CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The 16th-ranked Northern Iowa Panthers won seven matches in all and five for bonus points en route to handing Utah Valley University wrestling a 32-12 Big 12 Conference setback on Saturday afternoon at West Gym in Cedar Falls, Iowa. 
 
Despite suffering the defeat, UVU (1-5, 0-3 Big 12) managed to record a trio of wins on the day with victories coming from No. 6 Tate Orndorff (heavyweight), No. 14 Tanner Orndorff (197 pounds) and No. 25 Taylor LaMont (133). 
 
"These were some good wins for Taylor, Tanner and Tate. After previously losing to (Jack) Skudlarczyk in Las Vegas last month, I was pleased with how Taylor responded against a tough opponent. Tanner is really wrestling intense right now and getting after it, as that is now two straight pins for him. And Tate too had a better performance against (Carter) Isley today after previously having a tougher time defeating him last month in Vegas. So, I was really pleased with how these three wrestled," head UVU coach Greg Williams said.
 
After an opening win by fall from UNI's (1-2, 1-0 Big 12) 18th-ranked Jay Schwarm at 125 pounds, UVU junior and 25th-ranked Taylor LaMont responded for the Wolverines with a 4-2 decision over Jack Skudlarczyk to make it a 6-3 contest. Scoreless entering the final period, LaMont got things going with a quick reversal to take a 2-0 advantage. After a reversal from Skudlarczyk briefly tied the bout, the 2018 UVU NCAA qualifier and recent 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trial Greco-Roman qualifier LaMont answered with an escape followed by an additional riding time point to take the match by a score of 4-2 an avenge an earlier season loss to the Panther foe. 
 
With a handful of UVU's starters out on the day due to injury, UNI then managed to reel off the next five bouts to extend their lead to 32-3 and lock up the dual. During the stretch both UVU freshman Cameron Hunsaker (141 pounds) and junior Koy Wilkinson (165) battled in their respective matches, but in the end their Panther counterparts were able to defeat the pair of UVU grapplers by a mere two points apiece. 
 
The Orndorff brothers then finished the dual with back-to-back wins, one by fall and the other over a fellow ranked foe, to give UVU a total of three victories on the day. The three-time NCAA qualifier and 14th-ranked senior 197-pounder Tanner Orndorff started the spurt with his second pin of the week with a second period fall over UNI's Noah Glasser (4:45) to make it 32-9. With the Wolverine senior holding to a 3-0 advantage early in the second period, Tanner Orndorff recorded his second takedown of the bout and quickly managed to pin Glasser's shoulders to the mat to help jumpstart the late UVU rally. 
 
In a battle between a pair of ranked foes in the final match of the day, the 2019 UVU NCAA qualifier and sixth-ranked sophomore heavyweight Tate Orndorff didn't disappoint by defeating No. 14 Carter Isley handily by a score of 8-2 to cap the dual meet. With Isley holding to a 1-0 lead after a second period escape, Tate Orndorff picked up his first of three takedowns to take a 2-1 advantage into the final period. The UVU heavyweight then added a quick escape, as well as two more takedowns and an additional riding time point to defeat Isley for the second time on the season and improve to 7-2 on the year against fellow ranked opponents (12-2 overall). The win marked Tate Orndorff's second on the week over a ranked foe, as he previously defeated the 2019 All-American and 12th-ranked Josh Hokit of Fresno State on Thursday (3-1).   
 
"We also saw a couple of signs of improvement from our younger guys that we liked. However, there are still some areas that we need to do a better job of adapting during the match," Williams added. "UNI is a tough team throughout their lineup. But I thought that we came out with more intensity than we did the other night and I was pleased with how we competed."  
 
The contest marked UVU's second and final leg of a tough road trip, as the Wolverines previously wrestled at Fresno State late on Thursday night. After traveling from Utah to California on Wednesday, Utah Valley then had to travel from Central California to snowy Iowa on Friday to take on the nationally ranked Panthers on Saturday afternoon.  
 
The Wolverines will now return home and will host fellow Big 12 Conference foe No. 11 Iowa State on Thursday, Jan. 9 at 7 p.m. at Lockhart Arena. Thursday's dual will mark ISU's first trip to Orem since the 2004-05 season. Utah Valley will then remain home to host the annual UVU Open on Saturday, Jan. 11 at 9 a.m. 
 
FINAL RESULTS
#16 Northern Iowa 32, Utah Valley 12
125: #18 Jay Schwarm (UNI) FALL Will Edelblute (UVU), 1:46
133: #25 Taylor LaMont (UVU) DEC Jack Skudlarczyk (UNI), 4-2
141: #19 Michael Blockhus (UNI) DEC Cameron Hunsaker (UVU), 6-4
149: #7 Max Thomsen (UNI) wins by FORFEIT
157: Paden Moore (UNI) MD Jerry Rubio (UVU), 12-2 
165: Austin Yant (UNI) DEC Koy Wilkinson (UVU), 2-0
174: #5 Bryce Steiert (UNI) TF Grant LaMont (UVU), 18-0 (4:28)
184: #4 Taylor Lujan (UNI) TF Jacob Armstrong (UVU), 25-9 (6:40)
197: #14 Tanner Orndorff (UVU) FALL Noah Glasser (UNI), 4:45
285: #6 Tate Orndorff (UVU) DEC #14 Carter Isley (UNI), 8-2
 
West Gym - Cedar Falls, Iowa