Jan. 10, 2009
CEDAR FALLS, IA — The top-ranked Hawkeye wrestling team posted wins in the first two rounds of the 2009 Cliff Keen/NWCA National Duals Saturday at the UNI Dome in Cedar Falls to advance to Sunday’s championship semifinals. The top-seeded Hawkeyes posted a 17-3 record on the day with wins over unseeded Wyoming (38-3) and eighth-seeded Minnesota (27-7), improving to 12-0 on the season. Iowa will put its 26-match winning streak on the line when it faces fourth-seeded Nebraska (8-0) in the semifinals Sunday at 11 a.m.
In the tournament-opening win over Wyoming, the Hawkeyes posted bonus-point victories in six bouts – including pins by juniors Brent Metcalf (149) and Dan Erekson (Hwt.), a technical fall by senior Alex Tsirtsis (141) and major decisions by juniors Daniel Dennis (133), Ryan Morningstar (165) and Phillip Keddy (184) . Junior Chad Beatty (197) returned to action with a 3-1 win over Wyoming’s Alfonso Hernandez after missing over a month of competition due to injury. Sophomore Jake Kerr, who was subbing for an injured Jay Borschel at 174, scored a 6-3 win over Wyoming’s Shane Onufer. Iowa’s lone loss was a 6-4 decision by Michael Martinez over redshirt freshman J.J. Krutsinger at 125. Krutsinger is wrestling for injured Hawkeye starter Charlie Falck.
Iowa picked up its 60th National Duals victory in the win over Minnesota. Dennis, who is ranked fifth at 133, posted his 30th career win with a 6-4 upset over fourth-ranked Jayson Ness of Minnesota. Metcalf posted his 49th straight win with a 23-8 technical fall in 6:22 over Minnesota’s Brian Peterson to remain undefeated at 17-0 this season. Borschel and Keddy posted major decisions as the Hawkeyes won the final five bouts to seal the team win.
ESPNU will air three taped-delay broadcasts of Sunday’s championships finals. Air dates are scheduled for Jan. 17 at 1 a.m. (CT), Jan. 27 at noon (CT) and Feb. 1 at 5:30 p.m. (CT). Hawkeye fans can listen to Iowa’s Sunday matches on AM-800 KXIC or www.hawkeyesports.com.
Iowa 38, Wyoming 3
125 – Michael Martinez (W) dec. J.J. Krutsinger (I), 6-4
133 – Daniel Dennis (I) maj. dec. Cory VomBaur (W), 15-4
141 – Alex Tsirtsis (I) tech. fall Cole Dallaserra (W), 16-1, 4:46
149 – Brent Metcalf (I) pinned Chase Smith (W), 1:55
157 – Matt Ballweg (I) dec. Brock Smith (W), 7-1
165 – Ryan Morningstar (I) maj. dec. Alex Reider (W), 18-5
174 – Jake Kerr (I) dec. Shane Onufer (W), 6-3
184 – Phillip Keddy (I) maj. dec. Joe LeBlanc (W), 17-5
197 – Chad Beatty (I) dec. Alfonso Hernandez (W), 3-1
Hwt – Dan Erekson (I) pinned Jacob Scharbrough (W), 0:46
Iowa 27, Minnesota 7
125 – Zach Sanders (M) dec. J.J. Krutsinger (I), 10-5
133 – Daniel Dennis (I) dec. Jayson Ness (M), 6-4
141 – Alex Tsirtsis (I) dec. Mike Thorn (M) 2-1
149 – Brent Metcalf (I) tech. fall Brian Peterson (M), 23-8 in 6:22
157 – Tyler Safratowich (M) maj .dec. Matt Ballweg (I), 11-3
165 – Ryan Morningstar (I) dec. Scott Glasser (M), 6-4
174 – Jay Borschel (I) maj. dec. Kaleb Young (M), 12-3
184 – Phillip Keddy (I) maj. dec. Sonny Yohn (M), 11-3
197 – Chad Beatty (I) dec. Chris McPhail (M), 9-4
Hwt – Dan Erekson (I) dec. Ben Berhow (M), 3-2