Wrestling Weekend That Was: Spencer Lee returns to mat with championship performance, qualifies for Olympic Trials

Spencer Lee is back and earned his spot in the Olympic Trials. Iowa and Iowa State won big ahead of the Cy-Hawk Series dual Sunday in Ames. UNI and the Iowa women thrived at open tournaments. This is the Wrestling Weekend That Was.

Spencer Lee returns with title

Spencer Lee returned to the mat last weekend at the Bill Farrell Memorial International in New York. The Hawkeye Wrestling Club member and three-time University of Iowa NCAA champion looked impressive in a championship performance at the Olympic Trials qualifier.

Lee, a three-time age-level World freestyle champion, posted a 4-0 mark, beating former Penn State wrestler Nico Megaludis, 7-4, in the 57 kilogram (125.5 pounds) final. It was his first event since withdrawing after reaching the semifinals of the U.S. Open in April.

“It was nice to get back competing,” Lee said in a post-tournament interview with USA Wrestling and Flowrestling. “It’s been six-plus months. It’s been even longer for freestyle.”

Lee battled through torn ligaments and endured surgeries on both knees. He looked strong, wrestling without any braces and sporting a single pad on his right knee.

“I would say it’s a lot better,” Lee said about his health. “So, that’s good.”

Lee dominated his way to the finals, opening with a 41-second 10-0 technical fall over Pakistan’s Muhammad Bilal. He only needed 25 seconds for an 11-0 win over United States’ Devan Turner. Lee defeated Luke Lilledahl, 11-0, in just 1:26.

Lee built a 4-0 lead with two takedowns against Megaludis. He never trailed, exchanging two-point moves before receiving a final point for a failed challenge by Megaludis’ corner. Interestingly, both Lee and Megaludis wrestled for Franklin Regional High School in Pennsylvania and trained with the Young Guns Wrestling Club under former Hawkeye Jody Strittmatter.

Megaludis, and his coach Logan Stieber, were as close to heroes as Lee had growing up in the sport. Lee said it was funny they are coaching and wrestling against him now.

“Gritty win,” Lee said. “It’s a bit odd, you know. I’ve looked up to him my whole life. He was from my high school. He was a national champ.”

Future competitions will be a wait-and-see approach. Lee said he preferred to compete at Senior Nationals next month. Coaches encouraged him to compete at the Bill Farrell. Lee said he still has a lot of work to do and complimented Hawkeye coaches for not giving up on him and keeping him ready to go.

“I think they know what’s best for me,” Lee said. “So, thank you to my coaches, making me come do this tournament. It was good for me. I needed this.”

Iowa State blanks Wisconsin

Iowa State shut out No. 18 Wisconsin, 42-0, Sunday at Humboldt High School. The Cyclones posted six bonus-point victories in the dual at Cyclones Coach Kevin Dresser’s alma mater. This marked the third season Iowa State has held a dual at Humboldt.

Kysen Terukina (125) and 165-pounder David Carr provided the most notable wins. Terukina, ranked 17th, handled No. 6 Eric Barnett, 14-3. NCAA champion and No. 2 Carr used an escape and third-period rideout to beat No. 4 Dean Hamiti, 2-0.

M.J. Gaitan (174) and Will Feldkamp (184) posted consecutive pins. Feldkamp decked graduate transfer and former Loras NCAA Division III finalist Shane Liegel in 1:39. Anthony Echemendia (141) and heavyweight Younger Bastida added technical falls.

Iowa State (3-0) entered the dual ranked 10th and sets a match of unbeatens with the annual Cy-Hawk Series against No. 3 Iowa Sunday at Hilton Coliseum in Ames. The Hawkeyes moved to 2-0 with a 25-11 win over Oregon State on Sunday.

UNI crowns 5 champions

Northern Iowa crowned five champions at South Dakota State’s Daktronics Open this weekend. Former Lisbon prep Cael Happel (141) and former West Delaware prep Wyatt Voelker at 197 each won titles. Happel won his second straight championship at the tournament.

Happel scored a technical fall and major decision before pinning Iowa State’s Zach Redding in 3:54 in the final.

Voelker recorded a major decision, technical fall and pin, beating Minnesota’s Gavin Nelson, 4-1, for gold. Adam Allard (149), Ryder Downey (157) and 174-pounder Jared Simma also won titles for the Panthers.

Iowa women dominate again

Iowa women’s wrestling team grabbed six championships at the Missouri Valley Open on Saturday at Marshall, Mo.

An all-Iowa 101-pound final highlighted the day with Sterling Dias edging Emilie Gonzalez, 6-6, on criteria for the title. Brianna Gonzalez (116), former South Winneshiek prep Felicity Taylor (123), Esther Han at 136, 143-pounder Reese Larramendy and Samantha Calkins at 235 all won titles.

The Hawkeyes tallied 41 technical falls, 16 pins and 84 total wins in the two-day tournament.

“We came here to get better, and I believe that no matter the outcome, each individual did just that,” Iowa Coach Clarissa Chun said. “I loved seeing everyone be there and support their teammates the entire weekend. We represented our program well and I am excited to continue through this season together.”

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