The Cyclone nation was stunned when redshirt freshman Max Mayfield was introduced as the starter at 149 pounds in place of 10th-ranked Cyclone senior Mitch Mueller at the dual meet against Illinois on Saturday night at Hilton Coliseum. Mayfield, a native of Davenport, wasn’t listed on the program for the dual meet, but was given the chance to step in for Mueller.

“Mayfield is really a 141-pounder. We moved him up to 149 pounds because we have a freshman, Trent Weatherman, that we’re redshirting and we weren’t going to pull him out of the redshirt for one match, so our depth probably isn’t where it should be or could be,” said ISU coach Kevin Jackson at the post-meet news conference. “Obviously he’s behind Nick Gallick and Dalton Jensen, so he was our only option to throw out there [at 149 pounds].”

Mayfield was experiencing jitters in his first ever dual meet appearance, receiving three cautions while starting from the down position, giving Illinois’ Eric Terrazas an easy point with 44 seconds left in the second period. Mayfield finally managed to escape from the down position to tie the score at one heading into the third period after digging himself a hole by allowing 20th-ranked Terrazas to accumulate over a minute of riding time.

Mayfield took a 2-1 lead after managing to escape from the bottom position at the start of the third period, but a late takedown by Terrazas accompanied by a substantial amount of riding time put the Illini grappler ahead, 3-2, to finish Mayfield’s night.

“There’s always a little nervousness, but at the same time I was excited to get out there,” Mayfield said. “Once I started wrestling, it wasn’t a big deal. I was just excited for the opportunity.”

Redshirt freshman Chris Spangler was also given the starting nod over Cyclone senior Duke Burk, who had been suffering from multiple injuries and has lost seven straight matches. In his second appearance in dual meet action this season, Spangler faced a tough challenge against 14th-ranked Jordan Blanton. After giving up a first period takedown, Spangler quickly rebounded by accumulating one minute and 35 seconds in riding time in the second period, despite being down 3-1 heading into the third period. Earning a point on an early escape from the bottom position, Spangler was poised for an upset over his Illini foe. However, the Cyclone 174-pounder failed to execute a successful attack within the final minute of the third period, falling short of the upset by a decision of 3-2.

“I was a little nervous going out there for the first time, but it’s definitely a good environment to be in,” Spangler said. “I think my nerves played a little bit of a role [in the way I wrestled].”

Earlier this season, Spangler fell to Bloomsburg’s Nate Graham by a decision of 4-2 in the first round dual of the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals in Cedar Falls.