Iowa
GOP candidates prepare for Iowa Caucus
Iowa State opens the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Wrestling Championships on Thursday, March 19 in Cleveland with a lineup capable of producing points across all 10 weight classes.
The Cyclones enter the tournament as a top-10 team and feature a mix of high seeds and dangerous middle seeds who could make deep runs.
Action begins at noon ET with the preliminary round, where Iowa State will look to advance wrestlers and build momentum early in the team race. With top contenders like No. 1 Yonger Bastida and No. 2 Rocky Elam leading the way, the Cyclones have strong opportunities at the top of the bracket.
Here’s when Iowa State wrestling is in action on Thursday.
Iowa State Wrestling Schedule On NCAA Wrestling Championships Day 1
First-round action begins at noon ET. Take a look at the FloWrestling interactive bracket for times and mat information. The new FloWrestling Next Gen platform allows fans to track each match from anywhere in the world. Fans can get alerts for individual wrestlers and individual matches.
- 125: (13) Stevo Poulin vs. (20) Diego Sotelo (MICH)
- 133: (28) Garrett Grice vs. (21) Sean Spidle (NW)
- 141: (4) Anthony Echemendia vs. (29) Jordan Titus (WVU)
- 149: (16) Jacob Frost vs. (9) David Evans (UVU)
- 157: (12) Vinny Zerban vs. (13) Derek Raike (OHIO)
- 165: (15) Connor Euton vs. (18) Gunner Filipowicz (ARMY)
- 174: (11) MJ Gaitan vs. (22) Brody Baumann (PUR)
- 184: (13) Isaac Dean vs. (20) Brian Soldano (OKLA)
- 197: (2) Rocky Elam vs. (31) Kael Bennie (UVU)
- 285: (1) Yonger Bastida vs. (17) Vincent Mueller (COL)
NCAA Wrestling Championships 2026 Schedule
Thursday, March 19
- 12:00 p.m. ET: Session I (First Round) – ESPN2
- 7:00 p.m. ET: Session II (Second Round, Consolation Matches) – ESPN
Friday, March 20
- 12:00 p.m. ET: Session III (Quarterfinals, Consolation Matches) – ESPNU
- 8:00 p.m. ET: Session IV (Semifinals, Consolation Matches) – ESPN2
Saturday, March 21
- 11:00 a.m. ET: Session V (Medal Matches) – ESPNU
- 6:30 p.m. ET: Session VI (Finals) – ESPN
How To Watch NCAA Wrestling Championships 2026
- The 2026 NCAA Wrestling Championships will be broadcast across ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU from March 19-21 in Cleveland.
- Every match will also be streamed on ESPN+, including concurrent mat coverage.
NCAA Wrestling Championships Seeds 2026
Here are the top eight seeds for each weight class at the NCAA Wrestling Championships. See more here.
125 lbs
- (1) Luke Lilledahl, Penn State
- (2) Eddie Ventresca, Virginia Tech
- (3) Nic Bouzakis, Ohio State
- (4) Sheldon Seymour, Lehigh
- (5) Troy Spratley, Oklahoma State
- (6) Jore Volk, Minnesota
- (7) Nico Provo, Stanford
- (8) Dean Peterson, Iowa
133 lbs
- (1) Jax Forrest, Oklahoma State
- (2) Ben Davino, Ohio State
- (3) Marcus Blaze, Penn State
- (4) Aaron Seidel, Virginia Tech
- (5) Kyler Larkin, Arizona State
- (6) Drake Ayala, Iowa
- (7) Lucas Byrd, Illinois
- (8) Markel Baker, Northern Illinois
141 lbs
- (1) Jesse Mendez, Ohio State
- (2) Sergio Vega, Oklahoma State
- (3) Brock Hardy, Nebraska
- (4) Anthony Echemendia, Iowa State
- (5) Luke Stanich, Lehigh
- (6) Vince Cornella, Cornell
- (7) Nasir Bailey, Iowa
- (8) Vance Vombaur, Minnesota
149 lbs
- (1) Shayne Van Ness, Penn State
- (2) Jaxon Joy, Cornell
- (3) Cross Wasilewski, Penn
- (4) Collin Gaj, Virginia Tech
- (5) Koy Buesgens, NC State
- (6) Caleb Tyus, SIUE
- (7) Ethan Stiles, Ohio State
- (8) Casey Swiderski, Oklahoma State
157 lbs
- (1) PJ Duke, Penn State
- (2) Antrell Taylor, Nebraska
- (3) Meyer Shapiro, Cornell
- (4) Kaleb Larkin, Arizona State
- (5) Landon Robideau, Oklahoma State
- (6) Jude Swisher, Penn
- (7) Kannon Webster, Illinois
- (8) Brandon Cannon, Ohio State
165 lbs
- (1) Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State
- (2) Joey Blaze, Purdue
- (3) Mikey Caliendo, Iowa
- (4) Nicco Ruiz, Arizona State
- (5) LaDarion Lockett, Oklahoma State
- (6) LJ Araujo, Nebraska
- (7) Max Brignola, Lehigh
- (8) Matty Bianchi, Little Rock
174 lbs
- (1) Levi Haines, Penn State
- (2) Simon Ruiz, Cornell
- (3) Christopher Minto, Nebraska
- (4) Carson Kharchla, Ohio State
- (5) Patrick Kennedy, Iowa
- (6) Matty Singleton, NC State
- (7) Cam Steed, Missouri
- (8) Alex Facundo, Oklahoma State
184 lbs
- (1) Rocco Welsh, Penn State
- (2) Aeoden Sinclair, Missouri
- (3) Max McEnelly, Minnesota
- (4) James Conway, Franklin & Marshall
- (5) Brock Mantanona, Michigan
- (6) Eddie Neitenbach, Wyoming
- (7) Angelo Ferrari, Iowa
- (8) Silas Allred, Nebraska
197 lbs
- (1) Josh Barr, Penn State
- (2) Rocky Elam, Iowa State
- (3) Stephen Little, Little Rock
- (4) Sonny Sasso, Virginia Tech
- (5) Joey Novak, Wyoming
- (6) Justin Rademacher, Oregon State
