Iowa Hosts Badgers in Home Finale

Jan. 31, 2012

Weekly Release

ON THE MAT
The University of Iowa wrestling team hosts Wisconsin on Mediacom Mat inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday at 1:05 p.m. (CT).

AUDIO COVERAGE
Sunday’s dual will be broadcast on AM-800 KXIC and streamed online at hawkeyesports.com via Hawkeye All-Access. Steven Grace and Mark Ironside will have the call live from Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

TELEVISION COVERAGE
Sunday’s dual will be televised live on Mediacom. Rob Brooks will have the call from inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

VIDEO STREAM
Hawkeye All-Access will provide a video stream of the Wisconsin dual via BTN.com. BTN.com is a subscription service that provides quality coverage of Big Ten sports. Hawkeye All-Access subscribers will be able to stream the match at no additional charge via hawkeyesports.com.

LIVE RESULTS
Live results will be available on the Iowa wrestling schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.

UNIVERSITY OF IOWA SENIORS
The Hawkeyes will honor eight seniors following the Wisconsin dual. They include Brodie Ambrose, Tyler Clark, Stew Gillmor, Tyler Halverson, J.J. Krutsinger, Montell Marion, Blake Rasing and Vinnie Wagner. The seniors combined for a 307-129 career record and contributed to three NCAA team titles and three Big Ten Championships.

ANOTHER 10
The Hawkeyes’ 19-17 win over Minnesota marked the 10th dual win of the season. The Hawkeyes have won at least 10 duals in every season dating back to 1967-68 — a span of 45 seasons.

1-2-3 SHOOT
Iowa’s three lightest weights have a combined 62-5 (.925) record this season with 39 bonus-point victories. Junior Matt McDonough (125) leads Iowa with nine pins. Sophomore Tony Ramos (133) owns a team-best five technical falls and senior Montell Marion (141) leads the Hawkeyes with seven major decisions.

MCDONOUGH EARNS CONFERENCE HONOR
Junior Matt McDonough earned Big Ten Wrestler of the Week honors, the conference announced Jan. 31. McDonough upset top-ranked Zach Sanders to help lead Iowa to a 19-17 victory over Minnesota on Jan. 29. He did not allow an offensive point while scoring two takedowns and a reversal against the previously unbeaten Sanders. The conference honor was the second of McDonough’s career.

RAMOS IS DUAL DOMINANT
Sophomore Tony Ramos has recorded five falls and four major decisions in 13 duals this season, racking up a team-high 55 points and a 21-1 overall record. He owns a 24-1 career dual record and has never lost in 14 matches inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

MCDONOUGH AMONG THE BEST
Junior Matt McDonough owns a career record of 86-4 (.956). Iowa’s top wrestlers in program history based on winning percentage include:
1. T.J. Williams (98-1-0) .990
2. Brent Metcalf (108-3-0) .972
3. Lincoln McIlravy (96-3-0) .970
4. Tom Brands (158-7-2) .952
5. Terry Brands (137-7) .951

MARION HITS 80
Senior Montell Marion’s 3-2 win over Minnesota’s Nick Dardanes on Jan. 29 marked the 80th career victory for the 141-pound wrestler from Des Moines, Iowa. Marion owns an 80-19 career record, including a 19-2 mark this season. He is the seventh-ranked 141 pound wrestler in the nation and leads Iowa with a team-best seven major decisions. Only Matt McDonough (86) has more career victories among active Hawkeyes.

THE SERIES
Iowa owns a 73-8-3 series advantage over the Badgers. The Hawkeyes have won the last three meetings and 35 of the last 36. The series dates back to 1923 when Iowa won the first meeting 8-6. The teams had met every year from 1934-2010, but they did not meet last season. Iowa owns a 38-3-1 record in Iowa City. Wisconsin’s last win in the series was a 21-14 decision inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Jan. 27, 2007.

