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#1 Iowa downs (NAIA) #3 Grand View, 32-10 in Thursday night dual

by: Tanner Lafever12 hours agoTannerLafever

Thursday evening was a perfect encapsulation of the expectations that come with being part of the Iowa women’s wrestling program.

On the precipice of finals week, the top-ranked Hawkeyes bussed two-plus hours on a freezing weeknight to take on NAIA’s third-ranked Grand View – the returning national team/dual runners up.

Once there, Clarissa Chun’s squad not only won the dual, but swept all eight contested matches.

The final match point tally? 55-15 in favor of the visitors.

And yet, one could argue the Hawkeyes were far from sharp in this one – regardless of being without as many as six likely starters.

Those are the expectations this program inherently carries, and in many ways, has earned with its performance over the past few seasons.

And so, you get folks like me writing/saying things like this – even as the team brings its dual record to 5-0 in runaway fashion.

(Such is life, I suppose.)

Here’s how the dual played out – which you can watch a free replay of right here:

Vikings draw blood early, stay in the fight throughout

One of Thursday’s themes was Grand View beating Iowa to punch – even if it didn’t ultimately produce winning results.

In four of the first five bouts, a Viking wrestler scored the first match point.

Perhaps not coincidentally, those weights (103-131 pounds) also included five returning All-Americans – each ranked #5 or better in the latest NAIA Coaches’ Rating.

To be fair, Iowa didn’t exactly toy with defeat, either.

In each of those matches, the Hawkeyes led and/or had already won by the time intermission arrived. And in classic Emily Frost fashion, the Iowa junior punctuated the run with a pin at 131 pounds:

In wins by Nyla Valencia (8-2), Brianna Gonzalez (9-2) and Cali Leng (8-1), Iowa wrestlers outscored their opponents 18-0 after the break. And at 103, Sterling Dias was never seriously threatened in a 3-0 victory.

Of the bunch, the most impressive result probably came from Cali Leng – who overcame an early deficit to widen the gap and run away from NAIA #3 Catharine Campbell – a three-time All-American.

Relentlessness was the key in this one, which the Hawkeye always carries with her in spades.

When it matters most

With the two teams trading forfeits at 160/180 pounds, that left three other bouts to close out the dual.

One of those produced the second Iowa bonus-point victory of the evening, as Cadence Diduch rolled to a 10-0 first-period technical fall at 145.

But the others had no shortage of drama for the fans watching at Waukee Northwest High School – or from home on Iowa PBS.

At 138, an apparent blowout flipped on a dime when Lilly Luft saw a 6-0 lead evaporate in the second period, as Grand View’s Adrienna Turner parlayed several low-level shots into a 6-6 criteria lead with 0:28 remaining.

Needing to respond (quickly) with a score of her own, the Charles City native didn’t flinch.

Luft hit her signature blast double, driving Turner out of bounds to retake the lead with 0:11 left on the clock. An easy go-behind with short time made the final scoreline 10-6.

And in the last bout of the night, another Iowa native found her own match-winning score in the final moments.

This time it was Libby Dix (Mount Vernon), whose prolonged 2-0 lead disappeared following an errant shot attempt late in the second period.

Now trailing for the first time in the match, the freshman had 0:21 to find a winning score. And find it she did – firing a shot, then a reshot to drive NAIA #11 Andjela Prijovic out of bounds with five seconds to go.

The result marked the first dual victory for Dix outside of Carver-Hawkeye Arena – where she also just won for the first time this past weekend.

Short time

With the win, many of the Hawkeyes from tonight’s dual – plus several of their teammates who stayed back home – will quickly turn their attention toward Sunday’s North Central College Invitational.

I’ll have my own preview of the event published in the next day or so, but trust this:

Just as we saw at the Missouri Valley Open a few weeks ago, there will be brackets on Sunday which prove to be tougher than those at the NCAA Championships come March.

And that just means it’ll be a heck of competitive experience for the Iowa wrestlers/coaches, not to mention a heck of a viewing experience for folks tuning in from home.

So, stay on the lookout for my coverage of that, and thanks again for following/reading about tonight’s proceedings.

‘Till next time!

Full dual results

(NCAA) #1 Iowa – 32, (NAIA) #3 Grand View – 10 
103         Sterling Dias (I) over Judy Sandoval (GV), Dec. 3-0 
110         Nyla Valencia (I) over Tristan Nitta (GV), Dec. 8-2 
117         Brianna Gonzalez (I) over Mayangelie Colon (GV), Dec. 9-2
124         Cali Leng (I) over Catie Campbell (GV), Dec. 8-1
131         Emily Frost (I) over Maya Davis (GV), Fall 2:21
138         Lilly Luft (I) over Adrienna Turner (GV), Dec. 10-6
145         Cadence Diduch (I) over Sofia Delgado (GV), TF 10-0. 
160         Kami Senlycki (GV) wins via forfeit. 
180         Katja Osteen (I) wins via forfeit. 
207         Libby Dix (I) over Andjela Prijovic (GV), Dec. 3-2

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