Incoming recruit Karlee Brooks won a Junior National title at 125 lbs. in Fargo. Brooks defeated Rose Kaplan of Indiana by a 10-0 tech fall in the finals.

Brooks was 6-0 with five tech falls and a decision. Her only full match was a 5-3 semifinal round win over defending national champion Kaidance Gerg of Idaho, 5-3.

Mia Goodwin was 2-2 at 110 lbs. and did not place. Kiara Djoumessi was 4-2 and did not place at 140 lbs.

Brooks, originally from Phoenix, Arizona, is in Colorado Springs, Colorado at the U.S. Olympic Training Center as a member of the EAP (Elite Accelerator Program). 

She was named OW at the Girls National High School Recruiting Showcase in April after winning the title at 120 lbs. Brooks was a 53 KG/117 lbs. U17 National champion and placed fifth at the 2023 U17 World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey.

In the National Girls High School Rankings Brooks is ranked #1 at 120 lbs. and #16 in the P4P rankings. Djoumessi is ranked #15 at 140 and Goodwin is not ranked at 110.

Brooks, Goodwin and Djoumessi are members of the Iowa Women’s Wrestling Recruiting Class of 2024.

Junior Nationals in Fargo, North Dakota

Mia Goodwin (VA) – 110

Rd of 64: Mia Goodwin (VA) fall Courtnl Chuway (IL)

Rd of 32: Jayden Keller (MO) tech fall  Mia Goodwin (VA) 10-0

Consi 32 #2   : Mia Goodwin (VA) VPO1 Carly Boenau

Consi 16#1 : Joy Cantu (IN) tech fall Mia Goodwin (VA) 10-0

Karlee Brooks – 125

Rd of 64: Karlee Brooks (AZ) tech fall Hannah Blyvels (MI) 11-0

Rd of 32: Karlee Brooks (AZ) tech fall Neveah Wilson (IN) 10-0

Round of 16: Karlee Brooks (AZ) tech fall Isabella DeSilva (TX) 11-0

Quarterfinals: Karlee Brooks (AZ) tech fall Ragan Retell (NY) 10-0

Semifinals: Karlee Brooks (AZ) decision Kaidance Gerg (ID) 5-3

Finals: Karlee Brooks (AZ) tech fall Rose Kaplan (IN) 10-0

Kiara Djoumessi (IA) – 140

Rd 64: Kiara Djoumessi (IA) fall Isabella Welner (AR)

Rd 32: Kiara Djoumessi (IA) fall Bryann Bower (MI)

Rd 16: Lexi Ritchie (IL) fall Kiara Djoumessi (IA)

Consi 16 #2: Kiara Djoumessi (IA) fall Madeline Zerafa (IL)

Consi 8 #1: Kiara Djoumessi (IA) VPO1 Vivienne Gitke (CO) 10-3

 Consi 8 #2: Amella Fawcett (AK) fall Kiara Djoumessi (IA)

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

The largest wrestling tournament in the world begins today. Incoming Iowa recruits will be competing for the next week in Fargo, North Dakota in the Dakota Dome in Junior National Freestyle and Greco-Roman competition.

Junior Girls competition will be on Saturday and Sunday with Mia Goodwin(110), Karlee Brooks(125), and Kiara Djoumessi(145) taking the mats.

Junior Boys will be Monday through Wednesday for Dru Ayala(120), Keyan Hernandez(125), Kale Voinovich(157), and Brady Benham(175).

Leister Bowling(175) will compete in Junior Greco-Roman on Friday and Saturday, July 19-20.

All of the recruits listed are in the Recruiting Class of 2024 except Bowling who is in the Class of 2025.

Iowa Assistant Wrestling Coach Ryan Morningstar will be coaching for Team Iowa. Morningstar has coached for Iowa at Fargo since 2010.

Full coverage will be available on the premium service of FloWrestling.

I will have follow-up blogs with results.

