Cyclones.com Updates

Midlands Info

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The #2 Cyclones come into tonight's first, third and fifth place matches with a narrow lead on #1 Iowa. The championship matches will be televised on the Big Ten Network tonight. Iowa State controls its own destiny tonight.

Team Standings entering final session

1. Iowa State 149.5 (5/3)
2. Iowa 138.5 (5/3)
3. Missouri 116.5 (1/5)
4. Wisconsin 90.5 (3/1)
5. Central Michigan 82.0 (1/2)

Championship Matches

125 Pounds

(2) Brandon Precin (Northwestern) dec. (4) Tyler Clark (Iowa St.) 2-1

133 Pounds

(4) Daniel Dennis (Iowa) dec. (2) Nick Fanthorpe (Iowa St.) 4-3

157 Pounds

(1) Chris Bono (UT-C WC) dec. (2) Cyler Sanderson (Iowa St.) 4-2

165 Pounds

(3) Ryan Morningstar (Iowa) dec. (4) Jon Reader (Iowa St.) 5-4

197 Pounds

(3) Dallas Herbst (Wisconsin) dec. (1) Jake Varner (Iowa St.) 2-1

 

Third Place Matches

141 Pounds

(3) Nick Gallick (Iowa St.) wins via med. for. Tony Dalie (Central Michigan-Unattached)

285 Pounds

(1) David Zabriskie (Iowa St.) dec. Dom Bradley (Missouri)

Fifth Place Matches

184 Pounds

(5) Jordan Blanton (Illinois) dec. (8) Jerome Ward (Iowa St.) 3-2

141 Pounds - Unattached

(7) Ryan Wiliams (Old Dominion) pins Dalton Jensen (Iowa St.) 1:32

Iowa Matches

141 Pounds - First Place

(8) Zach Tanelli (Wisconsin) dec. (2) Alex Tsirtis (Iowa) 9-3

149 Pounds - First Place

(1) Brent Metcalf (Iowa) maj. dec. (3) Kyle Ruschell (Wisconsin) 14-5

184 Pounds - First Place

(1) Jake Herbert (Northwestern) maj. dec. (2) Phil Keddy (Iowa) 15-1

174 Pounds - Third Place

(1) Jay Borschel (Iowa) dec. (2) Raymond Jordan (Missouri) 4-1

133 Pounds - Fifth Place

Montell Marion (Iowa) wins via med. for. Tristan DeShazer (Northern Illinois)

285 Pounds - Fifth Place

(8) Dan Erekson (Iowa) dec. (6) Rashard Goff (Cleveland St.)

Cyclones.com Updates

Midlands Info

Rock M Nation Coverage

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Team Standings Through 2 PM

1. Iowa State 111.0 (5/3)
2. Iowa 96.5 (7/1)
3. Missouri 87.0 (5/3)

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This afternoon's action includes the semifinals.

Championship Bracket (Semifinals)

125 (4) Tyler Clark dec. (8) Jay Ivanco (Clarion) 10-4
vs. (2) Brandon Precin (Northwestern) Championship on Big Ten Network Tonight

133 (2) Nick Fanthorpe dec. (3) Steve Bell (Maryland) 8-4
vs. (4) Daniel Dennis (Iowa) BTN

157 (2) Cyler Sanderson dec. (3) Michael Chandler (Missouri) 9-5
vs. (1) Chris Bono (UT Chattanooga TakeDown Club) BTN

165 (4) Jon Reader dec. (8) Andrew Howe (Wisconsin) 7-5
vs. (3) Ryan Morningstar (Iowa) BTN

197 (1) Jake Varner vs. Trevor Brandvold (Wisconsin-Unattached) Forfeit
vs. (3) Dallas Herbst (Wisconsin) BTN

Consolation Bracket

141 (3) Nick Gallick dec. Chris Drouin (Arizona St.) 4-0
dec. Marcus Hohen (Missouri) 4-2
dec. Dalton Jensen (Iowa St.-Unattached) 4-1
vs. Tony Dalie (Central Michigan-Unattached) Third Place Tonight

