DETROIT — Iowa men’s wrestling won eight of the 10 matches it competed in during Session II of the 2022 NCAA Championships Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena. Seniors Kaleb Young and Jaydin Eierman were the only Hawkeyes to taste defeat in Session II. They’ll join Iowa true freshman Drake Ayala and junior Abe Assad in the consolation bracket.

Eierman entered the NCAA Championships with a knee injury. In a post-tournament interview with reporters, Iowa head coach Tom Brands said the ailment won’t keep “The Riddler” off the mat on Friday.

Senior 133-pounder Austin DeSanto, 149-pounder Max Murin, 165-pounder Alex Marinelli, 174-pounder Michael Kemerer, 197-pounder Jacob Warner, and heavyweight Tony Cassioppi will be the Hawkeyes participating in Friday’s national quarterfinals.

Cassioppi was the only Iowa wrestler to earn bonus points in Session II. He beat Illinois’ Luke Luffman by 12-3 major decision. Cassioppi is 3-0 all-time against Luffman. In his two previous matchups with Luffman, Cassioppi picked up wins via fall.

Below is a full recap of Iowa’s Session II matches:

125 POUNDS [CONSOLATION]: No. 13 Drake Ayala (Iowa) over No. 29 Joe Manchio (Columbia) via 7-1 decision

133 POUNDS: No. 5 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) over No. 12 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) via 5-2 decision

141 POUNDS: No. 15 Kizhan Clarke (UNC) over No. 2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) via 4-2 decision

149 POUNDS: No. 8 Max Murin (Iowa) over No. 9 Kaden Gfeller (OKST) via 8-4 decision

157 POUNDS: No. 8 Will Lewan (Michigan) over No. 9 Kaleb Young (Iowa) via 3-1 decision

165 POUNDS: No. 3 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) over No. 19 Justin McCoy (Virginia) via 8-2 decision

174 POUNDS: No. 5 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) over No. 12 Cade DeVos (SDSU) via 9-4 decision

184 POUNDS [CONSOLATION]: Abe Assad (Iowa) over No. 31 AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) via 9-3 decision

197 POUNDS: No. 6 Jacob Warner (Iowa) over No. 11 Thomas Penola (Purdue) via 3-1 decision

HEAVYWEIGHT: No. 3 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) over No. 14 Luke Luffman (Illinois) via 12-3 decision.

Iowa sits in fifth place in team standings

After two sessions of wrestling, the Hawkeyes are in fifth place in the NCAA Tournament team standings with 20.5 points. Fewer than two points separate four of the top five teams. Penn State is currently in first place with 27.5 points.

“We have 10 matches and we have to be ready to go,” Brands said. “I know it’s going to be a battle and we have to love a battle. We have to be fast. We have to be smart. We have to be tough. We have to score points.”

Below are the top five teams in the NCAA Championship standings:

1. Penn State, 27.5

2. Arizona State, 22

3. North Carolina State, 21.5

4. Michigan, 21

5. Iowa, 20.5

Session III matchups preview

125 POUNDS: No. 13 Drake Ayala (Iowa) vs. No. 14 Jakob Camacho (North Carolina State)

• Ayala will wrestle Camacho in the consolation bracket.

133 POUNDS: No. 5 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) vs. No. 4 Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech)

• DeSanto is 1-0 all-time against Myers. DeSanto beat Myers at last year’s NCAA Championships.

141 POUNDS: No. 2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) vs. No. 17 Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State)

• “The Riddler” is 2-0 all-time against D’Emilio. Eierman’s two career matches against D’Emilio have come this year.
• Eierman will wrestle D’Emilio in the consolation bracket.

149 POUNDS: No. 8 Max Murin (Iowa) vs. No. 1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell)

157 POUNDS: No. 9 Kaleb Young (Iowa) vs. No. 23 Markus Hartman (Army)

• Young is 2-0 all-time against Hartman.
• Young will wrestle Hartman in the consolation bracket.

165 POUNDS: No. 3 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) vs. No. 6 Cam Amine (Michigan)

• Marinelli is 2-0 all-time against Amine. Marinelli most recently defeated Amine in the 2022 Big Ten Championship Finals.

174 POUNDS: No. 5 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) vs. No. 4 Hayden Hidlay (NC State)

• Kemerer is 1-0 all-time against Hidlay. The two haven’t wrestled each other since 2017.

184 POUNDS: No. 18 Abe Assad (Iowa) vs. No. 16 Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State)

• Assad is 0-1 all-time against Geer. Geer beat Assad 9-2 in Iowa and Oklahoma State’s “Bout at the Ballpark” dual at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
• Assad will wrestle Geer in the consolation bracket.

197 POUNDS: No. 6 Jacob Warner (Iowa) vs. No. 3 Eric Shultz (Nebraska)

• Warner is 3-2 all-time against Shultz. Warner’s dropped his last two bouts against Shultz.

HEAVYWEIGHT: No. 3 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) vs. No. 6 Jordan Wood (Lehigh)

• Cassioppi is 1-0 all-time against Wood. Cassioppi beat Wood, 3-2, at the Rokfin Duals in Destin, Florida, on Dec. 20.