Spencer Lee

IOWA CITY — University of Iowa junior Spencer Lee has been named a finalist for the 2020 WIN Magazine/Culture House Dan Hodge Trophy, which is presented by ASICS and awarded annually to the nation’s most dominant college wrestler.

Lee, who was to be the top seed in the NCAA Championships this weekend in Minneapolis, was 18-0 after winning the Big Ten Conference title at 125 pounds. He was named the Big Ten’s Wrestler of the Year after outscoring his 18 opponents by a 234-18 margin this season. He scored bonus points in 17 of his 18 wins, highlighted by four first-period pins and nine technical falls. He averaged 5 team points per match.

Only four of Lee’s matches this season went the full seven minutes. He was 5-0 during the month of January with five technical falls, racking up an 84-1 scoring advantage.

Lee is one of eight finalists for the Dan Hodge Trophy, which considers seven pieces of criteria: record, number of pins, dominance, past credentials, quality of competition, sportsmanship/citizenship, and heart. The winner is determined by fan vote and the Hodge Trophy Voting Committee.

Lee’s fellow finalists are: Princeton sophomore Pat Glory (125), Cornell senior Charles Tucker (133), Northwestern junior Ryan Deakin (157), Stanford freshman Shane Griffith (165), West Virginia sophomore Noah Adams (197), Ohio State senior Kollin Moore (197), and Minnesota sophomore Gable Steveson (285).

Fan voting for the award runs from March 23-27, and the winner is announced on March 30.