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Iowa starts 2-0 at National Duals, gets Oklahoma State in semis

by: Tanner Lafever5 hours agoTannerLafever
Massoma Endene
Arguably no Hawkeye had a better Day 1 at the National Duals Invitational than Massoma Endene - who earned a pair of bonus-point wins to help #3 Iowa defeat both #16 Missouri and #15 Illinois. (Photo Credit: Ethan McLaughlin/Daily Iowan)

Iowa men’s wrestling is headed to the semifinals of the National Duals Invitational after an undefeated Saturday in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The third-ranked Hawkeyes picked up a pair of ranked wins at the BOK Center, routing #16 Missouri (34-3) in the opener before following it up with a comfortable 24-13 victory over #15 Illinois in the quarterfinal nightcap.

Next up, a rivalry tilt with #5 Oklahoma State awaits – Sunday at 10:00 a.m. (CT) on FloWrestling.

Here’s how the boys in Black & Gold got it done today.

#3 Iowa – 34, #16 Missouri – 3

In a dual that ended up lopsided on the scoreboard, the margins between the Hawkeyes and Tigers in individual matches were often as thin as can be.

That’ll happen when just three first-period takedowns are scored across 10 bouts (all by Iowa).

In fact, Missouri’s first (and only) takedown of the dual didn’t occur until 174 pounds – and the Tigers still lost that bout anyway.

But within those thin margins, Iowa showed consistent poise.

Ride outs and/or riding time were the difference at each of 125/141/149/174/184 pounds – starting with true freshman Leo DeLuca at 125.

Making his Hawkeye debut, the star New Jersey prep defeated #28 Mack Mauger (3-0) using a veteran second-period ride that featured several big-time mat returns.

141 was nearly the same story, as #9 Nasir Bailey used his (third period) top game to cement a 3-0 victory over #19 Zeke Saltzer.

A little something extra

Meanwhile, 149/174/184 all went/took extra time thanks to varying circumstances.

At 149, Ryder Block made a strong case for a thus far yet-to-be-decided weight class for the Hawkeyes.

Block grinded out a 2-1 win in tiebreakers over #6 Josh Edmond – proving to be the Tiger’s equal on their feet for about eight minutes, and then superior on the mat when it mattered the most.

This wasn’t one of those yawner zero-takedown matches either, as Block had several bites at the singe-leg ‘apple’ and also fought off a nervy headlock attempt in the early going.

Then in tiebreakers, he rode out Edmond in the first and picked neutral in the second – doing just enough to avoid a second stall call on a pair of upper-body ties near the edge.

184 was the same ending – albeit a different story to get there.

There, in the headline match of the dual, #3 Angelo Ferrari took on #8 Aeoden Sinclair in a battle of super-talented redshirt freshmen.

Cagey/cautious for most of regulation, things got nuts in sudden victory.

A Ferrari single leg shot initiated a scramble in which both athletes seemingly had the other dead to rights for the winning takedown.

Alas, no score was the result – and a quicker escape in tiebreakers proved the difference in the 3-2 win for the Hawkeye.

And finally, 174 may’ve taken the cake for oddest bout of the dual – as #2 Patrick Kennedy defeated #13 Cam Steed via 6-4 decision.

What could’ve been so odd about it, you say?

Well, Steed – a returning All-American – scored the only takedown of the match. However, Kennedy overcame that thanks to points for riding time, stall calls (x2) and escapes (x3) – the last of which came after a visibly nauseous Steed took injury time to vomit off the mat.

(Seriously.)

Best of the rest (with a little less stress)

Iowa’s other four wins weren’t nearly so touch-and-go.

Drake Ayala scored Iowa’s first bonus points of the tournament – sticking #20 Kade Moore early in the second period.

The senior 133-pounder led 3-0 thanks to a short-time score in the first, then found himself in a wild scramble shortly thereafter – not only emerging unscored upon himself but having locked up a cradle on the edge of that mat that proved to be Moore’s doom.

At 157, another cradle was the difference – this time for Jordan Williams.

The 11th-ranked Little Rock transfer was on the legs of star Missouri recruit Seth Mendoza (#6 in the Class of 2025) throughout the match only for scrambles/stalemates to ensue.

