Alex Marinelli wins 4th Big Ten wrestling title, Iowa finishes 3rd in team race

LINCOLN, Neb. — A great accomplishment, but not the ultimate goal.

Iowa’s Alex Marinelli will certainly take a short period to enjoy his latest conquest, but his attention will quickly turn to the only gold that has eluded him.

Marinelli captured his fourth conference crown, winning the 165-pound title at the Big Ten Wrestling Championships on Sunday at University of Nebraska’s Pinnacle Bank Arena. He defeated Michigan’s Cameron Amine, 2-1, to become the eighth Hawkeye wrestler and the first since 1998 to accomplish the feat.

“I am really thankful and blessed,” said Marinelli, a three-time All-American who is in search of his first NCAA title. “I got to wrestle in a lot of Big Ten Championships and I got it done. Everyone remembers the national champ, right? So, we have more to do.”

The Hawkeyes finished third with 129 1/2 points and qualified all 10 wrestlers to the NCAA Championships March 17-19 in Detroit. Michigan crashed the expected two-horse race by winning the team title with 143 points, edging Penn State by 1 1/2.

“That’s not where we want to be,” Iowa Coach Tom Brands said. “It’s not where we like to sit and we have an opportunity to do something about it, moving forward.”

Marinelli posted three decisions in his title run, including one-point decisions in the last two bouts. The 3-2 semifinal victory over Wisconsin’s third-seeded Dean Hamiti was the first of two gut-checks. He used an escape in the second and his constant pressure produced a penalty point for stalling later in the period. Amine only managed an escape in the final frame.

“I am right there,” Marinelli said. “I think the semis match in this tournament tested me. I had to get a takedown when it was 1-1. It doesn’t have to go to overtime. Same with this one. Ride him out and maybe get a riding time (point). In the semis, it didn’t have to go to overtime. I took him down in the third period and that’s what you have to do.”

Marinelli’s strength powered him in those close battles. He is tough to score on and beat when he controls the center of the mat, moving his hands and feet and wearing down opponents. His approach paid dividends.

“Constant pressure,” Marinelli said. “Relentless pressure. Under control. Looking to get to my attacks. A lot of people can’t hang with that pace. There is really nothing for them to do when you have constant pressure like that.”

Brands noted that those matches didn’t need to be that tight. Marinelli has the ability to distance himself from opponents, but the situation may have played a small part.

“I think maybe winning four titles was on his mind pretty heavy and sometimes you tighten up a little bit,” Brands said. “Now, it’s time to go do something you haven’t done before, that’s win an NCAA title. One match at a time.”

Marinelli joins Joe Scarpello (1947-50), Mike DeAnna (1977-79, 1981), Ed Banach (1980-83), Barry Davis (1981-83, 1985), Duane Goldman (1983-86), Jim Heffernan (1983, 1985-87) and Mark Ironside (1995-98) as Iowa’s four-time conference titlists. Brands said it was a good achievement to join a rare group. His legacy still remains to be defined with the NCAA tournament.

“He’s pretty gutsy,” Brands said. “He’s been a fan-favorite. His mark on our program is far, wide and deep. We love him. He joins good company with four Big Ten championships. Good for him (and) good for our program.”

Austin DeSanto, Jaydin Eierman at 141 and heavyweight Tony Cassioppi joined Marinelli in the finals. DeSanto faced a familiar foe, Penn State’s Roman Bravo-Young, for the 133-pound title.

The result was eerily similar to the regular-season match decided by a point in January. Bravo-Young scored in the final period, notching the winning takedown in a 3-1 decision this time.

Like the previous match, DeSanto attacked multiple times and got to Bravo-Young’s legs, but he was unable to finish. Bravo-Young was effective in defensive positions to keep DeSanto at bay.

“We need to get better but the time for getting better is just about ever, so really we need to convert,” Brands said. “It’s not even about getting better there. It’s about putting points on the board.”

The Hawkeyes navigated around a handful of injuries throughout the tournament and opted for a few medical forfeits. Eierman (141) and Cassioppi did not wrestle in the finals.

Eierman was set to wrestle Nick Lee in a rematch of last year’s conference and national finals. The four-time All-American wore a knee brace Friday and could be seen limping at times in his quarterfinal victory and won by medical forfeit over Rutgers’ third-seeded Sebastian Rivera in the semifinals.

Cassioppi won a semifinal thriller over Penn State’s Greg Kerkvliet Friday night. He forfeited to Olympic gold medalist and defending NCAA champion Gable Steveson.

Similar moves came in previous rounds as well. Former Big Ten champion Michael Kemerer gutted out a tough quarterfinal win Friday to move into the 174 semifinals, securing a spot in the top six and an NCAA berth before the end of his tournament. Iowa 125-pounder Drake Ayala, who missed time in the regular season and had his shoulder wrapped, forfeited his seventh-place bout.

The Hawkeyes were far from the only team that chose that option. Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Purdue and Rutgers also medically forfeited winners bracket and placing matches. Twelve placing matches were forfeited. Only 157 and 197 had all four final bouts contested.

“There are tough decision to be made every day,” Brands said. “This is a very important event. Our record demonstrates we are very serious about competing for championships, but we will make tough decisions when we have to.”

The morning session started strong with the Hawkeyes sweeping all three consolation semifinals competed. Max Murin sparked the round with a 6-1 victory over Rutgers’ Mike Van Brill at 149. Murin placed third for his best finish, climbing two spots from fifth as a sophomore.

Kaleb Young, who actually started his match before Murin, broke open a tight match with Nebraska’s Peyton Robb, countering a duck-under attempt by putting Robb on his back for a six-point move at the end for an 8-1 victory. Young recorded his fourth top-four performance after being a runner-up last year.

Jacob Warner capped the stretch, scoring a takedown in the second and adding a point for riding time in a 5-3 decision over Michigan State’s Cam Caffey. Warner reached the third-place match for the fourth straight season.

Iowa had seven wrestlers finish fourth or better with eight in the top six.

Michigan won its 12th conference tournament title and first since 1973. The Wolverines received titles from 125-pounder Nick Suriano and Myles Amine at 184.

Penn State finished with four champions, including Nick Lee (141), Carter Starocci at 174 and 197-pounder Max Dean.

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