Tag: Tom Brands

No. 2 Iowa Hawkeyes rout California Baptist in season opener

No. 2 Iowa wrestling’s season is underway with a rout. The Hawkeyes cruised past California Baptist, 42-3.

Iowa wrestling started off their season in front of a packed house at Carver-Hawkeye Arena with a one-sided 42-3 victory over California Baptist.

Three pin falls, two technical falls, and two major decisions were the headline of the day for the Hawkeyes in a truly dominant performance.

“There were some good performances with some new faces. They did a good job,” said head coach Tom Brands. “We have to move forward, and we want to get our best lineup on the mat. That’s a lineup that looked pretty good to me and we still don’t have Real Woods or Spencer Lee on the mat.”

Cobe Siebrecht started off the points party in the first match of the dual, pinning Joey Mora with one second to spare in the second period. The definition of a buzzer beater. Fourteenth-ranked Patrick Kennedy followed with a 20-5 technical fall to make it 11-0 Hawkeyes.

Freshman Drake Rhodes finished his bout against Louis Rojas with a strong takedown to earn his first major decision as a Hawkeye. Whether or not he receives the redshirt this year, the Billings, Montana native is certainly one to watch for the future.

Following No. 10 Abe Assad’s 11-4 victory over Peter Acciardi, No. 2 Jacob Warner provided a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it pin fall. It legitimately was an easy to miss moment, too. I looked away for a split second and Warner was already walking off the mat.

Heavyweight Tony Cassioppi joined the party with a pin of his own. Drew Bennett, and Max Murin also earned bonus points, gaining a major decision and technical fall victory respectively.

I don’t think this is a result that will surprise anyone. The second-ranked team in the nation, Iowa will be in the thick of the Big Ten Championship race. As a result, they are one of the front runners for the national championship. No disrespect to the Lancers, but there are very much levels to this game.

It was a good tune-up performance, and it’s great to see some returning contenders in Warner and Cassioppi start off the dual season with quick victories. I was really impressed with how Drake Rhodes fought for the major decision at the end of the match. I’m a big fan of his aggressive style.

Iowa will travel to West Point to take on the Army Black Knights on Thursday. Iowa defeated Army 36-7 last year, the two sides’ only meeting to date.

[listicle id=12808]

[listicle id=12835]

[listicle id=12724]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01fvdcxf97xrgg1awc player_id=none image=https://hawkeyeswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Jacob on Twitter: @Jacobkeppen

Let us know your thoughts, and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

Jacob Warner ends stellar run for Iowa Hawkeyes as national runner up

Jacob Warner’s sensational run at the NCAA wrestling championships ended with a national runner up finish. As a team, Iowa placed third.

Jacob Warner’s bid for a national championship came up just short. The Iowa senior led 1-0 after a second period escape, but Penn State’s Max Dean responded with a third period escape and a third period takedown to capture the title in the 197-pound weight class, 3-2.

It caps a sensational run at the NCAA wrestling championships for Warner. The four-time All-American topped No. 27 seed Alan Clothier from Northern Colorado, 11th-seeded Thomas Penola from Purdue, No. 3 seed Eric Schultz from Nebraska and second-seeded Stephen Buchanan from Wyoming. The national runner up finish is the best of Warner’s decorated career.

The 6-foot-1 wrestler from Tolono, Ill., finishes his Iowa career with a record of 75-20. Warner placed seventh at the NCAA championships in 2019 and fourth last year as the No. 5 seed. With Warner’s appearance in the national finals, Iowa’s streak of 32 consecutive NCAA tournaments with at least one wrestler in the national finals is still intact.

The Washington Community High School product arrived at Iowa as a three-time Illinois state champion in the 170, 182 and 195-pound weight classes. Warner didn’t allow any points to be scored against him his senior year. He ends his Iowa career on a memorable note.

Meanwhile, fellow Iowa wrestlers Austin DeSanto, Alex Marinelli, Michael Kemerer and Tony Cassioppi all finished up their 2022 NCAA Tournaments on Saturday inside Little Caesars Arena from Detroit, Mich. The group’s finishes helped move Iowa into third place in the team race. DeSanto placed third at 133, Kemerer placed fourth at 174, Marinelli placed fifth at 165 and Cassioppi placed seventh at 285.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Josh on Twitter: @JoshOnREF

Iowa Hawkeyes’ Jacob Warner advances to NCAA wrestling finals

Here’s how to watch Jacob Warner in the 197-pound NCAA wrestling national championship on Saturday night and details about his opponent.

Iowa’s Jacob Warner topped Wyoming’s Stephen Buchanan in the 197-pound semifinals, 6-4, on Friday night inside Little Caesars Arena to advance into the finals of the 2022 NCAA championships. As the No. 6 seed, Warner managed to oust the No. 2 seed in Buchanan thanks to four points in the third period.

“You know, I wrestled him last year and turned him here, so I knew I could do something on top. My last two matches were won by being able to ride, so I knew it was going to be a big factor into this match. All week, all last week I was working on getting that wrist tight. Right before this were working on it at the hotel and we were focusing on it, and I got that wrist and I knew as soon as I got it seatbelted to his hip, I knew I could do something with it, I knew I could get it. And didn’t get it right away, had to stick with it, had to keep elevating, keep going into him and made the difference,” Warner said.

While he pulled off an upset according to seeding here, Warner wasn’t ready to chalk this run to the national finals up as any sort of miracle.

“I don’t know if I would call it a Cinderella run. I knew I was going to be here, I knew I could win this tournament and obviously I’m in the national finals for a reason. I’ve got to wrestle hard, score the whole time, don’t give up easy points, finish in matches. I know if I do that I can win this tournament,” Warner said.

In the process, the four-time All-American kept one of college wrestling’s most amazing streaks alive: Iowa has now had an NCAA finalist every year since 1990. Here’s a look at how to watch Warner in the NCAA finals against Penn State’s Max Dean.