Things are getting a bit more intense at the Iowa state wrestling tournament, as 56 different guys ensured they would be ending their time at Wells Fargo Arena somewhere on the podium by reaching the Class 2A semifinals.
Many familiar faces asserted their dominance, but a few new guys and teams stepped to the plate on Thursday to give themselves at a minimum a sixth-place finish.
Along with a few notable upsets of top-seeded guys, a new team emerged to take first place as Burlington Notre Dame dropped to third place after a fast start on day one.
Here are three takeaways from a wild quarterfinal round in Class 2A:
More: Live results: Updates and analysis from Day 2 of Iowa boys state wrestling tournament
Osage’s “hammers” come through on day two, lead team race
If you kept an eye on the team standings through the first two days, you’d see Osage lingering around the bottom half of the top five, or even lower after the first few weight classes. But as soon as 138 pounds got rolling on both days, the Green Devils shot up the standings behind a crew of five.