Oklahoma State returns to the mat on Thursday after a brief holiday layoff with a double dual against Army and Northern Iowa on Thursday. Northern Iowa and Army will wrestle each other at 2 p.m. inside Gallagher-Iba Arena before the Cowboys wrestle both schools beginning with Army at 6 p.m. OSU has never met the Black Knights before. Zack Esposito met Phillip Simpson in the NCAA finals at 149 last season and will face his brother Patrick who is currently 14-3 on the year. Army is coached by former Cowboy Chuck Barbee who won a 104 career matches and was a three-time All-American from 1989-91. OSU will follow the dual with Army with a dual against 23rd-ranked Northern Iowa. The Cowboys own a 17-2 series advantage. OSU won the only meeting last year 30-6 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Northern Iowa has never won in Stillwater in 10 tries. UNI's last win came during the 1990-91 season with a 21-16 triumph in Cedar Falls. OSU has won the last eight meetings in the series. Panther 165-pounder Nick Baima is coming off of a big weekend at the Midlands Championships that saw him named Outstanding Wrestler.
Scouting the Black Knights
Army comes into the dual with a 2-0-1 record. The Black Knights opened the season with a 19-19 tie against Hofstra. Army then went on the road to defeat Franklin and Marshal and East Stroudsburg. Army is led by senior Patrick Simpson whi boaasts a 14-3 record. The Knights will also have seniors Jon Anderson, Luke Calvert and Todd Wisman in the lineup to provide leadership for a young lineup that also features three freshmen and a sophomore.
Scouting the Panthers
Northern Iowa comes into the dual with a 2-3 record. The Panthers three losses all come to Big Ten schools, while they have victories over Old Dominion and Virginia Tech. Nick Baima leads the team with a 19-2 record and a No. 6 national ranking in the 165-pound weight class. The Panthers also boast ranked wrestlers at 141 in No. 13 C.J. Ettelson and 157 in No. 17 Chris Bitetto.
Battle at 184
Rusty Blackmon made the first move towards claiming the 184-pound weight class with his last second decision over Oklahoma's 11th-ranked Justin Dyer. Blackmon previously lost to Lehigh's David Helfrich who has moved into the rankings at No. 17 this week. Jack Jensen wrestled in the first dual for the Cowboys losing to No. 18 Joe Williams of Michigan State. Clay Kehrer, the returning starter from last season, is still waiting for an opportunity to make his mark.
John Smith Nearing Chesbro's Mark
Head coach John Smith is approaching Tommy Chesbro's school record for career wins. Smith entered the season with 220 career wins, needing seven to tie Chesbro's mark. After starting the season 3-0, Smith is four wins away from equaling Chesbro. If the Cowboys remain undefeated, Smith would tie the mark anad pass it at National Duals Jan. 14-15.
Cowboys Parade Through Reno TOC
Oklahoma State held a parade at the Reno Tournament of Champions parading nine guys into the finals as the Cowboys won their fourth consecutive tournament title. Coleman Scott began the parade at 125, but tasted defeat to finish as the tournament runner-up. Nathan Morgan lost his first match of the season in the finals at 133. Also losing for the first time this season were Johny Hendricks and Jake Rosholt. Kevin Ward and Brandon Mason also suffered losses in the finals. OSU did take home three tournament titles. Daniel Frishkorn rebounded from a tough opening month to win his first tournament title at 141. Zack Esposito remained undefeated with a victory at 149. Steve Mocco also took home a tournament title at heavyweight. Two other Cowboys placed with Newly McSpadden finishing third at 157, while Rusty Blackmon finished fifth at 184.
Cowboys Winning Streak Alive
Oklahoma State improved its dual winning streak to 24 consecutive matches with a 23-12 victory over Bedlam rival Oklahoma. The Cowboys last loss was a home loss to Minnesota in the final dual of the 2003-04 season. The Cowboys still have a ways to go before equaling the school record of 76. OSU won 76 consecutive duals over 14 seasons from 1937 to 1951. The longest unbeaten streak in school history is 84. OSU went 82-0-2 over seven seasons from 1959 to 1966.
Tough Shoes to Fill
Redshirt freshman Brandon Mason has the unenviable task of replacing three-time All-American and two-time national champion Chris Pendleton. Mason took third at the recent Kaufman/Brand Open. He lost an early bout to Iowa State's David Bertolino, but came back to win in convincing fashion to claim third. On his way through the bracket he beat Bertolino before defeating Minnesota's 14th-ranked Gabe Dretsch with a resounding decision, 9-2. Mason also took a runner-up finish at Reno Tournament of Champions losing to third-ranked Jake Herbert in the finals. Mason is currently 11-4 in the early part of the 2005-06 season.
Mocco Continues to Win
Steve Mocco began his current string of 79 consecutive victories while he wrestled for the University of Iowa. His last loss came to Tommy Rowlands of Ohio State in the finals of the 2002 NCAA Championships. Mocco compiled a 34-0 record during his sophomore season at Iowa en route to winning his first NCAA title. After taking a redshirt year to train for the 2004 Olympics, Mocco transferred to Oklahoma State where he continued his incredible streak. In Mocco's first year at OSU, he went 37-0 and won the Dan Hodge Trophy. He recently suffered his first collegiate loss in the NWCA All-Star Classic since that title match his freshman season, but his streak remains intact as the All-Star matches do not count on your record. Mocco will be seeking his third national title at the Ford Center in March of 2006. If Mocco goes undefeated during the 2005-06 season he will pass Yojiro Uetake as OSU's winningest wrestler. Uetake went 58-0 from 1964-66. Mocco is currently 45-0 in his one plus years at Oklahoma State.
Esposito Climbing the Charts
Zack Esposito enters his senior season with 93 career victories. Head Coach John Smith's career record of 154 wins may be out of reach, but another national championship season could move Esposito into the top five on the career charts. Esposito's is currently 102-8 currently ranks eighth with a percentage of .927. Eric Wais and Tom Erikson are just in front of him with a percentage of .927. Esposito went over the 100 win plateau for his career with six wins at the Reno Tournament of Champions and he is five wins shy of catching Randy Couture for 20th on the all-time list.
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