Hawkeye seniors ready for final act at Carver

Iowa’s eleven Hawkeye wrestling seniors have embraced the grind in their time in the Black and Gold, and they will be honored Sunday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

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Shivansh Ahuja

Iowa’s 133-pound Paul Glynn wrestles UTC’s Wade Cummings during a wrestling dual-meet between Iowa and Tennessee-Chattanooga at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday, Nov. 17, 2019. Glynn won by decision, 11-7, and the Hawkeyes defeated the Mocs, 39-0.

Austin Hanson, Assistant Sports Editor

The end of the regular season is now in sight for Iowa wrestling. The Hawkeyes will close their 2019-20 campaign at Carver-Hawkeye Arena against Oklahoma State.

The dual will also mark the end of the road for 11 Hawkeye seniors. Most of those 11 are not slated to compete Sunday, but all will be honored.

The class includes the likes of Jeremiah Moody, Jeren Glosser, and Vince Turk. All three have each been with the Iowa wrestling program for five years.

Moody nearly lost his opportunity to wrestle at Iowa as quickly as he got it after instigating a fight at one of his first practices as a Hawkeye.

“I remember being in high school, and I would like get really intense in practice, and I would, like, want to fight [opponents],” Moody said. “I had this misconception that you could fight your guy at Iowa. Then I came here, and I threw a punch, and I almost got kicked out of practice. Then I was like, ‘Oh, you’re not supposed to throw punches.’”

Moody’s most notable achievement of this season came during a dual at Michigan State. He wrestled in relief of No. 2 Alex Marinelli at 165-pounds and earned his first career Big Ten win via 9-5 decision over Austin Hiles.

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Glosser and Turk also found success on a big stage for the Hawkeyes this year at the Midlands Championships in the 149-pound bracket. Glosser made the tournament’s quarterfinals, and Turk advanced to the semifinals.

Iowa’s 2020 class of seniors is highlighted by Paul Glynn, Cash Wilcke, and Pat Lugo. Lugo is currently the only senior wrestler in Iowa’s regular lineup. The Homestead, Florida, native is ranked second at 149-pounds nationally, boasting a 17-1 record this year. He is 40-10 on his career as a Hawkeye.

Wilcke and Glynn have played integral roles in Iowa’s lineup in past years. Before the arrival of All-American Austin DeSanto, Glynn was a regular in Iowa’s lineup during its 2017-18 campaign.

Glynn has contributed in three duals this year for Iowa. He won his match against U-T Chattanooga’s Wade Cummings by decision, 11-7. He then acquired a conference win, defeating Michigan State’s Garrett Pepple via 9-4 decision. Glynn is 4-3 this season and 28-24 across his career.

Wilcke has also hit the mat in a few duals for the Hawkeyes this season, going 1-2. His two losses came against ranked opponents at different weights. Wilcke fell to No. 1 Kollin Moore at 197-pounds against Ohio State. Wilcke was also vanquished by No. 20 Johnny Sebastian at 184-pounds against Wisconsin.

The Battle Creek, Iowa, product qualified for NCAA National Championships during his first three years at Iowa. He did so at 197-pounds during his freshman and sophomore seasons, then followed that with an appearance at 184-pounds in 2018-19. Wilcke was the 197-pound Midlands Champion in 2017 and has a 75-32 career record.

Their time as Hawkeyes is winding down, but the bond these wrestlers have formed during their time in the Black and Gold is as strong as ever.

“When you’re in those workouts and it’s tough as nails and you’re doing them as a team and you’re looking around, it’s hell at the time,” Glynn said. “But once you’re done, you get together and talk about how hard it was and you kind of laugh about it, because it sucks so bad. I think it really built our camaraderie, especially in our class.”