"It was a great way to end the season," Iowa State head coach Cael Sanderson said. "The match is more important individually than as a team score. We were in nine matches against a very good team, we were aggressive in every match and won the majority of them. This is exactly how we want to be wrestling heading into the Big 12 Championships. We will go back to work this week and get ready to go for Stillwater."
ISU won six of 10 bouts, including a 14-4 major decision win by No. 12 Cyler Sanderson over Chris Oliver at 157 pounds. The Cyclones lead the all-time series 78-14-2 and have won two straight against Nebraska.
In a marathon bout, the 13th-ranked Bertolino emerged victorious with an escape from Brester 10 seconds into the second tie breaker. The Cyclone senior notched a takedown in both the first and second periods for a 6-4 lead, but Brester was able to close the gap and tie the match 6-6 with a pair of escapes in the second and third periods. Neither wrestler was able to score in a 60-second sudden victory round, pushing the bout to a tie-breaker. Brester, a 2007 NCAA qualifier, chose to start the first tie-breaker from the down position, but Bertolino was able to maintain his ride, not allowing Brester to escape. Ten seconds into the second tie-breaker, Bertolino freed himself and was awarded a point for the escape that eventually won the match. Bertolino improves to 20-10 this season. Brester is 20-4.
"It all came together," Bertolino said. "The crowd was really into it. It was my last match in Hilton and the pace of the match worked to my advantage. The match took like 20 minutes. Fatigue was a factor."
ISU All-American Jake Varner moved to 23-0 with a 5-1 decision over No. 12 Vince Jones at 184 pounds to open the dual. The top-rated Varner used a first-period takedown and a second-period reversal en route to the win. The Bakersfield, Calif., native also racked up over five minutes of riding time.
Iowa State went up 9-0 when No. 6 heavyweight David Zabriskie, a sophomore, defeated No. 16 Jon May, 3-1 on a last-second takedown. A scoreless first period led to both big men exchanging escapes in the second and third periods to even the score at 1-1. With seven seconds remaining in the match, May had a shot on Zabriskie, but the Cyclone countered and was awarded the winning takedown. The reigning Big 12 champ, Zabriskie has not dropped a match to a conference opponent in his career (12-0) and improves to 24-4.
Nebraska won its first bout of the day with defending NCAA champion Paul Donahoe picking up a 5-4 decision over No. 15 Tyler Clark via 1:25 of riding time at 125 pounds. ISU added to its lead before heading into intermission on No. 7 Nick Fanthorpe's 6-4 decision over No. 9 Kenny Jordan at 133 pounds. Fanthorpe's win improves his record to 26-4. The Iowa State sophomore led the squad with 64 dual takedowns and 67 dual points scored this season.
Coming out of the break, Gallick notched the second pin of his sophomore campaign with a 4:17 stick of No. 13 Mike Rowe. During the opening three minutes, Gallick struck with a takedown and rolled Rowe's shoulders on two occasions for pair of back points, a three-point and two-point nearfall, for a 7-1 advantage heading into the second period. The sophomore from Tucson, Ariz., used a spladle to get the pin. His record now stands at 20-11.
"The spladle is part of my offense," the 16th-rated Gallick said. "I like it. I am good there. Now we get ready for the Big 12 Championship."
Sanderson registered his eighth major decision with the victory over Oliver. The ISU sophomore notched a pair of takedowns in each period and allowed none. He now has a record of 26-4.
Prior to the start of the dual, six ISU wrestling seniors were honored. The senior class includes: Bertolino, Ben Hanisch, Adam Ketcher, Aron Scott, Anthony White and Jerome Whitter.
Iowa State will have two weeks off before heading to Stillwater, Okla. to defend the Big 12 title it won in 2007. Hosted by Oklahoma State, the all-day tournament will take place in Gallagher-Iba Arena. Live stats will be available throughout the day on cyclones.com.
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