Just two Iowa Hawkeyes advanced to tonight’s semifinals of the NCAA Wrestling Championships.
Radio Iowa’s Pat Curtis has an update from Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines: Audio 1:32
Iowa’s two-time national champion at 125, Matt McDonough, lost his quarterfinal round match today in overtime. Mark Ballweg, Ethan Lofthouse and Mike Evans also lost in the quarters.
But, Derek St John at 157 and Tony Ramos at 133, advanced to the semifinals. Ramos scored a 6-1 victory over Jonathon Morrison of Oklahoma State. Tonight, he’ll now face Wisconsin’s Tyler Graff, who tends to wrestle defensively, according to Ramos.
“It’s hard to wrestle a guy who goes back, back, back…but we’ve figured it out. We’re going to put up a lot of points. You have to make him wrestle you,” Ramos said. “I had to make Morrison wrestle me.”
Northern Iowa has one semifinalist. David Bonin, who enter the tournament unseeded at 157, became an All-American this afternoon while winning his 100th career match. Three Panthers remain in contention for All-American honors in the wrestleback bracket. Iowa State will not have a semifinalist, but four Cyclones are active in wrestlebacks.
Semifinal round action begins at 6 p.m.
Team Standings (after quarterfinals)
1. Penn State 77.5
2. Oklahoma State 65.5
3. Minnesota 49.5
4. Iowa 39
5. Missouri 38.5
Complete results: www.ncaa.com/championships/wrestling/d1#!championship_br_home>