Men's Wrestling / January 22, 2008

Top-Ranked Hawkeyes To Host Northwestern

Jan. 22, 2008

THIS WEEK
Iowa (13-1, 2-0 Big Ten) will host #10 Northwestern (5-4, 0-0 Big Ten) Sunday at 7 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes enter the dual on a six-match winning streak.

NORTHWESTERN WILDCATS
Northwestern is 5-4 (0-0 Big Ten) with wins over North Dakota State (35-9), Southern Illinois (44-3), Eastern Michigan (29-6), Tennessee-Chattanooga (31-11) and Missouri (22-19), and losses to Northern Illinois (19-22), Nebraska (9-25), Ohio State (17-19) and Iowa State (16-26). The Wildcats, who enter Sunday’s dual ranked 10th in the nation, placed fifth at the 2007 Midlands Championships and eighth at the 2008 NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals.

Head Coach Tim Cysewski is 137-164-5 in 18 seasons at Northwestern. He was an all-American at 134 pounds for Iowa in 1976, and a four-time Hawkeye letterwinner (1973-76). He is assisted by Ryan Bertin (Michigan, 2005), Drew Pariano (Northwestern, 2000) and Bill Scherr (Nebraska, 1984).

The Wildcats are led by sophomore Brandon Precin (125) and seniors Ryan Lang (149), Nick Hayes (174), Mike Tamillow (197) and Dustin Fox (Hwt.). Fox is the nation’s top-ranked heavyweight and is undefeated at 13-0. Lang (10-1) and Tamillow (19-2) are both ranked fourth and are returning all-Americans, along with Fox. Precin is #5 and boasts a 25-2 record. Hayes, who is 16-4 this season, is a native of Council Bluffs, IA.

THE SERIES
Iowa leads the series, 63-7-1, and has won the last three duals. The Hawkeyes hold a 27-3 advantage in Iowa City. Northwestern’s last win in the series was 22-19 at Evanston in 2005, which snapped Iowa’s 35-match win streak against the Wildcats.

LAST MEETING – IOWA 24, NORTHWESTERN 14
Iowa scored its second dual win over Northwestern in eight days with a 24-14 win Jan. 21 at Rolling Meadows High School in Rolling Meadows, IL.

The trip to Northwestern was a little unconventional for the Hawkeyes, who lost at Oklahoma State (21-11) Jan. 19. Iowa’s flights out of Oklahoma were cancelled due to inclement weather, so the Hawkeyes rented vans and drove from Stillwater to Rolling Meadows.

Northwestern jumped out to an 8-0 lead with wins at 197 and heavyweight. Northwestern’s Mike Tamillow scored a 19-4 technical fall over redshirt freshman Rick Loera, who was wrestling for injured starter Dan Erekson. Northwestern junior Dustin Fox followed with his fourth career victory over Hawkeye junior Matt Fields – a 2-0 decision at heavyweight.

Iowa responded with wins in the next seven bouts and 24 unanswered team points. Sophomore Charlie Falck started things at 125 with a 5-2 decision over Brandon Precin – avenging an earlier loss. Junior Alex Tsirtsis scored his 60th career win with a 15-4 major decision over James Kohlberg at 141. Senior Alex Grunder (149) and junior Mark Perry (165) also recorded major decisions for Iowa. Northwestern scored its final points of the dual when Iowa forfeited the 184-pound match.

Iowa 24, Northwestern 14
197 – Mike Tamillow (N) tech. fall Rick Loera (I), 19-4
Hwt. – Dustin Fox (N) dec. Matt Fields (I), 2-0
125 – Charlie Falck (I) dec. Brandon Precin (N), 5-2
133 – Mario Galanakis (I) dec. Eric Metzler (N), 6-1
141 – Alex Tsirtsis (I) maj. dec. J. Kohlberg (N), 15-4
149 – Alex Grunder (I) maj. dec. M. Gould (N), 12-4
157 – Ryan Morningstar (I) dec. D. Marella (N), 8-3
165 – Mark Perry (I) maj. dec. Greg Hagel (N), 10-0
174 – Eric Luedke (I) dec. Nick Hayes (N), 6-2
184 – Jake Herbert (N) won by forfeit

HAVEN’T WE MET?
Following are collegiate career results from probable Iowa-Northwestern match-ups:

125 – Charlie Falck vs. Brandon Precin, 2-1
Falck dec. Precin, 4-2, at 2006 Midlands
Precin pinned Falck, 3:20, at 2007 National Duals
Falck dec. Precin, 5-2, at 2007 dual