149 David Cheza (Michigan St. - Unattached) maj. dec. (4) Mitch Mueller 8-0

184 (8) Jerome Ward pins Octavious Bellamy (Wildcat Wrestling Club)
dec. Vince Didona (Central Michigan) 3-1
(3) Louis Caputo (Harvard) dec. Ward 3-2
vs. (5) Jordan Blanton (Illinois) Fifth Place Tonight

HWT (1) David Zabriskie dec. Jarod Trice (Central Michigan) 3-1 SV
dec. Christian Brantley (Northern Iowa) 3-1
dec. (8) Dan Erekson (Iowa) 3-2
vs. Dom Bradley (Missouri) Third Place Tonight

Unattached Wrestlers 

---Championship Bracket (Semifinals)

141 (8) Zach Tanelli (Wisconsin) dec. Dalton Jensen 8-1
(3) Nick Gallick (Iowa St.) dec. Jensen 4-1
vs. (7) Ryan Williams (Old Dominion) Fifth Place Match Tonight

---Consolation Bracket

197 Kyle Simonson dec. Alec Bonander (Luther) 6-4
(6) Logan Brown (Purdue) pins Simonson 2:53
pinned by (4) Hudson Taylor (Maryland) 1:25 - SEVENTH PLACE

Cyclones.com Updates

Midlands Info

Rock M Nation Coverage

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Team Standings Through Session Two

1. Iowa 93.0 (7/3)
2. Iowa State 82.5 (5/4)
3. Missouri 73.5 (5/3)

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Tonight's action includes one round of championship bracket action as well as three rounds of consolation action.

Championship Bracket

125 (4) Tyler Clark dec. (5) Anthony Robles (Arizona St.) 2-1

133 (2) Nick Fanthorpe maj. dec. Todd Schravrien (Missouri) 13-4

149 (5) Steve Brown (Central Michigan) dec. (4) Mitch Mueller 2-1

157 (2) Cyler Sanderson maj. dec. Tyson Reiner (Northern Iowa) 10-2

165 (4) Jon Reader dec. (5) Luke Manuel (Purdue) 3-2

184 (1) Jake Herbert (Northwestern) tech fall. (8) Jerome Ward 19-4

197 (1) Jake Varner pins (8) Jesse Strawn (Old Dominion) 1:29

Consolation Bracket

141 (3) Nick Gallick maj. dec. Fred Rodgers (Rider) 13-3
Gallick dec. Jordan Lipp (American) 12-5

174 (4) Duke Burk injured

HWT (1) David Zabriskie maj. dec. Paul Rands (Northwestern) 13-2
Zabriskie maj. dec. Alan O'Donnell (Michigan St.) 12-4

Unattached Wrestlers

---Championship Bracket

141 Dalton Jensen dec. Eric Kruger (Central Michigan) 6-2

197 (2) Max Askren maj dec. Kyle Simonson 11-1

---Consolation Bracket

125 Ben Ashmore (Unattached) pins Andrew Long 1:49

133 Laramie Shaffer dec. Bobby Joyce (Northwestern) 3-1
Sean Clair (Eastern Michigan) dec. Shaffer 8-3

157 Nate Carr Jr. dec. (7) Hadley Harrison (Clarion) 8-5
Scott Winston (Rutgers) dec. Carr 5-1

165 Andrew Sorenson dec. Chris Stout (American) 8-0
Sorenson tech. fall Justin Brandel (Eastern Michigan) 18-3 (7:00)
Jake Kerr (Iowa) dec. Sorenson 3-2

174 Dave Sullivan (Pitt) dec. Chris Pursel 3-2

HWT Eric Thompson maj. dec. Spencer DeSena (Harvard) 17-4
Thompson maj. dec. Wes Schroeder (Eastern Michigan) 11-3
Mike Tamillow (Wildcat Wrestling Club) dec. Thompson 9-5

Cyclones.com Updates

Midlands Info

Rock M Nation Coverage

I'll try my best to keep this thread updated with the latest Cyclone results from the Midlands Championships in Evanston.

