FLASH: Iowa edges Oklahoma State, 18-16, as attendance record set in historic Grapple on the Gridiron in Kinnick Stadium
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by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling
View of the action from Kinnick Stadium at the University of Iowa, as a record 42,287 fans attend the season-opening dual meet between Iowa and Oklahoma State. Mark Lundy photo.
The final score was Iowa 18, Oklahoma State 16, but the biggest winner at the Grapple on the Gridiron in Kinnick Stadium at the University of Iowa was the sport of wrestling.
The NCAA wrestling attendance record was smashed on Saturday, as 42,287 fans came through the turnstiles on a warm November day to see the two most storied programs in college wrestling history compete outside in a Div. I football stadium.
“I noticed that when we walked out there, it was hardly any concrete and was all black, and that is what we like. You could see fans all the way down. It was good. The biggest message is that a place like the University of Iowa, which doesn’t want for fans, is still trying to set the bar higher and higher. That’s what is important. It’s a mentality, and a commitment to the program from the administration. It jives with what we want to do. We want to get better every day and want better events every year,” said Iowa head coach Tom Brands.
The key match for the day was at 184 pounds, when Iowa junior Sammy Brooks opened up his offense, scoring four takedowns and a pair of four-point tilts for a 17-2 technical fall over Cowboy Jordan Rogers. The five points for the tech fall put Iowa up 15-13 with two matches to go.
“I can’t even describe this. Nobody will get it, except the people on that mat and the people in the stands. It’s unbelievable. Last year, I had too many close matches. That’s not me. I don’t know how you could not come out in front of that many people and not put on a show. I just went out and wrestled, and that makes me happy,” said Brooks.
Senior Nathan Burak, ranked No. 4, wrestled Nolan Boyd, who is Oklahoma State’s normal 184-pounder and also nationally ranked, squared off at 197. Burak, who was physically bigger, scored two takedowns for a tight 5-3 win, putting the Hawkeyes up 18-13.
Needing a pin at heavyweight, Oklahoma State All-American and senior Austin Marsden could only come up with a 6-1 win over freshman Sam Stoll at heavyweight, scoring just three team points for the final 18-16 score. Stoll, a Junior World bronze medalist for the USA, was never in danger of being pinned.
Both teams won five matches, but the two extra bonus points by Brooks was the key to victory.
Iowa opened strong at 125, with a 9-1 win by Thomas Gilman over Eddie Klimara in a battle of All-Americans. Gilman scored his first takedown in the closing seconds of the first period, scored two more takedowns, and earned his final point with riding time.
“It is a full-time job for me to get my teammates fired up and blaze that trail for them. I would have gone out there and gotten a decision, win by one or two points. I wanted to do it for myself, my team and my fans,” said Gilman.
The match played out as the rankings would predict throughout the meet. Iowa scored wins at 133 and 149 by All-Americans Cory Clark and Brandon Sorensen, respectively. All-American and No. 1 ranked Dean Heil won his match at 149. All were decisions, with no bonus points.
At 157, highly touted Cowboy freshman Chance Marsteller scored scored a takedown and a four-point tilt for a quick 6-0 lead over senior Edwin Cooper, and held on during a wild match which ended 14-11. Marsteller seemed fatigued throughout the match and was hit with multiple stalling calls, but held a lead throughout.
Two-time NCAA champion Alex Dieringer of OSU scored a 17-5 major decision at 157 over Patrick Rhodes, matching the bonus point that Gilman earned for Iowa at 125.
All-American Kyle Crutchmer gave Oklahoma State a 13-10 lead at 174, in a back-and-forth match with Alex Meyer, 11-10. A third-period Crutchmer takedown was the key to the win.
Oklahoma State head coach John Smith praised the organizers of the event for the tremendous turnout, and said that he was very glad that the Cowboys were part of this historic event. However, he was not pleased with where his team was for its first match of the year.
“It was a tough match. There were a few things we didn’t appear to have today, not pushing the score when we had the opportunity to do it. It seemed like we let people stay in the match. We didn’t push the pace enough. November 14, I don’t know if we were ready to do that at this time of the season. It showed where we can really improve,” said Smith.
But when it was over, it was Brooks’ amazing match at 184 that turned the tide, and gave the thousands of Iowa fans in the stadium something to cheer about.
#4 University of Iowa (1-0, 0-0 B1G) 18
#1 Oklahoma State University (0-1, 0-0 Big12) 16
Wt./Match/Team Score
125 - #4 Thomas Gilman (I) maj. dec. #7 Eddie Klimara (OSU), 9-1 * (4-0)
133 - #2 Cory Clark (I) dec. Gary Wayne Harding (OSU), 8-2 ^ (7-0)
141 - #1 Dean Heil (OSU) dec. Logan Ryan (I), 7-1 (7-3)
149 - #3 Brandon Sorensen (I) dec. #8 Anthony Collica (OSU), 6-1 (10-3)
157 - #15 Chance Marsteller (OSU) dec. Edwin Cooper, Jr. (I), 14-11 (10-6)
165 - #1 Alex Dieringer (OSU) maj. dec. Patrick Rhoads (I), 17-5 (10-10)
174 - #4 Kyle Crutchmer (OSU) dec. #6 Alex Meyer (I), 11-10 (10-13)
184 - #12 Sammy Brooks (I) tech. fall Jordan Rogers (OSU), 17-2 in 4:09 (15-13)
197 - #4 Nathan Burak (I) dec. Nolan Boyd (OSU), 5-3 (18-13)
285 - #5 Austin Marsden (OSU) dec. Sam Stoll (I), 6-1 (18-16)
* - A warning was issued to both benches during the 125-pound match.
