Iowa Wrestling Weekend That Was: What we learned in Penn State’s win over Iowa

More from University of Iowa’s loss to Penn State. Iowa State hosted the Harold Nichols Open, while Cornell held the Cliff Keen-Mike Duroe Invitationals. Jesup captured the team title at the Loyd Shaffer-Marion Invitational and more high school results in the Wrestling Weekend That Was.

MORE REACTION FROM PENN STATE’S WIN AT IOWA

The reverberations of Iowa’s 32-3 loss to Penn State are still being felt. The results demonstrated the great expanse between the two programs but the Nittany Lions are doing similar things to every opponent, outscoring them by a total of 381-19. Penn State is 9-0 and has posted an incredible 84-6 match record in duals and 49-1 in the last five, shutting out Oklahoma, North Dakota State, Stanford, Rutgers and Northwestern. The 51-0 win over the Wildcats on Sunday extended Penn State’s NCAA record win streak to 80 duals.

The fact that the Iowa dual was Penn State’s lowest point total and closest dual is no consolation for Hawkeye fans and Iowa coaches wrestlers aren’t hanging their hats on any moral victory. The final result matters and it was the least points Iowa has scored in a dual since three shutout losses to Michigan, Minnesota and Oklahoma in the 1965-66 season. It was also the worst loss since falling the 39-0 loss to the Sooners in Iowa City that season.

Iowa Coach Tom Brands alluded to the wide gap between the programs and accepted that it is the responsibility of him and the coaching staff to close that gap. Something hasn’t happened, losing the last three duals to the Nittany lions by 23 in 2024, 22 last season and 29 on Friday. Penn State has won 25 of 30 matches in those three meetings.

The way they lost some of the matches is concerning. A couple close matches were blown wide open late by the Nittany Lions. Six matches were decided by two points or less. Iowa scored no takedowns and didn’t really threaten to score one to win those matches. A program with a history of breaking opponents and gutting out wins by sheer will was unable to do either in front of a crowd of 12,530 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, which surprisingly was not a sellout against the top-ranked foe and defending NCAA champions.

The Hawkeyes (8-3, 1-1) face No. 6 Nebraska (9-3, 2-0) in Lincoln, Neb., on Friday. They will help their cause with a short memory and win over the Cornhuskers, who beat No. 9 Minnesota, 20-12, on Friday.

IOWA STATE’S EUTON, FORMER HAWKEYE CASSIOPPI WIN NICHOLS OPEN TITLES

Iowa State hosted the Harold Nichols Open on Sunday in Ames. Iowa State 165-pounder Connor Euton and former Hawkeye and current Wisconsin assistant coach Tony Cassioppi won titles.

Euton led a Cyclone trio that took the top three spots at 165. Aidan Riggins was second and Manny Rojas placed third. Euton defeated Riggins, 8-1, for the championship. Riggins topped Rojas, 7-2, in the semifinal.

Former Linn-Mar state champion and Cyclone 157-pounder Kane Naaktgeboren was fourth.

Cassioppi, wrestling as a member of the Wisconsin Regional Training Center, dominated the heavyweight field. He scored three technical falls, outscoring opponents, 54-6, and winning by medical forfeit in the final. Cassioppi went 77-15 with 26 pins for the Hawkeyes from 2019-23, becoming the 25 four-time All-American in program history. He was a Big Ten Conference finalist and never finished worse than third.

UNI duo Austin and Logan Paradice placed third and fifth at 157 and 149, respectively.

IOWA WOMEN EARN 9 TITLES

Iowa women’s wrestling competed at the Cliff Keen-Mike Duroe Invitational Saturday at Cornell in Mount Vernon. The Hawkeyes nearly swept the gold medals, winning eight titles and redshirt Naomi Simon taking the 180 crown unattached.

Valarie Solorio (103), Nyla Valencia (110), Harlee Hiller (117), Calli Leng (124), Karlee Brooks (131), Lilly Luft at 138, 145-pounder Reese Larramendy and Katja Osteen (207) won titles. Simon, who won four state titles for Decorah, posted two pins and two technical falls, including an 11-0 win over Simpson’s Autumn Calvert in the final.

All-Iowa finals came at 103, 110, 131, 145 and 207. Solorio topped teammate Sterling Dias on criteria in the final. Emilie Gonzalez (110), Bella Williams (131), Cadence Diduch (145) and 207 Jaycee Foeller placed second.

Former Mount Vernon state champion and Iowa freshman Libby Dix went 3-2, placing fifth at 207 in her hometown.

VAN PELT, PETRY WINS CLIFF KEEN-DUROE CROWNS AT HOME

It was home-sweet-home for Cornell’s Jase Van Pelt and Brian Petry on Saturday. They each captured championships at the Cliff Kee-Mike Duroe Invitational named after the late Rams coach.

Van Pelt won the 125-pound division for the second time, scoring a takedown in the final five seconds to defeat University of Wisconsin-La Crosse’s Cole Gentsch, 6-3, in the finals. Van Pelt was 5-0 with a major decision.

Petry, ranked No. 11 in NCAA Division III, beat UWL’s Ryland Schneider, 6-2, for the 165 title. The Cornell junior improved to 14-5 this season, giving him 73 career victories.

JESUP WINS SHAFFER-MARION TEAM TITLE

Jesup won the Loyd Shaffer-Marion Invitational on Saturday, scoring 230 1/2 points and beating runner-up Atlantic by 32.

The J-Hawks advanced six to the finals and crowned four champions. Deshawn Parrow (120), 126-pounder Ayden Bergman, Cooper Hinz at 132 and Gavin Bell (138) placed first. Carver Hinz (113) and 215-pounder Dax Youngblut finished second for Jesup.

Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s Thayer Hagstrom (106), Williamsburg’s Ryker DeWitt (113) and heavyweight Carson Grier, Benton Community’s 144-pounder Brady Patterson and North Linn’s Jacoby Peyton (175) won titles.

IOWA VALLEY TRIO WIN AT SOLON

Iowa Valley’s Chance Hoyt (150), Mason Hoyt (175) and Nolan Kriegel at 190 captured championships Saturday at Ed Hadenfeldt Invitational in Solon. All three had bonus-point wins in the finals.

Kriegel pinned Pella’s Brecken Ritzert in 3:28 to improve to 35-2. Mason Hoyt scored an 18-2 technical fall over West Liberty’s Kaden Wiele in the championship, while Chance Hoyt capped the tournament with a 16-2 major decision over North Scott’s Zach Green in the final.

In a battle of No. 1 vs. No. 2, Vinton-Shellsburg’s top-ranked Jackson Parmater posted a 9-1 major decision over Solon’s No. 2 Anderson Osgood for the 106 crown.

Solon’s Lucas Feuerbach won his hometown tournament, pinning his way through the heavyweight bracket. West Branch’s Ethan Humphrey (113) and Cash Hatfield (144), West Liberty’s Noah Garcia (120), Iowa City Liberty’s Rex Edmonds (132) also won titles.

Comments: kj.pilcher@thegazette.com