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Drake Ayala keeps Iowa's finals streak alive

by: Tanner Lafever03/23/24TannerLafever
Drake Ayala(1)
Drake Ayala made the NCAA finals. (Photo: Hawkeyesports.com)

Another day at the NCAA Wrestling Championships and another head-spinning series of events across all 10 weight classes has left the Iowa Hawkeyes in third place entering Saturday’s final day of action in Kansas City, MO.

The biggest development was unquestionably Iowa keeping its historic streak of national finalists alive – a mark now at 34-consecutive tournaments (and 48 of the last 49) thanks to Drake Ayala advancing to the 125-pound title match.

Beyond that, three other Hawkeyes were able to secure All-American status in various ways, bringing Iowa’s total (four) to just under half of the nine wrestlers it qualified for this weekend.

That four-man tally obviously means that five other Hawkeyes did not achieve their All-American/championship goals, including a pair who fell agonizingly short in the Blood Round. So, while there was certainly some good to come from Friday’s action, the overall results were no doubt unsatisfactory to head coach Tom Brands & Company.

There’ll be plenty of time in the coming weeks to discuss what, if anything, should be taken from the 2023-24 season and the national tournament in the bigger picture, but for now let’s stay in the moment and examine the day that was.

Session III

It wasn’t the worst of times for the Iowa Hawkeyes during Friday’s midday NCAA session, but it most definitely wasn’t the best of times either.

Entering the morning with all nine wrestlers still alive in their respective brackets, that total would shrink to six by about 3:00 p.m. (CST).

Both Caleb Rathjen (149) and Bradley Hill (285) lost their lone matches of the day (and last of the tournament) – Rathjen to #14 Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) by a 7-2 margin and Hill to #26 Hunter Catka (Virginia Tech) in an 11-2 major decision.

The result for Rathjen was particularly disappointing given that the Hawkeye had beaten the very same Ohio State foe 11-5 at Big Tens less than two weeks ago, scoring a trio of crisp, clean takedowns in the process.

Today it was D’Emilio who lived on Rathjen’s legs, while also countering the Hawkeye’s best shot of the bout for a score of his own.

But the biggest surprise probably has to be what was another shockingly uncharacteristic performance by Iowa’s 197-pounder.

For the second time in as many days Zach Glazier (seeded seventh entering NCAAs) seemed stuck in the mud against what most would’ve projected to be an exceedingly beatable opponent. On this occasion it was #9 Stephen Little (Arkansas Little Rock) whom Glazier was unable to ever really threaten offensively.

Conversely, Little was in on multiple double-leg attempts throughout the match – nearly converting on at least two of them – before finally scoring a go-behind for the 4-1 victory after Glazier took a sloppy shot from distance early in overtime.

A furious Glazier repeated slammed his fist into the mat after the loss – a pretty stark indicator of the frustration that the Minnesota native must’ve been feeling given two days of results that were nowhere near his expectations entering the national tournament, nor his performance over the previous four months.

Hopefully for his sake, Glazier can be more at ease and compete like his typical self again next season – which the fifth-year senior confirmed on Wednesday that he would indeed be back for in Iowa City according to Flo’s Andy Hamilton.

Two Hawkeyes who would keep their NCAA runs going not just once, but twice during the early session were Brody Teske (133) and Patrick Kennedy (174).

For Kennedy it was a pair of gritty, no-frills decisions – a 5-3 win over #11 Austin Murphy (Campbell) followed by a 5-2 victory over #19 Alex Cramer (Central Michigan).

Teske, on the other hand, added a bit more ‘spice’ to his 2-0 ‘recipe’ in Session III.

First on the docket was a wild 14-6 major decision over #14 Braxton Brown (Maryland), whom the Hawkeye had bested in a much lower scoring 4-1 decision back at Big Tens.

Teske won a pair of high-wire scrambles, the latter of which resulted in four near fall points immediately after Brown had narrowly missed reversing Teske to his own back.

