Competition drives second-ranked Hawkeyes

IOWA CITY — The opponent and arena don't matter to the University of Iowa.

When the mat is rolled out and the whistle blows, it's all business to them, especially now that they have passed the season's midway point.

'These guys like to scrap,' freshman heavyweight Sam Stoll said. 'They look forward to the competition (and) so do I. It's going to be a real exciting end of the year.'

Second-ranked Iowa hosts No. 20 Purdue at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Friday night, beginning at 8 p.m. The Hawkeyes will then travel to Lincoln, Neb., to face 11th-ranked Nebraska on Sunday, starting at 2 p.m.

The program has always subscribed to the philosophy that the next competition is the most important, regardless of the opponent.

'When there is an event on a date at a place you've got to be ready to go,' Iowa Coach Tom Brands said. 'Sometimes that means you're home and you have to get the bus the next day to go across the prairie to Lincoln. That's another place to compete. Competition is what we get excited for.'

The Hawkeyes have been dominant in Big Ten action, owning a 5-0 conference mark and 11-0 overall record. Iowa has won 41 of 50 matches in conference duals this year.

'It sends a message to the rest of the country,' Stoll said. 'I don't know what our latest ranking was, but those guys up there, and even teams we're ranked above, they know we're going to come out and compete every time and they will have to work really hard to win matches.'

Purdue has three wrestlers who appear in at least one of three major national rankings, while each Nebraska starter is included in almost every top-20 list. Rankings have little effect on the Hawkeyes.

'I don't really focus on it,' Iowa 149-pounder Brandon Sorensen said. 'It's another guy. You have to get up for it like any other match. You go out there and do your job.'

A target seems permanently fixed to the back of black-and-gold singlets. It is easy to approach each match the same.

'I think that is part of the philosophy of the program,' junior Sammy Brooks said. 'It's something that Tom, Terry and the coaching staff have drilled into us from day 1 is that it doesn't matter who we're wrestling or where we're going. (When) teams are wrestling Iowa, they're going to puff out their chest and they're going to want to have their best match to try and knock down Iowa.'

The lineups could be a little different between the two upcoming duals. Brands said Topher Carton and Brody Grothus are still competing for the 141-pound spot and Patrick Rhoads and Burke Paddock are in the mix at 165.

'Both of those weights, coincidentally, we have two guys in the conversation,' Brands said. 'You may see two different guys wrestle those events at each weight.'

After this weekend, the Hawkeyes have just three duals left before championship competition. The National Duals and Big ten Championships are set for Iowa City. First things first, and that is Purdue. Then Nebraska.

'It's on the horizon,' Sorensen said. 'We're still getting better every day and feeling fresh, getting ready for this Friday and Sunday, and still moving forward.'

Before the Purdue dual Friday, USA Wrestling's Women's National team will hold four wrestle-offs, concluding a weeklong training camp in Iowa City. The competition will determine U.S. representatives at the Pan-American Olympic Games Qualifying Tournament March 5 in Frisco, Texas.

World Team member Whitney Conder will face World champion Helen Maroulis at 116.5 pounds. At 128, World Team member Alli Ragan will take on 2015 World bronze medalist Leigh Jaynes-Provisor. World Team member Erin Clodgo will wrestle World champion and four-time World medalist Elena Pirozhkova at 138.75. Tamyra Mensah and Randi Miller will compete at 152.

Action begins at 6:30 p.m. USA Wrestling will hold the 2016 Olympic Team Trials at CHA April 9-10.

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