Ohio State wrestling made an early-season statement – and got $200,000 richer in the process.
The Buckeyes claimed the grand prize at the inaugural National Duals Invitational with a dominant run through the bracket that included lopsided wins over two teams ranked in the top three nationally.
Congratulations to Ohio State - your National Duals Invitational champions!
— National Duals Invitational (@NDIWrestling) November 17, 2025
The Buckeyes capped off an incredible weekend of wrestling with a legendary performance to secure the $200,000 grand prize.#NDIWrestling #Paycom pic.twitter.com/LDS1eH7CdO
Ohio State cruised through Saturday’s first two rounds of the tournament with a 33-6 win over No. 24 Wyoming and a 29-6 win over No. 9 Minnesota.
The Buckeyes followed that up on Sunday morning with an even more dominant performance against No. 2 Nebraska, earning a 33-3 win over the Cornhuskers. Ohio State won nine of 10 matches against Nebraska, including a fall by Ethan Stiles at 149 pounds and major decisions by Ben Davino (133), Brandon Cannon (157) and Paddy Gallagher (165).
Ohio State wins BIG to claim a spot in the finals of the National Duals Invitational presented by Paycom! The Buckeyes will see the Iowa Hawkeyes with $200,000 on the line! #NationalDuals pic.twitter.com/Nu8RTJBAZh
— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) November 16, 2025
A scorching start in Sunday night’s championship match against Iowa led Ohio State to the title.
The dual started with immediate fireworks for the Buckeyes as Nic Bouzakis pinned 10th-ranked Dean Peterson to give Ohio State a 6-0 lead out of the gate. Davino followed that up with a 10-4 win over Drake Ayala, the reigning NCAA runner-up at 133 pounds.
Two-time NCAA champion Jesse Mendez earned a 17-1 tech-fall win over ninth-ranked Nasir Bailey to give Ohio State a 14-0 lead after just three matches. Stiles defeated Ryder Block and Cannon earned a 14-2 major decision over Iowa’s Victor Voinovich to give the Buckeyes a commanding 21-0 lead at halftime.
Iowa made the score respectable from there. The Hawkeyes earned three straight 4-1 sudden-victory wins at 165 pounds (Michael Caliendo over Paddy Gallagher), 174 pounds (Patrick Kennedy over Carson Kharchla) and 184 pounds (Angelo Ferrari over Dylan Fishback), and Iowa’s Massoma Endene defeated Seth Shumate 8-3 at 197 pounds.
The bonus points earned by Bouzakis, Mendez and Cannon made it impossible for Iowa to catch Ohio State in the final match, however, and Iowa opted to forfeit the heavyweight bout, giving the Buckeyes a 27-12 victory for the championship.
| Wt. | Result | OSU | IOWA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 125 | Nic Bouzakis (OSU) def. No. 10 Dean Peterson (IOWA), F, 1:34 | 6 | 0 |
| 133 | No. 9 Ben Davino (OSU) def. No. 3 Drake Ayala (IOWA), D, 10-4 | 9 | 0 |
| 141 | No. 1 Jesse Mendez (OSU) def. No. 9 Nasil Bailey (IOWA), TF, 17-1 | 14 | 0 |
| 149 | No. 9 Ethan Stiles (OSU) def. Ryder Block (IOWA), D, 3-2 | 17 | 0 |
| 157 | No. 8 Brandon Cannon (OSU) def. Victor Voinovich (IOWA), MD, 14-2 | 21 | 0 |
| 165 | No. 2 Michael Caliendo (IOWA) def. No. 9 Paddy Gallagher (OSU), SV-1, 4-1 | 21 | 3 |
| 174 | No. 2 Patrick Kennedy (IOWA) def. No. 9 Carson Kharchla (OSU), SV-1, 4-1 | 21 | 6 |
| 184 | No. 3 Angelo Ferrari (IOWA) def. No. 7 Dylan Fishback (OSU), SV-1, 4-1 | 21 | 9 |
| 197 | No. 16 Massoma Endene (IOWA) def. Seth Shumate (OSU), D, 8-3 | 21 | 12 |
| HWT | No. 6 Nick Feldman (OSU) by forfeit | 27 | 12 |
The National Duals Invitational is a new tournament, started this year, that awards a total of $1 million to participating teams. The money is awarded to programs rather than directly to athletes, as NCAA rules don’t allow athletes to compete for prize money, even though they can be paid for the use of their name, image, and likeness.
Now 5-0 on the season, Ohio State is poised to join Penn State – who did not participate in the National Duals Invitational – as one of the top two teams in the national rankings. The top-ranked Nittany Lions remain the team to beat in NCAA wrestling, as they are the four-time defending national champions, but the Buckeyes proved themselves to be a real championship contender with their performance in Tulsa.