LAST MEETING — Feb. 21, 2010
#1 Iowa 31, #14 Wisconsin 6
125 – Matt McDonough (I) maj. dec. Drew Hammen (W), 10-1
133 – Daniel Dennis (I) dec. Tyler Graff (W), 2-1
141 – Montell Marion (I) dec. Cole Schmitt (W), 11-4
149 – Brent Metcalf (I) won by forfeit
157 – Jake Kerr (I) dec. Greg Burke (W), 6-5
165 – Andrew Howe (W) dec. Ryan Morningstar (I), 2-1
174 – Jay Borschel (I) pinned Brendan Ard (W), 4:26
184 – Phillip Keddy (I) dec. Travis Rutt (W), 4-3
197 – Trevor Brandvold (W) dec. Luke Lofthouse (I), 4-2
Hwt. – Dan Erekson (I) dec. Eric Bugenhagen (W), 3-2

#900
The Hawkeyes topped Nebraska, 24-9, Jan. 13 to earn the 900th dual win in program history. Iowa owns a 902-217-31 (.797) dual record in 101 seasons. Iowa State, Oklahoma State and Oregon State are the only other schools to record at least 900 dual wins.

ST. JOHN MAKES AN APPEARANCE
Sophomore Derek St. John won his first 11 bouts of the season before suffering a knee injury Dec. 8 against Northern Iowa. He missed five Hawkeye events before returning Jan. 20 at Ohio State, where he suffered a 7-3 loss to Josh Demas. St. John suffered a minor setback in the dual and has missed the last two events.

RAMOS NABS 2ND BIG TEN HONOR
Tony Ramos earned his second career conference honor when he was named Big Ten Co-Wrestler of the Week on Jan. 10. Ramos, a sophomore from Carol Stream, Ill., pinned Indiana’s Joe Duca in the second period at Indiana (1/6) before earning a 4-3 overtime decision against Oklahoma State’s top-ranked Jordan Oliver (1/7). He had previously won the award after a pair of bonus point victories against No. 7 Illinois (12/2) and Iowa State (12/4). He posted a 13-5 major decision over the Illini’s B.J. Futrell, then-ranked No. 2 in the country, and recorded a second period pin against Iowa State’s Shayden Terukina. Ramos, currently ranked No. 4, owns a 21-2 record with four major decisions, five technical falls and six pins.

HAWKEYES BUILD ON RECORD
Iowa grabbed its record 22nd Midlands team title Dec. 30, scoring 152 points and putting 11 wrestlers on the medal stand at the 49th annual event. Matt McDonough (125) earned his second career Midlands title. Tony Ramos (2nd, 133) Tyler Clark (4th, 133), Montell Marion (2nd, 141), Mike Kelly (5th, 149), Nick Moore (7th, 157), Mike Evans (7th, 165), Ethen Lofthouse (2nd, 174), Vinnie Wagner (7th, 184), Grant Gambrall (7th, 197) and Bobby Telford (2nd, Hwt.) placed for the Hawkeyes.

CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Iowa is 7-1 in dual competition inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,400) this season, outscoring their opponents 219-60. The 2010-11 Hawkeyes posted a perfect 8-0 dual record in their home venue, marking Iowa’s 19th undefeated season in the facility since moving from the UI Fieldhouse in 1983. Iowa has a 195-19 (.910) record in the arena. The 2009-10 Hawkeyes went 11-0 at Carver-Hawkeye, which is the school record for most home wins in a single season. The dual wrestling attendance record for Carver-Hawkeye Arena is 15,955, set when Iowa defeated Iowa State (20-15) on Dec. 6, 2008.

BRANDS HITS 100
Iowa head coach Tom Brands earned his 100th career dual win as Iowa’s head coach Nov. 25 vs. Iowa Central (37-6). It took Brands 107 duals to reach 100 career victories. Only Dan Gable, Iowa’s all-time winningest coach, reached win No. 100 faster. Gable hit the century mark in his 105th dual. Brands owns a 107-9-1 career record since taking over the Iowa program in 2006.

MCDONOUGH’S MIDLANDS SUCCESS
Junior Matt McDonough won his second Midlands title in three years Dec. 30 at the 49th annual event in Evanston, Ill. McDonough recorded two pins, including a second period fall in the finals, and one major decision en route to the title. Since 2009, McDonough owns a 15-1 record at the Midlands, including two championships (2009, 2011) and a runner-up finish (2010). McDonough is 22-1 this season with six major decisions and a team-high nine pins.

