UNI Wrestling Competes at NCAA Championships, Three Advance to Quarterfinals
CLEVELAND – The University of Northern Iowa wrestling team concluded the first day of competition at the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Wrestling Championships at Rocket Arena on Thursday. Three Panthers – Julian Farber, Caleb Rathjen, and Ryder Downey – advanced to Friday’s quarterfinal round, while Jared Simma and Nick Fox will continue their tournament runs through the consolation bracket.
How It Happened
Jared Simma (174 pounds) opened the day with a 4-1 sudden victory win over Grant O’Dell of Bellarmine, keeping his championship hopes alive. Nick Fox (184 pounds) followed with a notable upset, defeating No. 10 Isaac Dean of Iowa State 4-1 after securing a second-period takedown.
Julian Farber (133 pounds) fell to No. 4 Aaron Seidel of Virginia Tech in the second round, suffering a 22-4 technical fall.
Caleb Rathjen (149 pounds) engaged in a tightly contested match against ninth-ranked Cross Wasilewski of Penn. After tying the match 5-5 at the end of regulation, Rathjen and Wasilewski went into sudden victory. Despite multiple offensive attempts, Wasilewski secured a takedown for the 8-5 win.
Ryder Downey (165 pounds) was defeated by No. 20 EJ Parco of Stanford, 4-3, in the second round.
UNI Results (Through Session 2)
- 133 | Julian Farber (1-1)
- W – Jacob Van Dee (Nebraska), 5-4
- L – Aaron Seidel (Virginia Tech), 22-4 TF
- 149 | Caleb Rathjen (1-1)
- W – Brock Herman (Little Rock), 3-1
- L – Cross Wasilewski (Penn), 8-5 SV-1
- 165 | Ryder Downey (1-1)
- W – Matthew Olguin (Oregon State), 10-4
- L – EJ Parco (Stanford), 4-3
- 174 | Jared Simma (1-1)
- L – Nick Fine (Columbia), 3-2
- W – Grant O’Dell (Bellarmine), 4-1
- 184 | Nick Fox (1-1)
- L – James Conway (Franklin & Marshall), 4-1
- W – Isaac Dean (Iowa State), 4-1
Up Next
The third session of the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Wrestling Championships will begin on Friday at 11 a.m. CT, featuring quarterfinal and consolation matches. Fans can follow the action on the ESPN networks and through the UNI Athletics NCAA Championship Hub.
Follow UNI wrestling action on Facebook (University of Northern Iowa Wrestling), X (@UNI_wrestling), and Instagram (@uni_panther_wrestling). More information is available at UNIpanthers.com.