Iowa’s Victor Voinovich capitalizes on chance to return to starting lineup

IOWA CITY — Victor Voinovich III received a message Friday morning.

One he welcomed.

He learned that he was getting another start at 149 pounds with Caleb Rathjen battling a bug that has affected some of the University of Iowa’s men’s wrestling team.

“I’m always ready to go,” Voinovich said. “I was ready to make weight today, but I got the text this morning, saying I was a go. So, that was when I was like, ‘OK, it’s time to go. Get ready for tonight.’”

Voinovich displayed his offensive potential, recording one of four technical falls for the third-ranked Hawkeyes in a 34-6 throttling of Purdue in a Big Ten Conference dual Friday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Voinovich tallied six takedowns in a 19-4 win over Marcus Polanco in his first start since Dec. 1 against Penn.

“I think I did a good job getting to my attacks and converting on my finishes,” Voinovich said. “Get those takedowns and mentally working the pace and get the tech fall.”

The Oklahoma State transfer and 2023 NCAA qualifier opened the season as the 149 starter. He was supplanted by Rathjen, who started once before winning a head-to-head match with Voinovich at the Soldier Salute.

“It’s a competition in the room every day,” Voinovich said. “Today was an opportunity to wrestle in front of the fans in Carver-Hawkeye (Arena), so I feel like I just need to go out there and make the most of the opportunity.”

Iowa Coach Tom Brands said Voinovich has handled the situation well, showing maturity and a refusal to concede.

“He’s been eager,” said Brands, noting that Rethjen is expected to return to the lineup for next weekend’s duals at Illinois and Northwestern. “He hasn’t sucked his thumb and that’s important.

“He lets me know from time to time that he’s still gunning for that title. Love it. He backed it up tonight. Good job.”

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The goal is to prove to coaches, fans and others he is one of the best in the country. Voinovich delivered a clear message Friday. Just a reminder that he still has his sights set on the NCAA tournament at Kansas City in March.

“I obviously let him know I still plan on being the national champ this year, so I want to get those opportunities,” Voinovich said. “I had to go out there and put some points on the board. I feel like I showed him that I can go out there and score points for the team. Get the tech fall, get the bonus points and score a lot of points.”

Iowa won eight bouts, including six bonus-point victories, but dropped the most anticipated match of the dual. Purdue NCAA finalist and second-ranked Matt Ramos scored an escape and takedown in the second period to upend No. 1 Drake Ayala at 125.

Ayala was in on a shot late in the third but was unable to finish when Ramos was able to dive under and roll through to avoid points that would have tied the match. Ayala’s attempt at a go-behind in the final seconds didn’t yield points either.

“He has to finish that hold,” Brands said. “That ties it. We have to finish. We have to convert.

“We have to have more attempts and all that. It’s not something a brilliant tactician has to figure out.”

It was just Ayala’s second loss of the season. Ayala has the right approach, dealing with a setback.

“Drake is a competitive guy,” Brands said. “He’s hard on himself in the right ways. He’s got work to do. He knows it.”

Iowa thumped Purdue in all but one of the following weights. Patrick Kennedy (174), Zach Glazier at 197 and heavyweight Bradley Hill also won by technical fall. Kennedy notched his second straight bonus-point victory against conference competition.

Kennedy had a small cut on the corner of his left eye after racking up six takedowns in a 19-4 match termination. He loves the physical nature of wrestling.

“It’s a (sport) where you’re trying to physically dominate another guy but you can’t physically harm him,” Kennedy said. “You can harm his mentality by wrestling hard and sending a message of domination. That’s the beauty of wrestling.

“For me, it’s the purest thing of competition on this earth.”

Cullan Schriever made his second start of the season at 133. He overcame a slow start and tallied six takedowns for a 20-7 major decision.

Top-ranked Real Woods took control early and cruised to a major decision as well, blanking Greyson Clark, 8-0, at 141.

Jared Franek rebounded with a win, using an escape and penalty point for stalling to edge No. 16 Joey Blaze, 2-1, giving Iowa a 16-3 lead at intermission.

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Photos: Iowa men’s wrestling vs. Purdue

Iowa 34, Purdue 6

AT IOWA CITY

(Individual takedowns in parentheses)

125 pounds – Matt Ramos (P) dec. Drake Ayala, 4-1 (1,0)

133 – Cullan Schriever (I) major dec. Dustin Norris, 20-7 (6,1)

141 – Real Woods (I) major dec. Greyson Clark, 8-0 (2,0)

149 -- Victor Voinovich III (I) tech. fall Marcus Polanco, 19-4 (6,0)

157 – Jared Franek (I) dec. Joey Blaze, 2-1 (0,0)

165 – Michael Caliendo (I) dec. Stoney Buell, 9-4 (2,0)

174 – Patrick Kennedy (I) tech. fall Brody Baumann, 19-4 (6,0)

184 – James Rowley (P) dec. Aiden Riggins, 5-1 (1,0)

197 – Zach Glazier (I) tech. fall Ben Vanadia, 20-5 (6,0)

Hwt. – Bradley Hill (I) tech. fall Tristan Ruhlman, 19-4 (6,0)

MEET STATISTICS

Takedowns - Iowa 34, Purdue 3

Reversals - Iowa 1, Purdue 0

Escapes - Iowa 9, Purdue 28

Nearfall points - Iowa 0, Purdue 0

Penalty points (awarded) - Iowa 3, Purdue 0

Riding-time points - Iowa 2, Purdue 1

Total match points - Iowa 118, Purdue 38

Attendance - 14,847

Comments: kj.pilcher@thegazette.com