Junior National Freestyle

Mia Goodwin (VA) – 110

Karlee Brooks (AZ) – 125

Kiara Djoumessi (IA) – 145

Dru Ayala (IA) – 120

Keyan Hernandez (MT) – 126

Kale Voinovich (IA)- 157

Brady Benham (OK) – 175

Greco-Roman

Leister Bowling (CO) – 165 

Saturday, July 13

Session I –

9:00 AM to 2:00 PM 

Junior Girls: Championship (3 Rds) and Consolation (2 or 3 Rds)  

Session II –
4:00 PM to 8:00 PM 

16U Girls/Junior Girls: Championship & Quarterfinals and Consolation (4 Rds)  

Sunday, July 14

Session III –
9:00 AM to 12:00 PM 

Junior Girls: Semifinals (2 Mats); Consolation and Consolation Semifinals (3 Rds) 

Session IV –
12:00 PM to 2:00 PM Junior Girls: 3rd-8th Medal Matches  

Session V –
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM 

Junior Girls: Parade of Champions and Championship Finals 

Monday, July 15

Session VI –
9:00 AM to 2:30 PM 

Boys Freestyle:  Championship (4 Rds) and Consolation (5 Rds) 

Session VII –
3:30 PM to 8:30 PM 

16U BoysFreestyle:  Championship (4 Rds) and Consolation 5 Rds) 

Tuesday, July 16

Session VIII –

9:00 AM to 1:30 PM 

JR Boys Freestyle:  Championship (1 Rd) and Consolations (2 Rds) 

Session IX –
3:00 PM to 7:00 PM  

JR Boys Freestyle:  Championship & Quarterfinals (2 Rds) and Consolation (3 Rds)  

Wednesday, July 17

Session X –
10:00 AM to 12:30 PM 

16U Boys/JR Boys Freestyle:  Semifinals, Consolation (3 Rds), and Consolation Semifinals

Session XI –
3:00 PM to 4:30 PM  

16U Boys/JR Boys Freestyle:  3rd-8th Medal Matches  

Session XII –
5:30 PM to 8:00 PM  

16U Boys/JR Boys Freestyle:  Parade of Champions and Championship Finals  

Friday, July 19

Session XIII –
9:00 AM to 2:30 PM 

JR Boys Greco-Roman:  Championship (4 Rds) and Consolation (5 Rds) 

Session XIV –
3:30 PM to 8:30 PM 

Boys Greco-Roman:  Championship (4 Rds) and Consolation 5 Rds) 

Saturday, July 20

Session XV –
9:00 AM to 1:00 PM 

16U Boys/JR Boys Greco-Roman:  Quarterfinals, Semifinals (2 Rds) and Consolation (3 or 4 Rds) 

Session XVI –
3:00 PM to 5:00 PM 

16U Boys/JR Boys Greco-Roman:  Consolations, Consolation Semifinals, and 3rd-8th Medal Matches (4 Rds) 

Session XVII –
6:00 PM to 8:30 PM 

16U Boys/JR Boys Greco-Roman:  Parade of Champions and Finals    

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

Iowa Hawkeye Ella Schmit dominated in winning the Gold at 65kg/143 lbs. at the U20 Pan American Championships in Lima, Peru. This marked the second straight year that Schmit won Gold at 65kg at the U20 Pan Ams.

Schmit was 4-0 with two falls and two tech falls. After a first round fall over Michelle Olea Ruiz of Mexico in 1:24 Schmit won by a 10-0 and 11-0 tech fall over wrestlers from Puerto Rico and Peru. In the final round she pinned Olea Ruiz of Mexico in 1:06 for the Gold medal.

Schmit placed 7th at 143 lbs. at NCWWC Nationals as a member of the 2024 national championship Hawkeye team. Schmit led the Hawks with 15 pins this season. She placed second at U20 Nationals to earn a spot on Team USA to compete at the Pan Ams.

Originally from Bettendorf, Iowa, Schmit was the 2022 Dan Gable Ms. Wrestler of the Year.

2024 U20 Pan American Championships in Lima, Peru.

65 kg – Ella Schmit (Bettendorf, Iowa/Iowa Women’s WC), Gold

WIN Michelle Olea Ruiz (Mexico), fall, 1:24

WIN Ana Torres Cardona (Puerto Rico), tech. fall, 10-0

WIN Sheyla Pedragas Moreno (Peru), tech. fall, 11-0

WIN Michelle Olea Ruiz (Mexico), fall, 1:06

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

Incoming recruit Otto Black won the Gold at 63kg/138 lbs. at the U20 Pan American Championships in Lima, Peru.

Black was 3-0 with two tech falls to win the title. In the first round Black won by a 9-0 tech fall over Vitor De Medeiros Alves of Brazil. The second match was a 2-0 decision over Zachary Marrero of Puerto Rico. In the third round Black won by a 14-3 tech fall over Patrick Rodriguez Quinto of Ecuador.

