HUMBOLDT, Iowa — Iowa State won its second dual of the season over Big 12 conference rival North Dakota State (NDSU) in Humboldt, Iowa by a score of 27-12. The dual was Iowa State’s sixth consecutive win over the Bison, handing the program its fourth loss of the 2024-25 campaign.
Unfamiliar faces
The Cyclones opened the dual with an appearance from sophomore Ethan Perryman at 125. The former California state champion took a 2-1 lead before falling behind 5-2 in the third period. He conceded the 125 match by a score of 6-2.
Perryman wasn’t the only new face to the Iowa State lineup. Freshman Osmany Diversent took on Kyle Burwick at 133, winning by a score of 7-3 after taking an early 6-0 lead.
Sophomores Carter Fousek, Cody Chittum, Manny Rojas and Nando Villaescusa also debuted for the Cyclones in the later stages of the dual.
“This isn’t the roster we envisioned to have in mid-December,” Iowa State head coach Kevin Dresser said. “We did a good job in some places and need to improve in others, but I’m proud of how our guys performed [Sunday] afternoon.”
Middleweight dominance
Sophomore Jacob Frost took to the mat for the Cyclones at 141, dominating NDSU’s Kellyn March and winning 18-2. Frost’s win was the largest margin of the dual and his largest margin of victory this season.
Fousek’s matchup at 149 was the exact opposite. A hard-fought, physical, low-scoring battle with No. 30 ranked Gavin Drexler didn’t play out in his favor. Fousek wrestled the only ranked opponent of the day in place of injured senior Anthony Echemendia. Drexler won 4-1 after one overtime.
“[Fousek] stepped up and competed hard,” Dresser said. “He made some technical mistakes, and I think if he’d wrestled just a bit better, the match would have been ours.”
Chittum avenged the loss at 157, facing off against Gabriel Schumm. Chittum pinned Schumm in the third period, which increased Iowa State’s lead in the team standings to 14-6.
“I was excited,” Chittum said. “I’m not usually known to be a pinner, and to secure that win felt good. Putting the logo on my chest is always fantastic, and I’m grateful for any opportunity to fight for my guys.”
Heavyweight contenders
The later matchups featured much of the same. Redshirt sophomore Aiden Riggins wrestled for the Cyclones at 174 and took a 5-0 at the end of the second period. Riggins won the matchup against Devin Wasley 12-2.
Riggins’ win was his first dual victory of the season and was a precursor to Villaescusa, redshirt freshman Christian Carroll and freshman Daniel Herrera.
Villaescusa defeated NDSU’s Aidan Brenot 9-6 at 184, Carroll fell to Tayshaun Glover 8-5 at 197 and Herrera pinned Bison heavyweight Drew Blackburn-Frost after a hard fall forced a concussion timeout.
“My goal is always to get a pin,” Herrera said. “It doesn’t always happen, but I wanted to put on a show with a crowd like today’s. These people made the trip, and I wanted to give them what they came to see.”
Iowa State will be back in action Saturday at the Collegiate Duals in Nashville, where it takes on Lock Haven at 2 p.m., North Carolina at 4 p.m. and Ohio State at 6 p.m. The duals will be streamed live on the Rokfin networks.
