No. 6 Oklahoma State Wrestling Defeats No. 11 Minnesota, 23-10

MINNEAPOLIS – The Oklahoma State wrestling team improved to 2-0 on the season with a 23-10 victory on the road at No. 11 Minnesota that saw six Cowboys defeat ranked Golden Gophers.

"I thought we looked good at several weight classes," head coach John Smith said. "Our theme this week was to get better, but we didn't get better at some weight classes. We didn't have much killer instinct in us and didn't want to finish some matches off. It's early and hopefully we will improve from this match as we move onto Drexel next weekend."

The sixth-ranked Cowboys got off to a quick start when sophomore Trevor Mastrogiovanni upset No. 5 Patrick McKee, who was an All-American last season. Mastrogiovanni held a 4-3 after the first period, and separated the score in the second with an escape and pair of takedowns to extend his lead to 9-4. He finished off a 10-6 decision to put the Cowboys up 3-0.

"He had a really good effort," Smith said. "There was a lot of confidence in his performance and those takedowns were big and critical. He picked him up when he was in on legs and he did a nice job finishing his shots, which made a difference in the outcome."

Daton Fix moved to 2-0 on the season with an 18-7 major decision over No. 33 Jake Gliva. Dustin Plott, Dakota Geer and AJ Ferrari each moved their record to 2-0, as well, with wins today.

Ranked 15th in the nation, Plott took down No. 23 Jared Krattiger with a convincing 6-1 decision. At 184, Geer clinched the victory for OSU with a takedown in sudden victory. Geer and No. 21 Isaiah Salazar, who was 4-0 on the season, ended regulation at a 1-1 tie before Geer sealed his second victory of the season in the first sudden victory period. Ferrari got off to a fast start in his match with Michial Foy as he led 4-1 after one period. He doubled his lead in the second period and used a takedown with three seconds remaining to collect his second major decision in as many matches.

No. 22 Kaden Gfeller and No. 6 Travis Wittlake earned their first wins of the season after dropping bouts to top-10 opponents at Stanford. Down 2-0 after the first period, Gfeller took control of the match in the second period with an escape, takedown and four-point turn. He finished off No. 26 Michael Blockhus by a score of 10-3, while Wittlake defeated No. 21 Andrew Sparks, 8-3.

The Cowboys took seven of 10 matches in the duals with the losses coming at 141, 157 and heavyweight. At 141, true freshman Carter Young dropped his dual debut to Jake Bergeland by a score of 6-4, while Wyatt Sheets dropped his match with No. 5 Brayton Lee, 15-9. Luke Surber had the daunting task of facing top-ranked heavyweight and Olympic champion, Gable Steveson, who collected a 20-7 major decision.

Oklahoma State will return to Stillwater and prepare for its home opener with Drexel on Sunday, November 28. The Cowboys will host the Dragons at 2 p.m., which can be seen on Big 12 Now on ESPN+
 
No. 6 Oklahoma State 23, No. 11 Minnesota 10
Nov. 20, 2021  |  Maturi Pavilion  |  Minneapolis, Minn. 
Attendance: 2, 994
125: No. 19 Trevor Mastrogiovanni (OSU) dec. No. 5 Patrick McKee (MINN), 10-6
133: No. 2 Daton Fix (OSU) MD No. 33 Jake Gliva (MINN), 18-7
141: Jake Bergeland (MINN) dec. Carter Young (OSU), 6-4
149: No. 22 Kaden Gfeller (OSU) dec. No. 26 Michael Blockhus (MINN), 9-4
157: No. 5 Brayton Lee (MINN) dec. No. 14 Wyatt Sheets (OSU), 15-9
165: No. 6 Travis Wittlake (OSU) dec. No. 21 Andrew Sparks (MINN), 8-3
174: No. 15 Dustin Plott (OSU) dec. No. 23 Jared Krattiger (MINN) 6-1
184: No. 7 Dakota Geer (OSU) dec. No. 21 Isaiah Salazar (MINN), SV-1 3-1
197: No. 1 AJ Ferrari (OSU) MD Michial Foy (MINN), 12-4
HWT: No. 1 Gable Steveson (MINN) MD Luke Surber (OSU), 20-7