Oklahoma State Handles South Dakota State for Third Straight Over a Ranked Foe
The Oklahoma State wrestling team defeated No. 16 South Dakota State, 19-12, on Friday for its third ranked win a row. With the victory, the Cowboys moved to 12-2 on the season and have won nine of their last 10 duals.
Oklahoma State won six of 10 matches, highlighted by ranked wins from four different wrestlers.
In a dual featuring seven ranked matchups, Reece Witcraft set the tone for the Cowboys in the first bout of the night, upsetting No. 25 Tanner Morgan to put OSU out front early. Witcraft opened up a 6-0 lead with a takedown and near fall points in the first period, riding the advantage to an eventual 9-5 decision.
No. 2 Daton Fix built the Cowboys’ lead up to 7-0 following an 11-1 major decision over Derrick Cardinal in the following match. Fix again utilized first period near fall points en route to his third consecutive bonus point victory.
After No. 15 Carter Young dropped a tight match to No. 10 Clay Carlson, the Cowboys took the momentum right back with wins at 141 and 149 pounds heading into intermission. No. 21 Victor Voinovich recorded a takedown in the first period and was able to hold onto his lead through the rest of the match, edging Alek Martin, 3-1. In a top-20 matchup, No. 10 Kaden Gfeller defeated No. 19 Cael Swanson with ease thanks to a takedown and turn in the first period. He would go on to pick up am 8-1 decision to give Oklahoma State a 13-3 lead at the break.
In an important match out of intermission, No. 25 Wyatt Sheets took down No. 15 Tanner Cook, 8-6, for his fourth ranked win of the season. Sheets entered the third period trailing, 6-5, but was able to get an escape and takedown to escape the bout with a win.
At the 174-pound bout, No. 13 Cade DeVos got the Jackrabbits back on the board with a 9-5 decision over No. 9 Dustin Plott to cut into the Cowboy lead.
No. 10 Travis Wittlake bounced back in the next match with a victory over No. 18 Cade King, as he dominated from the top position, riding King out for the whole second period before getting a reverse in the third to take the match, 3-0. Wittlake’s decision made the team score 19-6, sealing the OSU dual victory with two bouts remaining.
The Cowboys dropped the final two bouts of the night, with No. 16 Luke Surber falling to No. 9 Tanner Sloan and No. 16 A.J. Nevills defeating No. 23 Konner Doucet.
Coming off three consecutive ranked wins, Oklahoma State will head back home to square off against Stanford in Gallagher-Iba Arena on Sunday in its penultimate home dual of the 2022-23 campaign.
No. 7 Oklahoma State 19, No. 16 South Dakota State 12
Feb. 10, 2023 l Frost Arena l Brookings, S.D.
Attendance: 1,531
125: Reece Witcraft (OSU) dec. No. 25 Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 9-5
133: No. 2 Daton Fix (OSU) MD Derrick Cardinal (SDSU), 11-1
141: No. 10 Clay Carlson (SDSU) dec. No. 15 Carter Young (OSU), 4-2
149: No. 21 Victor Voinovich (OSU) dec. Alek Martin (SDSU), 3-1
157: No. 10 Kaden Gfeller (OSU) dec. No. 19 Cael Swensen (SDSU), 8-1
165: No. 25 Wyatt Sheets (OSU) dec. No. 15 Tanner Cook (SDSU), 8-6
174: No. 13 Cade DeVos (SDSU) dec. No. 9 Dustin Plott (OSU), 9-5
184: No. 10 Travis Wittlake (OSU) dec. No. 18 Cade King (SDSU), 3-0
197: No. 9 Tanner Sloan (SDSU) dec. No. 16 Luke Surber (OSU), 7-0
HWT: No. 16 A.J. Nevills (SDSU) dec. No. 23 Konner Doucet (OSU), TB-2 4-3