PISCATAWAY, NJ – Iowa head coach Tom Brands, and many of the Hawkeye wrestlers, have stressed bonus points all season long. The second session of the Big Ten Championships on Saturday showed why.

The Hawkeyes are at the top of the team scoreboard after the first day of conference championships competition. Part of that can be attributed to bonus points.

Iowa leads the field with 121.5 points, ahead of Nebraska, who is in second place with 102.5.

Five of Iowa’s matches in the second session resulted in bonus points. Most notably, Spencer Lee had his way with his opponent and helped the Hawkeyes out on the scoreboard.

Lee defeated Michigan’s Jack Medley in the semifinals by technical fall, 19-3. When the two 125-pounders met in a dual Feb. 8, Lee only won by decision.

“He wrestled a complete match that last match,” Iowa head coach Tom Brands said. “The thing is bonus points. Kemerer ended up getting bonus points after he ran into a little adversity. Spencer Lee — bonus points. Murin had a major decision. Warner had a fall. The bonus points continued from the earlier session.”

Kemerer had three takedowns in the first period of his match before things got close late. Minnesota’s Devin Skatzka came back with two takedowns in the second and secured a reversal in the third to keep things close and put bonus points into question.

Then, Kemerer scored a pair of takedowns in the third for a major decision, 22-9.

Alex Marinelli also scored bonus points, but without all the drama. The reigning Big Ten Champion toyed with Shane Oster of Purdue before pinning him after two minutes and 41 seconds.

On the consolation side, Max Murin and Jacob Warner came up in a big way. After losing in the quarterfinals and being sent to wrestlebacks, both Hawkeyes rebounded and secured key points for the team.

In his first consolation match, Murin recorded a major decision, 16-5, over Matt Santos of Michigan State. Murin totaled seven takedowns, including four in the third period to clinch the bonus points.

Warner also dominated in his first wrestlebacks bout. He pinned Michigan State’s Nick May in two minutes and 10 seconds to advance to the next round and secure additional points for the Hawkeyes.

With the Hawkeyes hunting for a conference championship tomorrow, replicating success with bonus points will be key. Before that, however, Brands is focused on resting his team before another long day of competition.

“We’ve got guys back at the hotel,” Brands said. “They’re relaxing, they’re eating. Some guys are maybe working on their weight control a little bit. We’ve got a heavyweight cooling down who is going to be on the back side of the bracket. That’s what’s on my mind. We’ve got to keep progressing.”

The third session of the 2020 Big Ten Championships begins at noon E.T., followed by the championships finals at 3:30 p.m.