UNI wrestling falls to both Missouri and Virginia Tech in first duals of the season

Cody Goodwin, Des Moines Register
·3 min read

It was a rough Saturday afternoon for the Northern Iowa wrestling team.

The 24th-ranked Panthers dropped their first two duals of the 2021-22 season — 25-16 to No. 12 Missouri, then 39-3 to No. 10 Virginia Tech — at Mizzou's Hearnes Center in Columbia, Missouri.

Against Mizzou, Northern Iowa actually led 13-0 after the first three weights. Brody Teske, ranked 11th nationally at 125 pounds, turned a 4-4 tie into a third-period pin over 18th-ranked Noah Surtin. Kyle Biscoglia followed with a 10-0 major decision over Trey Crawford at 133 and Cael Happel won a wild 9-7 match over Allan Hart at 141.

But the Tigers responded by winning six of the next seven matches, a run that included pins from both Keegan O'Toole (over Cayd Lara at 165) and Jeremiah Kent (at 184). Sandwiched between them was Northern Iowa's only win in that stretch, an impressive 11-9 win from Pat Schoenfelder over 9th-ranked Peyton Mocco at 174 pounds.

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Against Virginia Tech, Northern Iowa again took an early lead, thanks to Teske's 6-4 win over 12th-ranked Sam Latona at 125. But the Hokies won the next nine matches in a row to storm to victory. The run was punctuated by four pins, including three in a row between 174 and 197 pounds.

Northern Iowa did not have a few usual starters in either matchup, like Austin Yant (165) and All-American Parker Keckeisen (184). Colin Realbuto got the nod at 149 over Triston Lara, a returning NCAA qualifier, but dropped both matches — 7-4 to Missouri's Josh Edmond, then a 39-second pin against Virginia Tech's Bryce Andonian.

The Panthers return to action next Saturday, Dec. 11, at the UNI-Open at the UNI Dome in Cedar Falls.

Cody Goodwin covers wrestling and high school sports for the Des Moines Register. Follow him on Twitter at @codygoodwin.

No. 12 Mizzou 25, No. 24 Northern Iowa 16

  • 125: Brody Teske (UNI) pinned Noah Surtin (MIZ), in 5:58

  • 133: Kyle Biscoglia (UNI) maj. dec. Trey Crawford (MIZ), 10-0

  • 141: Cael Happel (UNI) dec. Allan Hart (MIZ), 9-7

  • 149: Josh Edmond (MIZ) dec. Colin Realbuto (UNI), 7-4

  • 157: Jarrett Jacques (MIZ) dec. Kaleb Olejniczak (UNI), 4-2

  • 165: Keegan O'Toole (MIZ) pinned Cayd Lara (UNI) in 5:31

  • 174: Pat Schoenfelder (UNI) dec. Peyton Mocco (MIZ), 11-9

  • 184: Jeremiah Kent (MIZ) pinned Dajun Johnson (UNI) in 2:02

  • 197: Rocky Elam (MIZ) maj. dec. Noah Glaser (UNI), 12-4

  • 285: Zach Elam (MIZ) dec. Tyrell Gordon (UNI), 5-2

No. 10 Virginia Tech 39, No. 24 Northern Iowa 3

  • 125: Brody Teske (UNI) dec. Sam Latona (VT), 6-4

  • 133: Korbin Myers (VT) dec. Kyle Biscoglia (UNI), 6-4 (SV)

  • 141: Collin Gerardi (VT) dec. Cael Happel (UNI), 3-2

  • 149: Bryce Andonian (VT) pinned Colin Realbuto (UNI) in 0:39

  • 157: Connor Brady (VT) dec. Cayd Lara (UNI), 3-2

  • 165: Clayton Ulrey (VT) dec. Derek Holschlag (UNI), 9-7 (SV)

  • 174: Mekhi Lewis (VT) pinned Pat Schoenfelder (UNI) in 1:31

  • 184: Hunter Bolen (VT) pinned Dajun Johnson (UNI) in 1:50

  • 197: Cody Howard (VT) pinned Noah Glaser (UNI) in 6:56

  • 285: Nathan Traxler (VT) dec. Tyrell Gordon (UNI), 4-3

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Northern Iowa wrestling falls to both Mizzou, Virginia Tech