After Session 1

1. Iowa 43

2. Iowa State 38.5

125 (4) Tyler Clark (2-0)
-pins Joe Langel (Rutgers-Unattached) 4:43
-dec. Brendan Byrne (Maryland) 3-2

133 (2) Nick Fanthorpe (1-0)
-bye
-maj. dec. Bobby Joyce (Northwestern-Unattached) 18-6

141 (3) Nick Gallick (1-1)
-Ed Gutnik (Providence WC) dec. Gallick, 8-6 SV2
-tech. fall Steve Makuka (Air Force) 18-3 (5:17)
-vs. Cody Cleveland (UT-Chattanooga) 

149 (4) Mitch Mueller (3-0)
-dec. JJ Johnson (Eastern Michigan) 3-2
-maj. dec. Nate Stedakar (Harper) 15-7
-dec. Mark Powell (Pittsburgh-Unattached) 7-2

157 (2) Cyler Sanderson (3-0)
-dec. Bubby Graham (American) 8-3
-maj. dec. Dan Rivera (Old Dominion) 16-3
-dec. Tyler Grayson (Central Michigan) 3-2

165 (4) Jon Reader (3-0)
-pins Jordan Bakely (Harper) 2:29
-dec. Paul Young (Indiana) 7-6
-dec. Keegan Davis (Oregon St.) 4-0

174 (4) Duke Burk (1-1)
-maj. dec. Jared Beets (Northern Iowa) 10-2
-injury vs. Kyle Vanderhyde (Olivet)

184 (8) Jerome Ward (2-0)
-dec. Brad Diechkhaus (Northern Illinois) 4-0
-dec. Brice Arand (Oregon St.) 2-1

197 (1) Jake Varner (2-0)
-pins John Schoen (Northwestern) 2:25
-pins Rick Loera (Iowa) 2:58

HWT (1) David Zabriskie (1-1)
-maj. dec. Spencer DeSeana (Harvard) 9-0
-Dom Bradley (Mizzou) dec. Zabriskie 3-2

Unattached wrestlers after the jump....

Continue reading this post »

With all of the football coaching drama, and the ISU basketball team not playing too well, it's easy to forget about our very talented Wrestling Team.

I just wanted to provide a quick update on what they've been up to and what's coming in the future:

ISU defeated Dickinson State 52-0, and NDSU 42-0 on 12/13/08

All of our starters wrestled and straight dominated. I like to see this. If you're going to be #2, you gotta beat the little guys.

What's Next for ISU?

• Midlands 12/29-12/30
• National Duals 1/10-1/11
• @ Oregon State 1/18
• Oklahoma 1/23

I'll be out of town for Midlands and National Duals. I'll provide and update like this, likely. I'll try to follow the Oregon State dual, and I will be at the Oklahoma dual.

Go Cyclones!

I'm not going to lie. I'm ticked!

I am tired of Iowa being better than us. I thought we had a lot of good things coming together going into the dual.

This match could've gone either way and had 1 of them gone a different way, we would've won this dual:

• Iowa pulled off two upsets by 2 points each
• Iowa got 12 of their 20 points by a total of 7 points

As you can see, it was very close. That's what makes it frustrating. It's like we were so close yet so far away.

Here are some very brief comments about each match.

