NASHVILLE, Tenn. – No. 6 Iowa State (6-1, 0-0 Big 12) ended 2023 on a high note with a 3-0 outing, including a pair of top-15 wins, at the Collegiate Duals. The Cyclones notched victories over No. 13 Pittsburgh, Little Rock and No. 5 Cornell Monday at Montgomery Bell Academy.
In the day’s first contest, Iowa State took six of 10 matches from Pittsburgh as the Cyclones prevailed, 21-14. ISU trounced Little Rock, 31-9, before topping No. 5 Cornell, 26-15, in the day’s final dual.
Anothony Echemendia highlighted the day with major decisions against two top-16 opponents. He defeated Pitt’s No. 15 Cole Mathews, 12-3, and Cornell’s Vince Cornella, 13-4.
Cody Chittum, a Cleveland, Tennessee native, returned to his home state and went 3-0 with a pair of bonus-point victories.
Heavyweight Yonger Bastida was the third Cyclone to go 3-0 on the day. All three of his victories were over ranked opponents and he improved his takedown ratio to 52:1 this season.
No. 6 Iowa State 21, No. 13 Pittsburgh 14
Kysen Terukina started the dual with a decision against Colton Camacho, 6-4, at 125 pounds. The Hawaii native used a third-period takedown to overcome a pair of reversals from Camacho.
No. 8 Evan Frost won a thriller in sudden victory against No. 23 Vinnie Santaniello at 133 pounds. The Cyclone earned an escape with one second left in the third period to tie the match, 6-6, before securing the winning takedown in sudden victory.
No. 14 Echemendia was prolific on his feet, using three takedowns and a feet-to-back move to pick up a 12-3 major decision against returning All-American No. 15 Cole Matthews.
At 157 pounds, No. 21 Chittum began his return home with a dominant 13-2 major decision over Jared Keslar.
No. 4 David Carr earned another victory over a top-10 opponent with a 9-1 decision against No. 8 Holden Heller. Carr led, 7-1, late in the third but pushed the pace to earn two stall calls to pair with his riding time point and secure the bonus point.
Pitt rattled off three consecutive wins at 174, 184 and 197, including two with bonus points, to bring the team score to 18-14 with one match remaining.
The dual came down to a top-10 heavyweight bout between No. 3 Bastida and No. 10 Dayton Pitzer. Bastida earned a pair of takedowns and fended off a late Pitzer attack to seal the dual with a 6-3 decision.
No. 6 Iowa State 31, Little Rock 9
Ethan Perryman got the call at 125 pounds for the Cyclones. He defeated Little Rock’s Jeremiah Reno, 10-9, to get ISU on the board.
Echemendia put on another takedown clinic at 141 pounds. He tallied six takedowns, including four in the third period, to win by major decision over Brennan Van Hoecke. 19-6.
Zach Redding picked up his first dual victory of the year for Iowa State with a 9-1 major decision against Kyle Dutton. Redding put on a tough two-minute ride in the second period to propel himself to the win.
Chittum won a spirited tilt against No. 28 Matty Bianchi at 157 pounds by a score of 10-6.
Gaitan got back in the win column with a 15-4 major decision against Kodiak Cannedy at 174 pounds before Will Feldkamp picked up his third fall of the year at 184. Feldkamp notched the pin in 3:21 to extend ISU’s lead to 27-5 with two matches remaining.
Bastida put on another takedown clinic at heavyweight. He closed the ISU victory with a 14-4 major decision over No. 27 Josiah Hill.
No. 6 Iowa State 26, No. 5 Cornell 15
Terukina dug out of an early hole to lead Greg Diakomihalis, 9-8, late in the third period at 125 pounds. The Big Red wrestler countered a Terukina shot and put Cornell on top, 6-0, in the team score with a pin in 6:34.
After Terukina’s defeat, Iowa State rattled off six consecutive wins to take control of the dual.
Frost got Iowa State on the board with a 12-5 decision against Ethan Qureshi at 133 pounds. Frost nearly had a major decision but a late reversal by Qureshi prevented the bonus point.
Echemendia earned a bonus point with his second win of the day against a top-20 opponent. The Cuban earned a major decision over No. 16 Vince Cornella, 13-4.
Chittum completed his perfect day in Tennessee with a dominant 20-6 major decision against Cole Handlovic before Carr pinned Benny Rogers in 2:57.
At 174 pounds, Gaitan raced out to an early lead against Benny Baker before Baker closed the gap with a big move and tied the match, 6-6. Gaitan prevailed down the stretch, however, grinding out a 10-7 decision.
Cornell secured victories at 184 and 197 pounds before Bastida closed the dual on a high note with a 6-3 decision against No. 19 Lewis Fernandes.