Black won U20 Greco-Roman Nationals in April and the U20 World Team Trials in May. He will represent Team USA at the 2024 U20 Greco-Roman World Championships in Pontevedra, Spain on September 3.

Black, from Park, Colorado, won a 138 lbs. 4A Colorado state title this season with a 52-0 record. He was a Junior Greco-Roman national champion at 126 in 2022 and 132 in 2023 and is a member of the Iowa Wrestling Recruiting Class of 2024.

2024 U20 Pan American Championships in Lima, Peru.

63 kg – Otto Black (Parker, Colo.), Gold

WIN Vitor De Medeiros Alves (Brazil), tech. fall, 9-0

WIN Zachary Marrero (Puerto Rico), 2-0

WIN Patrick Rodriguez Quinto (Ecuador), tech. fall, 14-3

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

The University of Iowa led the nation in attendance in 2023-24 for a record 17th straight year. The Hawks had 89,082 fans attend a dual meet in legendary Carver-Hawkeye Arena for an average of 14,847 fans per dual meet.

 Penn State(7,337 fans per dual) was second and Iowa State(6,691 fans per dual) was third.

This marked the 25th straight year that Iowa has averaged more than 8,000 fans per dual meet.

Iowa has led the nation in attendance in every season that Tom Brands has been the head coach starting with the 2006-07 season.

Iowa has led the nation in home attendance in 21 of the 22 seasons it has been tracked.

What has impressed me the most is that Iowa has sold out Carver-Hawkeye Arena in early November before the start of the season in each of the last three years. That is amazing.

Hawk fans will be looking forward to seeing the Hawks make their entrance from the new state of the art wrestling facility through a tunnel and onto the floor of Carver Hawkeye Arena. A sellout crowd will be more than ready to go. I cannot wait.

The full Iowa Wrestling schedule for the 2023-24 season was released on October 17 last year. I will keep you up to date when the 2024-25 schedule is released.

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

Todd Conner

All American Ella Schmit and incoming recruit Otto Black will be competing at the U20 Pan American Championships in Lima, Peru.

Greco-Roman is on Thursday and women’s freestyle on Friday.

Black will represent Team USA at 63kg and will face Vitor De Medeiros Alves of Brazil in the first round.

Schmit will face Ana Torres Cardona of Puerto Rico at 65kg.

Schmit is the defending 65kg Pan Am champion after winning the Gold in Chile last year.  

Schmit placed 7th at NCWWC Nationals as a member of the 2024 national championship Hawkeye team.

Originally from Bettendorf, Iowa, Schmit was the 2022 Dan Gable Ms. Wrestler of the Year.

Black won U20 Greco-Roman Nationals in April and the U20 World Team Trials in May. He will represent Team USA at the 2024 U20 Greco-Roman World Championships in Pontevedra, Spain on September 2-8 .

Black, from Park, Colorado, won a 138 lbs. 4A Colorado state title this season with a 52-0 record and is a member of the Iowa Wrestling Recruiting Class of 2024.

Live coverage of Pan Ams will be available on the FloWrestling premium service.

I will have a follow up blog with results.

U20 Pan American Championships in Lima, Peru

***Times listed are CST

Thursday, July 11 – Greco-Roman

10 AM – Qualification rounds, repechage

5PM – Medal matches

Friday, July 12 – Women’s Freestyle

10 AM – Qualification rounds, repechage

5PM – Medal matches

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

The final National Girls High School Rankings for the 2023-24 season have been released. The rankings are a product of USA Wrestling, FloWrestling, and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

Six of the seven incoming recruits for Iowa are ranked. Karlee Brooks remained #1 at 120 and is #16 in the P4P (Pound for Pound). Cadence Diduch is #2 at 135 and #12 P4P and Naomi Simon is #2 at 170 and #13 P4P.

Rianne Murphy went from #4 to #2 at 105 and Val Solorio remained at #4 at 100 lbs. Kiara Djoumessi is #15 at 140 and Mia Goodwin is not ranked after being #29 at 110 in the last rankings.

Cadence Diduch(62kg) won Bronze and Naomi Simon(76kg) placed fifth at the Grand Prix of Spain last weekend.

Diduch and Simon won U20 Nationals in April. They will represent Team USA at the 2024 U20 World Freestyle Championships in Pontevedra, Spain on September 2-8.

I will have a preview and follow up blogs with results as our recruits compete at Junior Nationals in Fargo on Saturday and Sunday, July 13-14.

