-D, 6-4 |
| 9th-Place Quarts. | (13) Ceasar Garza (Michigan State) | W-MD, 13-5 |
| 9th-Place Match | (9) Lucas Condon (Wisconsin) | W-Fall (1:53) |
184: (7) Shane Cartagena-Walsh (Eighth Place, 2-2)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (10) Jaden Bullock (Michigan) | W-D, 8-5 |
| Quarterfinals | (2) Max McEnelly (Minnesota) | L-TF, 22-6 (6:48) |
| Conso. Rd. 2 | (8) Ryder Rogotzke (Ohio State) | W-DQ – 18 |
| Conso. Quarters. | (3) Silas Allred (Nebraska) | L-MFF |
| 7th-Place Match | (9) Donnell Washington (Indiana) | NC |
197: (13) PJ Casale (1-4)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (4) Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota) | L-D, 8-6 |
| Conso. Rd. 1 | (12) Chase Mielnik (Maryland) | L-Fall (4:58) |
| 9th-Place Quart. | (12) Chase Mielnik (Maryland) | W-TF, 16-0 (5:30) |
| 9th-Place Semis. | (8) Gabe Sollars (Indiana) | L-D, 6-0 |
| 11th-Place Match | (11) Ben Vanadia (Purdue) | L-D, 11-4 |
HWT: (6) Yaraslau Slavikouski (1-2)
| Round | Opponent | Result |
| Round 1 | (11) Harley Andrews (Nebraska) | W-D, 6-4 |
| Quarterfinals | (3) Joshua Heindselman (Michigan) | L-SV1, 2-1 |
| Conso. Rd. 2 | (12) Max Vanadia (Michigan State) | L-MFF |
