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By Sam Louwagie
samuel-louwagie@uiowa.edu
Josh Dziewa’s teammates call it a “Jonesy.” In his hometown of Yardley, Pa., it’s called a “Shin Whizzer.”
Whatever the move is called, Dziewa launched it perfectly less than a minute into his match against Northern Iowa’s Clay Welter on Thursday.
Welter took an early shot and grabbed one of Dziewa’s legs. Dziewa cranked his hip to loosen his opponent’s hold, then grabbed his own shin and put his other leg over Welter’s back. Then he began a dizzying series of twists and tumbles that somehow ended up with Welter laying flat on his back, and Dziewa in a headlock.
“It’s Pennsylvania stuff, kind of slick,” Dziewa said. “I’ve known it since eighth grade, and I had a feeling [Welter] had no idea what it was.”
The move resulted in a takedown and three-point nearfall for the redshirt freshman, who went on to win a 14-6 major decision in the first dual meet appearance of his Hawkeye career. Iowa beat the Panthers, 38-4.
Iowa coach Tom Brands said Dziewa provided “a little spark” at 149, a weight class where Brands has said his wrestlers have shown too much “hesitancy” this season. Dziewa said he was determined to avoid that same criticism, so he came out and immediately went to one of the most aggressive moves he knows.
“I’ve been waiting for this opportunity for a long time,” he said. “I’ve wanted to be a Hawkeye since seventh grade. So I knew I wasn’t going to come out here and stall and be passive.”
Dziewa was one of six Hawkeyes to earn bonus points on Thursday. Iowa won eight of nine matches on the night — UNI forfeited at 174. But Brands said the team has to stop opponents from finding ways to slow Iowa’s attacks down.
On Dec. 2, Illinois wrestlers often dove in and grabbed a Hawkeye leg, preventing Iowa from attacking. Thursday, the Panthers repeatedly grabbed Iowa wrestlers’ wrists and wouldn’t let go.
“We’re going to get slowed down,” Brands said. “We’re going to get a guy that’s hanging on our wrists, like tonight. I’m fine with that. What I’m not fine with is that we let it happen to us. As a competitor, there has to be so much awareness. I’m just not going to let that happen to me as a wrestler. And if it does happen, make adjustments.”
Brands spoke specifically about Matt McDonough’s match. McDonough won a 10-1 major decision. But the coach and wrestler both said McDonough could have wrestled more aggressively.
“A lot of guys were grabbing wrists and trying to slow us down,” McDonough said. “You have to recognize it and stop it right away. The biggest thing is not letting our opponents slow us down. Myself included.”
Northern Iowa’s efforts to control Iowa’s wrists and pace often couldn’t last for a full seven-minute match, though.
Bobby Telford earned three takedowns and a nearfall in a 12-0 victory at heavyweight. Tony Ramos, despite already having secured a major decision, continued to let his opponent up before taking him down again late into a 15-5 victory. Montell Marion recorded three third-period takedowns in an 18-8 major decision.
The two Hawkeyes that won their matches but failed to achieve bonus points had good reasons. Grant Gambrall made his return to the mat at 197 pounds after missing significant training time, and gutted out a 7-3 victory. And Derek St. John appeared to badly injure his knee in the second period of his 157-pound match. St. John clutched the knee as trainers tried to move it, and failed in multiple attempts to put weight on it.
He finished the match anyway, earning praise from Brands with a 3-1 win.
Despite the dominant performance, Brands said the team still hasn’t found its best lineup. McDonough eagerly looked forward to finding it.
“There’s still a lot to be done,” he said. “It’s scary what the potential is if we wrestle our very best.”
