Nittany Lions roar past Hawkeyes

Finishes and ride outs.

If you were to ask me to identify the greatest distinguishing factors between #3 Iowa and #1 Penn State during Friday night’s dual at Carver-Hawkeye Arena – a 29-6 loss for the Hawkeyes – those are the two that most immediately come to mind.

Finishes and ride outs.

(Oh, and the fact that this Penn State team is an absolute wagon.)

Over and over again the Nittany Lions were able to convert shots in key moments, then stay in the top position for seemingly as long as was necessary thereafter.

Meanwhile, over and over again the Hawkeyes were unable to finish shots of their own, nor earn escapes in critical situations that might have helped to keep some matches within striking distance.

As a team Iowa tallied just five total takedowns in the dual – three of them by sophomore Caleb Rathjen at 149 pounds – this, despite numerous other chances to score after getting in deep at 157, 165, 174, 184 and 197.

Penn State did not have a similar issue, as the visitors racked up 21 takedowns on the night.

The ride out discrepancy was even starker.

15 different times Nittany Lion wrestlers were able to finish a period in the top position – that’s exactly HALF of the periods (30) in the entire dual.

The Hawkeyes would only accomplish that same feat twice.

As much as anything else, that was the story of the dual. But since we’re all here it’s probably worth going chronologically to paint a more comprehensive picture of what was Iowa’s first 20-point margin of defeat in a dual since January 11, 2004 (vs Oklahoma State).

Weight-by-Weight

Things at least started on a positive note for Iowa as #7 Drake Ayala handed #2 Braeden Davis the first loss of his freshman season in their bout at 125 pounds. An early first period slide-by from Ayala was the only offense of note from either wrestler across seven minutes as the Fort Dodge native prevailed by a final score of 4-2.

Hand Raised.

125 – #7 Drake Ayala (I) dec. #2 Braeden Davis (P), 4-2

Iowa 3, Penn State 0 #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/3CmmelN4k6

— Iowa Hawkeye Wrestling (@Hawks_Wrestling) February 10, 2024

The top-ranked Nittany Lions would immediately respond, however, with #6 Aaron Nagao piling up oodles of riding time (there’s that theme again) in an 11-0 major decision over #20 Cullan Schriever that nearly turned into a pin at 133 pounds in the waning moments.

Iowa had high hopes for a quick response of its own, but on this night, it wasn’t to be as #2 Real Woods gave up a takedown in both the opening and closing minute of his 141-pound match with #1 Beau Bartlett to drop a 7-2 decision.

For the second-consecutive week – albeit against some serious competition – Woods just didn’t look like the guy Hawk fans have grown used to seeing over the past 1.5 seasons since his arrival in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes badly need him to regain that old form if they’re going to max out as a team come March.

In a dual largely dominated by the visitors, 149 pounds engendered by far and away the biggest response from the sold-out Carver crowd.

#12 Caleb Rathjen held a 7-2 lead early in the third period thanks to a pair of excellent takedowns – one from an ankle pick and the other his go-to high crotch – before it all appeared on the brink of slipping away against #10 Tyler Kasak.

Kasak scored back-to-back late takedowns, the second of which preceded a ride out that would knot the score at eight-apiece going into sudden victory.

With all the momentum against him Rathjen would find a way to respond, hitting another high-crotch attempt on the PSU freshman and limp arming out to secure the winning takedown.

Caleb Rathjen gets one back for @Hawks_Wrestling! 💥

No. 12 at 149 defeats No. 10 Tyler Kasak in sudden victory. 👀 pic.twitter.com/G7FwBZ2dDA

— Big Ten Wrestling (@B1GWrestling) February 10, 2024

Unfortunately, that would be the last time Carver had reason to reach full volume on the evening. But even so, it shouldn’t dilute what a huge win/moment it was for Rathjen on a stage he surely must have dreamed of performing on as a kid growing up in Ankeny.

Up at 157 and 165 pounds things weren’t nearly as positive for the Hawkeyes on either side of intermission.

For #5 Jared Franek it was a total encapsulation of the two factors I mentioned at the start of this piece: finishes and ride outs.

His opponent, #1 Levi Haines scored a clean first period takedown before riding out the remaining 1:40 on the clock. Following a quick escape in the second he’d repeat the sequence, this time scoring on a re-attack after Franek was unable to convert on a deep single leg shot.

Down 8-0 entering the third, the Hawkeye chose neutral and again couldn’t finish a shot of his own. Moments later Haines would tack on another takedown (and ride out) for the 12-0 win.

#6 Michael Caliendo would fare slightly better following his former North Dakota State teammate, but only so much so in a 12-6 loss to #7 Mitchell Mesenbrink.

Mesenbrink, a two-time Under-20 world medalist (silver in 2022, gold in 2023) maintained a breakneck pace throughout this one, potentially surprising Caliendo in the process.

