Going into the second half of its meet against in-state rival Iowa, trailing 15–3, the ISU wrestling team needed a spark to keep its hope of a victory alive.

Junior Jon Reader (165) and redshirt sophomore Jerome Ward (184) provided that spark with two surprise upsets late in the night.

Reader got his first win in three attempts over Iowa’s Ryan Morningstar and Ward defeated second-ranked Phillip Keddy to bring the Cyclones back to life after their rough start.

“His mentality was of such that he was going to do what he had to do to win,” said ISU coach Kevin Jackson. “That’s the bottom line and so I’m proud of the way Jerome competed.”

Morningstar has had Reader’s number on the mat over the past few seasons, defeating him in all three matchups between the two that includes last season’s dual meet and NCAA Championships.

Reader and Morningstar were locked in a tight showdown that saw a 2–1 score going into the third period. A Reader escape gave him a two-point lead, but Morningstar pulled an improbable takedown with one second left to tie the score at 3. However, Reader’s 1:45 riding time gave him the bonus point to put him over the top for his first win over his Iowa rival.

Despite his victory, Reader wasn’t satisfied with his performance and felt his first win could have been better.

“A win’s a win, but I’m disappointed with the way I competed,” Reader said. “I know I’m capable of more, and I didn’t make the connections tonight.”

Whether he was happy with his performance or not, Reader’s first win over Morningstar cut the Hawkeyes’ lead from 12 to nine and brought the Hilton crowd back into the meet.

Two weight classes later, Ward took the mat after being announced along with fellow 184 pound Joe Curran at the beginning of the night. Jackson was still unsure which of the two to start after they have been in competition with each other all season. Curran actually won the job for the first dual meet against North Dakota State.

A tough week of practice is one thing Ward said helped him for this matchup. Working with 184 pound freshmen Tyler Christensen and Cole Shafer, he was able to put in a little bit more work to prepare for Keddy.

“Those dudes were beating up on me pretty good and getting me ready to be mentally prepared for a match like this” Ward said. “They’re working hard and they’re two good guys.”

On paper, Ward appeared to be a huge underdog as he faced Keddy — a two-time All American that was sporting a 6–0 overall record this season.

Keddy and Ward entered the third period tied at 2–2. Ward then quickly grabbed the lead with an escape and takedown less than 30 seconds apart from one another.

Ward’s performance not only got the crowd on its feet and the Cyclones back in contention, it also seemed to win over Jackson.

“Let’s see if he can do it the rest of the year,” Jackson said in the post-meet press conference. “That’s really where the challenge lies.”