From Traci Wagner,University of Iowa Sports Information Office:
IOWA CITY, IA — The top-rankedUniversity of Iowa wrestling team used five pins and a forfeit to blankNorthwestern, 49-0, Friday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City. TheHawkeyes improved to 20-0 (5-0 in the Big Ten), snagging their 58th straightdual win and posting their eighth shut out of the season – both of which areschool records. Iowa held Northwestern (5-11-1, 0-6 Big Ten) to three takedownsduring the match in front of 7,125 fans.
Hawkeye seniors Brent Metcalf (149), Ryan Morningstar (165), Jay Borschel (174)and Dan Erekson (Hwt.), and redshirt freshman Matt McDonough (125) all pinnedtheir Wildcat opponents, while sophomore Montell Marion (141) won by forfeit.Metcalf (26-0), McDonough (26-0) and Borschel (25-0) all remain undefeated onthe season, while senior Daniel Dennis (133) and Morningstar each picked uptheir sixth-straight victories. Metcalf moved up to seventh on Iowa’s all-timecareer pins list when he stuck Andrew Nadhir in 2:20 to collect his 15th pin ofthe season. The Hawkeye senior’s 46 career pins is tied for seventh withcurrent Hawkeye Head Coach Tom Brands (1989-92).
Also recording victories for the Hawkeyes were Dennis, juniors Aaron Janssen(157) and Luke Lofthouse (197), and redshirt freshman Grant Gambrall (184).Dennis improved to 14-1 with his 12-3 major decision over Eric Metzler,recording his 10th bonus-point win of the season. Janssen’s 6-3 victory overWildcat Kevin Bialka kept his Big Ten dual record perfect at 3-0. Lofthousescored an escape with seven seconds left in his bout to beat Northwestern’sJosh Schoen, 4-3, and improve to 4-1 in Big Ten dual matches. Hawkeye fans gota glimpse into the future as Gambrall recorded two takedowns and two reversalsin his Carver-Hawkeye Arena debut, beating Wildcat Aaron Jones, 9-3.
Up next for Iowa is a Valentine’s Day trip to Minneapolis to face #5 Minnesota(11-4, 6-0 Big Ten) at Williams Arena. The dual will be televised live Sundayat 6 p.m. (CT) on the Big Ten Network. Tickets – 15 for adults, $5 forstudents, youth and seniors and $5 for groups of 15 or more – are availablefrom the University of Minnesota Athletic Ticket Office at 1-800-846-7437,612-624-8080 or www.gophersports.com.Iowa beat Minnesota (28-12) in the championship semifinals at the 2010NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals in Cedar Falls last month.
#1 University of Iowa 49, Northwestern University 0
125 – Matt McDonough (I) pinned Levi Mele (N), 4:32
133 – Daniel Dennis (I) maj. dec. Eric Metzler (N), 12-3
141 – Montell Marion (I) won by forfeit
149 – Brent Metcalf (I) pinned Andrew Nadhir (N), 2:20
157 – Aaron Janssen (I) dec. Kevin Bialka (N), 6-3
165 – Ryan Morningstar (I) pinned Robert Kellogg (N), 4:48
174 – Jay Borschel (I) pinned Brian Roddy, Jr. (N), 2:27
184 – Grant Gambrall (I) dec. Aaron Jones (N), 9-3
197 – Luke Lofthouse (I) dec. Josh Schoen (N), 4-3
Hwt. – Dan Erekson (I) pinned Marcus Shrewsbury (N), 3:52