NCAA EXPERIENCE
The Hawkeyes have seven wrestlers with previous NCAA championships experience. Junior Matt McDonough has advanced to the NCAA finals each of the past two seasons, winning the championship in 2010 and finishing runner-up in 2011. Montell Marion is a two-time All-American at 141 pounds. The senior from Des Moines, Iowa, placed second in 2010 and earned a fourth place finish in 2011. Sophomore Derek St. John and junior Grant Gambrall also earned All-America honors in 2011. St. John placed fourth at 157 pounds, and Gambrall earned third place at 184 pounds. Sophomores Tony Ramos (133) and Ethen Lofthouse (174), and senior Blake Rasing (Hwt.) also earned NCAA berths last season.

HAWKEYE WRESTLING HISTORY
Iowa’s overall dual meet record is 902-217-31 (.797) in 101 seasons. The Hawkeyes have won 23 national titles and 34 Big Ten titles. Iowa’s 51 NCAA Champions have won a total of 78 NCAA Individual titles, crowning six three-time and 15 two-time champions. The Hawkeyes’ 104 Big Ten champions have won a total of 188 conference titles. There have been seven four-time, 18 three-time and 27 two-time Iowa winners. Iowa’s 144 All-Americans have earned All-America status 291 times, including 17 four-time, 29 three-time and 38 two-time honorees.

HOME MAT ADVANTAGE
The Hawkeyes have won their last 19 Big Ten duals inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The school record for consecutive Big Ten home wins is 63, when Iowa went nearly 23 years without a loss at home from January 17, 1975 to January 3, 1998. Iowa has topped Wisconsin once during the 19-dual home winning streak, a 24-12 victory Jan. 23, 2009.

TIEBREAK CRITERIA
The Hawkeyes saw their 84-match dual unbeaten streak end Jan. 7, 2012, when Oklahoma State topped Iowa, 17-16. The two teams were tied at 16 after splitting 10 bouts, so officials used the NCAA tiebreak criteria inserted during the offseason to determine a winner. The first tiebreak is match victories (5-5) and the second is falls/tech. falls (0-0). Oklahoma State eventually won on the third tiebreak criteria, match points (54-51).

ATTENDANCE LEADERS AT IT AGAIN
The third largest dual crowd in NCAA history (15,400) watched Iowa host Oklahoma State on Jan. 7, 2012. Through five home dates, the Hawkeyes have averaged 9,454 fans. That includes duals vs. Oklahoma State, Illinois (7,330), Northern Iowa (7,078), Northwestern (7,954) and Minnesota (9,511). Iowa has led the nation in attendance for five straight seasons. The Hawkeyes averaged a national record 8,209 fans in six home duals last season. It marked the third straight year Iowa averaged over 8,000 fans per dual. Iowa’s dual vs. Iowa State (Dec. 3, 2010) was the largest dual crowd in the country last year (11,895). *The IC Duals (8,527) do not count towards national attendance figures.

NWCA ANNOUNCED NATIONAL DUALS FORMAT
The Hawkeyes will travel to Ames, Iowa, for the opening round of the NWCA/Cliff Keen Division I National Duals on Feb. 12. The Hawkeyes will face a regional tournament field that includes Northern Iowa, Oregon State, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin and host Iowa State. Match times will begin at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. The NWCA/Cliff Keen Division I National Duals will be held on the campuses of Cornell, Iowa State, Oklahoma State and Rutgers. The winner of each region will move on to compete February 19th for the National Championship. The host site for this event has not been announced. Regional seeds should be announced Feb. 7.

IOWA AT THE NATIONAL DUALS
Iowa has wrestled in 17 National Duals and has a 66-10-3 all time record in the tournament. Iowa has won the title six times (1992, 1995, 1996, 2008, 2009, 2010), placed second three times (1994, 1997, 1998), third six times (1990, 1991, 1993, 2001, 2002, 2003), fifth once (2007) and sixth once (2006).

UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes head to Ames, Iowa, to compete in the regional round of the NWCA National Dual Tournament. Competition begins at 11 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 12, inside Hilton Coliseum. The duals will be broadcast by AM-800 KXIC and streamed online at hawkeyesports.com via Hawkeye All-Access.