Big 12 Weekly Recap (2/14/2024)

It wasn’t the craziest week in the Big 12 but there was plenty of notable action. Oklahoma State continues to have one of their strongest seasons in recent years, navigating a dangerous dual with South Dakota State. The Jackrabbits were coming off a solid win over Oklahoma the day before as well. History was made as Northern Iowa traveled to take on California Baptist on the road before following that up with a great dual against Iowa State. Air Force and Northern Colorado took out Utah Valley in conference matchups. While most schools still have duals coming up this month, Wyoming did cap their dual season off and will be joined by Air Force, Northern Colorado, Oklahoma, and West Virginia after this upcoming week.

Air Force (Overall: 5-6; Conference: 3-5): Dual Results (UVU) | Dual Results (AMER)

Air Force went 2-0 on the weekend including a conference win by taking out Utah Valley 23-18 and American 33-11. Tucker Owens, Giano Petrucelli, Noah Blake, Sam Wolf, and Wyatt Hendrickson went undefeated on the weekend. Wolf only wrestled against Utah Valley and took out Mahonri Rushton 9-5. Petrucelli, Blake, and Hendrickson bonused their opponents with a major, two techs, and three pins. Hendrickson is now up to 12 pins in just 15:04 and is seven wins away from a career 100. 

Next Up: Air Force finishes their dual season at home against Northern Colorado on February 18th.

California Baptist (Overall: 4-9; Conference: 1-6): Dual Results

For the first time in program history the Lancers hosted Northern Iowa for a conference dual that they dropped 36-9. Chaz Hallmark scored big points for the team at 157, pinning Kaleb Olejniczak in the third period. Darren Green was the team’s other win, beating Connor Thorpe in OT. Dayne Morton at 149 had a close match as well, but dropped a 2-0 decision to Adam Allard. 

Next Up: California Baptist has a dual against Cal Poly on February 16th followed by a tri-dual with Hofstra and CSU Bakersfield on February 17th.  

Iowa State (Overall: 12-2; Conference: 5-1): Dual Results

The Cyclones took out in-state opponent Northern Iowa with a 27-14 dual win. Kysen Terukina lost in overtime but Iowa State responded with bonus points from Evan Frost and Casey Swiderski with an upset for Anthony Echemendia mixed in as well. Cody Chittum dropped a barnburner match with Ryder Downey, but they responded with bonus points from David Carr and MJ Gaitan. Tate Naaktgeboren dropped his second dual appearance to Parker Keckeisen, a tall task for the blue chipper. The team capped off the day with another dominant Yonger Bastida match as he scored seven takedowns in the first period for the early tech fall. 

Next Up: Iowa State hosts the always fun Last Chance Open on February 18th.

Missouri (Overall: 8-2; Conference: 4-1): No Competition.

Next Up: Missouri hits the road against NDSU on February 16 and SDSU on February 18th. 

North Dakota State (Overall: 3-9; Conference: 2-4): No Competition.

Next Up: NDSU hosts Missouri on February 16th. 

Northern Colorado (Overall: 9-5; Conference: 2-4): Dual Results

Northern Colorado got another conference win by taking out Utah Valley 22-12. Stevo Poulin and Dom Serrano got off to a quick start with bonus point wins. Vinny Zerban improved his record to 20-0 and got his 15th bonus point win of the season. Derek Matthews and Travis Mastrogiovanni continue to round out the lineup as they got two wins as well. 

Next Up: Northern Colorado takes on Air Force on the road on February 18th. 

Northern Iowa (Overall: 6-6; Conference: 5-2): Dual Results (CBU) | Dual Results (ISU)

The Panthers took a long trip to California for their first ever road dual against California Baptist. The trip was a good one as they won the dual 36-9, winning eight matches. They got bonus point wins from Trever Anderson, RJ Weston, Jared Simma, Parker Keckeisen, Wyatt Voelker, and Tyrell Gordon. Anderson was the biggest winner, pinning ranked Eli Griffin late in the match while down 16-7. 

Just two days later, the team came back to Iowa and dropped a 27-14 dual to Iowa State. Trever Anderson was again a big winner, beating Kysen Terukina in overtime. Cael Happel dropped a back and forth rematch against Anthony Echemendia. Ryder Downey scored a big win over Cody Chittum in a match with massive seeding implications. 

Next Up: The Panthers have the Last Chance Open on their schedule for February 18th.

