Iowa Wrestling Weekend That Was: Iowa State continues to roll with title at in Las Vegas

Iowa State, University of Northern Iowa won tournaments last weekend. Iowa had four champions in Wisconsin. Competition for the boys’ high school season has started, while the girls’ season has hit full throttle, including the annual Dan Gable Donnybrook. This is the Wrestling Weekend That Was.

IOWA STATE ROLLS IN LAS VEGAS

Iowa State continued its early-season success, winning the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Saturday. The Cyclones almost doubled runner-up Michigan’s point total. They amassed 183 1/2 points, winning by a whopping 84 1/2 with four champions. Evan Frost (133), Anthony Echemendia (141), Rocky Elam at 197 pounds and heavyweight Yonger Bastida won gold and led Iowa State’s five finalists and nine placewinners. Vinny Zerban reached the 157 finals but medically forfeited to finish second. Stevo Poulin (125), Jacob Frost (149) and 165-pounder Aiden Riggins each placed fourth and Isaac Dean was fifth at 184. The Cyclones were offensive, tallying 34.5 bonus points recording 13 technical falls, seven major decisions and four pins. Echemendia contributed three bonus-point wins with two tech falls and a major decision before beating Rider’s Elijah Griffin, 6-2, in the finals. Elam has been one of Iowa State’s top performers, so far. He notched two top-10 wins, including a Wyoming’s Joey Novak in a battle of All-Americans. Elam scored two takedowns in a 7-3 decision for the title. One of the interesting matchups came in the heavyweight finals. Bastida faced former Cyclone teammate Christian Carroll, who transferred to Wyoming. Bastida gutted out a 5-3 decision over his second title at the Las Vegas tournament. Iowa State is off until Dec. 21, competing in the College Duals in Nashville, Tenn.

UNI CROWNS 3 CHAMPIONS AT COUGAR CLASH

The Panthers also had a successful run over the weekend, boasting three champions and winning Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Cougar Clash on Sunday. Cory Land (133), Ryder Downey (165) and heavyweight Wyatt Voelker each claimed titles. UNI topped Oklahoma State, 190-187, for first in the team race. Voelker has made an impressive transition to heavyweight, going 3-0 Sunday and improving to 6-1 overall. The former West Delaware two-time state champion and 2025 Big 12 champion at 197 defeated Illinois’ Luke Luffman, 8-5, in the final. Downey also beat an Illinois foe ranked eighth in the finals. Downey was dominant in a 10-2 major decision over Braeden Scoles for the title. Jared Simma (174) and Garret Rinken (133) also reached the finals and placed second. Rinken had a notable day, going 3-1 overall and 2-1 against Oklahoma State opponents. Rinken defeated 2024 NCAA champion and 20 th ranked Richie Figueroa, who transferred from Arizona State to Oklahoma State, 10-9, in the second round. He also beat the Cowboys’ Run Sakamoto by pin in 5:25, but fell to their teammate Ronnie Ramirez, 8-2. Rinken also beat former New London four-time state champion and SIU-E’s Marcel Lopez, 6-3.

UNI hosts University of Missouri on Sunday at the McLeod Center in Cedar Falls, beginning at 1 p.m.

IOWA QUARTET WIN GOLD AT JIM KOCH OPEN

Gabe Arnold was one of four Hawkeyes to win titles at University of Wisconsin-Parkside’s Jim Koch Open Saturday in Kenosha, Wis. Arnold blitzed the field with two technical falls and a pin to win the 184-pound title. Arnold outscored his opponents, 46-8, including a 19-4 technical fall over Central Missouri’s Damon Ashworth. Arnold also opened the day with an 18-2 technical fall over Wisconsin’s David Malin. Keyan Hernandez (125), Kale Petersen at 141 and 197-pounder Harvey Ludington also won titles for Iowa. Petersen topped teammate Jace Rhodes, 5-2, in the final. Ludington had a technical fall, pin and major decision to reach the finals, beating UNI’s John Gunderson, 2-0, for the championship.