• 125: #7 Tyler Clark vs. #2 Charlie Falck
  • Falck wins by decision 4-2 (ISU 0, Iowa 3)
  • Not too surprising here. Falck is good
• 133: #5 Nick Fanthorpe vs. Joe Slaton
  • Fanthorpe wins by major decision 12-2 (ISU 4, Iowa 3)
  • Slaton looked like crap. Don't know what the deal was, although the announcers were thinking it had to do with cutting weight.
  • Fanthorpe got his redemption! Slaton had beat him twice last year and I honestly thought this match would be closer. Fanthrope just flat out dominated
• 141: #2 Nick Gallick vs. #6 Alex Tsirtsis
  • Tsirtsis wins by decision 4-2 (ISU 4, Iowa 6)
  • Tsirtsis won at the last second as he got a takedown.
  • They were locked up down on the mat and it looked like Gallick thought the match was over when there was 1 second left, as Gallick seemed to let his guard down.
  • I have said this before, I am not all that impressed with Gallick this year. It seems like he just tries to do enough to win. Don't really know what was going on in his mind there
  • I know Tsirtsis is tough, but when you're the #2 team in the nation going against #1, you need to win the matches you're favored to win.
  • I'm not saying we would've won in OT for sure, but we gotta put ourselves in a position to win
• 149: #11 Mitch Mueller vs. #1 Brent Metcalf
  • Metcalf wins by tech fall 6:05 (25-10) (ISU 4, Iowa 11)
  • No surprises here. I said that not getting majored was like a win here
  • Mueller hit the wall in the 3rd, and Metcalf had a takedown clinic on Mueller
  • Metcalf is probably the best wrestler in the nation at any weight. Nothing that anyone can really do
• 157: #6 Cyler Sanderson vs. Matt Ballweg
  • Sanderson wins by major decision 22-9 (ISU 8, Iowa 11)
  • Cyler kept trying to turn Ballweg but he wouldn't go. Once it was clear Cyler wasn't getting the backpoints, going for the tech is pointless. A tech with no backpoints is just 4 team points which is the same as a major. You need backpoints to get the 5.
  • Sanderson was aggressive, and did what he had to to put us in a good position
  • At this point, I thought we were OK. With Reader, Varner, and Zabriskie left, I thought we'd get to 18 team points.
• 165 #3 Jonathon Reader vs. #11 Ryan Morningstar
  • Morningstar wins by decision 2-0 (ISU 8, Iowa 14)
  • Reader didn't do a good job in this match. On his feet he didn't really go for any takedowns. When he was on the bottom, he tried to hard to get a reversal instead of an escape. Then when he needed an escape, he couldn't get one.
  • Reader had opportunities in the 3rd period to take a 2-1 lead (at this point it was 1-0. Morningstar got another point for riding time). At the very least it would've force overtime.
  • Reader has been a beast thus far, and I don't know what happened. He seemed to be too passive, and didn't really show any urgency.
  • After losing this match, I knew we were likely done. It was the 2nd match we needed to win but didn't. There are now 4 matches left with us favored in only two. We needed to be at least tied here instead of down by 6
• 174: #8 Duke Burk vs. #2 Jay Borschel
  • Borschel wins by decision 6-2 (ISU 8, Iowa 17)
  • Burk wrestled tough. Last time these two met, Burk got majored
  • I didn't expect Burk to win, as Borschel is clearly the better wrestler, so this was a moral victory.
  • By now, I am starting to pray to the Wrestling Gods for an upset at 184. Iowas been getting all the upsets the past two years, and I was hoping it'd be our turn.
• 184: Jerome Ward vs. #3 Phil Keddy
  • Keddy won by decision 3-2 (ISU 8, Iowa 20)
  • Ward wrestled close. He's so defensive that I knew this could be a close match. I talked about this in the preview.
  • Ward went for a shot when it was 1-0 and was visibly tired. Keddy got the takedown and Ward got away (3-2).
  • Ward didn't really have a plan of attack on his feet and was pretty much stalling the entire time.
  • I didn't expect Ward to win prior to the dual, but I was hoping that given the team score, Ward would've tried to be more aggressive and do more on his feet to put ISU in somewhat of a position to win the dual. Had he won, it would've been 11 to 17 with Varner and Z left.
  • Can't hold too much against Ward as he wrestled tough. He has a lot of potential, and is pretty explosive. He just needs to utilize it to be more offensive than defensive.
  • Going into the final two matches, we needed two pins. You can tie in a dual as there's no tie breaker.
• 197: #1 Jake Varner vs. Luke Lofthouse
  • Varner wins by major decision 13-3 (ISU 12, Iowa 20)
  • Varner was in control the entire match and tried to turn Lofthouse
  • Lofthouse basically stalled the entire time to avoid getting turned
• HWT: #2 David Zabriskie vs. Dan Erekson
  • Zabriskie wins by decision 5-1 (ISU 15, Iowa 20)
  • There was a scary moment as Erekson had Zabriskie on his back, but the ref either called out of bounds or a dangerous position.
  • They weren't completley out of bounds, so if that was the call it was bad. If it was potentially dangerous I could see it, as Erekson had a chicken-wing type hold in there

Up Next:

• 12/13:Tri with North Dakota State and Dickinson State in Fargo, ND.
• We face Dickinson State at 3pm, and North Dakota State at 5pm.