Oklahoma State (Overall: 13-0; Conference: 7-0): Dual Results

The Cowboys are looking to stay undefeated for the first time since 2021 (10-0), and have a chance to match their 15-0 run from 2019. Both seasons saw the team finish third at NCAA’s with a team trophy. They stayed undefeated this week with a team dominant 31-6 win over a dangerous SDSU team. Troy Spratley avenged a loss to Tanner Jordan with a win, Tagen Jamison navigated a tough match with Clay Carlson, and Jordan Williams and Izzak Olejnik got pins. There were some nail biters, with OK State coming out on top in overtime with Tagen Jamison, Teague Travis, and Dustin Plott. With just two duals left, the Cowboys are one of the most consistent teams this season. 

Next Up: Oklahoma State and Oklahoma compete in their second Bedlam of the year on February 18th, this time in Stillwater. 

Oklahoma (Overall: 5-6; Conference: 2-5): Dual Results

The Sooners tried to repeat history with an upset over SDSU, like last year, but came up short in a 20-13 loss. Conrad Hendriksen was close to another upset but lost 4-0 to Tanner Jordan. Jace Koelzer got a big upset with a win over Derrick Cardinal, while Willie McDougald got a solid upset win over Alek Martin to climb back in the rankings. Gerrit Nijenhuis appears like he could have won the spot at 165, getting a 6-4 win over Connor Gaynor in his first match at the weight this season. Stephen Buchanan dropped his biggest test of the season 4-1 to Tanner Sloan, but feels like a rematch is guaranteed to happen at some point. 

Next Up: Oklahoma and Oklahoma State compete in their second Bedlam of the year on February 18th, this time in Stillwater. 

South Dakota State (Overall: 12-3; Conference: 6-1): Dual Results (OU) | Dual Results (OKST)

The Jackrabbits visited the state of Oklahoma and went 1-1 in duals with a 20-13 win over Oklahoma and a 31-6 loss to Oklahoma State. They looked good against the Sooners, winning six matches along the way. Derrick Cardinal and Alek Martin were both upset, while Cael Swensen and Cade DeVos survived more-than-game opponents. Tanner Sloan was the biggest winner of the night, avenging a 2022 loss to Stephen Buchanan with a 4-1 decision.

The OK State dual was a tough one, as SDSU was only able to win two matches as their undefeated conference streak broke. Cade DeVos and Tanner Sloan both handled ranked opponents, while Cael Swensen, Clay Carlson, and Bennett Berge all saw their upset bids come short with overtime losses. Carlson has a history of coming up big late in the season as a two-time All-American while Swensen and Berge are looking like podium contenders themselves. 

Next Up: South Dakota State hosts Missouri on February 18th. 

Utah Valley (Overall: 2-6; Conference: 1-6): Dual Results (AF) | Dual Results (UNCO)

Utah Valley went on the road to Colorado for duals against Air Force and Northern Colorado. They dropped the dual to Air Force 23-18 and to Northern Colorado 22-15. Haiden Drury, Isaiah Delgado, and Evan Bockman all went 2-0 in both duals as they look to repeat as NCAA qualifiers. Drury appears to be finding a groove at 141lbs, as he has won his last five including ranked wins over Cole Brooks and Gavin Drexler. Jacob Armstrong didn’t wrestle Air Force, but got a 4-1 decision over Northern Colorado. 

Next Up: Utah Valley has the Cowboy Shootout on February 18th. 

West Virginia (Overall: 9-5; Conference: 2-5): No Competition.

Next Up: West Virginia wrestles Glenville State on February 18th at home to finish their dual season. 

Wyoming (Overall: 7-7; Conference: 5-4): Dual Results

Wyoming wrapped up their 2024 dual season with a 34-6 loss to Oregon State. The seven wins are the highest the team has had since 2019, and the 50% win percentage is much higher than their 1-10 season last year. In their dual they got solid wins with Cooper Voorhees beating a dangerous Isaiah Crosby and Gabe Willochell with an upset over Nash Singleton. Cole Brooks had a 9-4 loss to Cleveland Belton, and Quayin Short dropped a 7-3 decision. The team was also without big guns in Jore Volk and Joey Novak where their backups gave up a tech and pin. The team still hosts a home open to finish the season with the Cowboy Shootout. 

Next Up: Wyoming hosts the Cowboy Shootout on February 18th.