Iowa takes Big Ten team title with three individual champions

Photo of Pat Lugo courtesy of Josh Conklin

Piscataway, N.J. – The Iowa Hawkeyes claimed their first Big Ten title since 2015 this afternoon at the sold out Rutgers Athletic Center. The 2020 Big Ten tournament was objectively the toughest conference tournament this year and featured the top two ranked wrestlers in the country clashing in the finals of five weight classes.

In 2015, the Hawkeyes earned co-champion status with Ohio State, who tied them at the top of the heap. This year, after putting up 157.5 team points, Iowa didn’t have to share their trophy. Nebraska finished in second with 132 points, and Ohio State finished in third with 112. The reigning champions Penn State finished in fourth with 107 points.

After the tournament, Iowa Head Coach Tom Brands praised his team’s effort.

“Job well done. We’re not downplaying this. The reason this gets downplayed is because there is another important event, and it’s clichéd but we have to get ready and there is work to do. We definitely give ourselves credit too… We appreciate a job well done, and that was a job well done. It was a battle,” Brands said.

Two-time NCAA champion Spencer Lee set the pace for his fellow Hawkeyes in the first finals match of the afternoon at 125 pounds. Lee dominated Purdue’s Devin Schroder for a, 16-2, major decision. Prior to the finals, Lee recorded a fall in the quarterfinals over Nicolas Aguilar of Rutgers and a,19-3, technical fall over Michigan’s Jack Medley. Heading into the NCAA tournament, Lee is 18-0 with 17 bonus point victories.

Shockingly, this is Lee’s first Big Ten title. In 2018, he fell to Ohio State’s Nathan Tomasello in the semifinals, a loss he would later avenge at the NCAA tournament, and finished third. In 2019, he placed second to Sebastian Rivera of Northwestern.

Rivera bumped up to 133 pounds this year and took home another title in arguably the toughest bracket in any conference tournament across the country. In the semifinals, he defeated Seth Gross of Wisconsin, 7-6. Gross is currently ranked No. 1 by Flowrestling.

Waiting for him in the finals was Roman Bravo-Young of Penn State. Bravo-Young, who is ranked fourth, defeated No. 2 Austin DeSanto of Iowa, 3-2, in the semifinals. Rivera, who currently holds the No. 3 ranking, dispatched of his Nittany Lion opponent with a, 7-2, decision to claim his second-straight title.

The next Hawkeye to win a title was Pat Lugo at 149 pounds. In a meeting of the top-ranked wrestlers in the country, Lugo defeated No. 1 Sammy Sasso of Ohio State, 2-1. Lugo and Sasso met twice previously, with Sasso eking out a, 6-4, sudden victory win at the 2018 Midlands Championships and a, 2-1, tiebreaker decision in a dual meet this January.

Alex Marinelli was the third Hawkeye to take home a Big Ten title. In another bout between the No. 1 and No. 2 wrestlers in the country, Marinelli bested rival, two-time NCAA champion, Vincenzo Joseph of Penn State, 3-2. Marinelli clinched the match with a takedown with 10 seconds remaining in the third period. Joseph quickly escaped but there was not enough time to attempt a takedown of his own. Marinelli now holds a 3-1 advantage in the series.

At 174 pounds, Penn State won another No. 1 vs. No. 2 battle with Iowa. Three-time NCAA finalist and 2017 NCAA champion Mark Hall defeated Iowa’s Michael Kemerer, 8-5. In the second period, Hall picked up a takedown and two near fall points after putting Kemerer in the danger zone following a scramble from a shot. This proved to be the difference in the match. Hall’s lone loss on the season came to Kemerer at the Iowa vs. Penn State dual, 11-6.

Luke Pletcher of Ohio State was another wrestler to exact revenge on the current No. 1 wrestler in the country. In the 141 pound finals, Pletcher, currently ranked No. 2, defeated Penn State’s Nick Lee, 6-5. Pletcher, who now touts a 26-1 record, lost to Lee, 8-4, in February.

The final battle between top-ranked wrestlers occurred at 285 pounds. Minnesota’s Gable Steveson extended his perfect record to 15-0 after defeating previously unbeaten Mason Parris of Michigan, 8-6. Parris is now 28-1.

Another wrestler heading into the NCAA tournament with an unblemished record is Ohio State’s Kollin Moore. Now a three-time Big Ten champion, Moore defeated Nebraska’s Eric Schultz, 4-1, in the finals, pushing his record to 27-0.

