- SESSION 1 ATTENDANCE – 18,085
PHILADELPHIA — The UNI wrestling team commenced the 2025 NCAA Championships on Thursday at Wells Fargo Center, with six wrestlers progressing to the second round of the championship brackets.
Julian Farber, Cael Happel, Colin Realbuto, Ryder Downey, Jack Thomsen, and Parker Keckeisen all secured victories in their initial matches of the tournament. Notably, Happel, Downey, and Keckeisen generated bonus points, while Farber delivered a pivotal win against two-time All-American Anthony Noto at 133 pounds, and Thomsen rebounded at 165 pounds to defeat Drake Rhodes.
After the first session, Northern Iowa is tied with Iowa, holding 10.5 points for sixth place in the team rankings.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Trever Anderson made his debut in the NCAA Championship at 125 pounds against 11th seed Nicolar Rivera from Wisconsin. Rivera opened the scoring with an early takedown, but Anderson countered with an escape, reducing the score to 3-1 going into the second period. Anderson added another escape in the second, trailing 3-2 before the final period. Despite his effort to limit Rivera’s riding time, Anderson was unable to secure the win, losing 4-2.
At 133 pounds, Farber faced two-time All-American and 15th seed Anthony Noto. After an initial takedown by Noto, Farber managed an escape, and despite falling behind, he executed a late takedown to achieve a stunning 9-8 victory over Noto.
Sixth-seeded Happel (141) showcased his skill by dominating Danny Pucino (Illinois), achieving a pin in the third period. With a commanding 16-5 lead, Happel executed his fifth takedown to secure his first career postseason pin in just under six minutes.
Tenth-seeded Realbuto triumphed at 149 pounds against 23rd seeded Carson DesRoiser from the Citadel, winning 11-6 after a well-executed match that included key takedowns.
The second session of this year’s national championships will kick off tonight at 6 p.m. CT, featuring both second round and consolation matches. Fans can tune in to all the action via ESPN networks, and match links can be found on UNI’s NCAA Championship Hub.
UNI RESULTS (THROUGH SESSION I)
[Seed] (NCAA Coaches rank) #Intermat/FloWrestling ranking listed
125 | [22] (23) #23/17 Trever Anderson (0-1)
- L – [11] (12) #11/15 Nicolar Rivera (Wisconsin), 4-2
133 | [18] (14) #18/18 Julian Farber (1-0)
- W – [15] (16) #16/20 Anthony Noto (Lock Haven), 9-8
141 | [6] (3) #4/5 Cael Happel (1-0)
- W – [28] (16) #19/32 Danny Puchino (Illinois), Fall 5:51
149 | [10] (10) #11/11 Colin Realbuto (1-0)
- W – [23] (32) Carson DesRoiser (Citadel), 11-6
157 | [6] (7) #10/10 Ryder Downey (1-0)
- W – [27] (26) #31/24 Grigor Cholakyan (Stanford), 12-1 MD
165 | [19] (17) #22/18 Jack Thomsen (1-0)
- W – [14] (15) #12/10 Drake Rhodes (South Dakota State), 13-8
174 | [19] (20) #18/20 Jared Simma (0-1)
- L – [14] (14) #15/15 Matthew Singleton (North Carolina State), 4-2
184 | [2] (2) #2/2 Parker Keckeisen (1-0)
- W – [31] (19) #25/26 Colton Hawks (Missouri), 19-4 TF
197 | [7] (8) #7/7 Wyatt Voelker (0-1)
- L – [26] (33) #28/NR Brock Zurawski (Rider), 5-2
HWT | [18] (21) #17/22 Lance Runyon (0-1)
- L – [15] #18/27 Trevor Tinker (Cal Poly), 15-2 MD
TEAM SCORES (TOP-10 THROUGH SESSION I)
- 1st – Penn State (24)
- 2nd – Oklahoma State (15.5)
- 3rd – Michigan (12)
- T4th – Nebraska (11.5)
- T4th – Ohio State (11.5)
- T6th – Iowa (10.5)
- T6th – UNI (10.5)
- 8th – Cornell (10)
- 9th – Illinois (9)
- 10th – Minnesota (8.5)
Stay updated on UNI wrestling by following them throughout the season on Facebook (University of Northern Iowa Wrestling), X (@UNI_wrestling), and Instagram (@uni_panther_wrestling). For the latest Panther news, visit UNIpanthers.com.
