The third-ranked Iowa Central wrestling team showed why they will once again be contenders at the upcoming NJCAA Championships here Wednesday night.
Behind five falls and nine consecutive wins, the Tritons avenged an earlier defeat by besting No. 5 Indian Hills, 44-3.
Keaton Geerts, Jose Ramirez, Jose Rodriguez, Coleton McElliott and Trevion Sample all won by pin with Sammy Lile, Nick Natarcola, Nolan Miller-Johnston and Jorden Pryor picking up victories as well.
"I feel like we are wrestling at a high level right now," Iowa Central head coach Luke Moffitt said. "But our focus will turn to nationals now with the chance to fine-tune several things and be as prepared as we possibly can to win another national title."
Iowa Central (10-2 overall, 5-1 in ICCAC) finished tied atop the conference standings with the Warriors, as Indian Hills won the first meeting, 27-9. The two will be part of another stacked North Central District Tournament coming up in Centerville on February 13.
After Aidan Harris dropped a tough 10-4 decision to seventh-ranked Chris Busutil to begin the night, the Tritons went on a tear, winning the final nine matches and scoring 17 bonus points in the process.
"That's big," Moffitt said. "The difference between winning a national team title and coming up short is typically in those bonus points. Our guys attacked and did a great job of finishing matches. We've got to do that the rest of the way."
Iowa Central recorded 25 takedowns on the night while allowing just seven. Rodriguez, a returning national champion, had seven before the put Lucas Henderson away in the third period.
Pryor, who was a finalist a year ago, had five takedowns in his major decision over Noah Broderson at heavyweight. Natarcola scored four takedowns and Geerts had three.
At 184, McElliott overcame an early 6-0 deficit to pin Tobias Bell.
"Coleton is a tough kid to wrestle because of the things he can do," Moffitt said. "He didn't compete during the first semester, so he is still figuring things out at the college level. But if he can continue to improve, he could be dangerous.
"I thought Nolan had a big win. He's a tough kid with an unlimited gas tank who just wears on you. If we can get him to open up a little more, he has a great chance to finish atop the podium."
Iowa Central climbed to third in the latest rankings with six individuals also ranked. Rodriguez and Pryor are No. 1 at their respective weights, while Geerts and Miller-Johnston are both third. Ramirez is fourth and Harris sixth.
-By Dana Becker