MINNEAPOLIS – Sophomore Patrick Kennedy had a happy homecoming as the second-ranked University of Iowa wrestling team posted an 18-13 victory over No. 12 Minnesota in front of a sold-out crowd of 15,250 on Friday night in Maturi Pavilion.
The Hawkeyes won the first six bouts of the dual to build an 18-0 lead before the Gophers won the final four matches with three coming against Iowa true freshmen. The win moves the Hawkeyes’ record to 13-1 overall and 6-1 in Big Ten action.
“We responded pretty well (from last week) with the older guys,” said Kennedy. “We had three true freshmen in the lineup tonight and I don’t think that has ever been done. We had two at Wisconsin and that had never been done.
“These guys go out and fight hard. We work year-round. We’re building and working for the postseason.”
Top-ranked Spencer Lee opened the dual with a 7-1 victory over No. 6 Patrick McKee at 125 to win his 50th consecutive match. Lee had a takedown and four-point near fall to build a 6-1 lead after the first and added a second period escape. Lee improves to 12-0 this season.
The Hawkeyes won their second match at 133 – a 4-3 decision by No. 17 Brody Teske over Jake Gliva. Teske led 1-0 following a second-period escape before Gilva had an escape and takedown early in the third period to take a 3-1 lead with 1:25 left.
The Fort Dodge, Iowa, native closed to within 3-2 with an escape before getting the match-clinching takedown with less than 10 seconds to go.
No. 2 Real Woods notched his 11th win of the season – an 8-1 decision over No. 15 Jake Bergeland at 141. Woods led 2-0 through the first and 5-0 through the second before getting a third period takedown to make it 7-0. Bergeland got a late escape to avoid the major, but Woods had more than two minutes of riding time in the match.
No. 6 Max Murin gave the Hawkeyes a 12-0 lead with an 11-7 decision over No. 15 Michael Blockhus at 149. Murin put the match away in the third period, locking up a cradle for a takedown and two-point near fall to take an 11-6 lead. The win improves Murin to 15-3 this season.
Iowa made it 5-for-5 before the break when No. 15 Cobe Siebrecht won a 4-0 decision over No. 17 Brayton Lee at 157. Siebrecht body locked Lee for a first-period takedown and led 3-0 through two before accumulating 2:43 of riding time. The win moves Siebrecht to 9-3 this season with five ranked wins.
No. 7 Patrick Kennedy extended the Hawkeyes’ winning streak to six matches with a 13-8 decision over Cael Carlson at 165. The Minnesota native had three first-period takedowns to build a 6-2 lead and he had five takedowns in the match to improve 14-2 this season.
“I felt good with effort; I went out and scored points,” said Kennedy. “Points are what wins matches, you can beat a guy on the mat, but ultimately you have to win on the scoreboard. It felt great to get a win (in Minnesota). My parents got a coach bus and brought a ton of people. I was happy to send them home with a win.”
The Gophers won the final four matches of the dual with three Hawkeye freshman in the lineup. No. 11 Bailee O’Reilly won a 4-1 decision over Aiden Riggins at 174, No. 10 Isaiah Salazar used a late escape to post a major decision over Drake Rhodes at 184 and No. 32 Garrett Joles downed Bradley Hill, 5-0, at heavyweight.
At 197, Iowa’s No. 7 Jacob Warner rode out No. 28 Michial Foy the entire second period before Foy erased the riding time and cut the Hawkeye with a minute left in the third. Foy pulled off the upset when he came out of a scramble with a takedown just before time expired to claim a 2-1 decision.
OF NOTE…
– Iowa wrestled in front of a sold-out crowd of 5,250. It was the fifth time this season the Hawkeyes competed in a sold-arena and Iowa wrestled in front of a record crowd in the road dual win at Wisconsin.
– Lee won by a 7-1 decision at 125. It was his first match of the 2022-23 season where he didn’t get bonus points.
– Freshman Bradley Hill became the sixth true freshman in the varsity dual lineup this season when he got the call at heavyweight. Iowa used three true freshmen in the dual (Aiden Riggins, Drake Rhodes and Hill).
#2 Iowa 18, #12 Minnesota 13
125 – #1 Spencer Lee (UI) dec. #6 Patrick McKee (MINN), 7-1; 3-0
133 – #17 Brody Teske (UI) dec. Jake Gliva (MINN), 4-3; 6-0
141 – #2 Real Woods (UI) dec. #15 Jake Bergeland (MINN), 8-1; 9-0
149 – #6 Max Murin (UI) dec. #15 Michael Blockhus (MINN); 11-7; 12-0
157 – #15 Cobe Siebrecht (UI) dec. #17 Brayton Lee (MINN), 4-0; 15-0
165 – #7 Patrick Kennedy (UI) dec. Cael Carlson (MINN), 13-8; 18-0
174 – #11 Bailee O’Reilly (MINN) dec. Aiden Riggins (UI), 4-1; 18-3
184 – #10 Isaiah Salazar (MINN) major dec. Drake Rhodes (UI), 13-5; 18-7
197 – #28 Michial Foy (MINN) dec. #7 Jacob Warner (UI), 2-1; 18-10
285 – #32 Garrett Joles (MINN) dec. Bradley Hill (UI), 5-0; 18-13
Officials: Jeron Quincy, Steve Skarda
Attendance: 5,250
UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes return to action Friday, hosting Michigan at 8 p.m. (CT) inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
