CORVALLIS, Oregon – The second-ranked University of Iowa wrestling team won eight of 10 matches – three via bonus points – in a 30-7 win over Oregon State on Saturday evening in its season opener at Gill Coliseum.
The Hawkeyes had three technical falls and five decisions, while having a 28-6 advantage in takedowns and a 101-52 advantage in match points as they notched their first victory of the 2024-25 season.
“I think that we can pick up on the fact that we have really good scoring ability,” said head coach Tom Brands. “You don’t have to wait until the end. We can penetrate better. If you are looking for a basic evaluation, it would be just penetrate. We need to get underneath the chin, get past the hands, we have to be able to get guys coming over the top of us.”
Oregon State got out to a 3-0 lead in the first match. No. 27 Maximo Renteria defeated sophomore Joey Cruz, 7-3. Junior Drake Ayala notched a win up at 133 pounds, a win over Damion Elliott via a 26-10 technical fall. Redshirt freshman Ryder Block used a big third period takedown with 33 seconds remaining to put away Nash Singleton, 5-4, in his Hawkeye debut.
“It was good to get a win,” said Block. “Still have a lot to do and a lot to get better at. I knew it was going to be there, I just needed to pull the trigger. As soon as I got in I felt good and as soon as I got my hands locked on his leg I knew I was going to finish.
Kyle Parco also made his debut in an Iowa singlet winning 5-1 over Victor Jacinto at 149 pounds, before Caleb Rathjen lost a major decision to Ethan Stiles, 12-3, at 157 to send the dual to the break.