CLEVELAND – The University of Iowa wrestling team scored bonus points in six bouts and won nine of 10 matches to grab an early lead at the 2018 NCAA Championships on Thursday at Quicken Loans Arena.
The Hawkeyes have 18.5 points after Session I. Ohio State (17.0), Penn State (16.0), Michigan (13.0), and N.C. State (12.0) round out the top five.
“There is a lot of wrestling left, so we are getting ready for the next matches,” said UI head coach Tom Brands. “Make it go your way and it is a lot of fun. That’s what we want to do. We want to keep it rolling and do what we do best, wrestle our matches.”
The Hawkeyes won their first six matches, getting a pair of wins from unseeded Vince Turk and pins from Michael Kemerer and Alex Marinelli.
Turk won by 12-2 major decision in his 141-pound pigtail match, and used a four-point move in the final seconds to advance, 4-3, against No. 16 Cole Weaver in the first round.
Kemerer, seeded No. 6 at 157, had built a 4-1 lead before locking up a cradle and securing a fall in one minute, 37 seconds. Marinelli, the No. 5 seed, followed suit with a pin in six minutes and 20 seconds at 165.
The Hawkeyes also got an 18-0 technical fall — one takedown and four four-point tilts — from Spencer Lee at 125, and an 11-6 decision from Brandon Sorensen at 149 before losing their only match of the session at 174.
The backside of Iowa’s lineup then wrapped the opening round with three straight wins. Unseeded Mitch Bowman piled up 3:20 of riding time on his way to a 10-2 major decision at 184. Cash Wilcke ended the third period with an escape and takedown to win 4-3 at 197, and Sam Stoll turned a first-period takedown into a fall in two minutes, 24 seconds at 285. It was Iowa’s third pin of the day and gave the Hawkeyes 9.5 bonus points in the opening round.
“That is a sign we are doing some good things and we have to continue that,” Brands said. “That is the message. Start with Spencer Lee tonight and go all the way up through Stoll.”
The championships continue Thursday at 6 p.m. (CT). The eight Hawkeyes on the top side of the bracket will compete prior to the wrestle-backs. ESPN and WatchESPN are providing television and online coverage of Session II.
NOTABLES
· The four Hawkeyes making their NCAA debuts – Lee, Turk, Marinelli, Bowman — were 5-0 today with four bonus-point wins
· Kemerer’s fall was his team-high ninth of the season
· Lee’s technical fall was his team-high seventh of the season
· Stoll’s pin was his first victory and his first complete match at the NCAA tournament
IOWA’S PIGTAIL MATCH
141 – Vince Turk (Iowa) major dec. Kyle Shoop (Lehigh), 12-2
IOWA’S FIRST ROUND NCAA MATCHUPS (# indicates tournament seed)
125 – #3 Spencer Lee (Iowa) tech. fall Alonzo Allen (Chattanooga), 18-0
141 – Vince Turk (Iowa) dec. #16 Cole Weaver (Indiana), 4-3
149 – #2 Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) dec. Jared Prince (Navy), 11-6
157 – #6 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) pinned Coleman Hammond (CSU Bakersfield), 1:37
165 – #5 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) pinned Jacob Morrissey (Purdue), 6:20
174 – #13 Jacobe Smith (Oklahoma State) major dec. Joey Gunther (Iowa), 13-2
184 – Mitch Bowman (Iowa) major dec. #15 Canten Marriott (Missouri), 10-2
197 – #14 Cash Wilcke (Iowa) dec. Eric Schultz (Nebraska), 4-3
285 – #5 Sam Stoll (Iowa) pinned Antonio Pelusi (Franklin & Marshall), 2:24
IOWA’S SECOND ROUND NCAA MATCHUPS
125 – #3 Spencer Lee (Iowa) vs. #14 Luke Welch (Purdue)
141 – Vince Turk (Iowa) vs. #1 Bryce Meredith (Wyoming)
149 – #2 Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) vs. #15 Ronald Perry (Lock Haven)
157 – #6 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) vs. Paul Fox (Stanford)
165 – #5 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) vs. #12 Nick Wanzek (Minnesota)
184 – Mitch Bowman (Iowa) vs. #2 Myles Martin (Ohio State)
197 – #14 Cash Wilcke (Iowa) vs. # 3 Jared Haught (Virginia Tech)
285 – #5 Sam Stoll (Iowa) vs. #12 Youssif Hemida (Maryland)
SECOND ROUND CONSLAITION MATCHUPS
174 – Joey Gunther vs. Josef Johnson (Harvard)
TEAM STANDINGS
1. IOWA 18.5
2. Ohio State 17.0
3. Penn State 16.0
4. Michigan 13.0
5. NC State 12.0
6. Oklahoma St. 9.0
7. Rutgers 8.5
8. Arizona State 8.0
9. Cornell 8.0
10. Lehigh 8.0
