Hawkeyes right the ship against Badgers
The fourth-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes got back to their customary winning ways on Sunday afternoon, taking it to the visiting Wisconsin Badgers to the tune of a 34-7 final margin inside of Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Senior Day.
Iowa wrestlers would prevail in eight of the ten bouts contested and do so in a fashion that I’m sure was much more to the liking of a fanbase that hadn’t gotten all that much to cheer about in recent weeks.
Six Hawkeyes tallied bonus points on the afternoon – including three major decisions, two tech. falls, and a pin at 141 pounds by senior Real Woods.
And not only that, but 9/10 put at least eight match points on the board, the lone exception being Joey Cruz, who was filling in for Drake Ayala at 125 pounds.
Carver had already been the scene of so much excitement over the past few days with Caitlin Clark’s record-breaking performance on Thursday followed by a big upset by the Iowa men on Saturday – so it only seemed fitting that Tom Brands’ group would continue the momentum (on top of the Iowa high school state championships last night in Des Moines) with an impressive showing of its own.
Despite the broader optimism from today’s action, I’m actually going to start off this recap with the lone two defeats of the afternoon.
(Think of it as eating your vegetables before diving headfirst into dessert.)
125/165
First up, as I mentioned already it was not the top-five matchup that we’d been hoping to see at 125 pounds, as Joey Cruz (7-5) filled in for #5 Drake Ayala against Wisconsin’s #3 Erick Barnett. (No word yet on the reason for Ayala’s absence, but I’ll let you know if/when that information becomes available.)
This was Cruz’s first career match inside of Carver-Hawkeye Arena, and even though he’d fall by 8-0 major decision there were some positive flashes throughout. Cruz got in on three deep shots but could never quite finish against the scrambly Barnett. It ultimately took a third period takedown plus a ride out for the Badger to salt things away.
And while the matchup at 125 pounds didn’t materialize, and thus deliver, the one at 165 most certainly did.
#7 Michael Caliendo and #5 Dean Hamiti wrestled an absolute barnburner for seven minutes, with the now 22-1 Hamiti pulling out a 14-11 decision as the final buzzer sounded.
There were some ridiculous sequences/scrambles in this one, including an eventual Caliendo takedown late in the first period prior to which both guys seemingly had the other dead to rights before the position shifted in the blink of an eye.
I’ll need to go back and watch the match at least a few more times in order to get a better grasp of exactly what happened, but at first glance the biggest difference was a slow start for Caliendo plus riding time for his opponent.
Hamiti was able to finish a low single early in the first period, then get another takedown on a reattack not long thereafter to make it a 6-1 deficit for the Hawkeye. He’d also pile up over a minute of riding time in the process.
Caliendo wouldn’t pull any closer than two points the rest of the match when you account for Hamiti’s extra point for riding time, and it all traces back to the hole he found himself digging out of in the opening minutes.
I tweeted this during my coverage of the dual, but I’m itching to see these two go at it again this season. Hamiti is a unique match-up for anybody at the weight class because of his length, and it may have taken Caliendo a few minutes to adjust in their first-ever meeting. Unfortunately for him, that was enough to cost him the match.
Perhaps it’ll be a different story should they meet again during postseason action next month.
And now that you’ve gritted through the ‘Brussels sprouts’ from this dual, let’s move on to the far more appetizing outcomes from the afternoon, starting with a quartet of non-seniors.
149/174/184/285
First up, #8 Caleb Rathjen followed the biggest win of his career with yet another exciting (and occasionally harrowing) win at 149 pounds, this one over 19th-ranked Joseph Zargo.
Truthfully, it was the Badger who took most of the initiative on offense in this match, but Rathjen was able to scramble through a pair of dicey sequences to score takedowns of his own, which, added to a riding time point and an escape made the difference in his 8-1 win.
Rathjen cartwheeled through an early slide-by from Zargo to come out on top, then rolled through a single leg in the third period before eventually securing the takedown after some more wild action from both wrestlers. The latter of those two immediately followed an injury scare for the Hawkeye when his knee turned awkwardly as the redshirt sophomore attempted to defend a shot.
Thankfully Rathjen was able to continue and didn’t appear too worse for the wear.
Moving chronologically, #7 Patrick Kennedy had little trouble picking apart Cale Anderson up at 174 pounds. PK racked up six takedowns, including a trio of textbook snap-down go-behinds that blew open what would become at 19-4 tech. fall.
That was followed by a late surprise to today’s proceedings, as true freshman Gabe Arnold (not listed on the probable lineups early this week) was the choice at 184 against Wisconsin’s 16th-ranked Shane Liegel.
Arnold, taking the mat for the first time in competition since the Soldier Salute in late-December, hardly appeared to have missed a beat. Despite wrestling up a weight against a quality opponent (and graduate senior), he’d look the far more seasoned of the two, building a 7-2 advantage courtesy of two takedowns (plus riding time) that would stand up to keep him undefeated on the season.
