IOWA WRESTLING

Cobe Siebrecht knocks off another All-American as Iowa wrestling team thumps Michigan 33-8

Cody Goodwin
Des Moines Register

The Iowa wrestling team didn't have any trouble with a visiting Michigan team on Friday night, rolling to a 33-8 win in front of another sellout at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

The Hawkeyes, ranked No. 2 in InterMat's latest Division I team rankings, won each of the first seven weights and ultimately took 8-of-10 to pound the 8th-ranked Wolverines. Iowa improved to 14-1 overall and finished its Big Ten slate with a 7-1 record. They will host No. 16 Oklahoma State next Sunday in their regular-season finale.

The highlight of the night came from a familiar source, as Cobe Siebrecht notched his second consecutive win over an All-American opponent. This time, his victim was Will Lewan, an NCAA semifinalist last year. On Friday night, Siebrecht eluded a potential Lewan takedown to score his own in sudden victory for a 3-1 win.

"I just kind of cartwheeled over him. I don’t know, I just kind of did it," said Siebrecht, who's now 10-3 this season. He added: "I just kind of feel what's going on and do what I can to score … just let it fly and put them on a highlight reel."

"That's a stingy wrestler out there," Iowa coach Tom Brands added. "I don't know that you want a strategy where it's 1-1 late in the match or in overtime, but he did what he had to do … he rose to the occasion when he had to. Take your hat off to Cobe Siebrecht. Big statement win."

That was the monster result that many of the 14,905 in attendance will remember. The Hawkeyes mostly bullied a less-than-100-percent Michigan lineup the rest of the night.

The Wolverines, now 9-4 and 4-3 against the Big Ten, did not wrestle all of their hammers, starting Wilfried Tanefeu at 133 instead of No. 12 Dylan Ragusin; Pat Nolan at 141 instead of No. 27 Cole Mattin; Alex Wesselman at 165 instead of No. 4 Cameron Amine, a two-time All-American; and Joseph Walker at 174 instead of No. 28 Max Maylor.

The Hawkeyes won each of those four matches, including three in bonus-point fashion:

  • Brody Teske gave up an early takedown then rolled to a 19-3 technical fall over Tanefeu
  • Real Woods, ranked No. 2 nationally, rolled up a 15-1 major over Nolan
  • Patrick Kennedy, now ranked No. 7 by InterMat, pinned Wesselman in the first period
  • and Nelson Brands muscled through a 5-1 win over Walker

Combined with Spencer Lee's 11-2 major over No. 18 Jack Medley at 125 (his 51st win in a row), Max Murin's four-takedown performance in a 10-4 win over No. 22 Chance Lamer at 149, and Siebrecht's overtime triumph, the Hawkeyes built a 28-0 lead before the Wolverines finally answered.

"They were without some guys," Tom Brands said. "That has to be said."

Drake Rhodes, a true freshman competing in his fifth attached date this season, went in lieu of Abe Assad again at 184, but dropped a 15-0 technical fall to No. 8 Mitch Finesilver. Jacob Warner responded immediately with his own technical fall, a 16-1 beatdown over Brendin Yatoom at 197, which snapped a two-match losing streak.

With the dual well in hand, that set the stage for Tony Cassioppi and Mason Parris to provide fireworks in the final match — and they delivered.

Parris, the nation's top-ranked heavyweight, built an early 5-2 lead thanks to two early takedowns, but Cassioppi, ranked third, rallied with a neutral-danger takedown in the second period, then an escape and another takedown in the third for a 7-5 lead. Parris escaped and added one final takedown, which helped him secure riding-time and a 9-7 win. It was the closest Cassioppi has wrestled Parris in four college meetings, all Parris victories.

A Cassioppi win would've been icing on the proverbial cake on this night, and may still inspire confidence as Iowa inches closer to the finish line in this 2022-23 season. But against an inferior lineup, the Hawkeyes wrestled like the second-best team in the country — a positive sign as the all-important postseason nears.

"It's getting into the grind time," Woods said afterward, "the most important part of the season."

Cody Goodwin covers wrestling and high school sports for the Des Moines Register. Follow him on Twitter at@codygoodwin.

No. 2 Iowa 33, No. 8 Michigan 8

  • 125: #1 Spencer Lee (IA) maj. dec. #18 Jack Medley (MI), 11-2
  • 133: #16 Brody Teske (IA) tech. fall Wilfried Tanefeu (MI), 19-3
  • 141: #2 Real Woods (IA) maj. dec. Pat Nolan (MI), 15-1
  • 149: #6 Max Murin (IA) dec. #22 Chance Lamer (MI), 10-4
  • 157: #14 Cobe Siebrecht (IA) dec. #9 Will Lewan (MI), 3-1 (SV)
  • 165: #7 Patrick Kennedy (IA) pinned Alex Wesselman (MI) in 2:31
  • 174: #16 Nelson Brands (IA) dec. Joseph Walker (MI), 5-1
  • 184: #8 Mitch Finesilver (MI) tech. fall Drake Rhodes (IA), 15-0
  • 197: #12 Jacob Warner (IA) tech. fall Brendin Yatooma (MI), 16-1
  • 285: #1 Mason Parris (MI) dec. #3 Tony Cassioppi (IA), 9-7