#2 Iowa wrestling resumed dual meet competition for the first time in a over a month with a trip to Wisconsin on Sunday -- and came away with a dominant 45-0 win over the Badgers. Iowa's Big Ten opener turned into a victory march, as the Hawkeyes steamrolled Wisconsin to improve to 7-0 on the season, 1-0 in Big Ten competition. Iowa swept all 10 matches in the dual meet and earned bonus points in seven of those 10 wins, including four technical falls and a pair of pins.
The dominant performance began at 125, one of the few weights in the dual in which Iowa wasn't a clear favorite. No matter -- unranked Joey Cruz secured takedowns in the second and third periods to secure an 8-3 decision win over #18 Nicolar Rivera.
At 133, #4 Drake Ayala got off to a slow start and gave up the first takedown to #24 Zan Fugitt, but Fugitt's advantage was short-lived. After Ayala got an escape and got a quick takedown of his own to go up 4-3, he poured on the points in the second and third periods, using a combination of takedowns and near fall tilts to rack up points in a hurry, before completing the 21-6 technical fall early in the third period.
Alongside 125, 141 looked like a weight where Wisconsin could be competitive in the dual meet -- and, indeed, that was the case as Jace Rhodes and Brock Bobzien went to overtime. Rhodes got a takedown to take an early lead, but Bobzien used a reversal and a hard ride of his own to tie the match up. In sudden victory, Rhodes struck first and finished the winning takedown quickly to earn the 6-3 victory.
Like Ayala at 133, #4 Kyle Parco got off to a slow start at 149, conceding a quick takedown in the opening seconds to Royce Nilo. Like Ayala at 133, Parco turned things around quickly after that, getting an escape and takedown of his own before launching into a series of tilts to rack up 4-point near falls and blow the match open.
Iowa's third and final decision win of the dual meet came at 157, where freshman Miguel Estrada earned a workmanlike 10-4 win over Luke Melcher. Estrada had a takedown in each period and was methodical in dispatching Melcher to put Iowa up 19-0 at intermission.
The bonus points really started flowing for Iowa in the second half of the meet, beginning with #2 Michael Caliendo at 165. Caliendo got to Gavin Model's legs with ease and put on a takedown clinic, going catch-and-release with seven takedowns in the first period to finish off a fast 21-6 technical fall win.
At 174, #5 Patrick Kennedy used a takedown clinic of his own to dominate #31 Luke Condon, though he had to wait until early in the second period to finish his own 19-4 technical fall win.
The only thing missing from Iowa's dominant display was a pin, but #6 Gabe Arnold fixed that at 184 lbs. After engaging in hand-fighting for the opening minute of the bout, Arnold used a whip-over at the edge of the mat to put Dylan Russo on his back. A few moments later, the match was over and Iowa had its first pin of the day.
It didn't take long for Iowa to add a second pin to his total, either, as #2 Stephen Buchanan made very short work of Niccolo Colucci at 197. Buchanan wrapped him up in a headlock and planed him on the mat for a lightning-fast pin in just 39 seconds.
#12 Ben Kueter couldn't quite match the fireworks from Arnold and Buchanan at 184 and 197, but he earned an easy win of his own at heavyweight. Kueter used takedowns in the first and third periods, as well as an escape and a riding time point, to lock up an 8-0 major decision win to finish off Iowa's rout.
The stats for the dual are incredibly one-sided, with Iowa dominating Wisconsin in takedowns (31 to 2), near fall points (16 to 0), and total match points (118 to 28).
There isn't much else to say on this one -- Wisconsin was very overmatched by Iowa in this dual meet, but the Hawkeyes did what you would want to see in that situation: dominate. Iowa got a small upset at 125, won a toss-up at 141, and largely steamrolled the other seven weights. Much stiffer tests await later in the Big Ten season, but Iowa handled business comfortably in its first Big Ten dual of the year.
NEXT: #2 Iowa will host #11 Illinois (7-1, 1-1 Big Ten) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa on Friday, January 17 (6 PM CT, BTN).
