Before a two-month road trip and hiatus from Hilton Coliseum, the ISU wrestling team rallied to beat No. 21 North Dakota State 22-18 on Sunday, Dec. 16.

The Cyclones (1-2, 0-0 Big 12) won their last four matches to win their first dual meet of the season, relying on the last two to tally bonus points for the win.

The dual began with 125 pounds, where Ryak Finch came out firing against No. 5 Trent Sprenkle for an early takedown. Finch rode Sprenkle for more than a minute in the first period, nearly getting him turned before accumulating 2:03 in riding time.

Finch conceded a takedown shortly before the end of the first period and again in the second from a single-leg kick that nearly flattened him on his back. Finch supposedly hit his head hard upon getting taken down, getting pulled for an injury default.

ISU coach Kevin Jackson said after the meet that Finch had officially sustained a concussion but does not know the exact severity of it.

“[Finch] didn’t respond to our trainer in the appropriate fashion,” Jackson said. “They say it’s a pretty good one [in terms of severity].”

Iowa State’s John Meeks started slow against Josh Rodriguez at 133 pounds, getting ridden for almost three minutes before entering the third period trailing 5-1.

Meeks couldn’t counter Rodriguez’s shots, giving way to fatigue for a 6-2 loss.

Jackson said Meeks isn’t making the connections nutrition-wise in keeping his weight maintained.

“We have to help him do a better job of controlling his weight,” Jackson said. “I think that is really the issue with John is that his nutrition plan has to improve.”

At 141 pounds, No. 18 Luke Goettl managed an early takedown of Mark Erickson, proceeding to try for a tilt by splitting the legs.

Goettl continued his dominance, getting another takedown in the second period with more than one minute of riding time. Erickson managed to prevent himself from getting turned for any back points, much to Goettl’s chagrin.

Goettl would go on to win 10-3.

Max Mayfield made his return from a concussion at the Harold Nichols Open on Nov. 10 — the second of his career — at 149 pounds against Joe Garner.

After a scoreless first period, Mayfield escaped from the bottom before securing an aggressive takedown in the second period. Mayfield conceded a reversal with a 3-1 lead, losing the lead by a proceeding takedown with less than a minute to go.

Mayfield failed to get out from bottom, went on to lose 5-4.

After the match, Mayfield said he’s still working on improving his conditioning for his benefit in tight matches like these.

“It wasn’t quite ideally where I’d like it to be, but that’s not an excuse for a loss,” Mayfield said of his conditioning.

Mayfield was wearing a protective mask on his face as a precautionary measure having returned from the concussion.

Logan Molina took an early lead on Hayden Zillmer at 157 pounds, heading into the second ahead 2-1 after flattening his hips in the closing minutes of defending a double-leg shot.

Molina secured another takedown on the edge of the mat in the second, but was unable to accumulate any riding time in both of his first two takedowns.

Zillmer fought hard in the closing minute, securing a takedown and a quick release in search of more points. However, Molina held on for the 8-6 win.

The 165-pound match between Michael Moreno and No. 6 Steven Monk began with a takedown call for Moreno that was later waved off due to the proceeding stalemate. The call was reviewed (per new rule that allows for coach challenges), but was not overturned.

Monk tallied a three-point nearfall from the top to begin the second period before Moreno secured a reversal. Monk escaped to take a 4-2 lead.

Moreno slipped into a cradle to end up getting pinned in the second with an official time of 4:42.

Tanner Weatherman got the start at 174 pounds against Kurtis Julson, despite being dual-listed with Mikey England for the Cyclones.

Weatherman managed a takedown late in the second to drive his riding time to exactly one minute before the buzzer.

A highly charged third period resulted in a 3-1 win for Weatherman.

Boaz Beard entered the 184-pound match as the favorite, ranked one slot above No. 18 Mac Stoll.

Stoll managed an early takedown before Beard escaped and managed one of his own. Beard demolished Stoll’s riding time before accumulating 1:00 of his own to close the first period.

One point was awarded to Beard for Stoll locking his hands on the top position. NDSU coaches appealed, but received another warning from the officiating crew.

Beard escaped to take a 5-2 lead before continuing his shots in a rough scrap to end the second period. Stoll was unable to escape from the bottom before Beard amassed more than one minute of riding time.

Riding time proved to be the key for Beard, as he hung on to the 7-5 win despite getting taken down within the final 10 seconds.

Kyven Gadson led the comeback campaign for the Cyclones (1-2, 0-0 Big 12), tallying a three-point nearfall for a 7-1 lead in the first period against Kallen Kleinschmidt at 197 pounds.

Gadson drove his lead to 11-2 in the second, needing bonus points to spur the comeback for Iowa State. He would get just that with the 17-4 major decision.

The dual was won for the Cyclones at heavyweight by Matt Gibson, who pinned Evan Knutson in dramatic fashion.

Gibson managed a reversal from the down position after a scoreless first period, eventually notching the pin.

Check back to iowastatedaily.net for more coverage of the Cyclones’ dual victory.