Arnold has one competition date left before burning his redshirt. One would imagine that would get utilized next weekend in Stillwater, Oklahoma as the Hawkeyes conclude their dual schedule with a rivalry showdown against Okie State.
Beyond that, inclusion in Iowa’s postseason lineup feels unlikely, but until someone in the program confirms things either way we won’t know for sure until Big Ten’s at Maryland next month.
Rounding things out is a major decision win (11-3) by #29 Bradley Hill at heavyweight. Another workmanlike effort from the redshirt freshman, Hill tallied takedowns in all three periods against Gannon Rosenfeld, plus a mean ride out in the third to secure bonus points.
Meanwhile, I’m just going to stop theorizing as to what Iowa ultimately does at 285. The Ben Kueter option looms large – he has two dates left to compete before burning his redshirt – but we’ll all know what the deal is once and for all when the pre-seeds for Big Ten’s come out.
Until then, while the story will continue to have my full interest, there really isn’t much else left to say before an official word comes down from one of Brands/Kueter on the matter. It’s also a disservice to Hill, who has put together an impressive season in his own right as he continues to make the transition up to heavyweight at the collegiate level.
Senior’s Sunday
Four Hawkeye seniors took the mat this afternoon, and not only did all four emerge victorious but they each did so in dominant fashion.
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We’ll breeze by #11 Zach Glazier at 197 pounds first, as it appears based on his lack of participation in post-dual festivities that he will indeed be exercising his extra year of eligibility next season.
Even still, the guy just continues to win and do so in impressive fashion. Glazier improved to 20-1 in his first year as a Hawkeye starter with a 13-4 major decision over Josh Otto.
Conversely, this will be the final go-around for Brody Teske, and has been a senior season that probably hasn’t transpired exactly as he would have hoped.
The Fort Dodge (IA) native has been in a lineup battle at 133 pounds with Cullan Schriever for most of the year and hadn’t competed at his ideal weight since taking a loss at Nebraska on January 12th. His final impression on the home crowd would be about all one could ask for, however, as the senior came out firing from the jump and rolled to a 19-4 tech. fall over Wisconsin’s Nicolar Rivera.
Teske is now 21-9 in his Hawkeye career to date after joining the program last season as a transfer by way of Northern Iowa (and Penn State before that). That run includes a seventh-place finish at Big Ten’s in 2023, which qualified him for the NCAA Tournament.
Whether he holds down the spot at 133 pounds this postseason remains very much up in the air, but regardless, one can’t help but feel glad for a home state kid to have gone out on the high note that he did this afternoon.
Next up, fellow transfer Jared Franek is looking to make his lone season in the Black & Gold singlet a memorable one.
The 2023 All-American at North Dakota State has been a much-needed stalwart in the Iowa lineup this year but entered Sunday riding a two-match losing streak.
As was the case with all of the seniors today, he wouldn’t have to worry about his final Carver memory being a sad one as the fifth-ranked Franek scored five takedowns in a 17-5 major decision victory over Luke Mechler.
Now 19-3 on the year, he’ll look to the postseason ahead in hopes of stamping a lasting (albeit brief) legacy as a Hawkeye.
And last but not least we come to Real Woods, another transfer, and one who has thrilled Iowa fans ever since he stepped onto the mat at Carver for the first time at last year’s dual with Iowa State.
The three-time All-American has been everything the Hawkeyes could’ve hoped for after arriving in Iowa City last season via Stanford; be it his 33-3 record after today’s win over Felix Lettini, his 19 bonus point victories in the process, his 2023 Big Ten title at 141 pounds or his NCAA runner-up finish two weeks later.
Simply put, Real Woods has been the real deal.
And wouldn’t you know it, he was again on Sunday snapping an uncharacteristic two-match losing streak of his own with an equally uncharacteristic pin (just the third of his Iowa career).
Even with a pair of shaky performances in recent weeks, to my eye Woods still represents the best opportunity in the Iowa lineup for an individual NCAA champion this season.
Forget about the future though, his Hawkeye career to date is what we’re focused on now, and it deserves many plaudits of its own.
Short time
That’s everything I’ve got from today’s dual.
Iowa (11-2, 5-2 Big Ten) will conclude its regular season next Sunday with a top-five showdown against archrival Oklahoma State (2:00 p.m. CST on FS1).
Also on deck, postseason competition for the Hawkeye women.
Clarissa Chun leads her squad to Indianola on Friday for NCWWC regional qualifying action, where Iowa will look to qualify fifteen (yes, fifteen) athletes for the national tournament in Cedar Rapids next month (Mar. 8-9).
I’ll have much more preview coverage of that event, plus a look ahead to Iowa/Okie State in the coming days. Basically, it’s that time of the wrestling calendar where the rubber meets the road for folks such as yours truly.
And guess what? I cannot wait.
