K.J. Pilcher

Iowa City High’s Kendall Kurtz has had a successful month. He defeated Dubuque Hempstead’s MItchell Pins for the 120-pound Class 3A district wrestling title Saturday at Cedar Rapids Jefferson. Kurtz enters next week’s state tournament with a 19-match win streak.

Iowa men’s wrestling won seven bouts and beat the Golden Gophers, 23-11, Friday night at Maturi Pavillion in Minneapolis. The Hawkeyes are 11-1 overall and 5-1 in the Big Ten Conference, entering its conference finale Sunday at home against Northwestern.

UNI Coach Doug Schwab this is the best team he has had in his 15 seasons leading the Panthers. They have matched their highest dual ranking in program history, climbing to No. 4 for the first time in 37 years. The seniors are a big part the success and close their home competition against No. 14 Iowa State.

Lisbon’s Tiernan Boots will attempt to save his best finish for last, entering his last wrestling postseason when Lisbon travels to Saturday’s Class 1A district tournament hosted by Colfax-Mingo. The third-ranked 150-pounder is a three-time state qualifier, placing fourth last year and fifth as a freshman.

Cullan Schriever grew up in Mason City, which is actually closer to Minneapolis and Iowa City. Schriever is a diehard Hawkeye and is looking for his first opportunity to wrestle at Minnesota in the border brawl.

Cornell heavyweight Jackson Brinker won the final match, forcing a tie and helping the No. 21 Rams beat No. 10 Coe on tiebreaker criteria. It was Cornell’s first win in the series since 2017.

The Pinning Combination podcast with The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Dick Briggs breaks down last weekend’s results and previews upcoming duals between Iowa and Minnesota and Iowa State at University of Northern Iowa. They also highlight the IGHSAU state tournament and IHSAA State Duals event.

University of Northern Iowa, Iowa State handle foes to stay on collision course. Random thoughts on Iowa’s win over Nebraska. Wartburg women win tournament title and state tournament notes in the Wrestling Weekend That Was.

Top-seeded Alburnett and No. 2 Don Bosco faced off for the Class 1A title of the State Duals wrestling tournament Saturday at Xtream Arena. Don Bosco topped Alburnett, 38-37, to win its fifth straight State Duals championship.

Top-seeded Alburnett powered its way to the Class 1A championship dual for the second straight season. No. 2 West Delaware soared into the 2A finals with two nailbiting victories at the State Duals tournament Saturday at Xtream Arena.

Independence defeated Mount Vernon in a consolation-round dual, giving Mustangs head coach Michael Doyle his 500th career dual victory. He is the 12th coach in Iowa high school history to reach the win plateau.

Sigourney-Keota’s Reanah Utterback left an indelible mark on wrestling in Iowa. She dominated her way to another title, pinning through another state tournament bracket at the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union state wrestling tournament.

Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s Ella Brown has seen her title hopes end in the semifinal round in the past. This time the Cougars’ senior 235-pounder left no doubt to become the school’s first state finalist.

Class 1A No. 1 Alburnett subscribes to the “Bring the fight” mantra. The Pirates will have to bring that mentality for a chance to win first dual crown since 2016.

The Iowa HigH School Athletic Association State Duals tournament is set for Saturday at Xtream Arena in Coralville.