Top-ranked Iowa stuffs Northern Iowa 38-4

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Christopher Brewer (Iowa Sports Information)
12/08/2011


IOWA CITY, Iowa -- The University of Iowa wrestling team defeated Northern Iowa, 38-4, Thursday night on Mediacom Mat inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes won nine-of-10 matches to extend their streak of unbeaten duals to 83. Iowa also recorded a 29-5 edge in takedowns.

"We saw some good things and we saw some areas that need improvement," said head coach Tom Brands. "We saw some situations where the other guy is not really trying to score. We can't allow that. We're going to have to work harder and push through it."

The dual started at 184 pounds where Northern Iowa's fifth-ranked Ryan Loder scored the Panthers' lone win with a 13-2 major decision over senior Vinnie Wagner. Wagner scored the first takedown of the night 21 seconds into the bout, but Loder scored the next 13 points to give UNI a 4-0 lead.

It would take UNI seven more matches before scoring another takedown, as Iowa strung together eight straight wins and benefited from a forfeit at 174 to run off 38 unanswered team points.

Junior Grant Gambrall put the Hawkeyes on the board with a 7-3 decision over UNI's Taylor Kettman at 197. Gambrall started the scoring with a first period takedown and took the lead for good by opening the third frame with an escape. He added a pair of takedowns in the final frame to improve to 2-0 this season and cut into the Panther lead, 4-3.

Redshirt freshman Bobby Telford accumulated 4:20 of riding time to dominate Blayne Beale in the battle of heavyweights. Telford scored three takedowns and added three nearfall points to earn a 12-0 major decision and give Iowa a 7-4 advantage in the team score.

Junior Matt McDonough stretched the Hawkeye lead to 11-4 with a 10-1 major decision over Cruse Aarhus at 125. McDonough scored three takedowns, piled up 3:04 of riding time, including the entire third period, and added two nearfall points to record his eighth bonus-point win of the year.

Sophomore Tony Ramos fired six takedowns en route to a 15-5 major decision over Ryan Jauch at 133. Ramos scored one takedown in the first period, two in the second, and three in the third to wear down Jauch and extend Iowa's team lead to 15-4 at the intermission.

Senior Montell Marion, the nation's top-ranked 141-pounder, answered the intermission with eight takedowns to record an 18-8 major decision over Seth Noble. The four-point win was Marion's team-high sixth major decision of the season and extended Iowa's lead to 19-4.

Redshirt freshman Josh Dziewa, the third Hawkeye to suit up at 149 in six duals this season, electrified the crowd with two takedowns and five nearfall points while building a 9-1 first period advantage. Dziewa added a third takedown in the second frame and withstood a rally from UNI's Clay Welter to secure a 14-6 major decision in his Carver-Hawkeye Arena debut.

Sophomore Derek St. John recorded Iowa's seventh straight win with a 3-1 decision over Northern Iowa's David Bonin. St. John, the nation's second-ranked 157 pounder, scored a takedown midway through the first period before giving the crowd a scare with a medical timeout 26 seconds into the second period. St. John returned to the mat and allowed Bonin to escape and cut into his lead, 2-1. St. John then started the third period in the down position and extended his lead to 3-1 with an escape midway through the period. He eventually held on for the win to improve to 11-0 on the year and extend Iowa's lead to 26-4.

Redshirt freshman Mike Evans made quick work of what turned out to be the final bout of the night. Evans put UNI's Riley Banach on his back early in the 165-pound match and recorded three nearfall points before flattening the Panther in 1:10. It was the fastest pin of Evan's career and extended Iowa's team lead to 32-4.

Northern Iowa forfeited the final match of the night against Iowa's Ethen Lofthouse at 174 to make the final team score, 38-4.

The Hawkeyes return to the mat Dec. 29-30 to compete at the Midlands Championships on the campus of Northwestern in Evanston, Ill. Welsh-Ryan Arena will host the 49th annual event. The Midlands Championships will be broadcast live on AM-800 KXIC and streamed live on btn.com via Hawkeye All-Access, a subscription service committed to providing quality coverage of University of Iowa athletic events. Steven Grace and Mark Ironside will have the call live from Welsch-Ryan Arena. Fans interested in tickets can call 800-GO-PURPLE.

Match Notes: Attendance was 7,078... Iowa extended its streak of unbeaten duals to 83, one shy of tying the Oklahoma State record... Iowa won at least nine matches for the third time in six duals this season... the win was Iowa's 38th in a row at home.

#1 University of Iowa 38 vs. University of Northern Iowa 4
184 - Ryan Loder (UNI) major dec. Vinnie Wagner (I), 13-2
197 - Grant Gambrall (I) dec. Taylor Kettman (UNI), 7-3
Hwt. - Bobby Telford (I) vs. Blayne Beale (UNI)
125 - Matt McDonough (I) major dec. Cruse Aarhus (UNI), 10-1
133 - Tony Ramos (I) major dec. Ryan Jauch (UNI), 15-5
141 - Montell Marion (I) dec. Seth Noble (UNI), 18-8
149 - Josh Dziewa (I) major dec. Clay Welter (UNI), 14-6
157 - Derek St. John (I) dec. David Bonin (UNI), 3-1
165 - Mike Evans (I) pinned Riley Banach (UNI), 1:10
174 - Ethen Lofthouse (I) won by medical forfeit