Sophomore Montell Marion (141), junior Jake Kerr (157), and senior Ryan Morningstar (165) will all vie for third place at the Big Ten championships later today.

Both Marion and Kerr needed to win their first consolation bouts, while Morningstar only needed to place fifth or better.

Meanwhile, Iowa top-seeded 197-pounder Chad Beatty, who already qualified for the national meet, forfeited both of his consolation matches.

Marion earned his NCAA ticket with a 11-6 win against eighth-seeded 141-pounder Cole Schmitt of Wisconsin.

The Des Moines native broke a 6-6 tie with under 10 seconds to go in the third period on a takedown and a three-point near-fall. He will face Purdue’s No. 6 seed Juan Archuleta in the 141-pound third-place bout.

Marion defeated Archuleta, 7-5, on Saturday during the championship quarterfinals.

At 157, Kerr also clinched a spot in the national tournament with a 5-3 win over No. 6 seed David Johnson of Michigan. The Oskaloosa, Iowa native held a 5-0 advantage heading into the third period, but a third-period takedown by Johnson eliminated the shutout.

Kerr will go toe-to-toe with unseeded Anthony Jones of Michigan State. The two did not wrestler during Iowa’s regular-season road dual with the Spartans.

Junior Aaron Janssen took the mat for the Hawkeyes at 157 in the meet.

Morningstar’s consolation semifinal with No. 5 seed Paul Young turned into a thriller. The second-seeded Hawkeye broke a 3-3 tie on an escape with 30 seconds left in the third period.

An evasive Morningstar picked up a stall warning with five seconds left.

For more coverage of the Big Ten wrestling championships, be sure to read Monday’s edition of The Daily Iowan.

— by Ryan Young

Consolation Semifinals:
141 — No. 3 Montell Marion (I) dec. No. 8 Cole Schmitt (Wis), 11-6
157 — No. 4 Jake Kerr (I) dec. No. 6 David Johnson (Mich), 5-3
165 — No. 2 Ryan Morningstar (I) dec. No. 5 Paul Young (Ind), 4-3
197 — No. 7 Logan Brown (Pur) wins by forfeit No. 1 Chad Beatty (I)

ryan-c-young@uiowa.edu

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Jake Kerr’s first match of the Big Ten championships might as well have been a two-on-one tag-team bout inside Crisler Arena.

During his postseason debút against fifth-seed Sean Nemec of Ohio State Saturday morning, he spent most of the seven minutes wrestling with his mind.

“I worry about how I feel way too much,” he said. “I need to get over that.”

Fortunately for Kerr, his brain also helped him fight off Nemec for a 5-3 win.

But anxiety could be a much more difficult opponent to overcome later tonight, too, when Kerr takes on top-seeded Colton Salazar of Purdue in the championship semifinals.

During the pair’s January matchup, Salazar escaped with a 6-4 sudden victory win in West Lafayette, Ind.

Kerr admitted nerves and the electric tournament atmosphere played a part in his mind games, which seemed to translate into static offense.

After managing two first-period takedowns for an early 4-1 lead, the Oskaloosa, Iowa native tallied his last point against Nemec on an escape just as time expired in the second period.

Kerr’s stagnant legs also allowed the Buckeye to keep the match close, something that left Iowa head coach Tom Brands mildly disgruntled.

“There were points left out there,” the fourth-year headman said. “That’s not how you win national championships, or Big Ten championships, or matches. … You don’t give guys chances.”

A chance proved to be all Kerr needed to secure his first Big Ten championship win, though.

Brands’ belly might as well have been a Magic Eight Ball Friday morning when he chose Kerr over junior Aaron Janssen, who wrestled 12 bouts for Iowa at 157.

Kerr said Brands didn’t explain his “gut decision.” But even with his status in limbo throughout the week, he added, the wait wasn’t nearly as mentally draining as it had been at times during the regular season.

“I’ve been doing good in the wrestling room, so I mean I was a little bit more at ease,” he said. “But of course, it bothers me.”