Northern Iowa edges South Dakota State 19-13 on late heavyweight reversal
A major decision at 133 and a last-minute reversal at heavyweight supplied the decisive points in Brookings.
BROOKINGS, S.D. — Northern Iowa defeated South Dakota State 19-13 on Feb. 8, 2026, a margin built on bonus-point scoring and a pair of narrow decisions.
Daniel Guanajuato opened the dual for South Dakota State with a 5-0 decision at 125, scoring a takedown at 0:33 of the first period, adding an escape in the third and earning a riding-time point.
Northern Iowa gained a major swing at 133 when No. 17 Julian Farber recorded a 10-1 major decision over No. 29 Derrick Cardinal, combining takedowns, escapes and opponent penalties to supply four team points.
South Dakota State responded with its own bonus when No. 19 Julian Tagg posted a 14-3 major decision at 141, including a riding-time point that helped keep the Jackrabbits within reach.
Several close, ranked matches went Northern Iowa’s way. Caleb Rathjen recovered from an early deficit to win 10-6 at 149, No. 6 Ryder Downey won 7-1 at 165, and No. 13 Jared Simma edged No. 14 Moses Espinoza-Owens 5-2 at 174 after a second-period takedown and a riding-time point.
South Dakota State collected key decisions of its own. No. 5 Bennett Berge beat Carson Babcock 4-1 at 197, and No. 21 Cael Swensen posted an 8-2 decision at 157.
The dual came down to the heavyweight bout. No. 33 Adam Ahrendsen of Northern Iowa defeated No. 27 Luke Rasmussen 5-4 at 285, supplying three team points that decided the meet. Ahrendsen opened with a first-period 3-point takedown; Rasmussen escaped in Period 2 and took a 3-point takedown in Period 3 to move ahead 4-3. Ahrendsen recorded a 2-point reversal with about 20 seconds remaining to reclaim the lead and secure the decision.
Northern Iowa’s four-team-point major at 133, the tight decisions by Simma and Rathjen that added three points apiece, and Ahrendsen’s late reversal offset South Dakota State’s bonus at 141 and produced the six-point final margin. The result completed Northern Iowa’s season sweep of South Dakota State and gave the Panthers their tenth dual win of the year; Northern Iowa is scheduled to host West Virginia next weekend.