157 – Ryan Morningstar vs. Kyle Bertin, 1-0
Morningtar dec. Bertin, 13-6, at 2007 Midlands

165 – Mark Perry vs. Dominic Marella, 1-0
Perry pinned Marella, 0:42, at 2007 Midlands

Hwt. – Matt Fields vs. Dustin Fox, 0-5
Fox dec. Fields, 7-6, at 2005 dual
Fox dec. Fields, 3-2, at 2005 Big Ten Championships
Fox dec. Fields, 3-2 TB-1, at 2007 National Duals
Fox dec. Fields, 2-0 at 2007 dual
Fox dec. Fields, 2-1 TB-1, at 2007 Big Ten Champ’s

LAST WEEK
Iowa opened the 2007-08 Big Ten season with wins over #6 Ohio State (24-10) and #7 Penn State (27-13).

Iowa won seven of 10 bouts at Ohio State Friday night at St. John Arena in front of a record-setting crowd of 4,378. Iowa jumped out to a 12-0 lead with wins by a quartet of Hawkeye sophomores, and then traded wins with the Buckeyes at the last six weights.

The Hawkeyes returned home to beat #7 Penn State (27-13) Sunday afternoon at Carver-Hawkeyea Arena. Iowa improved to 13-1 and snapped Penn State’s two-match win streak in the series. A crowd of 7,525 gathered to watch the Hawkeyes win its 802nd dual in school history, taking seven of the 10 bouts.

Five Hawkeyes went undefeated on the weekend. Junior Charlie Falck (125) and sophmores Joe Slaton (133), Dan LeClere (141), Brent Metcalf (149) and Jay Borschel (174) each defeated their Big Ten opponents. Falck remains undefeated (13-0) in dual competition and is on an 11-match winning streak. Metcalf has won his last 15 matches and is 18-1 (13-1 in duals this season). He defeated #5 Lance Palmer of Ohio State (5-3) and pinned #6 Bubba Jenkins of Penn State in 5:33. In the Metcalf-Jenkins match, the Hawkeye sophomore fought off his back and a 6-1 first-period deficit. Before recording the pin, he led Jenkins 23-13 with over a minute remaining in the match.

Top-ranked senior 165-pounder Mark Perry did not compete in either dual due to injury.

IOWA TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for Iowa’s three remaining home duals are on sale at the University of Iowa Athletic Ticket Office or at 1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com. University of Iowa students will be admitted free to all matches with a student ID. Tickets purchased in advance are $8 for adults and $4 for youth. Tickets purchased at the event are $10 for adults and $5 for youth.

FAMILY FOUR PACK AVAILABLE
The University of Iowa is offering a Family Four Pack ticket package for the Iowa vs. Indiana dual on Feb. 15. The package includes four tickets, four hot dogs and four drinks for $30. Orders can be placed through the University of Iowa Athletic Ticket Office or at 1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com.

CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Carver-Hawkeye Arena has been the home of Iowa wrestling since 1983. The Hawkeyes are 159-18 (.898) in the arena, which includes a record 10 victories during the 1986 season. Iowa has recorded 16 undefeated seasons in the arena, with the most recent (8-0) occurring in 2002-03. The dual wrestling attendance record for Carver-Hawkeye Arena is 15,291, set when Iowa defeated Iowa State on February 22, 1992. The arena seats 15,500 for a dual wrestling meet.

IOWA WRESTLING HISTORY
Iowa’s overall dual meet record is 820-215-30 (.784) in 96 seasons. The Hawkeyes have won 20 national titles and 31 Big Ten titles. Iowa’s 48 NCAA champions have won a total of 74 NCAA individual titles, crowning six three-time and 13 two-time champions. The Hawkeyes’ 100 Big Ten champions have won a total of 181 conference titles. There have been seven four-time, 18 three-time and 24 two-time Iowa winners. Iowa’s 130 all-Americans have earned all-America status 266 times, including 16 four-time, 28 three-time and 32 two-time honorees.

NEXT COMPETITION
Iowa (13-1, 3-0 Big Ten) will take the first of two straight weekend road trips. The Hawkeyes will wrestle at Minnesota (8-3, 0-0) Feb. 1 at 7:30 p.m. The dual in Williams Arena will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network. The Hawkeyes will then travel to Madison to face Wisconsin (8-2-1, 0-1) Feb. 3 at 1 p.m. at the University of Wisconsin Field House.

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