(Pokes Report publisher Robert Allen contributed to this story from Jake LeForce of OSU Athletic Media Relations.)
STILLWATER, Okla. – The Oklahoma State wrestling team continued its undefeated season with a 27-9 victory over No. 16 Oregon State Sunday afternoon at Gallagher-Iba Arena. The Cowboys moved to 8-0 with the win, while Oregon State fell to 5-3.
Oklahoma State fell behind early, facing a 9-5 deficit after three matches, but it rattled off seven straight wins to ultimately claim the dual. It was an afternoon full of tight matches, as four Cowboys picked up wins in either sudden victory or tiebreakers, OSU’s most in a dual since at least 2002-03.
The Cowboys are now 6-0 against ranked opponents and 13-1 in their last 14 duals overall. With the win, head coach John Smith improved to 26-1 as head coach in head-to-head matchups with his former wrestlers. Additionally, he trails Harold Nichols by just eight victories at 484 for second-most in Division I wrestling history.
Oregon State’s No. 16 Brandon Kaylor got the fall at 4:47 over No. 19 Troy Spratley at 125 pounds. Kaylor ignited the Gallagher-Iba Arena crowd and the Cowboys when he stood in the middle of the mat after his win and did the O-S-U cheer and proclaimed Oregon State “the real OSU.”
Daton Fix saw it and then he got the Cowboys on the board at 133 pounds with a dominant 22-6 technical fall over No. 26 Gabe Whisenhunt, his fifth bonus-point win in just six matches this season. With Oklahoma State trailing after three matches, Sammy Alvarez made his Gallagher-Iba Arena debut in a big match against No. 15 Nash Singleton at 149 pounds. The two wrestlers traded escapes and went to sudden victory, but Alvarez finally found his offense to secure the much-needed 4-1 decision.
Teague Travis then improved his dual record to 8-0 with a 4-2 decision over Isaiah Crosby, which was followed by Izzak Olejnik’s 10-1 major decision against Kekana Fouret. Olejnik suffered his first defeat of the season a week ago against West Virginia’s Peyton Hall, but responded well on Sunday with his 10th bonus-point win this season.
Holding a 15-9 edge, the Cowboys put the dual away with four straight wins over ranked foes by Brayden Thompson, Dustin Plott, Luke Surber and Konner Doucet.
Thompson took on Matthew Olguin, who entered Sunday as the No. 13 165-pounder in the country. The match made its way into sudden victory, but Thompson grinded out a takedown with just six seconds remaining for the 4-1 decision.
In the marquee matchup of the day, second-ranked Dustin Plott defeated No. 4 Trey Munoz, 4-2, at 184 pounds. Plott got the key takedown early in the third period and was able to hold off Munoz for his second career top-five victory. His first was just 16 days ago against No. 5 Dylan Fishback of NC State.
After missing much of the season due to injury, Luke Surber picked up his first dual win since the season opener, defeating No. 28 Justin Rademacher, 9-6, in sudden victory. At heavyweight, Konner Doucet faced No. 11 Boone McDermott for the second time this season after defeating the Beaver at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in December. Just as they did in Las Vegas, the two competed into tiebreakers, as a ride out by Doucet lifted him to a 2-1 decision.
The Cowboys are set to continue their home stretch next weekend with duals against No. 23 Northern Iowa on Friday, January 26, and No. 4 Iowa State the very next day. Both duals will be available on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
No. 5 Oklahoma State 27, No. 16 Oregon State 9
Jan. 21, 2024 | Gallagher-Iba Arena | Stillwater, Okla.
Attendance: 4,206