Iowa Women’s Wrestling Recruiting Class of 2024 in the National Girls High School Rankings

Val Solorio (Canon-McMillan HS, Pennsylvania) – #4 at 100 lbs.

Rianne Murphy (Crown Point, IN – Wyoming Seminary) – #2 at 105 lbs.

Mia Goodwin (Virginia Beach, VA – Kellam HS) – Not ranked at 110 lbs.

Karlee Brooks  (Valiant College Prep, Phoenix, AZ) – #1 at 120 lbs., #16 P4P

Cadence Diduch (Freeport, Illinois) – #2 at 135 lbs. #12 P4P

Kiara Djoumessi (Waverly-Shell Rock HS, Iowa) –  #15 at 140 lbs.

Naomi Simon (Decorah, Iowa) – #2 at 170 lbs., #13 P4P

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

Fargo. That one word is now used to describe the largest wrestling tournament in the world.

The 2024 U.S. Marine Corp Junior and 16U Nationals will take place July 12-20. The floor of the Fargo Dome in Fargo, North Dakota will be covered with wrestling mats as wrestlers from across the country compete.

This tournament has come a long way since The Fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Iowa first hosted Junior Nationals in 1971. Future Iowa Hawkeye Dan Holm (Illinois) won a national title at 154 lbs.

I believe it was at these early tournaments that Sandy Stevens began her career as an announcer.

I attended my first Junior Nationals in Cedar Falls in 1983 to watch Royce Alger of Lisbon win a 154 lbs. Junior National title. I went to my last Junior Nationals in Fargo in 2005 to see Ryan Morningstar of Lisbon win a national title at 154.

I went every year Junior Nationals were in the UNI-Dome (1983-1990). I sure miss this tournament in the UNI-Dome.

A good article on the history of Junior Nationals:

https://www.win-magazine.com/2020/07/17/moments-that-made-the-junior-nationals-over-nearly-50-years/

The largest wrestling tournament in the world is continuing to grow. The addition of women’s wrestling has made a big impact for continued growth for the tournament.

From USA Wrestling in 2023:

2023 USMC Junior/16U Nationals entries, in comparison to 2022 record event

• 16U women’s freestyle: 740 vs. 518 (+ 222 entries)
• 16U men’s freestyle: 1,595 vs. 1,436 (+159 entries)
• 16U Greco-Roman: 1,206 vs. 1,044 (+162 entries)
• Junior women’s freestyle: 853 vs. 944 (- 91 entries)
• Junior men’s freestyle: 1,596 vs. 1,563 (+33 entries)
• Junior Greco-Roman: 1,444 vs. 1,141 (+ 3 entries)

USA Wrestling blitzed the overall record with 7,134 entries this year, blasting through the 7,000 athlete barrier and topping the 2022 record of 6,646 athletes by 488 athletes, a healthy increase of 7.3%.

Incoming recruits for the men’s and women’s program will be competing. Junior Girls will be on Saturday and Sunday, July 13-14. Junior Boys will be on Monday-Wednesday, July 15-17.

Schedule for Junior and 16U Nationals:

https://usawrestlingevents.com/event/2400001702/schedule

FloWrestling will have full coverage on their premium service.

I will have a preview and follow up blogs with results for incoming recruits for both programs..

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

Five members of the University of Iowa Women’s Wrestling team competed at the Grand Pix of Spain in Madrid today.

Kylie Welker won the Gold at 72kg as the only American champion in three styles. Welker was dominant with two pins over three-time World medalist Zhamila Bakbergenova of Kazakhstan and a 12-0 technical fall against American Aspen Barber.

76kg Olympian Kennedy Blades placed third at 72kg.

Welker won a national title at 170 lbs. and led Iowa to the 2024 NCWWC and National Duals titles in the first year of competition for the program. Welker won Bronze at the 2021 U23 World Championships and was a 2021 Junior World champion.

Cadence Diduch(62kg) and Reese Larramendy(65kg) both won Bronze.

Iowa Assistant Coach Tonya Verbeek was a member of the coaching staff.

Brianna Gonzalez(50kg), Cadence Diduch(62kg), Reese Larramendy(65kg) and Naomi Simon(76kg) will represent Team USA at the 2024 U20 World Freestyle Championships in Pontevedra, Spain on September 4-6.  

Diduch and Simon are members of the incoming Recruiting Class of 2024. 

