No. 1 Iowa will put its depth and dominance to the test on Sunday, Feb. 8, as it hosts the inaugural For Her Duals at Xtream Arena in Coralville, Iowa. The event will feature an NCAA vs. NAIA style bracket, bringing together several of the nation’s top women’s wrestling programs in a dual-meet showcase.
For the past. For the present. For the future. 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗛𝗲𝗿.
— Iowa Women's Wrestling (@IowaW_Wrestling)
Happy National Girls & Women in Sports Day! 🫶
Representing the NCAA will be No. 1 Iowa, No. 2 McKendree, No. 20 William Jewell and Ursinus College. The NAIA field is No. 1 Life University, No. 4 William Penn, No. 7 Indiana Tech and No. 13 Ottawa University. The eight-team tournament will have four NCAA programs on one site of the bracket and four NAIA programs on the other. Each team will wrestle the other three on its side of the bracket before the two crossover based on how they performed: No. 1 in the NCAA vs. No. 1 from the NAIA through No. 4 vs. No. 4.
Each team involved will have the opportunity to test lineups against elite competition as the postseason approaches. For most, the question remains the same: Who can defeat Iowa?
Here’s what you need to know about how this tournament works, who is involved and how to watch this showcase:
Schedule:
- 8:30 a.m. CT — Weigh-Ins
- 10:30 a.m. CT — First Duals (remaining duals will commence 10 minutes after the conclusion of the first dual)
Mat Layout:
Mat 1: Iowa vs Ursinus, Iowa vs William Jewell, Iowa vs McKendree, NCAA 1 vs NAIA 1
Mat 2: Life vs Ottawa, Life vs Indiana Tech, Life vs William Penn, NCAA 2 vs NAIA 2
Mat 3: William Penn vs Indiana Tech, William Penn vs Ottawa, Indiana Tech vs Ottawa, NCAA 3 vs NAIA 3
Mat 4: McKendree vs William Jewell, McKendree vs Ursinus, William Jewell vs Ursinus, NCAA 4 vs NAIA 4
How to watch:
All matches will be streamed on BTN+ starting at 10:30 a.m. CT
What to know about the four NCAA teams
No. 1 Iowa (10-1)
No. 1 Iowa enters Sunday’s action well rested after a few weeks off from competition. The Hawkeyes were unable to travel to Albany, New York, for the Journeymen College Duals due to weather complications. Iowa did recently dominate No. 9 Lehigh, 37-7 and Otterbein, 42-1, on Senior Night. In total, the team recorded four falls and 12 techs across both duals, outscoring its opponents 79-8.
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Iowa’s top-ranked Kylie Welker made a statement in her home debut against the Mountain Hawks, earning a 10-0 technical fall over Lehigh’s Genevieve An. Welker is 5-0 this season and remains undefeated in her collegiate career at 180 pounds.
No. 1 Kennedy Blades also continued to add to the team's winning ways with a 12-0 technical fall over Otterbein’s Audrey Garcia. The 2024 Olympic silver medalist is 10-0 this season at 160, with all of her wins coming by pin or fall. Blades is currently competing in the Zagreb Open, a tournament that she won last year. Even without its star, though, Iowa is in an ideal position to compete for a win at this year’s For Her duals, given the depth of the program.
No. 2 McKendree (16-1)
No. 2 McKendree will get its shot at a For Hers dual tournament title this weekend after trailing behind Iowa all season. The Bearcats are coming off a fierce victory at the inaugural Great Lakes Valley Conference, collecting the title after overpowering No. 4 Grand Valley State, 40-4 and shutting out Davenport, 49-0.
🟪🐾Results from our day locking up the Inaugural Women’s Wrestling title 🏆😤
— McKendree Wrestling (@McKWrestling)
McKendree did also have a small taste of victory at the NWCA National Duals, finishing runner up of the meet while Iowa placed third. However, the two teams never went head-to-head. The Bearcats earned ranked wins over No. 3 Grand Valley State, 25-13, No. 7 Colorado Mesa, 37-6, and No. 18 Gannon, 40-0 during that event. The team has notched solid wins but their true test will come in the Hawkeyes' house.
Weights to Watch: Iowa vs. McKendree*
103: No. 1 Valarie Solorio (Iowa) vs. No. 2 Heather Crull (McKendree)
110: No. 1 Gabrielle Tedesco (McKendree) vs. No. 2 Nyla Valencia (Iowa)
138: No. 2 Haylie Jaffe (McKendree) vs. No. 3 Skye Realin (Iowa)
*Probables are not set and both teams have options, but these are some of the potential big matches that could take center stage in this matchup
No. 20 William Jewell (2-2)
No. 20 William Jewell has faced the Hawkeyes once before this season at the NWCA National Duals, losing 40-5. There were only two victors: Emily Mendez at 110 and Alex Waitsman at 117. Overall, the Cardinals placed 11th out of 20 total teams. Since then, the team put together a successful senior night, defeating Avila University 37-10 with four falls and three techs.
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Redshirt freshman Juliana Alejandro, weighing 103 pounds, was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference/Athletic Solutions Women's Wrestler of the Week on Jan. 16 after going 5-1 at the NCC Open, not allowing a point in her five wins. She pinned Menlo's Navjot Waraich, Indiana Tech's Makayla Young and Southern Oregon's Liana Ferreira and teched East Stroudsburg's Olivia Klein and William Penn's Lillian Zapata, 11-0.
Ursinus College (10-3)
Ursinus was supposed to take on Iowa at the Journeyman College Duals before its travel complications, but now the Bears will finally get their shot fresh off a 48-1 win on senior day over Delaware Valley. At 124 pounds, Bears Kalli Roskos secured her 82nd career win, the most in program history.
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— USA Wrestling (@USAWrestling)
Ursinus also placed seventh at the PA Collegiate State Championships earlier this season with Aubree Butler, Charlotte Bowman and Ashley Diaz leading the way with fourth-place finishes at 110, 160 and 124 pounds
This weekend, the team faces all ranked opponents.