DAN GABLE DONNYBROOK HIGHLIGHTS

The Dan Gable Donnybrook was held Thursday through Saturday at Xtream Arena in Coralville. The girls competed Thursday and Friday with the boys’ tournament held Friday and Saturday. Both teams consisted of teams from Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska and Missouri. The girls’ field consisted of 47 teams, while the boys’ tournament had 37.

Six Gazette-area wrestlers made the girls’ finals with Linn-Mar’s Brielle Parke at 135 and Decorah’s 170-pounder Ana Simon won titles. Parke pinned her way through the bracket, beating Fort Dodge’s Mariaha Benedict in 1:02 of the final. Simon improved to 16-0, posting five bonus-point victories. She pinned Waverly-Shell Rock’s Amalia Djoumessi in the championship match. The fall came on the heels of her 16-4 major decision victory over South Tama state champion Autumn Elsbury. Simon had two pins and a major decision in her first three matches. Linn-Mar and Decorah finished seventh and eighth, respectively, in the team standings.

Raccoon River-Northwest won the tournament with 381.5 points. Cedar Rapids Prairie was third with 318 and South Tama was three points back in fourth. The Hawks were led by Luisa Meade, who was the 145-pound runner-up, while Kinley Jimenez was second at 235 for the Trojans. Mount Vernon’s Kiersten Swart (115) and Decorah’s Lauren Luzum (155) were second.

Iowa City West’s three-time state finalist and 2023 state champion Alexander Pierce was among five Iowa champions. He claimed the 120-pound title, beating Allen Woo, of Montini Catholic (Ill.), 10-2, in the final. Pierce had a technical fall, major decision and won a match by disqualification, going 5-0. Don Bosco was the top Iowa team, placing sixth and getting titles from Ty Martin (1-6) and Iowa commit Dawson Youngblut (144). Fort Dodge heavyweight DreShaun Ross, one of the nation’s top recruits who has signed with Oklahoma State, won gold. Ross throttled the field, opening with a 37-second pin and adding technical falls of 21-5, 19-4 and 21-5. The last capped the title run against Waukee’s Andrew Hine. Decorah finished 10th in the team race, putting five in the top-nine. William Fullhart was third at 175 and Thomas Sexton was fifth at 190 to lead the Vikings.

C.R. PRAIRIE, WESTERN DUBUQUE BOAST KEITH YOUNG CHAMPS

Prairie and Western Dubuque each had a champion Saturday at the Keith Young Invitational in Cedar Falls. Louden Bloxham won the 190-pound title and helped Prairie place third with 180 points. Macklin Penner was one of four Western Dubuque finalists, taking the 175 crown. The Bobcats were fourth with 168.5 points.

Bloxham posted three pins and a technical fall, decking Dubuque Hempstead’s Peyce Mccoy in 3:10 of the final. Teammate Chase Watkinson, a returning state medalist, placed second at 120.

Penner went 4-0 with four pins. His longest match was a pin in 2:25 over North Scott’s Kepler Carmichael in the final. Penner didn’t reach the third period, wrestling a total of 6:59. The Bobcats’ Kellen McKenna (132), Joe Hirsch (157) and 165-pounder Brady Rissman placed second.

Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s Anthony Keys was runner-up at heavyweight. The Cougars had two of the top three at that weight with Jaheim Wright getting third.

MOUNT VERNON WINS CARDINAL CLASSIC

Mount Vernon captured the Cardinal Classic Saturday in Newton. The Mustangs finished with 277 points, 90 points ahead of runner-up Ballard. Mount Vernon crowned five champions. Matthew Goodlove (106), Casen Caskey (138), 150-pound freshman Avery Paustian, senior Mikey Ryan at 157 and heavyweight Andrew Dix placed first for Mount Vernon, which hosts its home invitational on Saturday.

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