Kylie Welker(72kg) will compete at the U23 World Championships in Tirana, Albania on October 24-25.

Grand Prix of Spain 

53kg: Brianna Gonzalez – 5th

62kg: Cadence Diduch – Bronze

65kg: Reese Larramendy – Bronze

72kg – Kylie Welker – Gold

76kg: Naomi Simon – 5th

53 kg – Brianna Gonzalez (Baldwin, Calif./Iowa Women’s WC/Titan Mercury WC), 5th

LOSS Karla Godinez Gonzalez (Canada), 5-0

LOSS Christianah Ogunsanya (Nigeria), tech. fall, 10-0

62 kg – Cadence Diduch (Freeport, Ill./Alber Athletics WC), bronze

WIN Lydia Perez (Spain), 4-4

LOSS Astrid Paola Montero Chirinos (Venezuela), tech. fall, 10-0

WIN Miren Huarte Montes (Spain), tech. fall, 10-0

65 kg – Reese Larramendy (Reno, Nev./Iowa Women’s WC), bronze

WIN Manuela Noguerol de Souza (Spain), tech. fall, 10-0

LOSS Irina Kazyulina (Kazakhstan), fall

WIN Marta Ojeda Navarro (Spain), tech. fall, 10-0

LOSS Kendra Dacher (France), 10-7

WIN Jonelle Clarke (Canada), tech. fall, 10-0

72 kg – Kylie Welker (Franksville, Wis./Iowa Women’s WC/Titan Mercury WC), gold

WIN Zhamila Bakbergenova (Kazakhstan), fall

WIN Aspen Barber (United States), tech. fall, 12-0

WIN Zhamila Bakbergenova (Kazakhstan), fall

76 kg – Naomi Simon (Decorah, Iowa/Northeast Iowa WC), 5th

LOSS Elmira Syzdykova (Kazakhstan), 8-4

LOSS Brianna Fraser (Canada), fall

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!

The elite level for our great sport of wrestling is representing the United States in International competition on a World or Olympic team.

Iowa Wrestling fans have a lot to follow in the coming months. We will have one wrestler in the Summer Olympics, five competing in the U20 World Championships and two in the U23 World Championships.

The pinnacle of our sport is the Olympics. Spencer Lee will represent the United States at 57kg in Paris at the Summer Olympics on August 8-9.

Lee was dominating in qualifying the United States at 57kg at the World Olympic Games Qualifier in Istanbul, Turkey on May 11. 

Lee is currently with Team USA at their last Olympic Training Camp at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

August 8 and 9 cannot get here fast enough.

Brianna Gonzalez(50kg), Cadence Diduch(62kg), Reese Larramendy(65kg) and Naomi Simon(76kg) won U20 Nationals in April. They will represent Team USA at the 2024 U20 World Freestyle Championships in Pontevedra, Spain on September 4-6.  

Diduch and Simon are members of the incoming Recruiting Class of 2024.

Ben Kueter will be at 125kg for Team USA at the U20 World Freestyle Championships in Pontevedra, Spain on September 7-8. Kueter won the U20 World Team Trials in Geneva, Ohio in June. Keuter was a 2022 U20 World Champion at 97kg/213 lbs.  

Patrick Kennedy won the 79kg title at U23 Nationals in Geneva, Ohio last month. Kennedy will now represent Team USA at the U23 World Freestyle Championships in Tirana, Albania on October 26-27.

Kylie Welker placed fourth at the Olympic Team Trials at 76 kg and made the Senior National Team. As a result she was able to challenge for the 72kg spot on the U23 World Team. 72kg is a non-Olympic weight.

Welker won a best of three wrestle-off last week and will now compete at the U23 World Championships in Tirana, Albania on October 24-25.

I will keep you up to date with a preview for all of our wrestlers competing in the Olympic and World Championships.

Summer Olympics in Paris, France on August 8-9.

57k: Spencer Lee

U20 World Freestyle Championships in Pontevedra, Spain on September 4-6. 

50kg: Brianna Gonzalez

62kg: Cadence Diduch 

65kg: Reese Larramendy 

76kg: Naomi Simon 

U20 World Freestyle Championships in Pontevedra, Spain on September 7-8. 

125kg: Ben Kueter

U23 World Championships in Tirana, Albania on October 24-27. 

72kg: Kylie Welker 

79kg: Patrick Kennedy

It is great to be an Iowa Wrestling fan.

Go Hawks!