The No. 2 Iowa men’s wrestling team enters Bellarmine undefeated on the season with strong play at the back end of the starting lineup but some question remaining at 174 pounds.
The Hawkeyes remain second in the national rankings — just 16 points behind No. 1 Penn State — after a 32-9 win over now-No. 14 Stanford in the home-opener inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Nov. 9.
That dual started with a bang — well, not really — as No. 32 Kale Petersen won by forfeit at 125 pounds in what was his debut, taking over for Joey Cruz after his loss to open the season against Oregon State.
“[It was] disappointing that I didn’t get to wrestle,” Petersen said. “But [it was] also a good thing, getting that routine in check, getting down to weight … You’ve got to take it and work with it.”
But that preceded two losses for a quick Stanford lead, No. 7 Drake Ayala losing in a big upset to No. 23 Tyler Knox, 15-10, at 133 pounds. Then Ryder Block lost to Aden Valencia, 11-6, at 141.
So in came Arizona State transfer and No. 4 Kyle Parco, getting the Hawkeyes back on track with some energy in a ranked win at 149 pounds, muscling out a 15-0 technical fall over No. 12 Jaden Abas.
“He’s a leader in a different way — assertive but not overbearing,” Iowa head coach Tom Brands said. “Love him. Love him.”
The highlight of the night, though, was fellow Arizona State transfer and No. 1 157-pounder Jacori Teemer opening his 2024-25 campaign with a 13-3 win over the threatening Gregor Cholakyan — with ease and dominance, proving there are levels to wrestling at such heights.
And the Hawkeyes’ strong back end finished just as dominantly, No. 2 Michael Caliendo beating No. 7 Hunter Garvin at 165 and No. 6 Gabe Arnold grabbing points left and right in a 14-3 win at 184.
Iowa’s No. 1 Stephen Buchanan hustled a massive tech fall out of No. 17 Nick Stemmet, 17-1, at 197 before No. 12 Ben Kueter looked in great athletic shape with another tech fall of 19-4 at 285 pounds.
Bellarmine
The Hawkeyes will turn their attention to Bellarmine on Friday as they take a quick trip down to Louisville, Kentucky. It marks the first meeting between the two programs, the latter a new Division I program headed by Ned Schuk — who wrestled for Iowa from 2000 to 2005.
In light of the Stanford dual, the biggest question now comes at 174 pounds after Stanford’s No. 17 Lorenzo Norman beat Iowa’s No. 8 Nelson Brands, 4-1, in a true battle.
Now senior Patrick Kennedy is back into the mix at 174 to compete for Brands’ spot, coming off of a U23 National Championship at the 2024 World Team Trials in Ohio and wrestling in Albania at the 2024 World Wrestling Championships last month.
“I had a really good offseason — I feel like I was in the best shape I’ve ever been in,” Kennedy said. “I was wrestling the best, and so I think that [when I] do it correctly, it’s going to carry over into the season. So it was a fun offseason, and I’m looking forward to the rest of the season.”
Whoever gets that nod will take on Bellarmine redshirt sophomore Grant O’Dell of North Liberty, Iowa, and Iowa City West High School. O’Dell has a 3-1 record thus far this year.
“I just want my wrestling to look like a guy who’s out there, who’s free flowing and really chasing the points,” Kennedy said. “‘You want to see the scoreboard exhausted and tired.’ That’s a good saying. I like that. That’s how I want it to be.”
No Knights are ranked nationally, as they are a young team with a handful of redshirt freshmen, sophomores, and juniors. But Brands emphasizes never taking an opponent lightly.
“The best way that you can promote the sport as a competitor, whether you’re a coach or an athlete … is you want your team to put on an incredible display of wrestling,” Brands said. “And that means that there is carnage left when you’re done. And that’s what we’ve got to focus on.”
Furthermore, look for Ayala and Block to bounce back, respectively, against redshirt sophomores Trayce Eckman with a 3-2 record and freshman David Mayora — who boasts a 6-0 record, the only undefeated wrestler in the Knights’ starting lineup.