It wouldn’t be until the third period (trailing 11-3) that Iowa’s 165-pounder finally seemed to settle into the match. Both wrestlers traded multiple shots and stalemates before Caliendo was finally able to convert for a takedown within the final 30 seconds – a score that would not only prevent a major decision, but perhaps more importantly give Caliendo some confidence heading into a possible rematch between the two down the road.

That said, Mesenbrink may also be well on his way toward entering the 165-pound title conversation that was previously only reserved for past champs Keegan O’Toole (Missouri) and David Carr (Iowa State).

Meanwhile, 174 pounds was yet another weight that very much aligned with the themes of the dual.

Three-time national champion #1 Carter Starocci was able to get takedowns with barely seconds (or less) left in both the first and second periods, plus defend and/or counter 4-5 quality leg attacks from Iowa’s #7 Patrick Kennedy throughout the match. The 13-5 final score wasn’t so much indicative of the competitiveness of the bout, but rather the execution during certain critical moments within it.

Go ahead and ‘rinse and repeat’ at 184, where an early takedown plus more than 2:30 of riding time was all that really separated Aiden Riggins from #6 Bernie Truax entering the last minute of the match.

Riggins got in on low singles in both the second and third periods but couldn’t convert either as Truax draped over the top and held on for stalemates.

The final 8-0 margin would only be secured after Truax got the better of a simultaneous shot between the two wrestlers and rode Riggins out for the remainder of the third period.

It was déjà vu at 197 pounds for Iowa fans, this time with #11 Zach Glazier taking his first loss of the season to (another) three-time NCAA champ in #1 Aaron Brooks – one of the best wrestlers in the world at his weight (just ask David Taylor).

Neither would get all that close to a score in the opening three minutes. Then, after a quick Brooks escape to start the second, it was actually Glazier who managed to shoot in on a deep single leg to threaten the first takedown of the match.

But as was customary on the night, Glazier – an excellent finisher all season long to that point – couldn’t quite capitalize on the position. Not only that, but Brooks was eventually able to counter for a go-behind score of his own.

He too, would then ride out the remainder of a period, stymieing a couple of near-escapes from his Iowa foe in the process.

Glazier would finally get his escape mid-way through the third after choosing bottom, but trailing 4-1 (5-1 with riding time) was unable to get past Brooks’ head/hands defense a second time before the final buzzer sounded.

I realize the term ‘moral victory’ is probably blasphemous to those in the Iowa room, but damnit if Glazier didn’t make this writer think even more highly of him after Friday’s defeat. Brooks is the runaway favorite at 197, and if the Hawkeye can be that competitive with him, I can’t wait to see how he stacks up with the rest of the other top contenders at the weight.

The night closed out at heavyweight with true freshman Ben Kueter being thrown right into the fire against #1 Greg Kerkvliet, yet another prohibitive NCAA title favorite for the Nittany Lions.

Kueter (230), giving up roughly 15 pounds to Penn State’s fifth-year senior, would spend most of his third career match as a Hawkeye trying get off the mat and back to his feet.

Kerkvliet scored on an early ankle pick in the first, riding for a while before Kueter was able to explode off a restart and get away. However, the Hawkeye wouldn’t be as fortunate in the second period, getting ridden for the entire two minutes after choosing down.

An escape by the Penn State wrestler to open the third, followed by another successful low shot would be all she wrote as Kerkvliet maintained his top position for the remainder of the match, adding a point each for stalling and riding time in the process for a 9-1 final margin.

For those interested in drawing parallels, this was a result not all that dissimilar to a few of Kerkvliet’s early defeats in his college career.

An age-level World Champion in his youth, just like Kueter, Kerkvliet took major decision losses (with a two-point takedown, mind you) as a redshirt freshman to both Michigan’s Mason Parris and Iowa’s Tony Cassioppi.

A year later, as a redshirt sophomore, he’d lose twice more to Cassioppi.

Amidst it all, he’s continued to grow (including physically) each and every subsequent season to the point that he’s now the gold standard at the weight class until someone knocks him off.

If Kueter were to take a similar trajectory in his college career, if not perhaps a slightly accelerated one, I think Iowa fans will be plenty happy with the results.

Final Buzzer

There’s not much left to say about this dual other than that Penn State is the overwhelming national title favorite for a reason.

Iowa was far from perfect on Friday night, and even if it had been there’s no guarantee that would have been enough to topple these Nittany Lions.

We can talk about the bigger picture regarding the two programs at a later date, but as it pertains to this dual – and perhaps this season – specifically, the gap would appear to be quite wide between them.

Iowa (10-2, 5-2 Big Ten) will have a month to ready itself for their next meeting at Big Ten’s, and another 10 days after that before the NCAA Tournament gets underway in Kansas City, MO.

It’ll be fascinating to see what, if any, improvements can be made by the Hawkeyes between now and then.