Not content to rest on his laurels, Teske would add a takedown in the final 10 seconds of the third period that, plus the subsequent ride out, would earn him and the Hawkeyes some valuable bonus points.

Somehow his second match would be even crazier.

Multiple scrambles and one extended review (overturning what was originally ruled a takedown for Army’s #25 Braden Basile) would ultimately culminate in a 1-1 match going to overtime.

Once there, Teske somehow missed converting on a pair of would-be, match-winning takedowns during the two minutes of sudden victory – leaving it up to a reversal in the opening 30-second tiebreaker period to give him the deciding score in a 3-1 victory.

It was a match that required a deep exhale in real-time afterwards, and I’ll probably take another right now after just typing out the chaotic sequence of events.

Jumping back to the topside of the bracket, Iowa fans might’ve been experiencing déjà vu as they watched Drake Ayala and #6 Troy Spratley (Oklahoma State) wrestle in sudden victory for the second time in less than a month.

Only a lone, stalemated scramble in regulation represented a sincere opportunity for either guy to put points on the board (excluding their respective escapes) until Ayala got to a single leg in overtime.

Yet again, much like in their dual meeting (won 8-1 by Ayala), it would take a methodical effort from the Hawkeye on the edge of the mat to put himself in position for the winning score. Ayala would do just that, covering a last-ditch roll attempt by the Cowboy for the 4-1 victory and a spot in the semifinals at 125 pounds.

Iowa’s other semifinalist, Michael Caliendo, would get there on the back of a far less nerve-racking performance.

The #6 seed was nearly flawless in a 9-4 win against the dangerous #3 Julian Ramirez (Cornell). Caliendo hit his signature boot scoot for the opening takedown, then broke things open in the second period with a reversal (plus another point for a locked hands call on Ramirez) and a crisp reattack.

By now I think the talent of Caliendo is pretty evident to most Hawkeye fans, and in this match it was on full display as the redshirt sophomore put together perhaps his best performance of his inaugural season in the Black & Gold singlet.

Two Hawkeye seniors weren’t nearly as successful as Ayala/Caliendo in their own bids for an appearance in the semis, however.

At 141 pounds, Real Woods, a returning finalist from 2023, was the aggressor for roughly six minutes and 50 seconds against North Carolina’s #6 Lachlan McNeil. Those final ten would prove costly, however, as McNeil scrambled through a deep shot by the Hawkeye and managed to lock up a cradle and the 7-1 win.

As Iowa legend Mark Ironside put it on the Hawkeye radio broadcast, there really isn’t much to nitpick about the effort other than to say that Woods getting his other arm free from McNeil during that final shot attempt would’ve been the difference between a win and a loss.

Alas, the defeat sent Woods to the wrestlebacks needing one more victory in order to secure All-American honors.

Jared Franek’s quarterfinal loss wasn’t quite as whiplash-inducing of a result, as #2 seed Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) was on the attack plenty throughout the match.

Nevertheless, tied at two-apiece mid-third period Franek had a very real chance to put himself in position for the upset win.

A shot by the Sun Devil was countered beautifully by Franek, who spun around to snatch Teemer’s trailing leg and get on the offensive himself. But the Hawkeye was unable to quickly convert his advantageous position, allowing Teemer to contort his leg at an angle that would force the mat official to stop the action for a ‘potentially dangerous’ call.

Not long after, an unconvincing shot from distance by Franek left him vulnerable, and Teemer was able to capitalize for the winning go-behind takedown with little time remaining.

It was that kind of session for the Hawkeyes, who would enter the nightcap at the T-Mobile Center in fifth place in the team standings.

