Iowa State head coach Alli St. John has initiated her staff building by naming Jake Kadel as the first assistant coach for the women’s wrestling program on Monday. Kadel joins the Cyclones after a highly successful three-year tenure as the head coach at William Penn, where he led the Statesmen to three straight top-five finishes in the NAIA.
“I am excited to have Jake join our program as an assistant coach,” St. John said in a press release. “He brings a wealth of wrestling knowledge, experience building
a women’s program and recruiting acumen with him to Ames, and he was one of the first people I had in mind when I started to build out my staff. What he was able to build at William Penn was amazing and his athletes saw great success on the mat and in the classroom.”
Kadel is recognized as a dynamic program builder who transformed William Penn into a national contender in a remarkably short window. He took over a program that had finished 33rd at the 2023 NAIA National Championships and immediately propelled them to two consecutive fourth-place finishes, culminating in a national runner-up finish during the 2025-26 season.
“I am incredibly excited for the opportunity to work alongside coach Alli St. John and the rest of the staff at Iowa State University,” Kadel said in a press release. “I’ve been fortunate to follow her career as an athlete, and I have tremendous respect for what she brings to the sport.”
During his three seasons at William Penn, Kadel’s leadership produced nine national champions and 18 All-Americans, with 33 total wrestlers qualifying for the NAIA National Championships. His athletes also achieved significant success in conference competition, winning 13 Heart of America Athletic Conference titles, and in the classroom, where they earned 24 NAIA Scholar-Athlete honors.
“I look forward to investing in the student-athletes and building on the already strong wrestling tradition at Iowa State. I’d also like to thank the Iowa State administration for their continued investment in women’s wrestling, and Coach St. John for her belief in me,” Kadel said.
Kadel’s final season at William Penn was marked by a historic first-ever team title at the Heart of America Athletic Conference Championships. That season, the program narrowly missed a national team title, finishing second with 158.5 points while crowning four national champions and seven All-Americans. Throughout his three years at the helm, Kadel guided the Statesmen to a 27-13 overall record in dual matches.
