UNI wrestling announces 2024-25 schedule

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- The UNI wrestling team on Thursday announced dates for its 2024-25 schedule, featuring seven home events.

The Panther Train will kick off its 101st season of competition on Saturday, Nov. 16 in Grimes, Iowa at the Grand View Open, the same day reigning NCAA champion Parker Keckeisen (184 pounds) is set to participate in the National Wrestling Coaches Association's (NWCA) All-Star Classic on the Penn State campus against the Nittany Lions' Carter Starocci in an exhibition match.

Due to UNI hosting the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Volleyball Championships in the McLeod Center, the Panthers will host their first home dual of the season inside the UNI-Dome on Nov. 24 against No. 9 South Dakota State in their Big 12 Conference opening dual.

Northern Iowa will also compete in a unique venue on Nov. 26 as it battles No. 8 Missouri at Arrowhead High School in Hartland, Wisconsin. The dual is being held in the hometown of the Tigers' two-time national champion and four-time All-American Keegan O'Toole.

Select Panther athletes will make the trip west to Nevada for the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, Dec. 6-7 before UNI returns to the McLeod Center on Dec. 14 to take on perennial Division II contender Nebraska-Kearney in its final dual of 2024. UNI will also compete at the Soldier Salute in Coralville, Dec. 29-30 at Xtream Arena.

UNI returns from the holidays on Jan. 5 as No. 4 Nebraska comes to Cedar Falls. The Panthers, who are in search of their first win against the Cornhuskers in a dual since 1964, fell in Lincoln by a score of 18-17 last season. Northern Iowa will once again play host to and participate in the NWCA Multi-Division National Dual Meet Championships inside the UNI-Dome, Jan. 11-12, an event that last year featured 93 teams from across six college divisions.

The Panthers return to the road with a second trip out west to the desert on Jan. 17 or 18 for a dual with Arizona State in non-conference action, setting up back-to-back home duals against Oklahoma State (Jan. 24) and Oklahoma (Jan. 25). OSU begins its first year under head coach David Taylor, 2020 Olympic gold medalist and two-time NCAA champion.

Northern Iowa will begin February with two road duals beginning Feb. 1 at West Virginia and Feb. 8 at North Dakota State before returning to Cedar Falls for their final home dual against No. 15 Iowa State inside the McLeod Center. UNI will wrap up the regular season on Feb. 23 with a dual at Wisconsin against the Badgers.

The Big 12 Championships will once again return to the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, set for March 8-9, while the NCAA Championships head to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, March 20-22 at the Wells Fargo Center.

Panther fans can purchase new season tickets, as well as single dual tickets for the upcoming year of action on the mat through unipanthers.com, or by contacting the UNI Ticket Office at 319-273-4849 or by email at tickets@uni.edu.

2024-25 UNI WRESTLING SCHEDULE (All times listed as CT)

Nov. 16 - Grand View Open - 9 a.m. (Grimes, Iowa | Ignite Sports Complex)
Nov. 16 - NWCA All-Star Classic - 6 p.m. (University Park, Pa. | Rec Hall)
Nov. 24 vs. South Dakota State * - 1 p.m. (Cedar Falls, Iowa | UNI-Dome)
Nov. 26 vs. Missouri * - 7 p.m. (Hartland, Wisc. | Arrowhead High School)
Dec. 6-7 - Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Las Vegas, Nev. | Las Vegas Convention Center)
Dec. 14 vs. Nebraska-Kearney - 7 p.m. (Cedar Falls, Iowa | McLeod Center)
Jan. 5 vs. Nebraska - 1 p.m. (Cedar Falls, Iowa | McLeod Center)
Dec. 29-30 - Soldier Salute (Coralville, Iowa | Xtream Arena)
Jan. 11-12 - NWCA Multi-Division National Dual Meet Championships - TBA (Cedar Falls, Iowa | UNI-Dome)
Jan. 17 or 18 at Arizona State * - TBA (Tempe, Ariz. | Mullett Arena)
Jan. 24 vs. Oklahoma State * - 7 p.m. (Cedar Falls, Iowa | McLeod Center)
Jan. 25 vs. Oklahoma * - 7 p.m. (Cedar Falls, Iowa | McLeod Center)
Feb. 1 at West Virginia * - 6 p.m. (Morgantown, W. Va. | WVU Coliseum)
Feb. 8 at North Dakota State * - 7 p.m. (Fargo, N.D. | Scheels Center)
Feb. 16 vs. Iowa State * - 1 p.m. (Cedar Falls, Iowa | McLeod Center)
Feb. 23 at Wisconsin - 1 p.m. (Madison, Wisc. | UW Fieldhouse)
Mar. 8-9 - Big 12 Championships - TBA (Tulsa, Okla. | BOK Center)
Mar. 20-22 - NCAA Championships - TBA (Philadelphia, Pa. | Wells Fargo Center)

* Big 12 dual

UNI wrestling action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (University of Northern Iowa Wrestling), X (@UNI_wrestling) and on Instagram (@uni_panther_wrestling). Check out the latest Panther news and information online at UNIpanthers.com.

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