Iowa Wrestling Weekend That Was: Spencer Lee reigns again at U.S. Senior Nationals in Texas

Spencer Lee is back to being Spencer Lee with another freestyle title. Upper Iowa with a strong showing at the Midwest Classic. Linn-Mar leads a good local performance at the Battle of Waterloo. Vinton-Shellsburg girls’ and West Branch boys’ win team titles. This is the Wrestling Weekend That Was.

LEE WINS SENIOR NATIONALS

Hawkeye Wrestling Club’s account on X, formerly known as Twitter, has a photo of Spencer Lee. He is sitting on the floor, donning a cowboy and a wide grin that shows his black-and-gold mouthpiece. Lee is also holding an octagon plaque awarded to USA Wrestling Senior Nationals champions.

University of Iowa’s former three-time NCAA champion, two-time Hodge Award winner and AAU James E. Sullivan Award honoree captured the men’s freestyle 125.5-pound title Sunday in Fort Worth, Texas, beating former Penn State NCAA champion Nico Megaludis, 6-2, in the finals.

“I’m feeling good, man,” Lee said in a post-match interview various media. “I’ve just got to be better. That’s about it.”

Lee and Megaludis both attended Frankli Regional High School in Murrysville, Pa., and competed for the Young Guns Wrestling Club led by former Hawkeye Jody Strittmatter. They are a little more than six years apart, so those old workouts are indicative of the current series.

“I never knew what to expect because when I wrestled him, he used to just kill me,” Lee said. “I was 13 years old. He used to whoop me. Now, we’re at the senior level together. Hats off to both of us.”

The bout was a rematch of the Bill Farrell Memorial Invitational that kicked off Lee’s return to the mat. Lee widened the gap by a point from the previous meeting. He dominated his way to the finals, posting consecutive technical falls against Nittany Lion Wrestling Club members Gary Steen and Josh Rodriguez. He outscored them by a combined 22-1.

His results and the reactions seem to demonstrate his preference to focus on this discipline.

“I love freestyle,” said Lee, who won the 2019 U.S. Senior Nationals in the middle of his junior season at Iowa and is a three-time age level World champion. “Folkstyle is not very fun. It’s good.”

Lee had already qualified for the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials with his title at the Bill Farrell. He didn’t have to step into action so soon after the Farrell. Lee did anyway and was impressive.

“Just getting competition,” Lee said. “It’s good for me. That was the plan. Good match.”

Lee was part of a HWC contingent that placed five in the top six of their respective weights. Alex Marinelli was runner-up at 163 and Austin DeSanto (143) and Tony Cassioppi (213.9) were fifth. Marinelli, DeSanto and Cassioppi all qualified for the Olympic Team Trials on April 19-20 in State College, Pa.

Interestingly, Cassioppi beat teammate Jacob Warner in the placing round. Warner, who was sixth, wrestled 197 in college, right in front of Cassioppi at heavyweight.

CLASSIC WEEKEND FOR UPPER IOWA

Upper Iowa competed at the Midwest Classic hosted by University of Indianapolis Saturday and Sunday. The marquee regular-season individual tournament highlights some of the top talent in NCAA Division II, including 51 of 65 programs in the division and 21 of the top 25 ranked teams. Meetings from last year’s tournament were wrestled again at the national tournament in March at the Alliant Energy Powerhouse.

Upper Iowa placed fourth overall with 108.5 points, a half-point back of third-place Central Oklahoma. Lander (S.C.) University won the team title with 126.

The Peacocks finished with five wrestlers on the award stand. They were paced again by former Monticello prep and returning NCAA champion Chase Luensman. He was second at 165 for the second straight year. Lander’s David Hunsberger topped Luensman, 7-4, in the final.

Tate Murty and Ethen Doty were fourth at 141 and 149, respectively. Eric Faught (157) was fifth, while 184-pounder Colter Bye was seventh.

LINN-MAR 3RD AT B.O.W.

Linn-Mar has catapulted into the top five of IAWrestle’s latest Class 3A dual rankings. The Lions’ finish at the Battle of Waterloo dual tournament Friday and Saturday at Young Arena is why.

Linn-Mar won the B Bracket the first day, posting dual wins over Waterloo East (72-12) and Nashua-Plainfield (53-22). The Lions defeated top-seeded Waverly-Shell Rock, 40-27, in the bracket final to earn a spot in Saturday’s championship pool.

Linn-Mar opened pool action with a 57-14 win over Osage. The Lions were competitive in the last two duals, falling to tournament champion Indianola, 34-26, and Bettendorf, 36-33.

Cedar Rapids Prairie was fifth overall, winning the second-tier pool Saturday. The Hawks beat 1A powers Alburnett and Don Bosco and the Go-Hawks. They avenged an earlier loss to Alburnett, which finished sixth.

VIKINGS WIN PRAIRIE WINTER CLASSIC

Vinton-Shellsburg captured the team title at Prairie’s Winter Girls’ Classic Saturday. The Vikings tallied 190.5 points, beating the host Hawks by 27.5. Cedar Rapids Kennedy was third with 147.5, while South Tama and Williamsburg rounded out the top five.

Vinton-Shellsburg had eight wrestlers place sixth or better, including four finalists. Ellie Weets (115), Bree Swenson (120) and 135-pounder Chloe Sanders each won titles. Sadie Burke was second at 140 for the Vikings. Swenson and Sanders pinned their way through the bracket. Weets recorded two pins, a technical fall and a major decision.

Waukon’s Mia Kurth (100), Union Community state champion Jillian Worthen (125), Prairie’s Mackenzie Childers (130), Benton Community’s Lizzy Wolf (140), Williamsburg 145-pounder Phoenix Gryp, Autumn Elsbury at 170 for South Tama, Western Dubuque’s Sharidan Engelken (190) and Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s Ella Brown (235) won crowns. Brown finished with four pins, including three in the first period.

BEAR MARKET FOR WEST BRANCH

The stock in West Branch wrestling is rising this season. The Bears won the Iowa City Regina Invitational Saturday, scoring 251 points, 74 ahead of second place MFL MarMac.

West Branch had eight of its 11 wrestlers in the finals. Ethan Humphrey (106), Logan Christoffel (132), 157-pounder Cale Seydel, Cooper Gates at 165 and 215-pounder Quintyn Rocha won titles for West Branch. All 11 Bears finished third or better.

So far this season, West Branch has won three tournament team titles, placing first at Tipton and Tri-County/English Valleys as well as Regina. The Bears own a 6-1 dual record with their lone loss to 2A Davenport Assumption (35-33).

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