March 19, 2009
ST. LOUIS, MO — The defending NCAA champion Iowa wrestling team rolled off eight straight wins during Thursday night’s competition, advancing six Hawkeyes to Friday morning’s NCAA Championship quarterfinals in St. Louis, MO. The Hawkeyes went 15 of 18 during Thursday’s first day of NCAA competition, and are tied for first place in the team standings with Iowa State with 33 points. Iowa has all nine qualifiers still alive in the competition, while Iowa State has five wrestlers competing in the quarterfinals and five in the consolation bracket.
“I was very pleased with Brent Metcalf’s match tonight, and it was good to get team bonus points out of the guys that scored them,” said Iowa Head Coach Tom Brands. “We left way too many bonus points out on the mat today. We’ll go back tonight, talk to the team and get ready for battle tomorrow.”
Juniors Daniel Dennis (133), Brent Metcalf (149), Ryan Morningstar (165), Jay Borschel (174), Phillip Keddy (184) and Dan Erekson (Hwt.) all won their Thursday night matches to advance to the championship quarterfinals. Dennis picked up his 45th career victory with a 9-6 decision over Northern Illinois’ Tristen DeShazer. The fourth-seeded Hawkeye will face fifth-seeded Andrew Hochstrasser of Boise State in the quarterfinals. It will be the first meeting for the two.
Metcalf won his 67th straight bout, pinning Oregon State’s Heinrich Barnes in 3:47 to remain undefeated at 35-0 this season. The pin was the top-seeded Hawkeye’s 20th of the season, which ranks fourth in Iowa school history. Metcalf will wrestle #9 Kyle Terry of Oklahoma for the first time in his career in Friday morning’s quarterfinals.
Morningstar scored a second-period escape and rode Jason Lapham of Rider for the entire third period to post a 2-0 victory. The third-seeded Hawkeye will face sixth-seeded Colt Sponseller of Ohio State in the quarterfinals. The bout will be a rematch of the 2009 Big Ten Championships semifinals – which Morningstar won, 2-1 in the second tiebreak period.
Borschel, the fourth seed, posted an 8-2 win over Indiana’s Trevor Perry in the second round, and will face fifth-seeded Raymond Jordan of Missouri in the quarterfinals. Borschel is 1-0 against Jordan, posting a 4-1 win at the 2008 Midlands.
Keddy scored a 7-2 victory over Oklahoma’s Patrick Flynn in the second round, and will face seventh-seeded Doug Umbehauer of Rider in the quarterfinals. The second-seeded Hawkeye scored a 3-1 decision in sudden victory at the 2007 Midlands in the pair’s only meeting.
Erekson posted a 10-4 victory over Minnesota’s Ben Berhow for his seventh straight win. The seventh-seeded Hawkeye will face second-seeded Mark Ellis of Missouri in the quarterfinals. It will be the first meeting between the two.
Iowa still has three wrestlers competing in the consolation bracket. Fifth-seeded senior Charlie Falck lost an 8-3 decision to #12 Anthony Robles of Arizona State in the championship second round, and will face Maryland’s Brendan Bryne in the 125-pound wrestlebacks Friday morning. Falck is 1-0 against Bryne, winning a 10-2 major decision at the Journeyman Duals in November.
Fourth-seeded senior Alex Tsirtsis collected his 95th career victory with a 10-2 major decision over Vincent Ramirez of North Carolina in the first round of 141-pound consolation matches. Tsirtsis is scheduled to wrestle Northern Iowa’s Trenton Washington in the Friday morning wrestlebacks, but Washington was carried out of the venue on a stretcher after his second round bout and it unlikely to compete.
Hawkeye junior 197-pounder Chad Beatty scored a 10-4 victory over Eastern Michigan’s John McClure in the consolation first round. He will face Stanford’s Luke Feist for the first time in his career in the Friday morning consolation bout.
Friday morning’s session is scheduled to get underway at 10 a.m. (CT) at the Scottrade Center. Competition will include the championships quarterfinals and the consolation second and third rounds. The championship quarterfinals will be broadcast live on ESPNU and ESPN360.com.
NCAA TEAM STANDINGS (Top 10 After Session Two)
Place Team – Points
1. Iowa – 33
Iowa State – 33
3. Ohio State – 30
4. Nebraska – 24
5. Edinboro – 22.5
6. Boise State – 22
7. Illinois – 20.5
8. Hofstra – 20
9. Cornell – 18.5
10. Missouri – 18
Penn State – 18
IOWA’S SESSION TWO RESULTS
Championship Bracket Matches
125 – #12 Anthony Robles (Arizona St.) dec. #5 Charlie Falck (Iowa), 8-3
133 – #4 Daniel Dennis (Iowa) dec. Tristen DeShazer (N. Illinois), 9-6
149 – #1 Brent Metcalf (Iowa) pinned Heinrich Barnes (Oregon St.), 3:47
165 – #3 Ryan Morningstar (Iowa) dec. Jason Lapham (Rider), 2-0
174 – #4 Jay Borschel (Iowa) dec. Trevor Perry (Indiana), 8-2
184 – #2 Phillip Keddy (Iowa) dec. Patrick Flynn (Oklahoma), 7-2
Hwt. – #7 Dan Erekson (Iowa) dec. Ben Berhow (Minnesota), 10-4
Consolation Bracket Matches
141 – #4 Alex Tsirtsis (Iowa) maj. dec. Vincent Ramirez (N. Carolina St.), 10-2
197 – Chad Beatty (Iowa) dec. John McClure (E. Michigan), 10-4
Session One Attendance: 15,226
Session Two Attendance: 15,851
IOWA’S SESSION THREE MATCH-UPS
Championship Bracket Matches
133 – #4 Daniel Dennis (Iowa) vs. #5 Andrew Hochstrasser (Boise St.)
149 – #1 Brent Metcalf (Iowa) vs. #9 Kyle Terry (Oklahoma)
165 – #3 Ryan Morningstar (Iowa) vs. #6 Colt Sponseller (Ohio St.)
174 – #4 Jay Borschel (Iowa) vs. #5 Raymond Jordan (Missouri)
184 – #2 Phillip Keddy (Iowa) vs. #7 Doug Umbehauer (Rider)
Hwt. – #7 Dan Erekson (Iowa) vs. #2 Mark Ellis (Missouri)
Consolation Bracket Matches
125 – #5 Charlie Falck (Iowa) vs. Brendan Bryne (Maryland)
141 – #4 Alex Tsirtsis (Iowa) vs. Trenton Washington (N. Iowa)
197 – Chad Beatty (Iowa) vs. Luke Feist (Stanford)