He’s back. Jacori Teemer returns to help Iowa men’s wrestling beat No. 4 Ohio State, 24-13

IOWA CITY – He’s back.

Iowa’s Jacori Teemer wowed a crowd that was anxiously awaiting his return to the lineup. He didn’t disappoint in his first action in more than two months.

Teemer racked up three takedowns in a 10-5 decision over Ohio State’s Sammy Sasso in a battle of NCAA finalists, helping No. 2 Iowa defeat the No. 4 Buckeyes, 24-13, in a Big Ten Conference men’s wrestling dual Saturday afternoon at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

“Great,” Brands said about having Teemer back in the lineup. “He made the call. Medical team gave him the green light. Coaches are comfortable with everything. Got Estrada ready to go. I don’t think there was one doubt in his (Teemer’s) head who was going.”

Teemer, a national runner-up for Arizona State last season, hadn’t wrestled since an injury default in the Iowa State dual here on Nov. 23. Fans were hopeful when the top-ranked 157-pounder and four-time All-American was listed in the probable lineups released earlier in the week.

As Sasso paced on the edge of the mat, Hawkeye fans stood looking to the tunnel and roared when his image in the tunnel came on the overhead videoboard. He slowly strolled to the center of the mat with Iowa down, 10-6, displaying a calm and composed demeanor.

“The guy has unbelievable ability on the mat,” Iowa 184-pounder Gabe Arnold said of Teemer. “Off the mat, he’s just a cool, chill dude. He’s a cool guy to be around. He’s a fun guy to have on the team. I’m glad we picked him up from the transfer portal this year.”

Teemer turned it on for explosive moments throughout the match, throwing Sasso around at times and tallying a takedown in each period. He added an escape in the third.

“We have to perform first and entertain second,” Brands said. “I think he did that. Sometimes you want to entertain first and that’s when it’s risky because this is a combat sport.

“Loved it. Speed.”

The Hawkeyes (9-0, 3-0) pulled within one of the Buckeyes (11-1, 3-1)at the midway intermission. Iowa took over after the break, winning four of five upper weights and six of the last seven. Iowa City High alumni Arnold and Ben Kueter produced two of those wins.

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Arnold scored a takedown with 39 seconds left in sudden victory-1 for a 4-1 decision over Ryder Rogotzke. Interestingly, Arnold recalled Rogotzke beating him in the 2021 age-level World Team Trials. He was determined to prevent that in his home arena.

“Things like that you don’t forget and moments like that where everything disappears and you watch your hard work goes for nothing,” Arnold said. “That pain and hurt doesn’t go away. I was reminding myself of that moment. There’s no way in hell he’s going to come in and do it in my home. Just not happening.”

Arnold committed to multiple attacks and was close to scoring in regulation. Back-to-back attempts yielded the winning move. Will and skill made an impact in overtime. Arnold remained confident as he kept going and looking to score.

“I’m a competitor,” Arnold said. “When I go out there, I believe that I’m going to get my hand raised every single time. There’s no reason I shouldn’t. I’ve put the work in. I have the skill. I have the talent. There’s no reason why I can’t go out there and get my hand raised. The confidence never leaves.”

Top-ranked Stephen Buchanan posted Iowa’s most dominant win, sealing the dual victory with an 18-1 technical fall over Seth Shumate. He used four takedowns and two sets of nearfall for five more.

“We got big bonus points at 197,” Brands said. “He wrestled a smart match, too. That guy is trying to pull us up into his areas.”

Iowa’s Joey Cruz has two wins over ranked foes in his last three matches. He scored takedowns in the first two periods for a 6-5 triumph over No. 12 Brendan McCrone at 125. Teammate Michael Caliendo added an 11-3 major decision over Paddy Gallagher at 165. Kyle Parco (149) and heavyweight Ben Kueter won by decision for the Hawkeyes (9-0, 3-0).

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Kueter scored the only takedown of the match and scored all of his points in the second period, dropping No. 5 Nick Feldman, 5-3. It was a good rebound victory after a close loss the last time out against Illinois.

“He scored on a scramble, stayed with it and then scored again, even though he got one takedown,” Brands said. “He had to make sure he anchored it. When he got reversed, he didn’t let the guy make him pay. When you get reversed late in the match and you’re on your belly, that’s what happened last week … We got a restarted and got out. The reversal didn’t hurt us. We have to be smarter in those positions, though.

“That’s a big win for him,”

Iowa travels to State College, Pa., on Friday to face No. 1 Penn State, beginning at 6 p.m.

“We wrestled well in places,” Brands said. “We scored a lot of points. We’re going to have to be better on Friday.”

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