For the first time this season the Cyclones hosted a home dual which was against Penn. Much to the fans delight all of the wrestlers who did not go at the Scuffle were back in the lineup. Iowa State picked up bonus wins at eight weights, winning nine total matches.
Things got started at 197 where senior Kyven Gadson scored a 14-2 major decision over Canaan Bethea. It was a great return for Gadson after he medically forfeited out of the Scuffle.
Quean Smith then gave Cyclone fans the opposite of a “typical heavyweight match” as he also put up major decision, blanking Patrik Garren 10-0.
Kyle Larson made it three majors in a row at 125, when he took out Schwartz 15-5 amassing over three minutes of riding time. Iowa State was up 12-0 heading into Southern Scuffle champion Earl Hall‘s match at 133.
Hall may not have scored a bonus win, but the top ten wrestler got the job done with a 5-0 victory. The win was Hall’s 18th on the season.
Dante Rodriguez (141) made his return to the lineup in brilliant fashion by picking up a first period fall over Lenzi (2:13 to be exact) and with that Iowa State had a 21-0 team lead at the half way mark.
I don’t think you could have asked for any more momentum coming into one of the biggest matches of the dual, as #15 Gabe Moreno looked for his upset over #12 CJ Cobb. Moreno was successful in his upset bid by controlling his match and only giving up a single point to Cobb in his 5-1 win.
Seniors Luke Goettl and Mike Moreno scored back-to-back falls at 157 and 165, which officially put the dual out of reach for Penn with a 36-0 team lead. It was great to see Moreno back on the mat, and to see him get a fall was highly encouraging.
Tanner Weatherman dropped a tough match 174 to Brad Wukie (3-2) and was the lone blemish on the day. His next match will be against a good opponent in Zach Epperly, so a win next weekend would be the type of rebound that Weatherman needs.
Lelund Weatherspoon put the exclamation point on the dual with a 19-3 technical fall at 184. This was Weatherspoon’s first action since the Cliff-Keen Las Vegas tournament in early December. Lorenzo Thomas, Penn’s best wrestler, did not go against Weatherspoon.
Next weekend Iowa State will play host to Virginia Tech, who is coming off a win at the Virginia duals this weekend. The VT Hookies are led by All-Americans Joey Dance (125) and Devin Carter (141) and it should be one of the best matchups Iowa State wrestles this season. Look for the preview to come later in the week.
Iowa State 41 – Penn 3
125: Kyle Larson (ISU) maj. dec. Jeremy Schwartz (Penn), 15-5 (3:29 RT)
133: Earl Hall (ISU) dec. Caleb Richardson (Penn), 5-2.
141: Dante Rodriguez (ISU) WBF Andrew Lenzi (Penn), 2:13.
149: Gabe Moreno (ISU) dec. C.J. Cobb (Penn), 5-1. (2:48 RT)
157: Luke Goettl (ISU) WBF Brooks Martino, 2:51.
165: Mike Moreno (ISU) WBF Quinton Hiles, 4:56.
174: Brad Wukie (Penn) dec. Tanner Weatherman (ISU), 3-2
184: Lelund Weatherspoon (ISU) tech-fall Joe Heyob, 19-3 (5:26)
197: Kyven Gadson (ISU) maj. dec. Canaan Bethea (Penn), 14-2 (1:59 RT).
285: Quean Smith (ISU) maj. dec. Patrik Garren (Penn), 10-0 (4:26 RT).
[…] may the Cyclones won’t need an extra help after their 41-3 dismantling of Penn last Sunday. The Cyclones picked up seven bonus victories in their nine wins, with Gabe Moreno […]