Also undefeated on the season, Northwestern’s Ryan Deakin claimed his first Big Ten title with a, 7-2, victory over Purdue’s Kendall Coleman. Deakin now boasts a 21-0 record.

Penn State’s second Big Ten champion was Aaron Brooks at 184 pounds. Brooks was the sole freshman to win a title. In the finals he defeated Michigan State’s Cameron Caffey, 3-2.

The teams will now have some time to prepare and recover before the NCAA Tournament, which will take place March 19-21 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn.

Finals results (with seeds)
125 - No. 1 Spencer Lee (Iowa) maj,dec. No. 2 Devin Schroder (Purdue), 16-2
133 - No. 5 Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern) dec. No. 2 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State), 7-2
141 - No. 2 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State) dec. No. 1 Nick Lee (Penn State), 6-5
149 - No. 2 Pat Lugo (Iowa) dec. No. 1 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State), 2-1
157 - No. 1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) dec. No. 3 Kendall Coleman (Purdue), 7-2
165 - No. 2 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) dec. No. 1 Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State), 3-2
174 - No. 2 Mark Hall (Penn State) dec. No. 1 Michael Kemerer (Iowa), 8-5
184 - No. 1 Aaron Brooks (Penn State) dec. No. 2 Cameron Caffey (Michigan State), 3-2
197 - No. 1 Kollin Moore (Ohio State) vs. No. 2 Eric Schultz (Nebraska), 4-1
285 - No. 2 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) dec. No. 1 Mason Parris (Michigan), 8-6
3RD PLACE
125 - Michael Deaugustino (Northwestern) DEC Jack Medley (Michigan), 3-2
133 - Seth Gross (Wisconsin) DEC Austin Desanto (Iowa), 6-3
141 - Chad Red jr. Lincoln, NE (Nebraska) MD Tristan Moran (Wisconsin), 12-3
149 - Collin Purinton (Nebraska) DEC Brayton Lee (Minnesota), 3-0
157 - Peyton Robb (Nebraska) DEC Eric Barone (Illinois), 5-4
165 - Isaiah White (Nebraska) DEC Ethan Smith (Ohio State), 3-2
174 - Dylan Lydy (Purdue) DEC Kaleb Romero (Ohio State), 3-1 SV
184 - Taylor Venz (Nebraska) DEC Abe Assad (Iowa), 6-4
197 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) DEF Shakur Rasheed (Penn State), 4-1 3:00
285 - Anthony Cassioppi (Iowa) DEC Trent Hillger (Wisconsin), 4-0
5TH PLACE
125 - Liam Cronin (Indiana) F Alex Thomsen (Nebraska), 4:09
133 - Travis Piotrowski (Illinois) DEC Sammy Alvarez Garfield, NJ (Rutgers), 5-3 SV
141 - Max Murin (Iowa) M FOR Mitchell Mckee Hanover, MN (Minnesota)
149 - Kanen Storr (Michigan) DEC Griffin Parriott (Purdue), 5-3 SV
157 - Will Lewan (Michigan) M FOR Jake Tucker East Lansing, MI (Michigan State)
165 - Shayne Oster (Northwestern) DEC Danny Braunagel (Illinois), 8-4
174 - Devin Skatzka (Minnesota) DEC Michael Labriola Easton, PA (Nebraska), 8-3
184 - Rocky Jordan (Ohio State) DEC Max Lyon (Purdue), 6-1
197 - Lucas Davison (Northwestern) M FOR Christian Brunner (Purdue)
285 - David Jensen (Nebraska) DEC Gary Traub (Ohio State), 6-0
7TH PLACE
125 - Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) DEC Logan Griffin (Michigan State), 8-4
133 - Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) DEC Joey Silva (Michigan), 4-3
141 - Dylan Duncan (Illinois) DEC Parker Filius (Purdue), 3-1
149 - Alex Hrisopoulos (Michigan State) F Cole Martin (Wisconsin), 2:46
157 - Michael Van brill New Brunswick, NJ (Rutgers) F Garrett Model (Wisconsin), 2:23
165 - Drew Hughes (Michigan State) DEC Tyler Meisinger (Michigan), 6-2
174 - Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) DEC Joey Gunther (Illinois), 5-2
197 - Jackson Striggow (Michigan) DEC Hunter Ritter (Minn esota), 9-2
285 - Thomas Penola (Purdue) DEC Luke Luffman (Illinois), 3-2

