With the win, Wyoming (12-3, 6-2 Big 12) now has six Big 12 victories on the season. The Pokes had won eight total the previous two years as a member of the conference. It also becomes just the seventh time in the 93 years of Cowboy wrestling that UW has won at least 12 duals in a season. Additionally, Branch now has 99 career dual wins at the helm of the UW wrestling program.
"It was great to be able to get the entire senior class to compete on Senior Night," Branch said. "I thought things went really well tonight. Lately, we have had an opportunity to wrestle a little more aggressively. We've been getting consistent with the bonus-points and that has allowed us to dominate with the team score, which is good to see this time of the year. I think our guys are feeding off each other right now and it shows as we've had a few great performances as of late in our upper weights. That has definitely helped us a lot. I thought this was a great weekend for us, I'm proud of how we were able to get the job done."
After an injury default at 197 pounds, Luke Paine got things rolling and claimed the victory for the Pokes. At 285 pounds, Sam Eagan kept up with the winning ways as he earned a 6-3 decision over Robert Winters. Eagan scored two takedowns and added two escapes during the bout.
Drake Foster fell behind in the 125 pound match but scrapped his way to a pin over Sean Cannon. Foster gave up an early takedown in the first period but regrouped to claim the lead. He would add four more takedowns before pinning Cannon with 23 seconds left. With the win, UW held a 15-0 lead after three matches.
Bryce Meredith made quick work over Ben Polkowske at 141 pounds. The two-time All-American earned a first-period pin to move UW's lead to 21-4 just heading in to intermission. It was the second-straight pin for Meredith and his 11th of the season.
After intermission, Sam Turner had no issue with Owen Lamb at 149 pounds. Turner scored first with a takedown before adding a four-point nearfall in the first period. He then added another takedown in the second and two more in the final frame. Turner cruised to a 19-1 tech fall for the win.
Archie Colgan followed suit with a 6-3 decision over Tyler Kinn at 157 pounds. With riding time, Colgan would score two takedowns and an escape point on way to the victory. Branson Ashworth then claimed an 8-1 decision over No. 17 Keilan Torres. Like usual, Ashworth earned a takedown in the opening frame and never looked back. He would add another to help further his lead for what was his third win against a ranked opponent this season.
Kyle Pope took charge at 174 pounds for the Brown and Gold on Saturday night. Behind two takedowns, Pope earned an 8-2 decision over Seth Bogulski. Chaz Polson then closed out the dual for Wyoming with an upset victory over 20th-ranked Dylan Gabel at 184 pounds. Polson fell behind but closed out the second period with a 2-1 lead. In the final frame, the senior swiftly scored a reversal to move his lead to 4-1. He tacked on a riding time point for the 5-1 decision victory. The big time win was his first against a ranked opponent this season.
The Pokes are back in action on Friday at Air Force to close out the regular season. The dual will begin at 7 p.m. MT.
Results:
197: Paine injury default win over Seely (UW, 6-0)
285: Eagan dec. over Winters, 6-3 (UW, 9-0)
125: Foster fall (6:37) over Cannon (UW, 15-0)
133: Montoya maj. dec. over Stevens, 2-11 (UW, 15-4)
141: Meredith fall (2:10) over Polkowske (UW, 21-4)
149: Turner tech. fall (6:48) over Lamb (UW, 26-4)
157: Colgan dec. over Kinn, 6-3 (UW, 29-4)
165: Ashworth dec. over Torres, 8-1 (UW, 32-4)
174: Pope dec. over Bogulski, 8-2 (UW, 35-4)
184: Polson dec. over Gabel, 5-1 (UW, 38-4)
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