Iowa Wrestling Weekend That Was: Rough weekend for state NCAA Division I programs

The state’s NCAA Division I programs struggled at home and on the road. Wartburg won the Battle of the Burgs. Alburnett won its inaugural Rivere Valley Conference tournament and more in the Wrestling Weekend That Was.

Rough weekend for Iowa, Iowa State and UNI

The state’s D-I programs had a forgettable weekend overall. The Hawkeyes suffered an upset at the hands of No. 9 Minnesota Friday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Cyclones and Panthers combined to go 1-3 in their Oklahoma swing through Norman and Stillwater.

Iowa seemed to rebound from its lackluster showing against Penn State with an impressive win at Nebraska. The Hawkeyes resembled the former more than the latter against the Gophers. Iowa’s reliable performers led the way and dominated. Drake Ayala, Michael Caliendo and Patrick Kennedy posted bonus-point victories. Ayala has rediscovered his groove and looked very good. Caliendo has been very consistent and trounced a top-10 foe. Kennedy controlled the whole match and gutted out a major decision. Gabe Arnold was competitive in a loss to a title contender and heavyweight Ben Kueter scored a takedown and beat a top-10 foe. Those were the positives. The effort from the rest has been inconsistent, especially after the break. Iowa Coach Tom Brands said a couple wrestlers just stopped wrestling, which is not a trait associated with the Hawkeyes. He also mentioned of having to push through some factors and made references to temperatures of those who won. Possibly hinting at illness affected performance but avoiding that as an excuse.

They have to right the ship because the schedule doesn’t get easier this week. On Friday, Iowa heads to No. 2 Ohio State, which beat Iowa in the National Duals Invitational in November. The fourth-ranked Hawkeyes are at Michigan State Sunday before hosting Michigan Feb. 13. They close the regular season at Oklahoma State, which was dominant this weekend. Iowa has lost four duals for the first time since 2014.

The Cowboys swept UNI and Iowa State, taking 16 of 20 matches overall. No. 5 Oklahoma State handled the Cyclones in what promised to be a competitive dual. The third-ranked Cyclones dropped the first seven weights and trailed 21-0 before Isaac Dean (184), Rocky Elam (197) and heavyweight Yonger Bastida closed with decisions. Iowa State wrestled nearly 45:30 minutes before Dean scored the team’s first takedown in the final seconds of his match. Elam used one in tiebreaker overtime and Bastida added one, giving them just three takedowns and 25 total match points for the entire dual. Iowa State did post the lone victory of the weekend, beating No. 21 Oklahoma, 29-10.

UNI lose to Oklahoma State (34-3) Friday and Oklahoma (23-18) on Saturday. The Panthers 184-pounder Nick Fox was the only UNI wrestler to go 2-0. He posted two wins over ranked foes, beating the Cowboys’ No. 8 Zack Ryder, 3-1, in sudden victory-1, and provided UNI’s only victory, knocking off eighth-ranked Zack Ryder, 3-1 in sudden victory-1, scoring a reversal in the final seconds after opting to start in the bottom position when Ryder took injury time. Fox, who has overcome an early-season injury, won by injury default over the Sooners’ No. 10 Brian Soldano.

Wartburg wins “Battle of the Burgs”

The annual “Battle of the Burgs” dual between NCAA Division III powers Wartburg and Augsburg was held Friday at Minneapolis. The Knights won seven of 10 bouts for a 21-9 victory and took home the Swens-Milboy Belt, which is named after former Augsburg Coach Jeff Swenson and former Warburg Coach Jim Miller.

Wartburg never trailed, receiving decisions from No. 10 Cal Dorota (197), top-ranked heavyweight Mitch Williamson, No. 9 Patrick Mullen (133), No. 5 Kade Blume (141), top-ranked 157-pounder Charlie Dojan, Mike Slade, ranked 12th at 174, and No. 2 Kasey Ross at 184 to end it.

Wartburg is 13-1 overall this season.

Upper Iowa beats No. 25 Indianapolis

The day after a 19-17 loss to No. 8 McKendree, Upper Iowa earned a dual win over a ranked opponent. The Peacocks defeated host No. 25 Indianapolis, 22-16, on Friday.

Upper Iowa posted five bonus-point wins in the middleweights to knock off the Greyhounds. The Peacocks’ Preston Klostermann, a former Alburnett prep, highlighted the stretch with a 1:45 pin over Luke Robards at 157. Tanner Arjes (141), Ethen Doty at 149, 165-pounder Nick Mueller and Griffin Luke at 174 added major decisions.

Upper Iowa is 3-0 against Indianapolis since joining the Great Lakes Valley Conference and earned a second win over a ranked team this season. The Peacocks beat then-No. 25 King (Tenn.) University earlier this season.

Alburnett wins River Valley Conference

Alburnett competed in the River Valley Conference boys wrestling tournament for the first time since leaving the Tri-Rivers Conference. The Pirates captured the team title Saturday at North Cedar.

Alburnett scored 229 points, beating runner-up Wilton by 39 1/2. The Pirates crowned four champions and finished with three more second-place finishers. Tyler Gerhold (106), Atlee Dewitt (120), Owen Henriksen at 144 and heavyweight Eaghan Fleshman won titles for Alburnett, which had nine place fourth or better and 13 in the top six.

Lisbon roars at TRC

Lisbon dominated its way to a team title, scoring 238 points. North Linn was second with 156, seven points ahead of third-place Starmont.

Kyler Happel (106), Jack Gogel (113), Cade Happel at 126, Carter Gadberry (132), Jackson Knapp at 144 and 157-pounder Ian Kelsey each won titles for the Lions. Lisbon had nine total finalists.

Starmont had three champions, including 190-pounder Keaton Moeller. He improved to 37-0 with four technical falls and a pin on Saturday.

Iowa Valley, North Fayette Valley win crowns

Iowa Valley won the South Iowa Cedar League tournament Saturday in Marengo. The Tigers received titles from Gabe Olson (113), Mason Hoyt at 175 and 190-pounder Nolan Kriegel, amassing 179 points and topping North Mahaska by eight. Hoyt and Kriegel posted bonus-point wins over North Mahaska foes in the final to secure the team title.

North Fayette Valley scored 238 points to claim the Upper Iowa Conference tournament team title Saturday at New Hampton. The TigerHawks crowned champions in Weston Herriage (106), Jaxson and Brookxton Lundgren at 144 and 157 and heavyweight Layne Kleppe. South Winneshiek was second with 189 1/2 points and four champions.

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