University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
NCAA Championships
UNI wrestling: Panthers round out 2026 NCAA Championships
3/20/2026 10:45:00 PM | Wrestling
Farber and Downey drop bouts in the NCAA bloodround.
CLEVELAND --- The UNI wrestling team closed out competition at the NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championships at Rocket Arena in the crucial bloodround.
Panther veterans Julian Farber (133 pounds) and Ryder Downey (165 pounds) both fell short in their latest matches in the fourth session of the tournament to round out the 2025-26 season. Northern Iowa finished this year's national tournament with nine total victories, including two technical falls by Downey.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Farber faced a tough challenge after two consolation round wins on Thursday and Friday, matching up with seventh-seeded and reigning 133-pound national champion Lucas Byrd (Illinois) in a narrow 5-4 loss. The senior from Bonaire, Georgia finishes the season with a 21-11 record and 84-41 career mark, the most victories among active Panther wrestlers.
At 165 pounds, Downey, in his third NCAA Championships, also battled back in the consolation rounds with two backside victories to set up a showdown with No. 15 Bryce Hepner (North Carolina), falling to his Tar Heel opponent by a 1-0 score. Downey finishes his season with a 24-7 mark.
Elsewhere in tournament action, senior Caleb Rathjen (149 pounds) finished with a 2-2 record in the tournament, while Jared Simma (174 pounds) and Nick Fox (184 pounds) both went 1-2.
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UNI RESULTS (Through Session 4)
[Seed] (NCAA Coaches rank) #Intermat/FloWrestling ranking listed
133 | [20] (24) #20/19 Julian Farber (3-2) | DNP
- W - [13] (10) #9/9 Jacob Van Dee (Nebraska), 5-4
- L - [4] (5) #4/5 Aaron Seidel (Virginia Tech), 22-4 TFÂ
- W - [13] (17) #14/17 Ethan Berginc (Army), 7-2Â
- W - [12] (13) #12/14 Evan Mougalian (Penn), 6-5Â
- L - [7] (1) #7/8 Lucas Byrd (Illinois), 5-4
149 | [14] (24) #21/16 Caleb Rathjen (2-2) | DNP
- W - [19] (19) #16/16 Brock Herman (Little Rock), 3-1
- L - [3] (6) #9/10 Cross Wasilewski (Penn), 8-5 SV-1
- W - [29] (22) #27/22 Kaden Cassidy (George Mason), 10-4Â
- L - [21] #17/23 Gabe Willochell (Wyoming), 10-1 MDÂ
165 | [11] (6) #6/6 Ryder Downey (3-2)
- W - [22] #21/19 Matthew Olguin (Oregon State), 10-4Â
- L - [27] #24/20 EJ Parco (Stanford), 4-3Â
- W - [28] #25/23 Cody Goebel (Wisconsin), 18-3 TF
- W - [19] (22) #18/22 Noah Mulvaney (Bucknell), 18-2 TF
- L -Â [9] (18) #15/16 Bryce Hepner (North Carolina), 1-0
174 | [17] (13) #13/14 Jared Simma (1-2) | DNP
- L - [16] (22) #23/30 Nick Fine (Columbia), 3-2Â
- W - [33] Grant O`Dell (Bellarmine), 4-1Â
- L - [2] (2) #2/2 Simon Ruiz (Cornell), 5:57 Fall Â
184 | [29] (19) #21/19 Nick Fox (1-2) | DNP
- L - [4] (4) #9/9 James Conway (Franklin & Marshall), 4-1
- W - [13] (11) #10/10 Isaac Dean (Iowa State), 4-1Â
- L - [14] (24) #20/18 Jaden Bullock (Virginia Tech), 4-3 SV-2
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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.
Players Mentioned
