A tough dual season came to an end for the Iowa State Cyclone Wrestling team Sunday as the team was defeated by the Nebraska Cornhuskers, 21-14.

Nebraska (14-5 overall, 2-2 in the Big 12) honored their seniors in the season’s final home dual. Iowa State (9-10 overall, 0-4 in the Big 12) fell behind early but clawed back with the dual coming down to the final match.

Sunday’s dual began with No. 1 Jon Reader. Reader collected six takedowns and punished Caleb Kolb on his way to 16-4 major decision.

Following Reader’s brilliant start, the Cornhuskers turned the table and began to roll. At 184, top-ten rated Josh Ihnen cruised to a 16-1 win over Cole Shafer.

At the next four weights, Iowa State lost all four matches by a combined nine points. Jerome Ward lost to Andy Johnson, 5-3, in a battle of top 20 grapplers.

Kyle Slifka got his second chance in a row to compete at heavyweight in place of injured Kyle Simonson. Despite losing 2-0 to Tucker Lane, Slifka continues to impress with his ability to hang with the nation’s top heavyweights.

Brandon Jones and Ben Cash had opportunities to turn the tide as the dual headed to the 125- and 133-pound matches. Jones fought hard against David Klingsheim, but a two-point nearfall given up in the second period would come back to haunt him as he lost, 4-2.

Cash struggled offensively in his showdown with Ridge Kiley. Kiley, from Eagle Grove, compiled over two minutes of riding time and shut out Cash, 3-0.

Iowa State had fallen behind 17-4 when Chris Drouin took the mat. Drouin is still battling back from concussion and put on a dynamic performance against Mike Koehnlein. Drouin tallied seven points in the final period to roll to a 13-3 major decision.

Max Mayfield returned for the Cyclones at 149 pounds. The warrior threw Ross Grande to his back in the first period and jumped to a 4-0 lead. Mayfield guarded his lead against a late flurry to win, 8-4.

Nebraska’s lead had been cut to 17-11 with only two matches remaining. Trent Weatherman needed a win to keep his team’s hopes alive. With 22 seconds left and the score tied 1-1, Weatherman took Tyler Koehn to the mat and captured the victory 3-1.

The dual came down to Chris Spangler and No. 1-ranked Jordan Burroughs. Burroughs, a formal national champion, and Spangler, a back up for Andrew Sorenson, went scoreless through one period before Burroughs erupted. An offensive pulverization came Spangler’s way as he lost 22-8.

Nebraska was victorious in six of ten matches and scored a rare dual win over the Cyclones, 21-14.