Finally, the shoe was on the other foot – as a Mendoza single leg was turned in the Hawkeye’s favor. Somehow, a slap of the mat never occurred – so Williams had to settle for the seven-point move (and 8-1 victory).

Bumping up to 197, Massoma Endene may have had his first ‘Hawkeye moment.’

The recipient? Missouri’s 15th-ranked Evan Bates – a two-time NCAA qualifier while at Northwestern.

Endene nearly fell behind early but somehow scrambled his way out of a deep shot by the Tiger (nearly scoring himself before a stalemate was called).

Not long after, Bates went back into the kitchen – only this time he got burned.

After stuffing a shot, Endene whipped Bates to his back and stepped over for the fall – whipping his Iowa teammates into a frenzy in the process.

Other than that, the rest of the dual (two matches) was relatively tame.

At 165, #2 Michael Caliendo majored #13 Maxx Mayfield (11-3). And at heavyweight, Gage Marty subbed in for #5 Ben Kueter – the dual in hand – and took Iowa’ s only defeat, 2-0 to #25 Jarrett Stoner.

#3 Iowa – 24, #15 Illinois – 13

Unlike its previous dual, Iowa’s quarterfinal victory margin was probably more indicative of the overall closeness of the matchup.

Still, the Hawkeyes won 7/10 bouts against their Big Ten neighbors – though they did lose (arguably) the two most intriguing head-to-heads, and we missed out on another altogether.

But because I like bookends to my recaps – we’ll begin here with the winning ways first and I’ll close with the hard-charging analysis at the end.

Sound good?

Ho-hum Hawkeyes

None of the following matchups would’ve caught your attention on paper pre-dual.

Afterwards, none of them had delivered a wild/unforeseen outcome, either.

At 125, #10 Dean Peterson wrestled his first match of the day and utilized a slick duck-under takedown and some stingy single-leg defense to top #23 Spencer Moore, 4-2.

Mosey on up to 141 and #9 Nasir Bailey had far less trouble with unranked Joey Ruzic – dominating the Illini in all positions en route to a 17-2 technical fall midway through the second period.

Meanwhile, both 149 and 174 were less than jaw-dropping affairs.

In the former, #29 Kael Voinovich used an escape and two stall calls to get the 2-1 win over Illinois backup Danny Nini – a match that lacked much in the way of danger for the Iowa redshirt freshman.

And in the latter, #2 Patrick Kennedy won in less-than-dominant, though far-from-perilous fashion (5-3) over unranked Colin Kelly.

Action was more prevalent at 165, however, as #2 Michael Caliendo earned a 9-4 decision in a top-10 matchup.

Normally, that billing would’ve garnered more anticipation, but Caliendo had twice teched Braeden Scoles last season.

This time around, Scoles was far more competitive – use low-level shots that consistently kept the Hawkeye on the defensive.

Leading 5-3 with under a minute left, Caliendo finally slammed the door with a shot of his own – capturing both of Scoles’ ankles on the edge. The senior even cut Scoles shortly thereafter and nearly secured one final takedown to earn the major decision.

184 had a similar vibe, with #26 Chris Moore in on several early attempts before Angelo Ferrari revved his engine as the match wore on, winning 7-3.

Had regulation been a minute longer, one would’ve thought Ferrari could add at least two more takedowns to his actual tally.

The headliners

Starting at 133, Drake Ayala fell for the third-consecutive time against Illinois’ Lucas Byrd – dropping this 1-vs-2 matchup via 7-2 decision.

As is often the case, that final scoreline wasn’t so much indicative of the full seven-minute match – during which two key sequences proved costly for the Hawkeye.

The first, 30 seconds into the second period, was an errant slide-by attempt that gave Byrd a prime scoring opportunity (which he seized).

Meanwhile, the second could’ve washed it all away – with Ayala in on a deep single off the whistle that, if he converted, could’ve been the match-winning score late in the third.

As it turned out, he didn’t convert it though – and Byrd scrambled his way to a takedown of his own to salt away the match.

(I have a feeling we’ll be seeing these two meet again this season – maybe more than once.)

157 was another matchup I highlighted in my National Duals preview.

This one didn’t necessarily live up to that billing, however.

