After a few weeks off for the holidays, Hawkeye sports are finally back. Winter sports are ramping up, with gymnastics competing in their first meet and swimming & diving back in the water. The women's wrestling team, which competed throughout the holiday break, continued their incredible dominance last week, earning their second straight title at the National Duals.
Let's take a closer look.
Women's Wrestling
Iowa women's wrestling kicked off their NWCA National Duals run on Friday with a pair of lopsided wins over Aurora (35-10) and #8 Wartburg (42-1) before bringing home the title on Saturday with a win over 4th-seeded McKendree (33-11) and a 28-13 drubbing of 2nd-seeded North Central College.
In Friday's dual meets, the Hawks piled up six pins and eight tech falls, showcasing their dominance. Brianna Gonzalez pinned her opponent in 1:17 to remain undefeated on the season and followed it up with a pin in 1:17 in her second match of the day. Naomi Simon earned a pin at 180, Emily Frost added one at 131, and Emmily Patneaud pinned her Wartburg opponent in 1:41 as part of the team's 42-1 rout.
Saturday was more of the same domination from the Hawkeyes. Emilie Gonzalez got the Hawkeyes rolling with a pin at 110 against McKendree and her sister Brianna followed with another win of her own as the Hawks powered their way to a 33-11 win. Nanea Estrella pinned her opponent in 5:05 and Kennedy Blades clinched the meet with a 12-0 win. The Hawks added two more pins for good measure as they prepped for the final dual meet.
NCC gave Iowa its toughest test of the weekend, but the Hawkeyes still ran away with the National Duals title. Brianna Gonzalez kept her undefeated streak intact with a 10-7 win over the 2nd-ranked opponent and Blades flashed in another dominating win, this time an 11-0 tech fall. Kylie Welker was magnificent throughout the weekend and capped it off with a 41-second pin in the final dual meet.
There are only so many ways to say the Hawkeyes are killing it, but every one you can come up with applies here. The Hawks are 13-0 on the season and haven't been pushed by any of their opponents to this point. Gonzalez, Blades, and Welker look like potential national champions and the Hawkeyes will no doubt be a heavy favorite in all of their remaining meets.
They'll be back on the mat for their final home meet of the season on January 18th when they host Augustana and Grand Valley State. The duals begin at 6 PM CT and will be televised on BTN+.
Gymnastics
The Iowa GymHawks kicked off their season last week, scoring 194.575 at the Iowa State Tri-Meet. The Cyclones scored 195.100 to win the meet, while Brown scored 190.300.
Freshman Aurelie Tran was the star of the meet in her debut, winning the event title on bars with a 9.850 and claiming the all-around title with a 39.050. Ilka Juk claimed a share of the beam title with a 9.850. The Hawkeyes also took the team title on the bars.
Other strong performances from the night included freshman Sydney Turner's 9.800 on bars, matching 9.800s from Eva Volpe and Avery Chambers on vault, and a 9.825 on beam from Haley Tyson.
Fifth-year standouts Adeline Kenlin and JerQuavia Henderson did not compete in the meet.
There's an opportunity for another strong season from this group. Henderson and Kenlin are both multi-time All-Americans and two of the best Iowa has ever had. Combine that with two incoming freshmen who competed with Canada at the 2024 Olympics in Tran and Cassie Lee (plus a traveling alternate achievement for Turner) and the potential is obvious.
The keyword for the GymHawks this season will be "unknown." The resignation of head coach Larissa Libby in May after twenty years with the program came amid reports of misconduct and Iowa quickly pivoted to hire former Washington head coach Jen Llewellyn. Llewellyn coached the Huskies to three 2nd-round regional appearances and a Sweet 16 berth in her three years at Washington and was a three-time All-American at Oregon State.
What she chooses to keep and where she chooses to make changes to an Iowa group that has proven successful over the last five years will dictate the ceiling for this group. Hopefully, the experience and knowledge of Kenlin, Henderson, and veterans like Juk and Karina Munoz will help ease the transition for both the coach and the talented freshmen.
The Hawkeyes will next take the mat on January 18th when they face off against Ohio State (3:00, BTN+).
Swimming and Diving
Hawkeye swimming and diving (3-2) fell 199-95 against Miami (6-1) last week, notching three individual wins against a talented Hurricane squad. Olivia Swalley continued her impressive career for the Hawkeyes, bringing home the win in the 200 breaststroke (2:19.26) and the 200IM (2:04.90). Annie Galvin picked up the final win for the Hawks, finishing first in the 200 backstroke (2:03.74).
The Hawks will be back in the pool and back in Big Ten competition on Friday when they take on Illinois (5-1).