Final Thoughts:

• Frustrated we lost to Iowa again
• Tired of seeing us get upset. We were favored in 6 of the 10 matches, yet we only won 4
• Our team needs to figure it out, learn from this, and move on. We have a good chance that we'll meet Iowa again at National Duals and we'll have a chance for payback.
• I hate Tom Brands. He's a tool
• Anyone up for a Fargo Roadtrip?

You what time it is. #1 vs. #2. Huge crowd. Big day for ISU.

Although the dual starts at 7pm, it will be on TV at 9:30pm. If you know the results, PLEASE do not post any comments until after the televised match.

I will not be checking online or anything because I want to feel the excitement of this dual. If you're in the same boat as me, come back at 9:30pm and we can post in the comments about what we think.

Go state! I know we're #1!

 EDIT: I just saw the Gallick match on IPTV and couldn't turn away!

I am sorry about the mis-information. I didn't realize it would be live on IPTV. Last I checked on Cyclones.com, it only had the Big 10 network listed. I was so busy earlier, that I didn't think to check again!

Tomorrow is the day that wrestling fans have had marked on their calendar all year.

Iowa is deservingly the #1 team in the nation and this will be a great test to see if ISU has improved enough to win the National Championship.

The dual is in Iowa City, Carver Hawkeye Area, 7pm Iowa time. It will be broadcast on the Big Suck Network (Big 10 network) at 9:30pm Iowa time (tape delay). Last I checked, there were limited tickets available and this will likely set the NCAA record for college wrestling attendance.

It is pretty weak that the biggest wrestling event of the year is going to be on tape delay. I wouldn't mind it being on public tv live, but I guess those days are gone.

Nonetheless if you aren't able to get to Iowa City, or if the meet is sold out, you will be able to see it on some form of TV.

Here's the expected lineup (ISU wrestler listed first):

• 125: #7 Tyler Clark (8-0) vs. #2 Charlie Falck (8-0)
• 133: #5 Nick Fanthorpe (8-0) vs.  Joe Slaton (3-0. Slaton was a NCAA champion runner-up last year)
• 141: #2 Nick Gallick (7-1) vs. #6 Alex Tsirtis (6-0)
• 149: #11 Mitch Mueller (6-0) vs. #1 Brent Metcalf (8-0)
• 157: #6 Cyler Sanderson (2-1) vs. Matt Ballweg (6-2)
• 165: #3 Jonathon Reader (8-0) vs. #11 Ryan Morningstar (8-0)
• 174: #8 Duke Burk (2-0) vs. #2 Jay Borschel (8-0)
• 184: Jerome Ward (5-1) vs. #3 Phil Keddy (8-0)
• 197: #1 Jake Varner (7-0) vs. Luke Lofthouse (1-1) - Beatty is injured and will not wrestle
• HWT: #2 David Zabriskie (7-0) vs. Dan Erekson (7-0)

Past history:

• Slaton has beat Fanthorpe twice, 6-5 at last year's dual, and 2-1 in the NCAAs
• Metcalf major decisioned Mueller last year 14-4 at last year's dual
• Borschel major decisioned Burk last year 10-1 at 2007 Midlands
• David Zabriskie beat Erekson 3-1 at the Cyclone Open

Keys to the match:

• ISU needs to prevent Iowa's bonus points
  • Mueller, Burk , and Ward need to keep the match close if they cannot win.
  • We cannot allow Iowa's best wrestlers to get extra team points.
• ISU needs to pick up as many bonus points as possible
  • ISU needs to be aggressive on their feet! Last year Iowa was more aggressive in the lower weights and that was the difference in the dual.
  • At the weights were we have an advantage (141, 157,165, 197, HWT), we gotta go for majors, techs, and falls. We cannot be satisfied getting the team only 3 points in a match we should win
• The concept of winning a dual is pretty basic. The difference is that it's too close to make a key mistake or to NOT take advantage of opportunities.

Prediction:

ISU 22, Iowa 14 -> ISU will be ranked #1 and Iowa fans will blame the loss on Beatty being out and something else insignificant (Like Ashton not being there until the basketball game)

ISU will need to (and will) split the first 4 weights, and win the upper weights they have an advantage in.