QUARTERFINALS RESULTS

125 | #3 Drake Ayala (Iowa) dec. #6 Troy Spratley (OK State), 4-1 SV1
141 | #6 Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) dec. #3 Real Woods (Iowa), 7-1
157 | #2 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) dec.  #10 Jared Franek (Iowa), 5-2
165 | #6 Michael Caliendo (Iowa) dec #3 Julian Ramierez (Cornell), 9-4

CONSOLATION RESULTS

133 | #15 Brody Teske (Iowa) major dec. #17 Braxton Brown (Maryland), 14-6
149 | #14 Dylan D’Emillio (Ohio State) dec. # 13 Caleb Rathjen (Iowa), 7-2
174 | #12 Patrick Kennedy (Iowa) dec. #11 Austin Murphy (Campbell), 5-3
197 | #9 Stephen Little (Little Rock) dec. #7 Zach Glazier (Iowa), 4-1 SV1
285 | #26 Hunter Catka (Virginia Tech) major dec. #25 Bradley Hill (Iowa), 11-2
—
133 | #15 Brody Teske (Iowa) dec. #25 Braden Basile (Army), 3-1 TB1
174 | #12 Patrick Kennedy (Iowa) dec. #19 Alex Cramer (Central Michigan), 5-2

Session IV

Friday evening would be plenty hectic in its own right, though it couldn’t have started much better as #3 Ayala prevailed in a 3-2 semifinal decision over Wisconsin’s #10 Eric Barnett.

A first-period re-attack by the Hawkeye would turn into yet another sequence of steadily climbing a single leg against a scramble-happy opponent. This one, however, seemed to have slipped away from Ayala as the mat official didn’t award a takedown in real-time.

But a challenge from the Iowa corner would ultimately be rewarded with the call being reversed, and Ayala would make it count all the more by putting on a dogged ride out for the final 30 seconds of the period.

The Fort Dodge native would get in on a couple of other shot attempts over the final four minutes of action, but nothing would come of it as he smartly navigated Barnett’s propensity to scramble into points of his own.

This was nothing short of a championship-savvy performance by Ayala, and he deservedly moved on to the finals on Saturday night.

Oh yeah, and for the second time this postseason (Big Tens/NCAAs) the Iowa social media team was still having quite a good time at the expense of Barnett – who’d previously intimated that Ayala had intentionally avoided wrestling him back at the Iowa/Wisconsin dual in late February.

Be careful what you wish for, I suppose.

Iowa’s other semifinalist, Michael Caliendo, would fall one win short of his own finals appearance, losing a 17-9 major decision to #2 Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State).

The Hawkeye scored the opening three points of the match on a beautiful takedown, but the Nittany Lion and his furious pace/extensive offensive arsenal would steadily turn the tide.

A 4-4 first period was 10-7 in favor of PSU after two, and Mesenbrink would convert two more takedowns (plus an escape point) in the third for the final eight-point margin.

Look, Michael Caliendo is one heck of a wrestler, which should tell folks all they need to know about just how good Mesenbrink is.

Elsewhere on Friday night, four Hawkeyes had Blood Round matches to either secure an All-American finish or exit the tournament altogether. Two would find success, two would not.

Perhaps the most heartbreaking result was at 133 pounds, where senior Brody Teske fell 6-3 to the #4 seed Dylan Shawver (Rutgers).

Teske led 3-0 after the first period but was ridden out in the second despite multiple near reversals that could’ve just as easily been escapes if he’d bailed on the position (easy to say in hindsight, I know).

Then in the third, an early takedown by Shawver more or less made the score 4-3 in his favor (with riding time), before garnering two additional near fall points as Teske tried to roll through for yet another reversal attempt.

Not that there’s ever an easy way for a season, much less a college career to come to an end, but this one would seem to particularly sting for the sixth-year senior.

The other Hawkeye to see his season end was Patrick Kennedy, an 8-4 loser to #1 Mekhi Lewis of Virginia Tech.

Kennedy also led for the majority of the match after scoring an early go-behind takedown on the top seed at 174 pounds, but a curious third-period decision will leave many asking, ‘What if.’

Up 3-2 with choice entering the final frame, Kennedy elected to start from the neutral position instead of on bottom. While Lewis hadn’t threatened to score from their feet for the previous five minutes of action, it was still strange because even a ride out from the Hokie would’ve at best forced overtime tied at three.

