DES MOINES, Iowa – Four Iowa State wrestlers have advanced to the round of 12 at the NCAA Championships. With one win, each Cyclone will be a lock for the All-American podium.
Senior Matt Gibson and sophomore Michael Moreno led the Cyclones in session three, as they each went 4-0, racking up three pins. Gibson avenged a late season 9-1 major decision loss to No. 8 seed Mike McClure, pinning the Michigan State senior in the first period.
Gibson will face No. 11 seed J.T. Felix this evening. Felix is the 2013 Pac-12 Champion at heavyweight. The two have met once previously, Felix defeated Gibson 4-2 at the National Duals in the 2010-11 season.
Michael Moreno rolled through his session three opponents. In his first match, Moreno locked up a cradle on the edge to get the fall over Stanford’s Bret Baumbach. In his second match, Moreno provided one of the highlights of the day locking up a rare move called the “spradle” to get a late second period pin over Ohio State’s Mark Martin.
First-time NCAA qualifier Kyven Gadson went 2-0 in session three to clinch a spot in the round of 12 at 197 this evening. Gadson defeated the No. 12 seed Brett Haynes of Missouri in his first match 6-3 and then took down Rich Perry of Bloomsburg 4-3 in his second match. The Waterloo, Iowa native racked up 3:54 seconds of riding time in his two matches today.
Gadson faces a familiar foe in Penn’s Micah Burak tonight. The two faced off in the dual between the Cyclones and Quakers back on Jan. 13 in Philadelphia. Gadson was victorious 3-1.
Upset-minded freshman Tanner Weatherman is into the round of 12 tonight as well, despite dropping a 13-5 major decision to No. 2 seed Matt Brown of Penn State in the quarterfinals at 174 pounds today.
Wrestling resumes at 6 p.m. this evening at Wells Fargo Arena. All of session four will be televised lived by ESPNU.
Match-By-Match Results:
165: Michael Moreno (ISU) WBF Bret Baumbach (Stanford), 3:37
Michael Moreno (ISU) WBF Mark Martin (Ohio State), 4:27
174: No. 2 Matt Brown (Penn State) maj. dec. Tanner Weatherman (ISU), 13-5
184: No. 11 Mike Larson (Missouri) dec. Boaz Beard (ISU), 2-1
197: No. 6 Kyven Gadson (ISU) dec. Brent Haynes (Missouri), 6-3
Kyven Gadson (ISU) dec. Rich Perry (Bloomsburg), 4-3
285: Matt Gibson (ISU) dec. Evan Knutson (NDSU), 4-2
Matt Gibson (ISU) WBF No. 8 Mike McClure (Michigan State), 1:34
Round of 12 Matchups:
165: Michael Moreno (ISU) vs. No. 12 Tyler Massa (Michigan); no previous meetings
174: Tanner Weatherman (ISU) vs. Cody Walters (Ohio); no previous meetings
197: Kyven Gadson (ISU) vs. Michael Burak (Penn); Gadson won only meeting 3-1
285: Matt Gibson (ISU) vs. J.T. Felix (Boise State); Felix won only meeting 4-2
Team Standings:
1. Penn State – 77.5 (points)
2. Oklahoma State – 65.5
3. Minnesota – 49.5
4. Iowa – 39
5. Missouri – 38.5
6. Cornell – 37
7. Ohio State – 30.5
8t. Edinboro – 27
8t. Nebraska – 27
10. Oregon State – 26
11. Virginia Tech – 23
12. Boise State – 22
13t. Illinois – 22
13t. Oklahoma – 22
16. Iowa State – 20.5
17. Central Michigan – 20
18. Northwestern – 18.5
19. Pittsburgh – 17
20t. Kent State – 13
20t. The Citadel – 13
