University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, January 30
Iowa City, IA
7:00 PM
University of Minnesota
21
at
16
Iowa
Players Mentioned
133 lbs.
/ Wrestling
285 lbs.
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184 lbs.
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157 lbs.
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197 lbs.
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174 lbs.
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149 lbs.
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165 lbs.
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125 lbs.
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141 lbs.
/ Wrestling
Gophers Take Down No. 4 Iowa, 21-16
1/30/2026 10:03:00 PM | Wrestling
The victory marked Minnesota's first win over Iowa since 2014.
MINNEAPOLIS – No. 7 Minnesota (9-4, 3-2 B1G) won four of the first five matches of the night, including three by bonus points, en route to knocking off No. 4 Iowa (9-4, 2-2) Friday night inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena, 21-16.
The win snapped an 11-match losing streak in the series, the team's longest active streak against another school, and marked the Golden Gophers' first win over the Hawkeyes since a 2014 win in Iowa City.
The 21 points marked Minnesota's most on the road in the series since 2007. A 29-13 decision that year was also the Gophers' largest margin of victory in Iowa City prior to Friday night's five-point triumph.
The tone set was in the first match of the night at 125 pounds when No. 10 Jore Volk posted an 8-0 shutout of Joey Cruz. Volk had takedowns in each of the first two periods and used riding time to post his team-leading 17th win of the season and his first by major decision.
Iowa took its only lead of the night after a 21-6 (5:51) tech fall by No. 9 Drake Ayala over Chris Cannon at 133. But Minnesota responded with three straight wins to steal the momentum.
The dual turned at 141 when No. 9 Vance VomBaur majored No. 11 Nasir Bailey, 10-1. Bailey appeared to be battling a finger injury during the match and VomBaur took full advantage. He opened a 2-0 lead through the first period behind an injury point stoppage and escape. In the second, he got a takedown on the edge of the mat for a 6-0 advantage then clinched it with a second takedown in the third. Moving to 4-1 in the Big Ten this year, it was VomBaur's highest ranked win of the season and his highest ranked win by bonus points in his career.
Leading 8-5, back-to-back upsets followed for Minnesota, starting with Drew Roberts at 149 pounds. Ranked 24th, he used a first-period takedown off a single-leg trip to defeat No. 16 Ryder Block, 4-2. The decision marked the highest-ranked opponent he's beaten in his career, surpassing a win from earlier this season in December over No. 17 Brock Herman of Little Rock.
The Gophers went into intermission leading 15-5 thanks to their third major decision of the season, this time by No. 21 Charlie Millard over No. 12 Jordan Williams. Millard was the aggressor in the match, jumping out to a 4-2 lead through one period. His takedown off a single leg attack was followed by a reversal from Williams, but Millard was able to escape. Leading 5-3 with 1:10 to go, Millard sealed the highest ranked bonus-point win of his career with a takedown and four nearfall points, capturing a 13-3 victory.
Iowa fought back by taking the first two matches out of intermission by bonus points as No. 3 Michael Caliendo majored No. 10 Andrew Sparks, 18-5, at 165, while third-ranked Patrick Kennedy added a major decision of his own over No. 24 Ethan Riddle, 12-3.
The Minnesota lead was cut to 15-13, but No. 4 Max McEnelly got the team back on track at 184 pounds with a sudden-victory decision over Gabe Arnold. Just like their matchup last year in Minneapolis, both recorded escapes in regulation. But for the second straight year, it was McEnelly who prevailed in extra time. The match looked like it was headed to tiebreakers, but McEnelly got in on a high-crotch and powered through a roll-through attempt by Arnold to take the 4-1 decision. It was McEnelly's team-leading ninth straight victory and pushed his record this year to 14-1.
Minnesota clinched the dual with a win at 197 pounds as No. 30 Gavin Nelson lodged his third straight conference win. Facing Harvey Ludington, Nelson jumped out of the gates to lead 3-1 thanks to a takedown off a re-attack. He built his lead to 4-1 going to the third period and surrendered a pair of stall points to claim the 4-3 victory and put the dual out of reach.
With the dual in hand, the final match of the night saw No. 8 Ben Kueter top No. 10 Koy Hopke at heavyweight, 5-2.
Minnesota returns to action next weekend with a pair of road duals. Friday, the Golden Gophers visit No. 15 Rutgers at 6 p.m. CT before closing out their road slate at Maryland Sunday at 1 p.m. CT. Both matches will be carried by Big Ten Plus.
Match Results
#7 Minnesota 21, #4 Iowa 16
Jan. 30, 2026 | Iowa City, Iowa | Carver-Hawkeye Arena | Attendance: 12,582
125: #10 Jore Volk MD Joey Cruz (IOWA), 8-0 | MINN 4, IOWA 0
133: #9 Drake Ayala (IOWA) TF Chris Cannon, 21-6 (5:51) | MINN 4, IOWA 5
141: #9 Vance VomBaur MD #11 Nasir Bailey (IOWA), 10-1 | MINN 8, IOWA 5
149: #24 Drew Roberts dec. #16 Ryder Block (IOWA), 4-2 | MINN 11, IOWA 5
157: #21 Charlie Millard MD #12 Jordan Williams (IOWA), 13-3 | MINN 15, IOWA 5
165: #3 Michael Caliendo (IOWA) MD #10 Andrew Sparks, 18-5 | MINN 15, IOWA 9
174: #3 Patrick Kennedy (IOWA) MD #24 Ethan Riddle, 12-3 | MINN 15, IOWA 13
184: #4 Max McEnelly dec. Gabe Arnold (IOWA), 4-1 SV1 | MINN 18, IOWA 13
197: #30 Gavin Nelson dec. Harvey Ludington (IOWA), 4-3 | MINN 21, IOWA 13
285: #8 Ben Kueter (IOWA) dec. #10 Koy Hopke, 5-2 | MINN 21, IOWA 16
The win snapped an 11-match losing streak in the series, the team's longest active streak against another school, and marked the Golden Gophers' first win over the Hawkeyes since a 2014 win in Iowa City.
