The preliminary seeds for the Big Ten wrestling championships have been released, and Iowa’s Matt McDonough has earned the top seed at 125 pounds.
The preliminary seeds — announced Monday — are determined by a vote of the conference’s head coaches. The official tournament brackets will be set Friday afternoon.
McDonough is ranked No. 1 in the nation by Intermat, and he holds a 20-1 record on the season.
Seventeen of his victories were won with bonus points, including 11 pins. McDonough is also the defending national champion at 125 pounds.
Eight other Hawkeyes also earned preliminary seedings. Luke Lofthouse (197), Montell Marion (141), and Derek St. John (157) earned second seeds. Tony Ramos (133), Grant Gambrall (184), and Blake Rasing (heavyweight) received third seeds. Aaron Janssen earned a fourth seed at 165, and Ethen Lofthouse is seeded fifth at 174.
The Big Ten championships will take place Saturday and March 6 in Evanston, Ill..
— by J.T. Bugos