Tony Cassioppi makes sure Iowa wrestling leaves Nebraska a winner

LINCOLN, Neb. — Iowa junior heavyweight Tony Cassioppi worked to keep 12th-ranked Christian Lance down on the mat throughout the third period.

A tough ride from Cassioppi was needed after some struggles from the Hawkeyes in the upper weights gave the Huskers an opportunity for the upset.

Cassioppi held on tough and his 3-0 win helped No. 2 Iowa survive upset-minded No. 10 Nebraska, 20-15, Sunday night at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

“Late in the match, he was pretty sweaty so grabbing his wrists was a little hard,” Cassioppi said. “My forearms are pretty pumped right now.”

Cassioppi scored the first points on an escape to start the second. He added a stalling point late in the third, to go with a riding-time point.

The Hawkeyes won five of the first six matches to take control, but Nebraska won three straight at 174, 184, and 197 to close within 17-15, setting up a winner-take-all match at 285 pounds.

Cassioppi noted seeing those losses affected him a bit mentally.

“It was kind of tough sitting there watching my teammates wrestle those matches,” Cassioppi said. “I need to stay in my match.

“It was a good win for me and the team.”

Iowa coach Tom Brands was proud of the effort Cassioppi showed in a match with the dual on the line.

“That was a gutsy, gutsy win,” Brands said. “He’s been in this position before a lot, but we need to help him out.”

Nebraska picked up wins at 174, 184, and 197, with decision wins from sixth-ranked Mikey Labriola at 174 over second-ranked Michael Kemerer, a 3-1 win from third-ranked Eric Schultz at 197 over fourth-ranked Jacob Warner, and a third-period pin from ninth-ranked Taylor Venz over 16th-ranked Abe Assad.

“We made it really, really exciting,” Brands said. “Our fans stuck with it to the end. Our teammates stuck with it to the end.”

With the Big Ten Championships looming in two weekends at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, work still needs to be done for the Hawkeyes.

“We definitely have to keep getting better and improving down this home stretch here of the season, going strong,” Brands said.

The next two tournaments are the pinnacle of the season, said 157-pound senior Kaleb Young.

“The Big Ten Championships, the NCAA Championships — that’s why we come to Iowa,” said Young, who was a 6-3 winner over 10th-ranked Peyton Robb. “Those two tournaments to end the season ... it’s important getting ready to go, rolling in to it. Even the guys who didn’t get their hand raised, whether they won their last dual meet of the season, lost their last dual meet of the season, we all have the same goal to go out there and win.”

Iowa started off the dual winning matches at 125, 133, 141, 157 and 165 pounds in taking a commanding 17-3 lead.

Fifth-ranked Alex Marinelli used a strong ride on top to control, and win his match over 27th-ranked Bubba Wilson at 165 pounds, extending Iowa’s team lead to 17-3.

Marinelli scored first, hitting a sweet takedown 10 seconds into the match. A Wilson escape a few seconds later cut Marinelli’s lead to 2-1 after three minutes.

Wilson took down to start the second and Marinelli made him pay with a strong ride. Wilson escaped late in the period, but not before Marinelli had elapsed nearly a minute and a half of riding time. Marinelli then added a late takedown and 4-2 lead after two. Marinelli sealed the match with a takedown with a minute to go in the third, then rode Wilson out.

Kaleb Young, ranked 12th at 157 pounds, used a tough ride in the third period to take control and earn a 6-3 win over 10th-ranked Peyton Robb.

Young caught Robb, who chose down to start the third, trying to escape, and turned Robb to his back for the match-sealing points.

Second-ranked Jaydin Eierman hit a takedown and a two-point near fall to score the winning points in a 6-3 decision win over 10th-ranked Chad Red Jr. at 141 pounds.

Eierman trailed 2-1 after the first, but scored an escape, then pushed the pace in the second, eventually leading to the takedown.

Third-ranked Austin DeSanto dominated his match against Underwood product Alex Thomsen. Eight takedowns, along with a four-point near fall, and a two-point near fall, plus a riding time point gave DeSanto a 23-7 technical fall win.

Twelveth-ranked Drake Ayala, in his first match back after missing the past several because of an injury, started Iowa off strong with a 13-6 decision win over Jeremiah Reno. Ayala led 4-2 after one period. Ayala added an escape and takedown early in the second, then added a couple more takedowns late in the second, and controlled the action throughout the third.

“He wrestled with a high pace,” Brands said. “He’s a competitor from the word go.”

Nebraska scored its first match win at 149 pounds as seventh-ranked Ridge Lovett used a takedown with 12 seconds left for a 3-1 win over Vince Turk.

With the win, Brands moved to 13-0 against Nebraska.

Iowa finished the dual season 14-1 overall and 7-1 in the Big Ten, tied for second.

The Hawkeyes return to the mat on March 5-6 at the Big Ten Tournament, to be hosted by Nebraska at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln.

Iowa 20, Nebraska 15

125 — Drake Ayla (I) dec. Jerimiah Reno 13-6; 133 — Austin DeSanto (I) tech. fall Edwin Thomsen 22-7 4:03; 141 — Jaydin Eierman (I) dec. Chad Red 6-3; 149 — Ridge Lovett (N) dec. Vince Turk 3-1; 157 — Kaleb Young (I) dec. Peyton Robb 6-3; 165 — Alex Marinelli (I) dec. Clayton Wilson 8-2; 174 — Mikey Labriola (N) dec. Michael Kemerer 5-4; 184 — Taylor Venz (N) pinned Abe Assad 6:13; 197 — Eric Schultz (N) dec. Jacob Warner 3-2; 285 — Tony Cassioppi (I) dec. Christian Lance 3-0.