Instead, Kennedy would get taken down in the early stages of the third period, now finding himself trailing 5-4 after a quick escape (another of which to open the period had he started on bottom would’ve made it a 5-5 match).

The Hawkeye chased for a late winner, but taking down a defensive wizard like Lewis for a second time was always going to be a tall task.

(The final four-point margin was the result of a last-ditch effort by Kennedy that Lewis easily countered for his own score with barely any time left on the clock.)

Thankfully, better results were found by the likes of Real Woods and Jared Franek, both of whom secured AA status by winning rare Iowa/UNI matchups – Woods topping #7 Cael Happel 5-2, and Franek besting #5 Ryder Downey 4-2.

The parallels would (somewhat) continue in their second and final bouts of the session, with Woods earning an impressive 11-2 major decision over #26 Vance VomBaur of Minnesota while Franek fell by the same score to Cornell super frosh #3 Meyer Shapiro.

SEMIFINALS RESULTS
125 | #3 Drake Ayala (Iowa) vs. #10 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin), 3-2
165 | #2 Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State) major dec. #6 Michael Caliendo (Iowa), 17-9

CONSOLATION RESULTS
133 | #4 Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) dec. #15 Brody Teske (Iowa), 6-3
141 | #3 Real Woods (Iowa) dec. #7 Cael Happel (UNI), 5-2
157 | #10 Jared Franek (Iowa) dec. #5 Ryder Downey (UNI), 4-2
174 | #1 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) dec. #12 Patrick Kennedy (Iowa), 8-4
—
141 | #3 Real Woods (Iowa) major dec. #26 Vance Vombaur (Minnesota), 11-2
157 | #3 Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) dec. #10 Jared Franek (Iowa), 11-2

Saturday Lookahead

As previously stated, four Hawkeyes will keep wrestling on the final day of the 2024 NCAA Championships.

Jared Franek will look for this third win this season against Nebraska’s Peyton Robb for seventh place, while both Woods and Caliendo can still finish as high as third – each of them getting rematches of their own against Big 12 foes whom they previously defeated within the past four months.

Meanwhile, the ultimate opportunity awaits Drake Ayala – a bout against Arizona State’s Richard Figueroa with an individual national title on the line.

FINALS MATCHUPS
125 #3 Drake Ayala (Iowa) vs. #8 Richard Figueroa (Arizona State)

CONSOLATION MATCHUPS
141 | #3 Real Woods (Iowa) vs. #5 Anthony Echemedia (Iowa State)

165 | #6 Michael Caliendo (Iowa) vs. #7 Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State)

SEVENTH-PLACE MATCHUP
157 | #10 Jared Franek (Iowa) vs. #8 Peyton Robb (Nebraska)

Action gets going Saturday morning at 10:00 a.m. (CST) on ESPNU with Woods/Caliendo/Franek competing in the Medal Round.

Saturday’s finals will commence in primetime at 6:00 p.m. (CST) on ESPN.

Short time

I’ll say it again, there’s going to be plenty of time to discuss the wider scope of Iowa wrestling during the coming offseason.

For now, a Hawkeye team somewhat ‘cobbled together’ amidst bizarre off/in-season circumstances sits in third place entering the final day of NCAAs.

Iowa has also crowned at least four All-American for the 16th-straight season under Tom Brands and continued its streak of finalists dating back to 1990.

These are the facts. There will be plenty of time for (legitimate) feelings and hotly debated conversations later.

Regardless, we’ve only got one day left of the 2023-24 college wrestling season. So please, do both me and you a favor and try to savor the last remaining bits of it as best as you can.

It’ll all be over before you can blink.

Thanks again for following along these past few days. I sincerely hope that you’re coping with the wrestling/March Madness overload at least as decently as I’ve been since Thursday morning.

(It sure does take a toll, doesn’t it?)

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