Inside The Hawkeyes

Hawkeye Wrestling Triumphs over Stanford in the Season Opener

Iowa begins the season prepared to make a run for this year's title, and Stephen Buchanan secures his 100th career win.

Izabelle Cool

Iowa's men's wrestling team looks to the flag for the National Anthem prior to the dual against Wisconsin on Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa.
Iowa's men's wrestling team looks to the flag for the National Anthem prior to the dual against Wisconsin on Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. / Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

In the first home dual of the season and the team's first meeting in program history, the No. 2 University of Iowa men's wrestling defeated No. 20 Stanford, 32-9.

Every Iowa starter was nationally ranked at their respective weight classes, including No. 4 senior Kyle Parco (149), No. 1 graduate Jacori Teemer (157), No. 2 junior Michael Caliendo (165) and No. 2 graduate Stephen Buchanan (197).

After beginning the dual with a forfeit win by No. 31 redshirt freshman Kale Petersen at 125-pounds, Parco defeated No. 12 sixth-year Jaden Abas from Stanford by a technical fall, 15-0. Parco had 12 points in near fall and finished with a takedown in the third period to secure the win.

Parco leads 5-0 all-time against Abas during their wrestling careers. The last time they met, Parco was with Arizona State and defeated Abas in a 5-1 decision. Parco's younger brother, EJ Parco, also wrestles at 149-pounds for Stanford, and the two almost competed against each other.

"I've been in so many matches and team situations where a guy or two might lose before me, so there might be a little more pressure, but I'm a veteran. I'm really skilled in that position. Mentally, I'm very strong."

- Parco in a post dual interview

No. 1 Teemer (157) received a major decision over freshman Grigor Cholakyan (Stanford) 13-3 late in the third period to remain on top in the weight class.

Buchanan made an impressive debut in the black and gold uniform, showcasing his skills on the mat for Hawkeye fans. He received a technical fall against Stanford's No. 17 fifth-year Nick Stemmet (Stanford) to defeat him 17-1.

To conclude the afternoon in the heavyweights, No. 11 redshirt freshman Ben Kueter (285) also got a technical fall against Stanford's redshirt freshman Jackson Mankowski, winning 19-4 and securing the Hawkeyes' victory with a score of 32-9.

Meet the 2024-25 Current Hawkeye Starting 10

125-pounds - No. 31 Kale Petersen
Redshirt freshman Petersen redshirted his freshman year and recorded a 3-2 record in the duals and wrestling opens he participated in while unattached at 133-pounds. He achieved an upset last season against No. 12 Columbia senior Angelo Rini at the annual Iowa City Area Sports Commission Soldier Salute, placing fourth at 133-pounds. Additionally, he finished second at the Pat "Flash" Flanagan Open. This season, Petersen aims to come out strong and secure a spot as a starter on the roster.

133-pounds - No. 7 Drake Ayala
Junior Ayala finished last season at the NCAA Wrestling Championships in second place and placed third at the Big Ten Championships. He boasts a 27-5 2023-24 season record, including two ranked victories over No. 1 Purdue redshirt senior Matt Ramos and No. 2 Penn State sophomore Braeden Davis. In his second year with the Hawkeyes, Ayala chose to compete unattached and had a 13-1 record, and won titles in his weight class at the UNI Open, Flanagan Open and Don Parker Open.

Ayala lost today in a major upset against No. 23 Stanford redshirt freshman Tyler Knox 10-15.


141 pounds - No. 31 Ryder Block
Redshirt freshman Block is new to the Iowa mat despite being a redshirt freshman. Before joining the Hawkeyes, he was a three-time undefeated state champion at Wavery-Shell Rock High School in Waverly, Iowa. Block was also a two-time Fargo National Champion and boasted a 159-1 high school record.

149-pounds - No. 4 Kyle Parco
Parco is new to the Hawkeyes after competing for Arizona State for three seasons and before that at Fresno State. In the 2023-24 season, Parco became a four-time All-American and placed fifth at the 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships. He is one of eight in Sun Devil History to have earned the All-American honors four times. He finished 25-4 on the season.

During his 2022-23 season, he won the Pac-12 championship at 149-pounds, had a 14-match winning streak and finished fourth at the 2023 NCAA Championships.

157-pounds - No. 1 Jacori Teemer
Teemer is also a former Sun Devil and placed second at the 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships after falling to Penn State's Levi Haines. He joins Parco as one of the eight Sun Devils to earn All-American status four times. Teemer also won four Pac-12 Conference Titles at 157-pounds and he joined seven other wrestlers in Pac-12 Conference history to win four conference titles.

165-pounds - No. 2 Michael Caliendo
Caliendo returns this season after placing fourth at 165-pounds at the NCAA Wrestling Championship, where he received All-American honors and defeated Cornells' No. 3 senior Julian Ramirez. He placed 3rd at the Big Ten Championships after finishing the season with a 28-6 record. Many of his wins were in bonus points, including eight technical falls and two pins.

174-pounds - No. 6 Nelson Brands
Brands did not compete last season; however, during the 2022-23 season, he became an NCAA All-American after placing fifth at the 2023 NCAA Wrestling Championships. That season, Brands had a 15-8 overall record with only one major decision and went 0-8 against ranked opponents. However, he was ranked as high as eleventh nationally and finished fifth at the 2023 Big Ten Championships.

Brands fell to No. 17 Stanford redshirt freshman Lorenzo Norman 1-4 today in a major upset.

184-pounds - No. 9 Gabe Arnold
During Arnold's redshirt season last year, he wrestled 8-1 attached and 12-1 overall. His highest-ranked win was over No. 6 Iowa State senior Will Feldkamp, and his only loss of the season was to No. 2 Oklahoma State senior Dustin Plott in the Hawkeye's last dual of the season. He was the 174-pound champion at the 2023-24 Solider Salute and the Luther Open at 174-pound.

197-pounds - No. 2 Stephen Buchanan
Last season, Buchanan won the Sooners and had a 29-3 record at 197 pounds in his first and only season with the school. He finished third at the Big 12 championships and competed at the 2024 NCAA Championships as the No. 8 wrestler in his respective weight class. He placed third at the 2024 NCAA championship and became Oklahoma's highest NCAA finisher since 2016.

While with Wyoming, Buchanan became the fourth two-time All-American in program history and finished third at the 2022 NCAA Wrestling championship. He also was the fourth Wyoming wrestler to win a Big 12 title.


285-pounds - No. 11 Ben Kueter
Keuter just finished second on Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024, at the U20 World Championships and is now a two-time U20 World medalist after winning gold in 2022 at 97kg. Keuter is a two-sport athlete and is a linebacker for Iowa's football team. However, he did not play at all last season and redshirted in wrestling.

During Kueter's redshirt season, he was 2-1 against ranked opponents, including a 5-3 win over then No. 29 Bennet Tabor from Minnesota and a 5-1 victory over then No. 11 Konne Doucet from Oklahoma State.

Iowa will travel to Louisville, Kentucky, for a dual at Bellarmine on Friday, November 15. The dual will begin at 6 p.m. and be available to listen to on Hawkeye Radio Network.

Published
Izabelle Cool
IZABELLE COOL

Izabelle is a senior at the University of Missouri studying Sports Broadcast Journalism and Sociology. She's from Kansas City, Mo., and has covered wrestling since 2023. Previously, she covered wrestling, soccer, and tennis for the student newspaper The Maneater.

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