Iowa hangs on against Edinboro

EDINBORO, Pa. -- The University of Iowa wrestling team won five of the final six bouts to rally past No. 15 Edinboro, 22-19, tonight inside McComb Fieldhouse.

"It was nice to battle back and get the dual win," said UI head coach Tom Brands, "but we have a lot of work to do. We need to deal with tough situations better. They put together some wins, and it created some tightness and frustration. We need to go beyond that, stay aggressive, and score points."

Iowa trailed 13-4 before stringing together five consecutive wins beginning at 157 pounds, where Derek St. John scored a pair of takedowns in the final period to defeat Johnny Greisheime, 13-5. The major decision pulled Iowa within five points, 13-8, heading into the intermission.

The Hawkeye rally continued at 165, where Nick Moore cut the lead to two points, 13-11, with an 11-4 decision. Mike Evans then closed the gap completely and gave Iowa the lead for good, 15-13, with a 13-5 major decision at 174.

Ethen Lofthouse extended Iowa's lead to 18-13 with a 3-2 win at 184, and Sammy Brooks clinched the victory with an 11-0 win at 197.

Brooks and Vince Pickett wrestled through a scoreless first period before Brooks turned Pickett three times in the second for eight nearfall points. He added a takedown in the third and added 3:50 riding time for the final 11-0 win.

"I would like to have get a couple scores in the first period, but it felt good," said Brooks. "He was giving me his wrist and I was wrestling aggressive on top. If he was going to keep giving it to me, I was going to take it over and over again."

Thomas Gilman spotted Iowa a 4-0 lead with a major decision at 125 pounds. Gilman, who was making his collegiate dual debut, used five takedowns and 3:33 of riding time to top 17th-ranked Kory Mines, 12-3.

"It was nice to go out and get the early takedown," said Gilman, who compiled 1:58 of riding time in the first period. "When there are points on the board you wrestle a lot less stiff, so I was able to get loose and gain some confidence. It was nice to get out there, wrestle hard, and score points."

Edinboro won three straight bouts at 133, 141, and 149. Eighth-ranked A.J. Schopp used a third-period escape to defeat top-ranked Tony Ramos, 3-2, at 133. Second-ranked Mitchell Port pinned No. 13 Josh Dziewa at 141, and 10th-ranked Dave Habat defeated Brody Grothus, 13-5, at 149.

"We made it hard on ourselves," said Brands, "but we also had guys that wrestled hard. Battling back for the dual win is a testament to their toughness."

Iowa returns to the mat Thursday, Dec. 12, at 7 p.m. (CT) when Buffalo visits Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Admission is $12 for adults and $8 for youth. Children five years old and younger are admitted free. Contact the UI Athletics Ticket Office for further ticket information.

NOTES: Attendance was 3,152... Mike Evans improved to 10-0 with 10 bonus point victories... Iowa improved to 7-0 all-time against Edinboro.

Results:
125 - Thomas Gilman (IA) major dec. #17 Kory Mines (EU), 12-3; 4-0
133 - #8 A.J. Schopp (EU) dec. #1 Tony Ramos (IA), 3-2; 4-3
141 - #2 Mitchell Port (EU) pinned #13 Josh Dziewa, 3:47; 4-9
149 - #10 Dave Habat (EU) major dec. Brody Grothus (IA), 13-5; 4-13
157 - #1 Derek St. John (IA) major dec. Johnny Greisheimer (EU), 13-5; 8-13
165 - #4Nick Moore (IA) dec. Zach Towers (EU), 11-4; 11-13
174 - #6 Mike Evans (IA) major dec. Patrick Jennings (EU), 13-5; 15-13
184 - #2 Ethen Lofthouse (IA) dec. Nicholas Mitchell (EU), 3-2; 18-13
197 - Sammy Brooks (IA) major dec. Vince Pickett (EU), 11-0; 22-13
285 - Ernest James (EU) pinned Tomas Lira (IA), 2:10; 22-19