Cowboys Dominate Bucknell to Score Badly Needed Win
STILLWATER – The Oklahoma State wrestling team returned to the win column Friday night with a 32-6 win over Bucknell that saw eight Cowboys win their matches.
"We were really just concerned about scoring points and working hard and making sure that you recognize that takedowns win matches most of the time," head coach John Smith said. "I think we've ironed out a few things since the Iowa match, and even the Missouri match. In both matches, I wish we could've changed a little something, done something a little different, but as long as you're seeing that effort and that energy, there's a lot of hope for this team as we go down to the end. The hope is that we have a great and very competitive NCAA Championships."
Oklahoma State collected four bonus-point victories in bouts at 133, 174, 184 and heavyweight. With the dual starting at 133 pounds, second-ranked Daton Fix got the Pokes an early 5-0 lead as he picked up his third technical fall of the season in a 21-6 win over Kurt Phipps.
After losses at 157 and 165 that brought the Bison within five on the team score, Dustin Plott stepped up with a first period fall over Sam Barnes. The pin in 1:44 is the fastest of Plott's career and the first of the season. Dakota Geer followed Plott's win with a major decision of his own that puts him in a tie for the team lead this season with four. Leading 2-0 after the first period, Geer opened up his offense as he reversed Logan Deacetis to start the second and racked up eight takedowns the rest of the way en route to a 21-8 major decision.
At heavyweight, Luke Surber claimed his sixth bonus-point victory of the season in a 20-4 technical fall that Surber ended with a takedown and four-point turn with 10 seconds remaining in the second period.
"I rode him pretty easy. I wasn't having much success turning him, so I knew in the second I was just going to take him down and let him up when I could," Surber said. "From there the points started opening up."
Four Cowboys won their matches by decision, including true freshman Carter Young who collected an 8-3 win over No. 26 Darren Miller in a match Young controlled from the start. Trevor Mastrogiovanni improved to 14-1 on the season with a 3-0 victory at 125 pounds, while Kaden Gfeller nearly nabbed bonus points in a 9-3 victory over Kolby DePron. Gavin Stika won his second dual match of the season in front of the home crowd at 197 pounds as he defeated Mason McCready, 3-2, in a hard-fought match. Stika will be the starter at 197 for the remainder of the season after it was announced that AJ Ferrari, who was 10-0 and ranked No. 1, will not return this season.
"These are opportunities that come up unexpectedly, and they come in all shapes and sizes," Stika said. "It's something special to wear an orange singlet. It's not something to be taken for granted, it's an important thing."
Oklahoma State rounds out the regular season with the second round of Bedlam on Sunday at 2 p.m. The Cowboys will celebrate Senior Day during intermission of the dual as five Cowboys will be recognized for their time spent in the program.
No. 12 Oklahoma State 32, Bucknell 6
Feb. 18, 2022 | Gallagher-Iba Arena | Stillwater, Okla.
Attendance: 3,346
133: No. 2 Daton Fix (OSU) TF Kurt Phipps (BUCK), 21-6, 7:00
141: No. 21 Carter Young (OSU) dec. No. 26 Darren Miller (BUCK), 8-3
149: No. 13 Kaden Gfeller (OSU) dec. Kolby DePron (BUCK), 9-3
157: Nick Delp (BUCK) dec. No. 18 Wyatt Sheets (OSU), 7-5
165: No.18 Zach Hartman (BUCK) dec. No. 8 Travis Wittlake (OSU), 5-0
174: No. 12 Dustin Plott (OSU) fall Sam Barnes (BUCK), 1:44
184: No. 8 Dakota Geer (OSU) MD Logan Deacetis (BUCK), 21-8
197: Gavin Stika (OSU) dec. Mason McCready (BUCK), 3-2
HWT: No. 31 Luke Surber (OSU) TF Luke Niemeyer (BUCK), 20-4, 4:50
125: No. 7 Trevor Mastrogiovanni (OSU) dec. Brandon Seidman (BUCK), 3-0