By Jordan Hansen
NEW YORK — Once again, it was an up-and-down session for the Iowa wrestling team on March 18.
The Hawkeyes started off strong, pushing Thomas Gilman (125), Cory Clark (133), and Brandon Sorensen (149) into the semifinals before the halfway point of the quarterfinal matches.
Iowa 184-pounder Sammy Brooks was upset in the quarterfinals, though Nathan Burak did stop the bleeding a bit with a win at 197-pounds. He gets Penn State’s Morgan McIntosh this evening.
“I just have to stay relaxed,” Burak said. “I just have to stay positive and focus on what I’m doing, and I’ll be fine.”
The wins let Iowa keep pace with the leaders, though it’s fairly obvious at this juncture that Penn State, which has a 13.5-point lead on second-place Ohio State, is the favorite.
With that said, Iowa has a very good chance to get at least one individual finalist, and that number will probably be higher. Seeding wise, the Hawkeyes will be favored in two matches — 133 and 149.
“It feels good [to be in the semifinals], but there’s still work to be done,” Sorensen said. “It’s a lot better being on the front-side and knowing you’re an All-American than being on the backside and not knowing.”
TEAM SCORES:
1) Penn State (68.5)
2) Ohio State (54.0)
3) Iowa (48.5)
4) Oklahoma State (45.5)
5) Missouri (42.5)
(All rankings reflect seeds in the tournament)
…
125 pounds
Quarterfinals: No. 4 Gilman major decision No. 5 Ryan Milhof (Oklahoma), 16-5.
— Gilman quickly put this match away. He got two early takedowns, which put him up 4-1, and after that, it was effectively over. Milhof hardly put up a fight, and the match just turned into Gilman taking down and releasing him. Over before it started.
Gilman will face No. 1 Nathan Tomasello (Ohio State) in the national semifinal.
…
133 pounds
Quarterfinals: No. 2 Clark decision No. 7 Eric Montoya (Nebraska), 4-0.
— A slow match, Clark got a takedown early and sat on it for most of the match. He did, however, put an impressive ride on Montoya and racked up more than three-minutes of riding time.
Clark will face No. 3 Zane Richards (Illinois) in the national semifinal.
…
149 pounds
Quarterfinals: No. 2 Sorensen decision Jake Sueflohn (Nebraska), 4-2 in sudden-victory.
— Sorensen sometimes wrestles these type of matches. He’s very picky about taking shots and is an excellent defensive wrestler. This means sometimes slow matches are going to happen, especially against a wrestler whom he’s seen numerous times. Sorensen is the better wrestler between the two, and eventually, that won out.
Sorensen will face No. 11 Anthony Collica (Oklahoma State) in the national semifinal.
…
157 pounds
Consolations: No. 14 Austin Matthews pinned No. 13 Edwin Cooper Jr.in 4:51.
The sometimes brilliant, often frustrating career of Cooper is over. He didn’t do much in this match, giving up near-fall points early and eventually got on his back again, giving up a fall.
Cooper is done.
…
174 pounds
Consolations: No. 13 Alex Meyer decision No. 14 Nicky Kee (Appalachian State), 10-9.
— Meyer was down 9-6 at the end of the first period but then was able to ride Kee for the entire second period. An escape from Meyer in the next period made it 9-7, and he then tied it with a takedown. Meyer had riding time locked up early in the third, which ended up giving him the win.
Consolations: Meyer major decision No. 6 Bryce Hammond (Cal State Bakersfield)
Meyer will face No. 9 Chandler Rodgers (Oklahoma State)
…
184 pounds
Quarterfinal: T.J. Dudley (Nebraska) decision No. 2 Brooks, 9-6.
— Dudley raced out to a 7-2 lead (which included 4 near-fall points), but a couple takedowns tightened things up. Brooks simply ran out of time and couldn’t finish the match; he will head to the consolations.
Brooks will face Dom Abounader (Michigan) in the next round of consolation matches.
…
197 pounds
Quarterfinal: No. 4 Burak decision No. 5 Conner Hartmann (Duke), 5-2.
— After a scoreless first period, Burak struggled to get out from underneath Hartmann in the second. Hartmann got dinged twice for stalling, giving Burak a point. With just three seconds left in the second, Burak got a reversal, giving him a lead he didn’t relinquish. He added another takedown to seal the deal.
Burak will face No. 1 Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) in the national semifinal.
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