Predicted Wins by team (team points in parenthesis)

ISU: Fanthorpe (3), Gallick (3), Sanderson (4), Reader (3), Varner (6), Zabriskie (3)

Iowa: Falck (3), Metcalf (4), Borschel (4), Keddy (3)

Prediction Details:

• ISU
  • Fanthorpe will get redemption as he lost 2 matches by a total of 2 points to Slaton.
  • Gallick needs to win. He seems to be turning it around a little after starting out shakey
  • Sanderson always goes for something big, and I have confidence he will. Last year at the Iowa dual he almost got a pin, and he will go for bonus points as we'll be down 7-6 going into this match.
  • Reader will win as he's been looking like a beast this year
  • Varner will get a pin. He's so dominant, and he'll go for something big to really punctuate and clinch the dual!
  • Z is solid and will get a nice solid win
• Iowa
  • Falck is damn good. I hope we can beat him, but he's tough. I think splitting 125 and 133 would be huge for ISU as we lost both last year
  • Metcalf and Borschel will have a ton of confidence as they've handily beat our guys before. With being at home, I have a hard time envisioning them NOT getting major decisions yet again. If Mueller and Burk can keep it close (or get a win at one of these classes), the dual will practically be over. Metcalf is exciting to watch. Losing a close one to him would be like a victory
  • I think Jerome Ward is solid enough to keep the match close with Keddy. Ultimatley Keddy is better, but it's hard for me to see Ward just get dominated as he wrestles a style that keeps him in matches late.

Final thoughts:

• This is going to be huge and I wish I could be there! I will post my analysis tomorrow night after I watch the tape delay.
• If you have the opportunity to go, GO! You will NOT regret it!
• The best part? Seeing Brands' (aka Gable wannabe) look on his face when they get BEAT!!!!!!!!!
• Go State!

This past Monday (11/23) 3 ISU wrestlers competed in the NWCA All-Star Classic in Columbus, Ohio.

Here's how our wrestlers fared and my quick thoughts:

• 141: #2 Nick Gallick vs. #1 J. Jaggers (Ohio State)
  • Gallick wins by decision 6-2
  • Huge win for Gallick against the #1 guy in the weight class. I wasn't able to see this match, but Gallick thus far hadn't looked all that good. It seems like he's feeling better, and I hope he can carry this over into the Iowa dual
• 157: #7 Cyler Sanderson vs. #5 Jordan Leen (Cornell)
  • Leen wins by fall in 5:59
  • Tough break for Cyler but a good test as well. Leen is tough, and hopefully Cyler can learn from this.
• 197: #1 Jake Varner vs. #2 Hudson Taylor (Maryland)
  • Varner wins by major decision 13-1
  • Varner is a beast. He's flat out dominated every match, and I think he's going to the win the NCAA championship. It isn't exactly going out on a limb since he's been close twice, but he's making a huge breakthrough this year. He's also showing why he's the #1 guy in the weight class.

In case you're wondering, Intermat doesn't factor these results into rankings, so our guys rankings won't change based on these results. I'm sure it was an awesome experience for our guys, and I'm looking forward to them helping us defeat the Hawks on December 6th!

This past Sunday (11/23) was a good night at Hilton. I especially appreciate it because it's the last wrestling meet there until Januardy 23rd. Since I won't be able to make it to Iowa City, I won't be watching any live wrestling anytime soon.

With 3 Wrestlers at the NWCA All Star Classic, and 2 starters taking a rest, the Cyclones team this meet featured lots of reserves. I think this was a good test to see how deep our team is. If you're going to be one of the best in the nation, you need to have guys that can step up in case a starter gets injured.

Here are the results:

