The No. 11 Gophers wrestling team won the first six matches to build a huge lead and ultimately beat No. 23 Northwestern 31-9 on Sunday afternoon in its Big Ten dual meet home opener at Maturi Pavilion.
Minnesota (2-2, 1-1 Big Ten) opened with a forfeit win at 157 pounds in what was expected to be the marquee matchup between No. 5 Brayton Lee and No. 2 Ryan Deakin, both undefeated.
Second-period pins by Cael Carlson at 165 and Michial Foy at 197 and Gable Steveson's 13-4 major decision at heavyweight helped the Gophers take a 28-0 lead through six matches before the Wildcats (2-2, 1-1) won three of the final four.
Other wrestlers winning matches for the Gophers, who have won 16 of the past 17 dual meets against Northwestern, were Jake Bergeland at 141 pounds, Bailee O'Reilly at 174 and Sam Skillings at 184.