9TH PLACE
125 – Nicolas Aguilar (Rutgers) DEC Eric Barnett (Wisconsin), 7-5
141 – Cole Mattin (Michigan) MD Alec McKenna (Northwestern), 11-3
149 – Jarod Verkleeren (Penn State) DEC Graham Rooks (Indiana), 6-4
165 – Bailee O’Reilly (Penn State) FALL Diego Lemley (Indiana), 1:01
174 – Jared Krattiger (Wisconsin) DEC Philip Spadafora (Maryland), 4-1
184 – Zachary Braunagel (Illinois) DEC Billy Janzer (Rutgers), 7-2
Big Ten Conference standings
1 Iowa 157.5
2 Nebraska 132
3 Ohio State 112
4 Penn State 107
5 Purdue 83-
6 Northwestern 79.5
7 Michigan 73
8 Minnesota 63.5
9 Wisconsin 62.5
10 Michigan State 57
11 Illinois 49
12 Rutgers 25.5
13 Indiana 14.5
14 Maryland 0 

NCAA automatic qualifiers by weight (79)

125 pounds (8)
Spencer Lee (Iowa)
Devin Schroder (Purdue)
Jack Medley (Michigan)
Michael DeAugustio (Northwestern)
Liam Cronin (Indiana)
Alex Thomsen (Nebraska)
Malik Heinselman (Ohio State)
Logan Griffin (Michigan State)

133 pounds (7)
Sebastian Rivera (Northwestern)
Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State)
Austin DeSanto (Iowa)
Seth Gross (Wisconsin)
Travis Piotrowski (Illinois)
Sammy Alvarez (Rutgers)
Ridge Lovett (Nebraska)

141 pounds (8)
Luke Pletcher (Ohio State)
Nick Lee (Penn State)
Chad Red (Nebraska)
Tristan Moran (Wisconsin)
Max Murin (Iowa)
Mitch McKee (Minnesota)
Dylan Duncan (Illinois)
Parker Filius (Purdue)

149 pounds (10)
Pat Lugo (Iowa)
Sammy Sasso ( Ohio State)
Brayton Lee (Minnesota)
Collin Purinton (Nebraska)
Kanen Storr (Michigan)
Griffin Parriott (Purdue)
Alex Hrisopoulos (Michigan State)
Cole Martin (Wisconsin)
Jarod Verkleeren (Penn State)
Graham Rooks (Indiana)

157 pounds (6)
Ryan Deakin (Northwestern)
Kendall Coleman (Purdue)
Peyton Robb (Nebraska)
Eric Barone (Illinois)
Will Lewan (Michigan)
Jake Tucker (Michigan State)

165 pounds (8)
Alex Marinelli (Iowa)
Vincenzo Joseph (Penn State)
Isaiah White (Nebraska)
Ethan Smith (Ohio State)
Danny Braunagel (Illinois)
Shayne Oster (Northwestern)
Drew Hughes (Michigan State)
Tyler Mesinger (Michigan)

174 pounds (9)
Mark Hall (Penn State)
Michael Kemerer (Iowa)
Dylan Lydy (Purdue)
Kaleb Romero (Ohio State)
Michael Labriola (Nebraska)
Devin Skatzka (Minnesota)
Layne Malczewski (Michigan State)
Joey Gunther (Illinois)
Jared Krattiger (Wisconsin)

184 pounds (10)
Aaron Brooks (Penn State)
Cameron Caffey (Michigan State)
Abe Assad (Iowa)
Taylor Venz (Nebraska)
Rocky Jordan (Ohio State)
Max Lyon (Purdue)
Johnny Sebastian (Wisconsin)
Jelani Embree (Michigan)
Zachary Braunagel (Illinois)
Billy Janzer (Rutgers)

197 pounds (6)
Kollin Moore (Ohio State)
Eric Schultz (Nebraska)
Jacob Warner (Iowa)
Shakur Rasheed (Penn State)
Lucas Davison (Northwestern)
Christian Brunner (Purdue)

285 pounds (7)
Gable Steveson (Minnesota)
Mason Parris (Michigan)
Anthony Cassioppi (Iowa)
Trent Hillger (Wisconsin)
David Jensen (Nebraska)
Gary Traub (Ohio State)
Thomas Penola (Purdue)