• 125: #11 Tyler Clark vs. #8 Anthony Robles
  • Clark wins by decision 9-3 (ISU 3, ASU 0)
  • Robles is an inspriational story: he has one leg and is one of the best wrestlers at his weight class. He has a strong upper body and is pretty quick as well.
  • The match was close in the first period and part of the way through the 2nd. It looked like Robles hurt his elbow, and from there he wasn't the same.
  • Clark capitalized on some opportunities and stayed aggressive as he got back points as well.
  • A decent match to match, but I sort of wish Robles hadn't gotten hurt. Either way, he's tough and it was a good match for Clark.
• 133: # 5 Nick Fanthorpe vs. Tyler Bowles
  • Fanthorpe wins by tech. fall in 6:55 (22-5) (ISU 8, ASU 0)
  • Fanthorpe was just too much for Bowles: he kept attacking, got 8 back points in the match, and it was just one sided.
  • Fanthrope looked good just dominating someone that wasn't anywhere near his level.
• 141: Joey DeMarie vs. #7 Chris Drouin
  • Drouin wins by major decision 16-5 (ISU 8, ASU 4)
  • Nothing against DeMaries, but he just didn't stand a chance against Drouin. It was good that DeMarie was able to avoid back points and was able to not get teched. He fought hard, just wasn't good enough which wasn't really surprising.
• 149: Dalton Jensen vs. Vincente Varela
  • Varela wins by decision 7-3 (ISU 8, ASU 7)
  • Varela set the tone early. He built a lead an maintained it throughout
  • Jensen was down by 3 (actually 4 with riding time) and needing something big, but he just looked tired. I think he hit the wall from Varela buildling up riding time.
• 157: Nate Carr Jr. vs. Jarrad Trulson
  • Carr wins by decision 10-3 (ISU 11, ASU 7)
  • Carr was aggressive early, which I really liked. He got the first takedown quickly and started working Trulson to his back and got 3 back points. Carr was up 7-1 after the first period.
  • After the first, the rest of the match was pretty slow. Trulson was being defensive, and when he was free it was clear he was too tired to really try anything.
  • This is a kind of match that shows the importance of coming out the gates aggressivley. He built up a good lead, and wore his guy out.
• 165:  # 3 Jon Reader vs. Kyle DeBerry
  • Reader wins by major decision 16-7 (ISU 15, ASU 7)
  • Similar theme: Reader was clearly the better wrestler and dominated in this match.
  • Reader got 5 takedowns which shows his aggression on his feet. DeBerry had no chance it was a lopsided match.
  • Good job to Reader for staying aggressive throughout
• 174: # 8 Duke Burk vs. Eric Starks
  • Burk wins by decision 8-4 (ISU 18, ASU 7)
  • This was Burk's first match at Hilton and it was good to take a look at the NIU transfer.
  • This was a tough match in which Starks wreslted hard. Not too much action, but in the third Burk really pulled away. I still give credit to Starks for hanging tough
• 184: Jerome Ward vs. Jake Merideth
  • Ward wins by decision 6-4(SV) (ISU 21, ASU 7)
  • Close hard fought match by both guys
  • Down 2-4 in the third with 30 seconds left, Ward got the takedown to tie the match and the crowd erupted! It was the first really exciting moment in the night and it's being at home in front of 3000 fans which helps you fight being tired to get the much needed takedown.
  • In Sudden Victory, Ward got the takedown relativley quickly and the match was over.
  • Ward was tired, but our fans I believe really helped him get though this and clinch the match for ISU!
• 197: Joe Curran vs. Thor Moen
  • Curran wins by decision 8-3 (ISU 24, ASU 7)
  • Close match until the 3rd period. Curran was up 5-2 going into the third.
  • In the 3rd, Curran was able to turn Moen to get the 2 point nearfall, the 1 point riding time, and the victory. It was cool to see him go for the pin, even when he had the match in hand
• HWT: Kyle Simonson vs. Erik Nye
  • Nye wins by major decision 8-0 (ISU 24, ASU 11)
  • Simonson was the sacrificial lamb to Nye. Nye is a stalky heavyweight and Simonson is our 3rd option at 197 (tall and a little lankey)
  • Nye was in control the whole time; Simonson just didn't know how to handle a guy at such a high weight. Nye is like your typical high school heavyweight: large, mostly fat, and he just didn't look like a good NCAA wrestler.
  • I felt bad for Simonson, but he needs to learn to use these big guys' weight against them.

Final thoughts:

Some of this dual was a bit of a dud for some. Not a ton of cheering or really much of a crowd reaction. There were a lot of lopsided matches. The story here was that our guys kept going for more points when we were ahead (improved aggression), and that our team is deep enough to throw out our #2 squad at a lot of weights and beat a mediocre team.

I hope some of you can make it to Iowa City to cheer on our Cyclones as we face #1 Iowa. It should be a close dual and the atmosphere will be crazy! I won't be able to make it, but it's worth going to if you can.