There is not a better way to combat winter than a full weekend of Iowa Wrestling. Hawkeye fans had a full weekend of Iowa Wrestling and I wanted to do an update.
The weekend started off in the right direction when Iowa defeated Purdue 34-6 in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Overall I thought the Hawks looked good.
The biggest match of the night by far was at 125 with #1 Drake Ayala dropping a 4-1 decision to #2 Matt Ramos. In a seven minute intense match and the deciding factor is an eye blink of a shot that led to the only takedown of the match. That was the biggest match to date for Ayala in his career. I look for him to improve and get better from the results of that match.
I will admit that Cullan Schriever had me worried in the first period at 133. Dustin Norris of Purdue came out with a quick takedown and tough ride. It was all Schriever after that as he finished up with a 20-7 major decision. I believe Schriever has so much potential that we have just not seen yet. I have no idea who will take the mat between Schriever and Brody Teske at Big Tens in March. Then again I am not sure anybody knows at this time.
#1 Real Woods defeated #32 Greyson Clark, 8-0. A solid win but not the best showing for Woods.
Victor Voinovich made a big statement Friday night with a 19-4 tech fall in 6:15. Voinovich looked like a completely different wrestler than what we saw earlier in the season. He was chain wrestling and scoring with a lot of offense. There is a real battle for the starting spot at 149 with Voinovich and #11 Caleb Rathjen. It will be interesting to see who gets the varsity matches in upcoming dual meets. As with 133 we may not know until Big Tens who the starter is at 149.
#2 Jared Franek won a 2-1 decision over #16 Joey Blaze. It is rare that a takedown is not scored in a match. On Sunday Blaze pinned #3 Peyton Robb of Nebraska in the third period when the score was 2-1.
#6 Mike Caliendo defeated Stoney Buell at 165, 9-4. Caliendo is a really good athlete and is fun to watch.
#9 Patrick Kennedy is looking t-o-u-g-h. He has settled in at 174 and has to be gaining confidence. As a fan I liked the 19-4 tech fall in only 4:43 over Brody Baumann. It will be interesting to see how Kennedy keeps progressing as we enter the tournament season. Patrick Kennedy is definitely trending in the right direction.
Aiden Riggins dropped a 4-1 decision at 184. I certainly respect the effort of Riggins, who is competing up two weight classes.
I have been going back in my memory of Iowa Wrestling about 197 and Hwt. I cannot remember a time when Iowa had wrestlers at 197 and Hwt win back-to-back matches by tech fall in a Big Ten meet.
Zach Glazier is starting to make it look easy with a 20-5 tech fall in just 3:15. You do not see an 18-4 score at the end of the first period at 197 too often, if ever. This guy is lighting up the scoreboard. And still only ranked at the highest #14?
Brad Hill at Hwt. was also impressive with a 19-4 tech fall in 4:04. Most of the buzz at Hwt has been about Ben Kueter. Hill continues to impress me and makes the most out of every match. This guy scores a lot of points and that is rare for a freshman Hwt.
Iowa Wrestling is my entertainment and I like to see the Hawks put points on the board. 197 and Hwt have been really entertaining so far. The remaining schedule is all Big Ten teams and Oklahoma State that will provide top competition. We will know pretty quick just how good Iowa is at 197 and Hwt. I sure like what I am seeing.
Iowa will hit the road for two dual meets this weekend. The Hawks will be a will be at #17 Illinois on Friday and Northwestern on Sunday. I will have a preview later in the week.
As a side note I thought the officiating was again pretty bad Friday night. I swear Carver-Hawkeye Arena is where top officials go to have their worst performance of the year. Where do I get that? They can’t be that bad all of the time or they would not be officiating big meets. The inconsistency with stalling calls is frustrating. Go watch D-I college wrestling matches from the 80’s on YouTube and you will see what I mean.
#2 Iowa 34, Purdue 6
125 – #2 Matt Ramos (P) dec. #1 Drake Ayala (I), 4-1
133 – Cullan Schriever (I) major dec. Dustin Norris (P), 20-7
141 – #1 Real Woods (I) major dec. #32 Greyson Clark (P), 8-0
149 — Victor Voinovich III (I) tech. fall Marcus Polanco (P), 19-4
157 – #2 Jared Franek (I) dec. #16 Joey Blaze (P), 2-1
165 – #6 Michael Caliendo (I) dec. Stoney Buell (P), 9-4
174 – #9 Patrick Kennedy (I) tech. fall Brody Baumann (P), 19-4
184 – James Rowley (P) dec. Aiden Riggins (I), 5-1
197 – #14 Zach Glazier (I) tech. fall Ben Vanadia (P), 20-5
285 – Bradley Hill (I) tech. fall Tristan Ruhlman (P), 19-4
The Hawkeye Wrestling Club had their annual Arctic Plunge on Saturday. The frigid temperatures were right on time for an event with arctic in the title. It sounds as though an all time record amount of money was raised to support the HWC. Thank you to all that participated.
The Iowa Women’s Wrestling team had another impressive showing in legendary Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday at the Iowa Duals. Iowa dominated two opponents and entertained the home crowd with high scoring matches. This was the final home dual meet for Iowa this season.
Iowa won nineteen of twenty matches including ten tech falls and five pins.
The Hawks defeated Missouri Valley College 42-0 with six tech falls, three pins, and 7-0 decision. Iowa then defeated Life (ranked #1 in NAIA) 35-6 with five tech falls and one pin.
The attendance was listed at 6,675. That is great support for our first year program.
On Facebook the Iowa Women’s Wrestling team had a picture of our wrestlers signing autographs after the meet. Great to see that. I see the popularity of the Iowa Women’s wrestling program continue to grow with each passing year.
Iowa will compete again on Friday at the Indiana Tech Duals in Fort Wayne, Indiana with dual meets at 2 PM and 4 PM. I will have a preview later in the week.
#2 Iowa 42, Missouri Valley College 0
101 — Emilie Gonzalez (I) pinned Sage Beltran (M), 0:57
109 — Ava Bayless (I) tech. fall Hailey Holland (M), 11-0
116 — Brianna Gonzalez (I) pinned Laura Lincoln (M), 1:40
123 — Felicity Taylor (I) tech. fall Ashley Whetzal (M), 10-0
130 — Emily Frost (I) tech. fall Chase Kiel (M), 11-0
136 — Lilly Luft (I) tech. fall Aniseta Acosta (M), 11-0
143 — Ella Schmit (I) tech. fall Willow Barnes (M), 10-0
155 — Bella Mir (I) tech. fall Elia Falcetti (M), 10-0
170 — Haley Ward (I) decision Kelani Corbett (M), 7-0
191 — Alivia White (I) pinned Tylah Allen (M), 1:16
#2 Iowa 35, Life University 6
101 — Sterling Dias (I) tech. fall Devyn Gomez (L), 10-0
109 — Ava Bayless (I) tech. fall Diana Gonzalez (L), 10-0
116 — Brianna Gonzalez (I) pinned Ariana Martinez (L), 2:07
123 — Felicity Taylor (I) tech. fall Anna Krejsa (L), 10-0
130 — Sarah Savidge (L) tech. fall Emily Frost (I), 11-0
136 — Lilly Luft (I) pinned Zaynah McBryde (L), 1:42
143 — Reese Larramendy (I) decision fall Jamilah McBryde (L), 12-4
155 — Marlynne Deede (I) decision Latifah McBryde (L), 3-1
170 — Kylie Welker (I) tech. fall Margaret Graham (L), 10-0
191 — Jaycee Foeller (I) decision Madeline Welch (L), 2-0
It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.
Go Hawks!
