March 17, 2011
NCAA Tournament Session I Photo Gallery | Updated Standings and Brackets
- 2011 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships Central
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye iPhone app!
- Carver-Hawkeye Arena Revitalization
- 2010-11 Iowa Wrestling Media Guide
- Iowa and the Big Ten Network
- Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
PHILADELPHIA — The University of Iowa wrestling team is in second place with 18 points after Thursday’s first session of competition at the 2011 NCAA Championships in Philadelphia, Pa. The three-time defending team champion Hawkeyes posted a 10-1 record during the first session, scoring one pin and nine decisions. Penn State leads the team race with 20 points, while Cornell is in third with 16.5. Thursday night’s second session of competition is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. (CT) at the Wells Fargo Center.
Advancing to Thursday night’s championship second round with their first session wins are Iowa senior Luke Lofthouse (197), juniors Montell Marion (141) and Blake Rasing (Hwt.), sophomores Matt McDonough (125) and Grant Gambrall (184), and redshirt freshmen Tony Ramos (133), Derek St. John (157) and Ethen Lofthouse (174). Iowa’s only loss of the first session was at 165 when Hawkeye senior Aaron Janssen lost a 4-2 decision to unseeded Peter Yates of Virginia Tech. Iowa is the only school with eight wrestlers still in the championship bracket. Penn State, Cornell, and Minnesota have seven, while Wisconsin and Virginia Tech have six.
Ramos and Gambrall opened the tournament for Iowa, posting decisions in their preliminary bouts. Ramos, who is seeded sixth, scored a 6-3 win over unseeded Frank Cagnina of Lehigh. Gambrall scored a takedown with less than 30 seconds left in his bout with unseeded Corey Peltier of Maryland to post a 3-2 victory and collect his 20th win of the season. Both Hawkeyes also won their first round bouts, going 2-0 on the day.
McDonough, who is the defending NCAA champion at 125, scored Iowa’s only bonus points of the round with his 2:31 pin of North Carolina-Greensboro’s Manuel Ramirez. The pin was McDonough’s 14th of the season and extended his winning streak to 13 matches.
St. John and Ethen Lofthouse each picked up their 20th wins of the season in their opening bouts. St. John beat Bloomsburg’s Frank Hickman (11-7), and Lofthouse beat Missouri’s Dorian Henderson (8-2).
Rasing closed out the session for Iowa with a 2-0 decision over Iowa State’s Kyle Simonson. The Hawkeye junior escaped in the second period and rode Simonson the entire third period to pick up his seventh straight victory.
Hawkeye fans can follow competition throughout the NCAA Championships via radio, internet and television broadcasts. Steven Grace and two-time Hawkeye NCAA champion and four-time All-American Mark Ironside will call the action live on AM-800, KXIC and hawkeyesports.com. NCAA Sessions III, IV and V will be aired live on ESPNU HD, and the championship finals will be aired live on ESPN HD. Matches from Session II, III, and VI will be streamed live on ESPN3.com. Live results can be found on the wrestling schedule page at hawkeyesports.com. All tickets for the event have been sold out.
NCAA TEAM STANDINGS AFTER SESSION ONE (Top 10 Teams)
Place Team – Points
1. Penn State – 20
2. Iowa – 18
3. Cornell – 16.5
4. Wisconsin – 15
5. Minnesota – 14
Oklahoma State – 14
7. Nebraska – 13.5
8. Lehigh – 13
9. Virginia Tech – 13
10. Boise State – 12
Rutgers – 12
IOWA’S NCAA SESSION ONE RESULTS (Numbers indicate tournament seeds)
Prelminary Matches
133 – #6 Tony Ramos (Iowa) dec. Frank Cagnina (Lehigh), 6-3
184 – #12 Grant Gambrall (Iowa) dec. Corey Peltier (Maryland), 3-2
First Round Matches
125 – #2 Matt McDonough (Iowa) pinned Manuel Ramirez (North Carolina-Greensboro), 2:31
133 – #6 Tony Ramos (Iowa) dec. Jordan Keller (Oklahoma), 8-3
141 – #5 Montell Marion (Iowa) dec. Stephen Dutton (Lehigh), 8-3
157 – #6 Derek St. John (Iowa) dec. Frank Hickman (Bloomsburg), 11-7
165 – Peter Yates (Virginia Tech) dec. #11 Aaron Janssen (Iowa), 4-2
174 – #9 Ethen Lofthouse (Iowa) dec. Dorian Henderson (Missouri), 8-2
184 – #12 Grant Gambrall (Iowa) dec. Austin Trotman (Appalachian State), 8-5
197 – #5 Luke Lofthouse (Iowa) dec. Riley Orozco (Cal State Bakersfield), 4-1
Hwt. – #7 Blake Rasing (Iowa) dec. Kyle Simonson (Iowa State), 2-0
IOWA’S SECOND ROUND NCAA MATCH-UPS (Numbers indicate tournament seeds)
Championship Bracket
125 – #2 Matt McDonough (Iowa) vs. Sean Boyle (Michigan)
133 – #6 Tony Ramos (Iowa) vs. #11 Scotti Sentes (Central Michigan)
141 – #5 Montell Marion (Iowa) vs. #12 Zack Kemmerer (Pennsylvania)
157 – #6 Derek St. John (Iowa) vs. #11 Walter Peppelman (Harvard)
174 – #9 Ethen Lofthouse (Iowa) vs. #8 Mike Letts (Maryland)
184 – #12 Grant Gambrall (Iowa) vs. #5 Joe LeBlanc (Wyoming)
197 – #5 Luke Lofthouse (Iowa) vs. #13 Zack Giesen (Stanford)
Hwt. – #7 Blake Rasing (Iowa) vs. #10 Nathan Fernandez (Oklahoma)
Consolation Bracket
165 – #11 Aaron Janssen (Iowa) vs. #6 Dallas Bailey (Oklahoma State)