The 21 points marked Minnesota's most on the road in the series since 2007. A 29-13 decision that year was also the Gophers' largest margin of victory in Iowa City prior to Friday night's five-point triumph.
The tone set was in the first match of the night at 125 pounds when No. 10 Jore Volk posted an 8-0 shutout of Joey Cruz. Volk had takedowns in each of the first two periods and used riding time to post his team-leading 17th win of the season and his first by major decision.
Iowa took its only lead of the night after a 21-6 (5:51) tech fall by No. 9 Drake Ayala over Chris Cannon at 133. But Minnesota responded with three straight wins to steal the momentum.
The dual turned at 141 when No. 9 Vance VomBaur majored No. 11 Nasir Bailey, 10-1. Bailey appeared to be battling a finger injury during the match and VomBaur took full advantage. He opened a 2-0 lead through the first period behind an injury point stoppage and escape. In the second, he got a takedown on the edge of the mat for a 6-0 advantage then clinched it with a second takedown in the third. Moving to 4-1 in the Big Ten this year, it was VomBaur's highest ranked win of the season and his highest ranked win by bonus points in his career.
Leading 8-5, back-to-back upsets followed for Minnesota, starting with Drew Roberts at 149 pounds. Ranked 24th, he used a first-period takedown off a single-leg trip to defeat No. 16 Ryder Block, 4-2. The decision marked the highest-ranked opponent he's beaten in his career, surpassing a win from earlier this season in December over No. 17 Brock Herman of Little Rock.
The Gophers went into intermission leading 15-5 thanks to their third major decision of the season, this time by No. 21 Charlie Millard over No. 12 Jordan Williams. Millard was the aggressor in the match, jumping out to a 4-2 lead through one period. His takedown off a single leg attack was followed by a reversal from Williams, but Millard was able to escape. Leading 5-3 with 1:10 to go, Millard sealed the highest ranked bonus-point win of his career with a takedown and four nearfall points, capturing a 13-3 victory.
Iowa fought back by taking the first two matches out of intermission by bonus points as No. 3 Michael Caliendo majored No. 10 Andrew Sparks, 18-5, at 165, while third-ranked Patrick Kennedy added a major decision of his own over No. 24 Ethan Riddle, 12-3.
The Minnesota lead was cut to 15-13, but No. 4 Max McEnelly got the team back on track at 184 pounds with a sudden-victory decision over Gabe Arnold. Just like their matchup last year in Minneapolis, both recorded escapes in regulation. But for the second straight year, it was McEnelly who prevailed in extra time. The match looked like it was headed to tiebreakers, but McEnelly got in on a high-crotch and powered through a roll-through attempt by Arnold to take the 4-1 decision. It was McEnelly's team-leading ninth straight victory and pushed his record this year to 14-1.
Minnesota clinched the dual with a win at 197 pounds as No. 30 Gavin Nelson lodged his third straight conference win. Facing Harvey Ludington, Nelson jumped out of the gates to lead 3-1 thanks to a takedown off a re-attack. He built his lead to 4-1 going to the third period and surrendered a pair of stall points to claim the 4-3 victory and put the dual out of reach.
With the dual in hand, the final match of the night saw No. 8 Ben Kueter top No. 10 Koy Hopke at heavyweight, 5-2.
Minnesota returns to action next weekend with a pair of road duals. Friday, the Golden Gophers visit No. 15 Rutgers at 6 p.m. CT before closing out their road slate at Maryland Sunday at 1 p.m. CT. Both matches will be carried by Big Ten Plus.
Match Results
#7 Minnesota 21, #4 Iowa 16
Jan. 30, 2026 | Iowa City, Iowa | Carver-Hawkeye Arena | Attendance: 12,582
125: #10 Jore Volk MD Joey Cruz (IOWA), 8-0 | MINN 4, IOWA 0
133: #9 Drake Ayala (IOWA) TF Chris Cannon, 21-6 (5:51) | MINN 4, IOWA 5
141: #9 Vance VomBaur MD #11 Nasir Bailey (IOWA), 10-1 | MINN 8, IOWA 5
149: #24 Drew Roberts dec. #16 Ryder Block (IOWA), 4-2 | MINN 11, IOWA 5
157: #21 Charlie Millard MD #12 Jordan Williams (IOWA), 13-3 | MINN 15, IOWA 5
165: #3 Michael Caliendo (IOWA) MD #10 Andrew Sparks, 18-5 | MINN 15, IOWA 9
174: #3 Patrick Kennedy (IOWA) MD #24 Ethan Riddle, 12-3 | MINN 15, IOWA 13
184: #4 Max McEnelly dec. Gabe Arnold (IOWA), 4-1 SV1 | MINN 18, IOWA 13
197: #30 Gavin Nelson dec. Harvey Ludington (IOWA), 4-3 | MINN 21, IOWA 13
285: #8 Ben Kueter (IOWA) dec. #10 Koy Hopke, 5-2 | MINN 21, IOWA 16
Cinematic Recap: Gophers Beat Badgers
Thursday, January 29
Coach's Corner with Brandon Eggum
Thursday, January 29
Highlights: Gophers 26, Wisconsin 10
Sunday, January 25
Coach's Corner with Brandon Eggum
Thursday, January 22