3 Hawkeyes Finish Top 4 at Southern Scuffle

Freshman Drake Ayala Leads Way with 3rd-Place Result

CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee – A trio of Hawkeye wrestlers took home top four finishes at the Southern Scuffle at McKenzie Arena on Sunday. Freshman Drake Ayala picked up a third place finish while redshirt freshman Cullan Schriever and senior Aaron Costello finished fourth to cap off their weekends.

Ayala began his day with a hard-fought 6-5 loss against Minnesota All-American Patrick McKee in the 125-pound semifinals. In the consolation semifinals, Ayala got back in the win column, defeating Appalachian State’s Caleb Smith in a 5-2 decision. In the third-place match, Ayala trailed 7-0 entering the third period. The freshman scored a takedown at the edge of the mat with 1:36 remaining, and eventually scored three more takedowns in the period. Trailing by two in the final seconds, Ayala secured his final takedown followed by four nearfall points to win a 14-10 decision in spectacular fashion.

Schriever dropped his 133-pound semifinal bout to the bracket champion, Michigan State’s Rayvon Foley via 5-0 decision, before rebounding with a 9-2 decision over Missouri’s Trey Crawford in the consolation semifinals. In the third-place match, Chattanooga’s Brayden Palmer defeated Schriever, 4-2.

In his semifinal matchup Costello fell to Lewis Fernandes of Cornell via major decision, 9-0. Costello then won by decision, 7-5, to Tyrie Houghton of North Carolina State in the consolation semis to earn his way to the third-place match. In the third-place matchup, North Dakota State’s Brandon Metz defeated Costello by decision, 4-1.

At 141 pounds, freshman Wyatt Henson finished his weekend going 3-0 on the day. Henson defeated Appalachian State’s Heath Goyner, 6-2, to begin his day and followed it up with a win over Rider’s Quinn Kinner (7-3). Henson won via medical forfeit to finish fifth.

Redshirt freshman Patrick Kennedy and senior Brennan Swafford each wrestled back to sixth-place finishes.

Up Next: The No. 1 Hawkeyes play host to No. 14 Minnesota on Jan. 7 at 8 p.m. (CT). The dual will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.

UNIVERSITY OF IOWA RESULTS // SOUTHERN SCUFFLE

125 // Drake Ayala (Unattached) // Third Place

Semifinals - Pat Mckee (Minnesota) won by decision over Drake Ayala (Iowa), 6-5

Cons. Semis - Drake Ayala (Iowa) won by decision over Caleb Smith (Appalachian State), 5-2

Third Place - Drake Ayala (Iowa) won by decision over Noah Surtin (Missouri), 14-10

133 // Cullan Schriever (Unattached) // Fourth Place

Semifinals - Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) won by decision over Cullan Schriever (Iowa), 10-5

Cons. Semis - Cullan Schriever (Iowa) won by decision over Trey Crawford (Missouri), 9-2

Third Place - Brayden Palmer (Chattanooga) won by decision over Cullan Schriever (Iowa), 4-2 SV

141 // Wyatt Henson (Unattached) // Fifth Place

Cons. of 8 #2 - Wyatt Henson (Iowa) won by decision over Heath Gonyer (Appalachian State), 6-2

Cons. of 4 - Wyatt Henson (Iowa) won by decision over Quinn Kinner (Rider), 7-3

Fifth Place - Wyatt Henson (Iowa) won by medical forfeit over Vince Cornella (Spartan Combat RTC)

165 // Patrick Kennedy (Unattached) // Sixth Place

Cons. of 8 #2 - Patrick Kennedy (Iowa) won by decision over Caleb Fish (Michigan State), 10-4

Cons. of 4 - Patrick Kennedy (Iowa) won by decision over RJ Mosley (Gardner-Webb), 8-3

Fifth Place - Luke Weber (North Dakota St) won by medical forfeit over Patrick Kennedy (Iowa)

174 // Brennan Swafford // Sixth Place

Semifinals - Cade DeVos (South Dakota St) won by decision over Brennan Swafford (Iowa), 6-2

Cons. Semis - Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) won by decision over Brennan Swafford (Iowa), 5-2

Fifth Place - Matt Finesilver (Duke) won by major decision over Brennan Swafford (Iowa), 14-0

285 // Aaron Costello // Fourth Place

Semifinals - Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) won by major decision over Aaron Costello (Iowa), 9-0

Cons. Semis - Aaron Costello (Iowa) won by decision over Tyrie Houghton (North Carolina St), 7-5

Third Place - Brandon Metz (North Dakota St) won by decision over Aaron Costello (Iowa), 4-1