After #10 Kannon Webster thwarted an early #11 Jordan Williams scoring chance the Illinois sophomore controlled things from there.

Two first period takedowns, another in the third and plenty of riding time in between turned this top-11 matchup into an 11-2 major decision.

We’ll see how Williams responds on Sunday, because he’s got another major challenge right out of the gate.

And at heavyweight – there was no payback opportunity for #5 Ben Kueter against #8 Luke Luffman – as the Hawkeye sat out his second (already in hand) dual of the day. What that may portend for his status tomorrow, we’ll have to wait and see.

Instead, Gage Marty got the nod again, injury defaulting in the second period for some indiscernible reason.

(He walked off the mat unassisted by Iowa training staff.)

Mo-mentum builds

Alright, fine. I just couldn’t leave this on a downer.

The Hawkeyes did win, 24-13, remember?

And those final four team points came courtesy of (I think) a burgeoning fan favorite.

For the second time today, #16 Massoma Endene scored bonus points for Iowa. This go around wasn’t nearly as thrilling as his first dual, first-period pin (though he did go for a similar move late in this match), but it was enjoyable, nonetheless.

(At least he sure seemed to be having a blast.)

And while unranked Cade Lautt was no noteworthy foe, Endene still looked the part.

The Wartburg transfer piled up takedowns in all three periods (two in the third). Crisp, composed explosive – all are words I’d use to describe his 14-4 major decision.

He too, has tougher opponents on the way (and soon). However, his two-part performance on Saturday did nothing but instill further confidence that the next step(s) won’t be too big for him either.

Short time

Alright, that’s enough. I’ve droned on for far too long (again) – especially when sleep is beckoning to us all.

You don’t need me to sell you on why tomorrow’s semifinal is must-see TV (or in this case, streaming).

It’s Iowa-Oklahoma State. It’s wrestling. And so, it matters – A LOT.

Go reflect upon the Saturday that was for the Hawks and look forward to the Sunday that will be.

And in the meantime, my sincere thanks to you as always for reading/following along.

‘Till next time!

Full results

No. 3 Iowa 34, No. 16 Missouri 3
125 – Leo DeLuca (I) dec. No. 28 Mack Mauger (M), 2-0
133 – No. 2 Drake Ayala (I) pinned No. 20 Kade Moore (M), 3:57
141 – No. 9 Nasir Bailey (I) dec. No. 19 Zeke Seltzer (M), 2-0
149 – Ryder Block (I) dec. No. 6 Josh Edmond (M), 2-1 TB1
157 – No. 11 Jordan Williams (I) dec. Seth Mendoza (M), 8-1
165 – No. 2 Michael Caliendo (I) major dec. No. 13 Maxx Mayfield (M), 11-3
174 – No. 2 Patrick Kennedy (I) dec. No. 13 Cam Steed (M), 6-4
184 – No. 3 Angelo Ferrari (I) dec. No. 8 Aoeden Sinclair (M), 3-2 TB1
197 – No. 16 Massoma Endene (I) pinned No. 15 Evan Bates (M), 2:20
285 – No. 25 Jarrett Stoner (M) dec. Gage Marty (I), 2-0

No. 3 Iowa 24, No. 15 Illinois 13
125 – No. 10 Dean Peterson (IA) dec. No. 23 Spencer Moore (IL), 4-2
133 – No. 1 Lucas Byrd (IL) dec. No. 2 Drake Ayala (IA), 7-2
141 – No. 9 Nasir Bailey (IA) tech. fall Joey Ruzic (IL), 17-2
149 – Kael Voinovich (IA) dec. Danny Nini (IL), 2-1
157 – No. 10 Kannon Webster (IL) major dec. No. 11 Jordan Williams (IA), 11-2
165 – No. 2 Michael Caliendo (IA) dec. No. 8 Braeden Scoles (IL), 9-4
174 – No. 2 Patrick Kennedy (IA) dec. Colin Kelly (IL), 5-3
184 – No. 3 Angelo Ferrari (IA) dec. No. 26 Chris Moore (IL), 7-3
197 – No. 16 Massoma Endene (IA) major dec. Cade Lautt (IL), 14-4
285 – No. 8 Luke Luffman (IL) inj. default Gage Marty (IA), 3:22

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