Cowboys Have Four Wrestlers in the Big 12 Finals, OSU First in Team Standings
(This story originated with Oklahoma State University athletic media relations and was mostly written by Emily Lingenfelter.)
TULSA, Okla. – The No. 11 Oklahoma State wrestling team wrapped up the first day of the Big 12 Wrestling Championships in first place with 111.5 team points, while sending four Cowboys through to Sunday night’s championship bouts.
All three of OSU’s top seeds, who are undefeated against Big 12 opponents this season, reached the finals with wins in Saturday night’s semifinal round, including Nick Piccininni at 125 pounds, Boo Lewallen at 149 pounds and Travis Wittlake at 165 pounds. Third-seeded Wyatt Sheets also advanced to the finals at 157 pounds.
It was Lewallen's semifinal win that turned the tide on Saturday night as Lewallen and Iowa State's Jarret Degen went through a reversal by Lewallen and then he picked up back points before Degen reversed again. However, Lewallen started the third period on top and was able to get Degen flipped over on his head and then put him on the mat on his back and ended the match with a fall at 6:18. Iowa State led the team standings going into that match by 10 points, but Lewallen and Oklahoma State picked up nine to make it virtually even after that semifinal.
“I knew he was a tough opponent,” Lewallen said after striking a pose on the mat after the fall. It was an emotional moment.
“We’ve wrestled quite a bit. He’s the type of guy I’m not gonna be able to ride," Lewallen continued. "So I had to be willing to get however many takedowns I need. Being able to mentally push myself and be willing to get any takedown I can throughout the whole match. I think I wrestled well. Just gotta wrestle a little cleaner.”
“I thought (the response after the first session) was good from a standpoint of, if you’re gonna win a tournament, you’ve got to win matches,” coach John Smith said. “I thought we did a pretty good job tonight and ended up with several wins. That’s good for the evening competition. It makes a difference on the scoreboard, and it makes a difference for us tomorrow.”
Piccininni also won his semifinal bout with bonus points, as he took down fourth-seeded McGwire Midkiff of North Dakota State with a 12-1 major decision. He and Lewallen both went 2-0 on the first day of the event and won each bout with bonus points.
The other two Cowboy finalists also had notable wins in the semifinals, as third-seeded Sheets took down No. 2 Jared Franek of North Dakota State, 14-5, and Travis Wittlake nearly added another bonus point victory with a 10-3 decision over South Dakota State’s fourth-seeded Tanner Cook.
Dusty Hone (141) and Joe Smith (174) also wrestled in Saturday night’s semifinals but dropped close matches to move into the consolation finals, where they could finish as high as third in Session III Sunday morning.
They are joined in the consolation finals by Anthony Montalvo (184) and Dakota Geer (197), who each won two matches in the consolation bracket to stay in the battle for third place.
Montalvo advanced with a fall over West Virginia’s Jackson Moomau and a sudden victory win over No. 6 Darrien Roberts of Oklahoma, while Geer advanced with a 13-7 decision over Iowa State’s Joel Shapiro and 10-7 decision over No. 8 Cordell Eaton of North Dakota State.
“It’s no longer about whether you’re going to nationals,” John Smith said. “It’s about trying to position yourself well. I sure would like to see some guys come back and finish third. It’s gonna be hard, but if we respect how hard it is, we’ll probably wrestle like we need to wrestle.”
Reece Witcraft upset the No. 1 seed in the 133-pound bracket to move to the second consolation round as he defeated Taylor LaMont of Utah Valley, 5-3, but lost his next bout to move to Sunday’s seventh-place match.
Heavyweight Austin Harris was the Cowboys’ only wrestler eliminated during the first day of the tournament, as his season came to an end with a loss in the first consolation round.
The second and final day of the Big 12 Championships begins with Session III at 11 a.m. Sunday morning, where third through eighth place finishers will be determined. It wraps up with the championship bouts in Session IV at 6 p.m. at the BOK Center in Tulsa.
Fans can follow live results on trackwrestling.com, live updates on Twitter via @CowboyWrestling and watch each mat live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
2020 Big 12 Wrestling Championship
March 7, 2020 | BOK Center | Tulsa, Okla.
Team Standings After Session Two
1. Oklahoma State - 111.5
2. Iowa State - 92.0
3. Northern Iowa - 90.5
4. South Dakota State - 83.5
5. North Dakota State - 74.5
6. Oklahoma - 65.5
7. Wyoming - 65.0
8. Northern Colorado - 60.0
9. Fresno State - 47.5
10. West Virginia - 35.0
11. Utah Valley - 29.0
12. Air Force - 21.5
Semifinals
125: No. 1 Nick Piccininni (OSU) maj. dec. No. 4 McGwire Midkiff (North Dakota State), 12-1
141: No. 1 Dom Demas (Oklahoma) dec. No. 4 Dusty Hone (OSU), 3-1
149: No. 1 Boo Lewallen (OSU) fall No. 4 Jarrett Degen (Iowa State), 6:18
157: No. 3 Wyatt Sheets (OSU) dec. No. 2 Jared Franek (North Dakota State), 14-5
165: No. 1 Travis Wittlake (OSU) dec. No. 4 Tanner Cook (South Dakota State), 10-3
174: No. 1 Bryce Steiert (Northern Iowa) dec. No. 5 Joe Smith (OSU), 4-1
First Round Consolation
133: No. 6 Reece Witcraft (OSU) dec. No. 1 Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley), 5-3
184: No. 2 Anthony Montalvo (OSU) fall Jackson Moomau (West Virginia), 2:22
197: No. 5 Dakota Geer (OSU) dec. Joel Shapiro (Iowa State), 13-7
HWT: No. 7 Brandon Metz (North Dakota State) dec. Austin Harris (OSU), 8-4
Second Round Consolation
133: Lawrence Saenz (Fresno State) maj. dec. No. 6 Reece Witcraft (OSU), 16-7
184: No. 2 Anthony Montalvo (OSU) dec. No. 6 Darrien Roberts (Oklahoma), 5-3, SV1
197: No. 5 Dakota Geer (OSU) dec. No. 8 Cordell Eaton (North Dakota State), 10-7
Consolation Semifinals Schedule (Sunday Morning)
141: No. 4 Dusty Hone (OSU) vs. No. 7 Clay Carlson (South Dakota State)
174: No. 5 Joe Smith (OSU) vs. No. 6 Hayden Hastings (Wyoming)
184: No. 2 Anthony Montalvo (OSU) vs. No. 5 Marcus Coleman (Iowa State)
197: No. 5 Dakota Geer (OSU) vs. No. 3 Jake Woodley (Oklahoma)
Seventh Place Match Schedule (Sunday Morning)
133: No. 6 Reece Witcraft (OSU) vs. Lucas Seibert (West Virginia)
Finals Schedule (Sunday Night)
125: No. 1 Nick Piccininni (OSU) vs. No. 3 Alex Mackall (Iowa State)
149: No. 1 Boo Lewallen (OSU) vs. No. 2 Henry Pohlmeyer (South Dakota State)
157: No. 3 Wyatt Sheets (OSU) vs. No. 1 David Carr (Iowa State)
165: No. 1 Travis Wittlake (OSU) vs. No. 2 Andrew Fogarty (North Dakota State)
