HIGH SCHOOL

How to watch and follow the 2020 Iowa high school state wrestling tournament

Cody Goodwin
The Des Moines Register

The state wrestling championships are back in Des Moines this week and there are plenty of ways to watch and follow the action.

Wrestling begins with Wednesday’s state duals competition, followed by the traditional tournament Thursday, Friday and Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena. The finals on Saturday night have sold out for 32 straight years.

It will be one of the hottest tickets in town, and wrestling fans in Iowa and around the country will tune in. Here’s how you can, too.

TV and online

There are some streaming options available.

The Iowa High School Sports Network is partnering with Trackwrestling to stream every single match from both the state duals and traditional state tournaments. That’s 504 matches Wednesday and another 1,260 between Thursday and Saturday.

You can watch all of them — live and archived — for a one-time payment of $15.95 through Trackwrestling.

You can also watch all of the action live for free both online and through the “Watch IHSSN” app, which available on iOS, Apple TV, Android, Android TV, Amazon Fire and Roku. Find the one that applies to you here.

The IHSSN also teamed up with local television stations and statewide cable companies to ensure Saturday night’s finals will be on TV. The broadcast affiliates include:

Des Moines (Central)

  • KDSM 17.1|17.3
  • Digital HD 17.1|17.3
  • Mediacom 111
  • DirecTV 17
  • Dish Network 17

Omaha | Council Bluffs (Southwest)

  • NPTM 42.2
  • Digital HD 42.2
  • DIRECTV 43
  • Farmers Coop
  • Griswold Communications
  • Harlan Municipal Utilities
  • Marne Elk Horn
  • Mediacom
  • Mutual Communication Services
  • Northwest Iowa Cable
  • Walnut Communications
  • Westel Cable

Sioux City (Northwest)

  • NPTH 44.2
  • Digital HD 44.2
  • Cable One
  • Community Agency Comserv
  • LTD
  • Corn Belt Telephone
  • HITEC
  • Long Lines
  • Mediacom
  • Milford Communications
  • Premier Communications
  • WesTel Systems
  • Wiatel
  • Many other cable systems

Rochester | Mason City (North Central)

  • KXLT 47.1| 47.2
  • Digital HD 47.1|47.2
  • DirecTV 47
  • Dish Network 47
  • Acentek ADB Digital 69
  • Charter 190
  • CL Tel 17
  • Communications 1 333/350
  • Harmony 12
  • Jaguar 93
  • KM Telecom 47
  • Mediacom 108 & 109
  • Omnitel 69
  • Osage 69
  • Rockwell Coop 19
  • Winnebago 15/47/87

Cedar Rapids (Northeast)

  • KFXA 28.2
  • Digital HD 28.2
  • Cedar Falls Utilities 106
  • IMON 703
  • Mediacom 103
  • Waverly Communications Utility 21

Moline | Quad Cities (Southeast)

  • WQAD 8.3
  • Digital HD 8.3
  • Comcast 1190
  • Mediacom 3
  • Mediacom 716
  • Central Scott Telephone 216/348
  • Muscatine Power & Water 11

According to the IHSSN, “Channels are accessed by subscribing to a local cable company that provides access to the digital channels or by having a television antenna (attic, wall mount or table top) in your home.  Always check your local channel guide for programming information and any program changes.”

For more information, click here.

For those who wish to listen to the action, 1460 KXnO — and now 106.3 FM — in Des Moines will provide play-by-play updates during Thursday’s morning session, Friday’s afternoon session and Saturday night’s finals. Trent Condon will be on the call. 

Updates and analysis on wrestling action

The Des Moines Register will be at the Well every day to bring you live updates, analysis, stories, video interviews, photos and so much more. You can download the Register app for easy consumption (iOS | Android). We will have a recap of the state duals tournament Wednesday night and coverage of all three classes each day of the traditional tournament. 

On Twitter: Wrestling writer Cody Goodwin (@codygoodwin) will be at the Well every day, but also covering the tournament will be Danny Lawhon (@DannyLawhon), Dargan Southard (@Dargan_Southard) and Matthew Bain (@MatthewBain_) throughout the week.

The Register’s talented photographers will also be on hand to capture the images of the tournament. Follow them here: Brian Powers (@bpowersphoto), Kelsey Kremer (@kelsey_kremer), Bryon Houlgrave (@bryonhoulgrave), and Zach Boyden-Holmes (@boydenphoto) and Olivia Sun (@olivia_sun).

Be sure to also follow the main Des Moines Register sports account (@DMRSports) and the All-Iowa Sports account (@AllIowa), as well as the Register’s main account (@DMRegister). The Register’s High School Insider Facebook page will share all our wrestling coverage this week, as will the Register's main Facebook page. And for those of you on Instagram, check out the Des Moines Register’s Instagram page for more photos and insights throughout the tournament.

But first, read up on what you need to know for the 2020 state wrestling tournament, from team rankings, returning champs, undefeated wrestlers and cool names.

How to watchand follow the 2020 Iowa high school state wrestling tournament

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State wrestling schedule

Wednesday, state duals

  • 9 a.m. — Class 1A, 2A quarterfinals
  • 11 a.m. — Class 3A quarterfinals; 1A, 2A consolations
  • 1 p.m. — Class 1A, 2A, 3A semifinals; 3A consolations
  • 4:30 p.m. — Class 1A, 2A, 3A fifth-place and seventh-place matches
  • 6:30 p.m. — Class 1A, 2A, 3A championships and third-place matches

Thursday, traditional tournament

  • Session I: Class 3A first round, first-round wrestlebacks, 9 a.m.
  • Session 2: Class 2A first round, first-round wrestlebacks, 1:30 p.m.
  • Session 3: Class 1A first round, first-round wrestlebacks, 6 p.m.

Friday, traditional tournament

  • Session 4: Class 3A, 2A quarterfinals, second-round wrestlebacks, 9 a.m.
  • Session 5: Class 1A quarterfinals, 3A semifinals, quarterfinal wrestlebacks, 1A second-round wrestlebacks, 2:30 p.m.
  • Session 6: Class 2A, 1A semifinals, quarterfinal wrestlebacks, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, traditional tournament

  • Session 7: Class 3A, 2A, 1A semifinal wrestlebacks, medal matches, 10 a.m.
  • Session 8: Class 3A, 2A, 1A finals, 6 p.m.

How to get tickets

Tickets for this week can be purchased online or at the Wells Fargo Arena ticket office (southwest corner of the arena).

Cody Goodwin covers wrestling and high school sports for the Des Moines Register. Follow him on Twitter at @codygoodwin.

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