A season after placing third at NCAA tournament and losing so much talent, the young Cyclones traveled to Salem, Va., ranked 30th, and wound up upsetting No. 26 Virginia Tech and No. 14 Kent State.

In their first dual against Virginia Tech on Saturday, the Cyclones started off in a deep hole, down 10-0 after three matches. Iowa State’s Chris Drouin got the ball rolling for the Cyclones, getting a 2-1 decision over Virginia Tech’s Chris Diaz at 141 to give the Cyclones three points.

ISU senior Nate Carr Jr. followed Drouin’s performance with a 6-4 decision.

The big turning point in the match came two weights later when Iowa State’s Andrew Sorenson earned a 13-3 major decision and brought the Cyclones within three of Virginia Tech. Jon Reader followed Sorenson with a major decision of his own and gave the Cyclones a 14-13 lead.

Iowa State went on to win 17-16.

Immediately after, Iowa State faced off with Kent State in another dual. The first couple matches went back and forth.

After eight matches, the Cyclones had a 23-12 lead over the Golden Flashes. Iowa State went on to drop the final two matches in major decisions, but the deficit was too large for Kent State to overcome, and Iowa State pulled off another upset 23-19.

The rankings may change, but Iowa State is 2-0 to start the year, with both wins against ranked opponents. Individual Cyclone wrestlers participated in the Hokie Open on Sunday. 

Iowa State hosts Boston University in a dual Thursday and the Cyclone Open on Sunday.