Iowa Hawkeyes had a successful performance in the consolation side of the bracket, with three of their wrestlers winning to secure All-America honors. Max Murin, Nelson Brands, and Jacob Warner won their matches to clinch their first career podium finish and secure their All-America nods. Real Woods advances to the NCAA finals at 141 pounds after going 4-0 with three major decisions in the four matches he competed in. Iowa’s Spencer Lee was upset by Purdue’s fourth-seeded Matt Ramos, ending his bid for a fourth NCAA title. Iowa’s wrestlers will compete in the consolation matchups, with Spencer Lee going up against Brandon Courtney, Max Murin against Kyle Parco, Nelson Brands against Chris Foca, Jacob Warner against Rocky Elam, and Tony Cassioppi against Zach Elam. Session V will begin on Saturday and will consist of the consolation semifinals and placement matches for third, fifth, and seventh place.
Iowa’s Real Woods Advances to NCAA Finals and Hawkeyes Crown 3 More All-Americans
University of Iowa senior Real Woods has advanced to the NCAA finals at 141 pounds, and the Hawkeyes have crowned three more All-Americans. On Friday night at the NCAA Championships at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Iowa went 6-for-6 on the consolation side of the bracket.
Woods dominated Nebraska’s fourth-seeded Brock Hardy from the start, securing a takedown in the opening 20 seconds, followed by a four-point near fall to take a 6-1 lead after the first round. In the third round, the New Mexico native sealed the win with a takedown and a two-point near fall to earn a major victory.
“I like to score points, and getting that done immediately is right on theme with what I’d like to do in my ideal match. I get out there and get right to it,” said Woods, who improves to 20-0 this season. “It is another step in accomplishing a dream that I set out since I was a little kid.”
Woods is now advancing to the NCAA final for the first time in his career. His win extends Iowa’s streak of having an NCAA finalist to 33 consecutive tournaments. The Hawkeyes have had at least one wrestler in the NCAA finals every year since 1990 and in 47 of the last 48 tournaments dating back to 1975.
Woods has now won four matches in Tulsa, with three major decisions, and he is outscoring his opponents 40-7. This season, he has a perfect 20-0 record with 12 bonus point wins and has allowed only 23 points in his 20 matches.
“Real is a fabulous competitor. He’s honest with himself and is sometimes too honest when he’s not feeling good,” said Brands. “When you don’t feel good, you make adjustments and honesty helps you make the right adjustments and quickly.”
Woods will face Northern Colorado’s Andrew Alirez in the final on Saturday. Woods previously beat the Bear grappler 5-4 during the Southern Scuffle in 2021 while competing for Stanford.
In the first semifinal of the evening, top-ranked Spencer Lee was upset by Purdue’s fourth-seeded Matt Ramos, ending his bid for a fourth NCAA title. Ramos took a 4-1 lead in the first with a takedown and two-point near fall before Lee tilted Ramos for four points in the second, taking a 5-4 lead. In the third, Ramos chose neutral and Lee got a takedown (given via replay), extending his lead to 7-4. Ramos then escaped with less than a minute remaining and took Lee feet to back before completing a fall in 6:59.
“He has a good support; his family is with him,” said Brands. “The cliché and easy thing to say is he has to move on, but it’s hard. This is really hard, but you still have to move on. As easy as it is to say, that is the next step… it seems cruel to say that. The next step is to take the next step.”
Overall, Iowa had an excellent showing, with Woods advancing to the finals and three more wrestlers, Max Murin, Kaleb Young, and Michael Kemerer, earning All-American honors.
Iowa Hawkeyes’ Backside Bracket Resurgence and All-American Honors
Iowa’s Tony Cassioppi lost by a 16-1 technical fall to Michigan’s Mason Parris at 285 in the semifinals. He dropped to the consolation side of the bracket and will compete to finish as high as third.
However, the Hawkeyes bounced back, going 6-for-6 in the Blood Round and consolation quarterfinals. Max Murin (149), Nelson Brands (174), and Jacob Warner (197) won and clinched All-American honors. They will finish no lower than sixth place on Saturday morning.
Murin secured his first career podium finish, winning a 3-2 decision over Michigan’s Chance Lamer in the Round of 16 and a 3-1 decision over Minnesota’s Michael Blockhus in sudden victory.
Brands won a 4-1 decision over Illinois’ Edmond Ruth and a 6-1 decision over Mizzou’s seventh-seeded Peyton Mocco to clinch his first career All-American nod.
Warner secured his third career top-six finish (and fifth All-American nod) by winning a 1-0 decision over Nebraska’s Silas Allred and a 4-2 decision over Cornell’s Jacob Cardenas.
Iowa is currently in second place in the standings with 77 points. Penn State is leading the team race with 116.5 points, followed by Cornell (64) and Ohio State (62).
OF NOTE
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Murin, Brands, and Warner’s All-American honors are 361st, 362nd, and 363rd in program history.
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Woods and Brands are the 162nd and 163rd All-Americans in school history.
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Iowa has had at least five All-Americans in ten straight seasons and 15 times in head coach Tom Brands’ 17 seasons.
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Iowa has crowned at least one All-American in 52 consecutive tournaments dating back to 1972.
QUOTING COACH BRANDS
Coach Brands praised Real Woods, who advanced to the NCAA finals, saying, “You have to look at Real Woods, got a win, did it for Spencer. We won six matches in a row on the backside; we did it for Spencer. Sometimes it is easy to fold up your tent when your leader goes down, but these guys are principled and awesome. It doesn’t take the sting away — the sting is always there — there are just so many things going on.”
SEMIFINAL RESULTS
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125 – #4 Matt Ramos (PUR) pinned #1 Spencer Lee (UI), 6:59
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141 – #1 Real Woods (UI) major dec. #4 Brock Hardy (NEB), 11-1
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285 – #1 Mason Parris (MICH) tech fall #4 Tony Cassioppi (UI), 16-1 (5:12)
CONSOLATION RESULTS
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149 – #9 Max Murin (UI) dec. #22 Chance Lamer (MICH), 3-2
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149 – #9 Max Murin (UI) dec. #10 Michael Blockhus (MINN), 3-1 (SV1)
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174 – #11 Nelson Brands (UI) dec. #9 Edmond Ruth (ILL), 4-1
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174 – #11 Nelson Brands (UI) dec. #7 Peyton Mocco (MIZZ), 6-1
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197 – #14 Jacob Warner (UI) dec. #8 Silas Allred (NEB), 1-0
Iowa Hawkeyes’ NCAA Wrestling Championships Consolation and Finals Matches
Jacob Warner of the Iowa Hawkeyes defeated Jacob Cardenas of Cornell University in the 197-pound weight class with a 4-2 decision.
Real Woods of Iowa will face off against Andrew Alirez of the University of Northern Colorado in the 141-pound finals. Meanwhile, the consolation matchups will feature Iowa’s Spencer Lee against Arizona State’s Brandon Courtney at 125 pounds, Max Murin against Kyle Parco of Arizona State at 149 pounds, Nelson Brands against Chris Foca of Cornell at 174 pounds, Jacob Warner against Rocky Elam of Missouri at 197 pounds, and Tony Cassioppi against Zach Elam of Missouri at 285 pounds.
The next session, Session V, will start at 10 a.m. (CT) on Saturday and will include the consolation semifinals and placement matches for third, fifth, and seventh place.
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