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31 Michael Kemerer had seen enough. Austin DeSanto, his 133-pound teammate and fellow Pennsylvanian, was lying in pain on Mediacom Mat in the second of 10 bouts between No. 1 Iowa and No. 2 Penn State on Jan. 31. Kemerer decided to exit the arena and spend some time alone, preparing for his 174-pound match — one of the marquee bouts of the evening. DeSanto eventually withdrew for medical reasons, and aer 141 pounds, the Hawkeyes trailed, 11-4. "I saw we were down big, but it doesn't change what I have to do," Kemerer said. "I have to wrestle and do what I train to do, regardless if we are getting blown out or if we are winning. It doesn't change what I have to do out there." Still, Kemerer faced an immense task. His opponent was Mark Hall, a Nittany Lion senior who won the NCAA championship in 2017 and was runner-up in 2018 and 2019. Hall entered the dual with a record of 15-0 and ranked No. 1 in the weight division; Kemerer was 8-0 and ranked No. 2. irty seconds into the match, Hall attempted a throw, but Kemerer didn't panic. Instead, he rolls through the double underhook-headlock, comes out the back, and turns it into a takedown of his own eight seconds later. A reversal and 19-second ride out at the end of the first period le Kemerer with a 5-4 lead. Kemerer earned another takedown in the second period and led, 7-6, heading into the final two minutes. He outscored Hall, 4-0, in the third with an escape, takedown, and 1:21 of riding time. "at's the way you beat a national champion," Big Ten Network analyst Jim Gibbons said. "You score and keep scoring." It is also a way to become a national champion. "We talk to individuals to wrestle your match," Iowa head coach Tom Brands said. "at's what Kemerer did, and it was a steady onslaught. It was back and forth for a while, he stayed on it and didn't try to win a close match by putting the brakes on it." Beginning with Kemerer, the Hawkeyes won three of the final four bouts to win the dual, 19- 17. It was Kemerer's first meeting against Hall and the first time the Hawkeyes defeated the four-time defending NCAA Champion Nittany Lions since 2015. "If anything, it's respect to Penn State and how good they have been, as dominant as they have been," Kemerer said. "We beat them in a dual meet, but we're going to have to beat them at Big Tens and at nationals, and I'm going to have to beat (Hall) at Big Tens and nationals. We'll enjoy it and then get back to it." Two days later in East Lansing, Michigan, Kemerer won by 13-3 major decision over Layne Malczewski of Michigan State for his 30th consecutive dual victory. e two-time All- American (he was third at 157 pounds in 2017 and fourth at 157 in 2018) is 70-6 for his career, 38-1 in duals. "I'm not about proving stuff to anybody but myself," Kemerer said. "I believe if I keep wrestling, doing what I know how to do and what I have been doing my whole life, then I just prove it to myself." FEBRUARY SCHEDULE Feb. 8 at Michigan Feb. 15 Minnesota Feb. 23 Oklahoma State