^ - Iowa was issued a mat-control warning after the 133-pound match.
Attendance: 42,287 (new NCAA dual match attendance record)
Officials: Jeff Cook, Rick Stahl
The final score was Iowa 18, Oklahoma State 16, but the biggest winner at the Grapple on the Gridiron in Kinnick Stadium at the University of Iowa was the sport of wrestling.
The NCAA wrestling attendance record was smashed on Saturday, as 42,287 fans came through the turnstiles on a warm November day to see the two most storied programs in college wrestling history compete outside in a Div. I football stadium.
“I noticed that when we walked out there, it was hardly any concrete and was all black, and that is what we like. You could see fans all the way down. It was good. The biggest message is that a place like the University of Iowa, which doesn’t want for fans, is still trying to set the bar higher and higher. That’s what is important. It’s a mentality, and a commitment to the program from the administration. It jives with what we want to do. We want to get better every day and want better events every year,” said Iowa head coach Tom Brands.
The key match for the day was at 184 pounds, when Iowa junior Sammy Brooks opened up his offense, scoring four takedowns and a pair of four-point tilts for a 17-2 technical fall over Cowboy Jordan Rogers. The five points for the tech fall put Iowa up 15-13 with two matches to go.
“I can’t even describe this. Nobody will get it, except the people on that mat and the people in the stands. It’s unbelievable. Last year, I had too many close matches. That’s not me. I don’t know how you could not come out in front of that many people and not put on a show. I just went out and wrestled, and that makes me happy,” said Brooks.
Senior Nathan Burak, ranked No. 4, wrestled Nolan Boyd, who is Oklahoma State’s normal 184-pounder and also nationally ranked, squared off at 197. Burak, who was physically bigger, scored two takedowns for a tight 5-3 win, putting the Hawkeyes up 18-13.
Needing a pin at heavyweight, Oklahoma State All-American and senior Austin Marsden could only come up with a 6-1 win over freshman Sam Stoll at heavyweight, scoring just three team points for the final 18-16 score. Stoll, a Junior World bronze medalist for the USA, was never in danger of being pinned.
Both teams won five matches, but the two extra bonus points by Brooks was the key to victory.
Iowa opened strong at 125, with a 9-1 win by Thomas Gilman over Eddie Klimara in a battle of All-Americans. Gilman scored his first takedown in the closing seconds of the first period, scored two more takedowns, and earned his final point with riding time.
“It is a full-time job for me to get my teammates fired up and blaze that trail for them. I would have gone out there and gotten a decision, win by one or two points. I wanted to do it for myself, my team and my fans,” said Gilman.
The match played out as the rankings would predict throughout the meet. Iowa scored wins at 133 and 149 by All-Americans Cory Clark and Brandon Sorensen, respectively. All-American and No. 1 ranked Dean Heil won his match at 149. All were decisions, with no bonus points.
At 157, highly touted Cowboy freshman Chance Marsteller scored scored a takedown and a four-point tilt for a quick 6-0 lead over senior Edwin Cooper, and held on during a wild match which ended 14-11. Marsteller seemed fatigued throughout the match and was hit with multiple stalling calls, but held a lead throughout.
Two-time NCAA champion Alex Dieringer of OSU scored a 17-5 major decision at 157 over Patrick Rhodes, matching the bonus point that Gilman earned for Iowa at 125.
All-American Kyle Crutchmer gave Oklahoma State a 13-10 lead at 174, in a back-and-forth match with Alex Meyer, 11-10. A third-period Crutchmer takedown was the key to the win.
Oklahoma State head coach John Smith praised the organizers of the event for the tremendous turnout, and said that he was very glad that the Cowboys were part of this historic event. However, he was not pleased with where his team was for its first match of the year.
“It was a tough match. There were a few things we didn’t appear to have today, not pushing the score when we had the opportunity to do it. It seemed like we let people stay in the match. We didn’t push the pace enough. November 14, I don’t know if we were ready to do that at this time of the season. It showed where we can really improve,” said Smith.
But when it was over, it was Brooks’ amazing match at 184 that turned the tide, and gave the thousands of Iowa fans in the stadium something to cheer about.
#4 University of Iowa (1-0, 0-0 B1G) 18
#1 Oklahoma State University (0-1, 0-0 Big12) 16
Wt./Match/Team Score
125 - #4 Thomas Gilman (I) maj. dec. #7 Eddie Klimara (OSU), 9-1 * (4-0)
133 - #2 Cory Clark (I) dec. Gary Wayne Harding (OSU), 8-2 ^ (7-0)
141 - #1 Dean Heil (OSU) dec. Logan Ryan (I), 7-1 (7-3)
149 - #3 Brandon Sorensen (I) dec. #8 Anthony Collica (OSU), 6-1 (10-3)
157 - #15 Chance Marsteller (OSU) dec. Edwin Cooper, Jr. (I), 14-11 (10-6)
165 - #1 Alex Dieringer (OSU) maj. dec. Patrick Rhoads (I), 17-5 (10-10)
174 - #4 Kyle Crutchmer (OSU) dec. #6 Alex Meyer (I), 11-10 (10-13)
184 - #12 Sammy Brooks (I) tech. fall Jordan Rogers (OSU), 17-2 in 4:09 (15-13)
197 - #4 Nathan Burak (I) dec. Nolan Boyd (OSU), 5-3 (18-13)
285 - #5 Austin Marsden (OSU) dec. Sam Stoll (I), 6-1 (18-16)
* - A warning was issued to both benches during the 125-pound match.
^ - Iowa was issued a mat-control warning after the 133-pound match.
Attendance: 42,287 (new NCAA dual match attendance record)
Officials: Jeff Cook, Rick Stahl
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