- (7) Cody Merrill, Oklahoma State
- (8) DJ Parker, Oklahoma
285 lbs
- (1) Yonger Bastida, Iowa State
- (2) Isaac Trumble, NC State
- (3) Taye Ghadiali, Michigan
- (4) AJ Ferrari, Nebraska
- (5) Nick Feldman, Ohio State
- (6) Nathan Taylor, Lehigh
- (7) Konner Doucet, Oklahoma State
- (8) Ben Kueter, Iowa
FloWrestling College Wrestling Team Rankings
- Penn State (Points: 164, Prev Rank: 1)
- OK State (Points: 95.5, Prev Rank: 3)
- Ohio State (Points: 94, Prev Rank: 2)
- Nebraska (Points: 76.5, Prev Rank: 5)
- Iowa State (Points: 68.5, Prev Rank: 4)
- Iowa (Points: 66.5, Prev Rank: 6)
- Virginia Tech (Points: 53.5, Prev Rank: 9)
- Cornell (Points: 52, Prev Rank: 7)
- NC State (Points: 48, Prev Rank: 8)
- Arizona State (Points: 41, Prev Rank: 14)
Trackwrestling Has Joined The New FloWrestling
Trackwrestling has officially merged with FloWrestling, bringing its powerful tournament tracking tools and live data into a modern, all-in-one platform.
Fans can follow every bout with pro-grade brackets, mat schedules, team rosters and detailed wrestler profiles—all seamlessly integrated within FloWrestling.
This move delivers a faster, smarter and more connected experience for the wrestling community. Through the updated FloSports app, users can track live results, explore brackets and even sign up for free alerts so they never miss a match.
FloWrestling Archived Footage
Video footage from all events on FloWrestling will be archived and stored in a video library for FloWrestling subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscriptions.
Join The State Wrestling Conversation On Social
DES MOINES, Iowa (KCCI) – A tentative escort route has been set to honor Maj. Jeffrey O’Brien and Sgt. Declan Coady, two Iowa natives killed in an attack in Kuwait on March 1.
KCCI reports, the Final Salute shared the route for this Thursday, starting at the Des Moines International Airport between 1:30 and 2 p.m.
The procession will head northwest along McKinley Avenue to Park Avenue, then west to 63rd Street, and continue north.
The route will split as the remains make their way to their respective destinations.
Iowans are encouraged to line the route to pay their respects.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — As March Madness gets underway, sports betting is seeing a major spike both nationwide and here in Iowa.
According to a report from the American Gaming Association, Americans are estimated to legally wager $3.3 billion on this years NCAA women’s and men’s basketball tournaments, which is a 54% increase over the past three years.
Officials say the NCAA tournament is one of the busiest times of year for wagering, second only to football season.
“Football is king, but that is followed quickly thereafter by March Madness,” Tina Eick, administrator for the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, said. “And so this is a busy time of year for sports wagering.”
Since sports betting was legalized in Iowa in 2019, participation has steadily increased year after year. That trend is continuing in 2026.
So far this fiscal year, Iowans have already wagered millions on sports. Nationally, the numbers are even higher.
“This is the biggest time of the year when it comes to sports betting,” Alex Jacquez, Chief of Policy and Advocacy, Groundwork Collaborative, said. “Analysts expect that people will wager more than $3.3 billion on games during March Madness.”
Jacquez says the structure of the tournament plays a big role in its popularity among bettors.
“You have weeks of play, and you have dozens of games going on every single day for opportunities for people to bet on,” Jacquez said.
While most people participate without issue, experts warn that the rapid growth of sports betting can come with risks.
“If you’re losing and you’re trying to chase those losses by betting more, that’s a red flag,” Eick said.
Jacquez added that a small portion of users often accounts for the majority of gambling activity.
“We’ve seen that 86% of revenue comes from just 5% of bettors,” Jacquez said.
With betting more accessible through mobile apps, he says it’s important for users to stay in control.
“Never bet anything you can’t afford to lose,” Jacquez said.
State officials also stress the importance of using regulated platforms to ensure safety and accountability.
“The best way for Iowans to protect themselves is to wager with a licensed sportsbook,” Eick said.
As the tournament continues and bets pile up, experts say the key is balancing the excitement of March Madness with responsible gambling habits.
March is also problem gambling awareness month. If you or someone you know needs help, resources are available through the state, click here to learn more.
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