Ames, Iowa – The seventh-ranked Iowa State wrestlers closed out the dual season with a 22-21 loss at the hands of fifth-ranked Nebraska Sunday afternoon Hilton Coliseum. Nate Gallick and Jesse Sundell scored wins in their final home match as they were honored on Senior Day. The Cyclones (11-7, 1-3) and Huskers (12-5, 2-2) split the matches but Nebraska managed bonus points in three weight classes.
The dual opened at 157 pounds where third-ranked All-American Trent Paulson injured his leg in the opening period against Nebraska’s Chris Oliver attempting a shot.
“Trent will be okay, “said Iowa State head coach Bobby Douglas. “There is no reason to risk a further injury when the Big 12 meet is two weeks away.”
Travis Paulson followed with a major decision David Ingalls, 12-3, at 165 pounds. Ingalls, who normally wrestles at 149 pounds, was a replacement starter for No. 15 ranked Marc Harwood.
Sophomore David Bertolino was in on the leg of Nebraska’s fourth-ranked All-American Jacob Klein at 174 pounds multiple times but was unable to convert his shots into points. Bertolino fell to 15-13 on the season as Klein earned a second-period escape and riding time to take the match, 2-0.
ISU’s All-American 184-pounder Kurt Backes continued his domination over wrestlers from his home state of New Jersey. Two weeks removed after throttling Penn State’s top-ranked All-American Eric Bradley (Plaistow, N.J.) with a 10-2 major decision, he registered a technical fall against 11th ranked true freshman Vince Jones (Sicklerville, N.J.), 19-3, to tie the dual at nine. Backes scored a takedown and two-point nearfall in the opening minute and tacked on a three-point nearfall as he was riding Jones in the first period. Jones dropped just his fifth match of the season as Backes finished the dual season with an 18-5 record including a perfect 4-0 conference mark.
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Nebraska would win the next three matches with two resulting in bonus points. A major decision from senior All-American B.J. Padden (197), a decision from heavyweight Jon May and a pin from ninth-ranked 125-pounder Paul Donahoe gave Nebraska a 22-9 lead.
Sundell chipped into the deficit by scoring his sixth fall of the season in his final home match against Husker Patrick Aleksanyan at 133 pounds at the 6:26 mark. Sundell avenged a 9-5 loss to Aleksanyan earlier in the season at the Kaufman-Brand Open.
“We ended up in a position where I have had a lot of success, “Sundell said. “It was great to wrestle your last (regular season) match and have it end that way.”
Two-time All-American Nate Gallick earned his 102nd career win over No. 18 Dominick Moyer at 141 pounds. Grant Nakamura, a three-time 125-pound NCAA qualifier whose career came to an end after off-season shoulder surgery, was also honored during Senior Day.
With the Cyclones trailing by four and needing bonus points heading into the final match, Aron Scott closed out the dual with a 6-5 decision over Robert Sanders at 149 pounds. Scott, who hadn’t seen action since the Oklahoma State dual, scored a takedown in the closing seconds to overcome riding time and win the match.
Iowa State hosts the Big 12 Championships March 4. The Cyclones placed third and qualified eight for the NCAA Championships last season. Gallick will be aiming for his third consecutive Big 12 crown while Backes will be defending his first conference title.
Nebraska 22, Iowa State 21
157 – Chris Oliver inj. def. Trent Paulson (ISU)
165 – Travis Paulson (ISU) maj. dec. David Ingalls, 12-3
174 – Jacob Klein dec. David Bertolino (ISU), 2-0
184 – Kurt Backes (ISU) tech. fall Vince Jones, 19-3 (6:40)
197 – B.J. Padden maj. dec. Joe Curran (ISU), 19-5
HWT – Jon May dec. Richard Schopf (ISU), 4-0
125 – Paul Donahoe pinned Ben Hanisch (ISU), 4:20
133 – Jesse Sundell (ISU) pinned Patrick Aleksanyan, 6:26
141 – Nate Gallick (ISU) dec. Dominick Moyer, 3-1
149 – Aron Scott (ISU) dec. Robert Sanders, 6-5
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